Dancers' Paradise: Special Black uses her power to change minds

Female empowerment and black power are two subject matters that dancer Special Black is passionate about next to dance.

She started dancing full-time last year with Dance Xpressionz after a long time of deliberating on her career path and was given the stage name Special Black by veteran Colo Colo, which she decided to carry on.

“Colo Colo would always comment and say, ‘ no man, you have a special type of black’ about my complexion, saying it was cool and nice to look at, which was important in motivating me,” Special Black shared.

She says that too often she hears young people, especially females, being criticised for being too dark or being affected by those statements.

“People with my skin colour are frequently told that they are ugly or that it (their dark complexion) is not pretty and I make the effort to tell them that it is pretty, a beauty like no other,” she told Dancers’ Paradise on her spreading positive messages.

“I have used dancing as a platform to motivate others and spread that message,” she continued.

Special Black, given name Shenelle Rookwood, got her first music video in 2017 when she was featured in EEII Nation and Voicemail’s video for the Afrobeat single I’ll Be Fine.

She is the creator of Magic Wine, which she says was inspired by another Afrobeat song, Rock Your Body by Burna Boy.

She said, “I was in a bus when I heard the track; instantly, I started creating a routine in my mind and without thinking, I did a move – it was like magic; that received good feedback on social media.”

But Special Black wants to try her magic in modelling, too. The 21-year-old started dancing only a couple of months before graduating from Vauxhall High School and believes that by making small moves, she is able to do more.

“With my complexion and my height (she is close to six feet tall), I have been told on sets by make-up artists and other professionals that I can model,” she said. “I did not know I would be a dancer professionally but always loved the party and was willing to learn … plus, I admit I was not the most flexible. I am more on the awkward side, which has something to do with my height.”

She awaits the release of Buju Banton’s Trust video, where she worked as part of Dance Xpressionz on the set.

“Dance Xpressionz is the first and only professional group I have danced with. It (her participation) was on and off due to personal issues at first, but Orville and the team members were understanding. I kept in touch with them, and now dancing with them is a dream come true,” she said.