African dance team Ijoya creates a joyous space for the celebration of African culture and history

Upper West Side NY

28 January, 2022

4:18 PM

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Columbia Daily Spectator BY LAURA JIANG • JANUARY 28, 2022, 10:20 AM "Soro soke," a Yoruba phrase meaning "speak up," has come to define a new generation of youth in Nigeria collectively standing up for protestors who were silenced and violently harmed by the Nigerian army under state orders on Oct. 20, 2020. "Soro soke" was also the theme of the dance that won Ijoya the first place title at the 12th Annual Danceversity Competition hosted at Rutgers University, the biggest African dance competition in the tri-state area. Ijoya, meaning "time to dance" in Yoruba, is Columbia's first and only African dance group. The crew was founded in 2015 and has since cultivated a community of over 80 students honoring African dance and culture. Created as a subsidiary to the African Student Association, Ijoya's dedication to performance has quickly established the club as a highly active dance group living out its founding mission: to celebrate African dance. As Afrobeats songs, including hits like "Essence" by WizKid, gained traction in the American pop music scene, African dance has established its presence within popular culture in recent years. Former Ijoya co-president Bianca Amoabeng, CC '22, who was born and raised in Ghana, reflects on the unexpectedness of this change. "African dance has gotten way bigger than personally what I thought it would be. … It was something that when I was in kindergarten, we would do this drum circle and we'd all do the African dances per our tribe," Amoabeng said. "To see on TikTok right now people doing all these moves … some of them don't know what it is. Some of them do know what it is. From our standpoint, it's nice to see that people want to engage." The increased popularity of African dance and Afrobeats has accompanied Ijoya's growth in the six years since its founding. Former Ijoya co-president Zusi Inegbeniki, CC '22, noted that African dance is not one style, but rather an umbrella term encompassing an innumerable array of styles stemming from the many tribes of sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the multitude of styles that exist, all of them can be connected through their shared purpose of storytelling, religion, and ceremony. Ijoya, in particular, leans into storytelling by choosing themes for its performances. These routines are performed at events on and off campus, such as the Chinese Student Club's annual night market and ASA's Afropolitan. "The history of the dance that we represent very much comes from a storytelling tradition," Inegbeniki said. "We don't call it dance. Indigenous tribes didn't call it dance. … You're telling a story. They're telling it through movement." Following indigenous tradition, the dance crew sees dance as more than just a pastime; it is a way of life that puts celebration and joy at the forefront, a characteristic that Ijoya Co-Vice President Sikirat Mustapha, CC '25, greatly appreciates. She describes the celebration as one the dancers can use to celebrate themselves and their community. More importantly, the energy that comes through during celebration can be shared with the audience. "We are not only dancing just to dance, but also dancing for our livelihoods, dancing for purpose, and dancing for the continent as well," she said. Mustapha kindled her passion for dance very early in life, describing herself as "born and raised" on Afrobeats and West African dance. To her, African dance has always been "fundamentally enabling" as it puts her mental well-being at the forefront. Ijoya seeks to give dancers from all heritage and dance backgrounds the chance to experience the feeling of enablement that African dance inherently brings. The group's exuberant passion drew members both with and without dance experience to audition for Ijoya. Co-Vice President Danielle Eregie, CC '24, arrived at Ijoya's auditions nervous about her lack of dance experience. However, the welcoming environment cultivated by Ijoya's members immediately put her at ease and gave her confidence to embrace her identity as a dancer. For some, Ijoya not only helps them embrace their identity in dance, but also their relationship to their cultural background. Events Manager Kamaru Oseni, CC '25, sees Ijoya not only as a team which welcomed and enabled him to dance, but one that has brought him back to his Nigerian heritage. "One of the reasons why I came to New York, came to Columbia, was to get back to that culture, and being in Ijoya really gave me that experience," Oseni said. "I found my ... African family away from ... my actual home in Boston." Similarly, Tonika Henry, BC '22, has not only brought her Caribbean heritage to Ijoya, but has been able to learn the names of African dance moves along with other members during practice. The team's collaborative choreographic process also encourages everyone to accurately learn the culturally significant names behind dance moves. Ijoya provides a family-like space for its members in which they can truly empathize with each other's experiences. When creating their piece with the theme of "soro soke," members returned to their shared mission of shedding light on movements against oppression through a celebration of African culture. "In the same vein [as the 'soro soke' movement], we see ourselves as alone in this world, in this predominantly white institution," Inegbeniki said. "We definitely see ourselves [being] discriminated against." Amoabeng emphasizes the importance of having a space like Ijoya where dancers can release their struggles as African dance is "ritualistically ... a form of play." "In terms of the greater community's struggle, of course, 'soro soke' is what we definitely wanted to bring awareness to, but at the same time, as a dancer, this is a place where you come to get all of your struggles away, especially in our little community of Columbia," Amoabeng said. Looking ahead, Ijoya hopes to receive recognition from the Activities Board at Columbia and University Student Life to become a fully independent club and to receive funding that would help the club meet its various demands, including traveling expenses and paying for live drumming, which is an essential part of traditional African dance. "There's still that bit of us not being fully seen. … There are still events and large celebrations in Columbia's tradition where Ijoya still needs to be fully recognized. So I do think there's a long way to go but we have come so far," Inegbeniki said. Founded in 1877, the Columbia Daily Spectator is the independent undergraduate newspaper of Columbia University, serving thousands of readers in Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and beyond. Read more at columbiaspectator.com and donate here.