By Jonah Kramer | Staff Writer
Strolling could not be contained to the stage at Friday night’s sixth annual Royal and Pure Homecoming Stroll-Off. After three rounds of rhythm, beats, lights and props featuring six Baylor National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) organizations, the night ended with competitors strolling while alumni were in the crowd.
Keyon Martin, a Divine Nine alumnus, said he returned to campus for his first homecoming since graduating in 2015.
“I felt like it was time to come back and get reimmersed,” Martin said. “After being away for so long, you miss your other Bears.”
The Alpha Phi Alpha alumnus cheered the black- and gold-donned members of Alpha Phi Alpha to their second straight Stroll-Off championship.
Suffolk, Va., junior Melvin Kearney, one of the four competing members of Alpha Phi Alpha, said there is a signature fraternity stroll that led them to victory.
“One is called the train,” Kearney said. “We kick our leg back, kick the other one up. Another one is called the shoulder. We just move our shoulder up and down.”
It may sound simple, but the coordination between the fraternity brothers and the rhythm along with the music — including Kearney’s favorite stroll song of the night, “Lean Back” — thrilled the audience and impressed the judges.
Dr. Geoffrey Griggs, associate director of multicultural affairs and a returning Stroll-Off judge, highlighted “precision” as a deciding factor in choosing the winner.
“You can tell if a group has been practicing and working on their craft for a good period of time,” Griggs said. “Doing something exciting [that is] going to get the crowd involved [and] things like that nature set those that are the best above everybody else.”
In the competition’s final round, the free stroll, Phi Alpha Phi strolled through the aisles of the crowd engaging the audience. Kearny said they had been practicing for two hours every day for the past several weeks. They eventually made a running exit through the front doors of the Bill Daniel Student Center’s Barfield Drawing Room.
The other chapters also brought their own distinctive taste to the free stroll, with Alpha Kappa Alpha wearing white ski masks and carrying baseball bats, Zeta Phi Beta doing the stanky leg and Kappa Alpha Psi using canes to complement their prisoner theme. The second place finisher, Delta Sigma Theta, was illuminated by red light.
The creativity of the final stroll for each chapter capped a competition full of unique and varying elements, including the music. The slow stroll round featured songs like “Say Goodbye” by Chris Brown, while the Deja Blu or throwback stroll wound the tape back to alumni times with tunes like “Gangsta’s Paradise.”
Before the competition began, the foyer to the Barfield Drawing Room was filled with reunions and embraces. Attendees were then met by event hosts —members of the Nu Zeta Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma — wearing black and blue suit jackets.
One of the door greeters, Converse sophomore J.T. Young, said it is important to set the tone of the night from the get-go.
“We are the first people they see when they come in the building, so we are the energy,” Young said. “In order to be a door greater, you’ve got to come with a smile on your face and set the pace right.”
Along with the Sigmas — who took the stage for the first stroll of the night despite not officially competing — Vincent Phillips, associate director of campus experience in the department of undergraduate admissions, served as the event emcee and took on the role of generating crowd energy.
“Culturally, this is an experience that a lot of students [and] a lot of guests haven’t had before,” Phillips said. “So this is one of those things where you can come in, sit back, enjoy, relax and kind of experience the culture of the National Pan-Hellenic Greek Council.”
Phillips, at one point of the night, implored the audience to rise to their feet and rock back and forth with arms around one another, as “Swag Surfin’” played through the speakers.
Phillip’s energy rubbed off on the fraternity he advises — the first place Tau Alpha Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha.
Alpha Phi Alpha will be receiving a cash prize of $1,000, while the runner-ups, Delta Sigma Theta, will be getting $500.
Kearney said Alpha Phi Alpha will use the money to serve others, like they always do.
A showcase of NPHC talent and culture satisfied the full Barfield Drawing Room, with proud alumni, families and students stepping into homecoming weekend.
