Friends and readers urged me to write about stepper attire and fashion at Chicago Steppers sets. The growing appearance of sweat towels and different types of combat boots on the scene has been a hot conversation topic. To me, fashion and personal style, no matter what, is an individual expression. Far be it from me to judge and criticize how someone chooses to show or present themselves.
As much as steppers watch and judge each other’s dance, we judge the looks and appearances of steppers as well. Since this is LT8C’s month on fashion, let’s discuss “fashion etiquette.” I have decided to finally tell it!
In more than one interview and conversation, steppers have said, “We are slowly but surely losing the original class and sophistication that are a part of the steppin’ culture when it comes to attire and fashion.” The harshest critiques I’ve heard center on the emerging fads seen with the new, young generation of men and women in the Chicago stepping community. Don’t shoot the messenger. Do you agree? Is it that serious? What does this argument say about us?
Dirty, sweaty towels hanging from men’s backpockets
First, in the words of Adam Ywhw, “It looks tacky as hell and dusty.” I didn’t really think about this until he said it. The back pocket towel is something I’ve always seen growing up in the Jamaican dancehall scene. Men often have towels in their pockets because it adds flair and movement during spins and turns while dancing. In Jamaican culture, it is not uncommon. Uncannily, I have also read that “monogrammed sweat rags” are considered “stepper sharp.”On the stepping scene three things let me think differently about men’s sweat towels:
- When a man’s perspiration drips on me
- After he dabs his sweat and then reaches for my hand
- When a towel falls on the floor and everyone breaks their dance to tell someone, “Hey, your towel is on the floor.”
Gentlemen want to see ladies wear high heels and not combat boots
What happened to fancy high heels? For the ladies in earlier days on the scene, high heels were the fashion at Chicago Steppers sets. The dance has evolved with more spins instead of turns, more misdirections, and fancy footwork. Should steppers be surprised that ladies opt for lower heels and wearing more comfortable shoes like boots? I’ll say I can do most anything in heels, but I think twice to attempt multiple spins in my strappy heeled sandals or dressy shoes.
Then, for some, it is not about the mechanics, but more about comfort – as we get older. Some men say a lady is expected to be poised and elegant, and the most egregious subtraction from a woman’s look is her high heels. “There is nothing cute about combat boots.” Still, I know several ladies in the community that can pull off the boots look – combat boots and cowboy boots – magnificently in a stepper sharp ensemble and make everyone look twice.
This should not be a New School versus Old School debate. That distinction can be a “great divide” when steppers discuss dance, fashion, and music. Unfortunately, I see a trend when I hear older steppers make statements about and point fingers at the new, younger generation of steppers. I believe we must all still strive for balance in a community where people come from different places and have different styles. We all just want to enjoy the music.
Embrace the new and preserve the original fashion on Chicago Steppers Scene
Preserving the authenticity and nostalagia of the original culture and feeling of the stepping community is important to many steppers. Chicago Stepping color started “from the zoot-suit styled, double-breasted suits with cuffed dress slacks with suspenders with knife-creased, front pleats, heavily starched, white shirts or matching suit colored, long-lapel dress shirts with wide ties, colored reptile-skin shoes or spit-shined, sharp-toed Stacy Adams shoes,and high-crown Stetson and Dobbs hats and a matching double-breasted London Fog trenchcoat or fur coat” to “the European cut suits, skinny jeans, ivy league looks and popular trends of today.”
“To learn etiquette is actually learning how to see others and respect them.”
Yixing Zhang
Likewise, acceptance is an important part in etiquette. When Chicago steppers attract and keep younger generations involved and engaged, of course, we’re going to see new and different styles. This keeps the scene interesting and sustains revival in fashion, dance, skin tones, and conversation. Chicago stepping fashion speaks volumes about our lives and what is going on around us. I think older steppers will continue to dress how they do and be critical because they are the parents in this dance who show new steppers the way.
We all love our individuality. We like to be ourselves and sometimes just being me is daring to others. I believe the unusual is eventually accepted once we see it often enough.
