‘One Drop Queen’ is now ‘Versatile’

It was while vibing to deejay Potential Kidd's ' A Yah So Nice' in 2010, that Portmore duo, Swatwinz, created the move they called Trap Setter.

Over time, it evolved into the hugely popular One Drop dance, and made twins Janel and Janiel Mitchell the official 'One Drop Queens'.

Janel is still dancing - her twin having taken a break to start a family - and she told THE WEEKEND STAR that dancehall artiste Mr Vegas heard about their Trap Setter and invited them to do the move in his song of the same name.

"The dance reach into Kingston and by that time we were Magnum Girls, so we used to go to the parties. We heard some selectors call the move the 'Oney Eye Drop', and it occurred to us that we could change the name. So we changed it officially to One Drop and then QQ did the song and started asking about the person who did it," Janel explained.

When he found out that they were twins, he was even more determined to have them in his One Drop music video, and this led to greater things for the Greater Portmore High School graduates.

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In 2015, they were asked by QQ to accompany him on tour to The Bahamas.

"It was four of us as dancers who went. Me and my sister, Sher and Barbie Star. We stayed at the Atlantic Hotel. It was a very good trip," Janel said.

The One Drop Queens have built several dance moves since then, but Janel notes that "One Drop is the worldwide dance."

Its popularity, she said, stemmed from the fact that it is an easy dance to perform.

"Everybody can do [it], even the old man. We actually have six different versions of the dance, but most people only know two," she said.

She added, however, that when they are asked to teach dance classes, they give lessons in all the versions.

Janel, who is now a member of the Versatile Ones Dancers, having joined up with them in her twin's absence, said the members of the group are still able to do their own independent dancing.

With Versatile, she has gained quite a bit of international exposure, through performing in music videos for big name artistes.

"We did videos for Jason Derulo, Sean Paul and Cardi B," Janel said, adding that she is knowledgeable about more than just dancehall, as she was exposed to contemporary, jazz and folk forms during high school.

Her plans to attend the Edna Manley School for the Visual and Performing Arts were put on hold, however, as she and her sister had to find jobs after graduating from high school to help the family.

"So we went straight into dancing and it worked out for us," she said. "Our careers kicked off, and so far, I have travelled to places such as St Lucia, Barbados and England."