Vybe Queenz hosts competition November 2025
Dance has always been a lifeline for Shantiva Moore. She entered foster care when she was 13 and admits it was a challenge. She started in a group home and then bounced from foster home to foster home. “I used to live with Africans and Puerto Ricans and different cultures. And I used to just love music, and dance was my getaway. I wanted to watch the latest videos. I was obsessed with Laurieann Gibson (a performer who has choreographed for Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, and Beyoncé.) I was always the type of person, to say, ‘Let's make up a dance!’” She became entranced by Hip Hop Majorettes, a high energy dance that grew out of HBCU majorette squads in the 1960’s and 70’s that combines drill team with step, hip hop and African dance moves. Nine years ago she founded Erie’s first hip hop majorette group, Vybe Queenz. Now she is making the bold move to host Erie’s first competition on Saturday, November 29 where teams from across the country will compete for cash prizes.”I want to bring it to Erie so people can see what we do when we go to Chicago, Minnesota, Alabama and Texas.”
Shantiva got started about 10 years ago when the MLK Center asked her to coach a cheerleading squad for their basketball team. “That first day I just loved it. I had 12 little girls and I didn't know what to do. They didn't know what to do. But it was like living a dream. I saw the potential immediately. It was almost like a healing.” One of the administrators at the MLK Center took notice and signed the group up for a cheer competition. “ I was livid. I told her, ‘We're not coordinated. I don’t want that embarrassment because I don't think we are nowhere near ready’. But she convinced me it would be a good experience. So we did it and we actually won first place. And after that, I was completely hooked. I got extremely attached to the kids after that.” She then asked James Sherrod, the MLK Center director, to start a dance team. She is there every weekday after school to teach a hip hop majorette class open to all youth from 3-5pm. The team (for girls who passed the audition) practices every day from 5-7pm. She is amazed at how long she’s been at it, “I've been there for nine years and it's the most rewarding thing.”
Vybe Queenz have become an important fixture at Erie celebrations such as the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, CelebrateErie, Rib Fest, and Juneteenth festivities. But reaching beyond Erie is crucial. Shantiva says Hip Hop Majorette teams are concentrated in the South, so she brings in choreographers to help her and her team keep current. She has welcomed experts from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Oklahoma. Travel also has been integral “I have to make sure at least once a year, we take one big trip. This past competition season, we went to Buffalo, Chicago, Maryland, and Pittsburgh all in the month of May! I'll pile those girls up in the van and we just go. We've won over 20 first place trophies.” She credits incredibly supportive Vybe Queen parents and careful planning for their success.
That combination of structure and nurturing is also reflected in her coaching. Shantiva has clear expectations for her dancers. “I need confidence. If you walk in believing you can, then you're willing to try. No matter what I ask you to do, if you give me effort, everything else will work out. But I'm a stickler in my company. You have to get good grades. We don't deal with talk back or parents disrespect. No Snapchat fights. I want my girls to understand that this is a safe haven, but you also have a responsibility to hold yourself with morality, with character. Everybody on my team has to carry herself like a captain.”
