Detroit Lions Cheerleaders: Making the Squad 2025

Detroit Lions Cheerleaders: Making the Squad 2025

[Music] We are here auditioning for the 2025 team of Detroit Lions cheerleaders. This is our 10th team of Detroit Lions cheerleaders. There are hundreds of dancers here that are really excited to be part of this team. So many people from all over our state and also just from all over the country that have been really interested in auditioning for this team. I’m just really excited to see what everybody brings today, who is going to be a future Detroit Lions cheerleader. It’s really nice seeing our rookies return and seeing what they went through last year and seeing how much growth they had in that singular year. I had the absolute best rookie season. I think that there is a little bit of stress and anxiety that comes along with it because we know what we have to miss out on. And I just am keeping my fingers crossed that my hard work will pay off again this year and I’ll get the opportunity to be on the 2025 2020 2016. Hi, I’m Olivia and this is my first year auditioning for the Detroit Lions cheerleaders. It was such a surreal moment just seeing the empty stadium and being able to be like, “Wow, this is my life.” I feel confident. Um, I’m really excited. I just love to be in this environment and no matter what happens, I’m just happy I’m here. We’re going to get started with our preliminary round. We are going to do two across the floor combinations. You’re going to learn the first one, then we will score the first one, and then you’re going to forget it. And then we’re going to do the second one, then we’re going to score the second one, and then you’re going to forget it. The hardest part of today was showing up, and you all did, and you’ve done the work. You’ve put in the work. You’re just here to show up and have fun and dance, and be proud of yourselves for that no matter what happens. Sound good? Okay. Yay. Here we go. Throughout the audition process, we teach the choreography pretty quickly. And really, that’s just meant to emulate our DLC rehearsals. In our rehearsals, we can teach an entire routine in one sitting and then have it ready for that same weekend. Left, six, seven, eight. During the games, the Detroit Lions cheerleaders will do leaps, kicks, turns, you name it, during their end zone routines and also on the sidelines. What we’re really looking for here is to see how our candidates would emulate that same technique. So, we’re looking for really high and powerful leaps, really strong, solid kicks and turns, and seeing how that would translate into our game day. [Music] All right, everybody. That concludes part one. A grab a drink of water, especially my girls that just danced. Make sure you take a break. Uh, and then meet me back out here and we will learn part two. Hi, my name is Rihanna. This is my first time auditioning for the Detroit Lions cheerleaders. My mom says I’ve been dancing since I was in her belly, so from the beginning. Most recently, I was a member of the Michigan State Dance Team where I fell in love with game day. And I went to a Lions game and I just knew like, oh my gosh, I want to be on that team so bad. They just look so much fun. It’s definitely a little bit intimidating at first. I just like to stay grounded in the moment and then just look around, take everything in to kind of get rid of those nerves, chin up, and just embrace that I even get to be here. [Music] What we’re really looking for is confidence and showmanship and being able to command this big of a space. Imagine if there were fans. How would you command the room and how would you really project into the space? And how can you show off the style and show who you are as an individual while still blending in with everybody else and making sure that you’re dancing the core of the choreography that we’re looking for. What we’re going to do is we’re going to have the judges head upstairs. We’re going to deliberate. If you see your number, we’ll have you come back down to the field. We want to start learning at like 7:45. If you do not move forward, thank you so much for coming. This was a tough audition. You guys have seen so many talented dancers that are out there. We appreciate you coming and training with us. And it does take people sometimes multiple times to make this team. There are girls on the team now that auditioned two, three times before they made it. So, please don’t go away. Please come back. Please keep training with us. Train on your own throughout the year. um cuz we we really would love to see you back. Every step of the way, I’m kind of just taking it one step at a time. So, this is my first kind of like you did it moment. This has been a journey prepping for a try out. It was really relieving and just like, wow, I really just did that. The preliminary round really gives us a holistic idea of their technique. When we get to semis, what we’re really looking for is, okay, you have really great technique, but how do you dance it? Seven, eight, right, left, hip. The choreography that we learn in semis is about twice as long. I think the jazz combo gives us an opportunity to really show our style and try to match the style that the Detroit Lions cheerleaders have created. It’s closer in length to what we would do for a fulllength routine on game day. And it’s nice to see the technique that we showed off in the first round blended with the transitions and kind of seeing what they would look like if they were chosen to be Detroit Lions cheerleaders. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Thank you for staying as long as you have. It’s been a long day, long hours. I know you’re tired, adrenaline’s high, but there’s been a lot going on. So, congratulations on making it this far. I know we’re going to do another cut tonight. And this one’s hard because I know it’s about finals and it’s a chance for us to interview you. So, what I said earlier still stands. It’s an accomplishment to make it this far. You guys really, really, really did accomplish so much. We’re very proud. So, now that semis are over and we’re going to go upstairs with the judges, deliberate again, and cut our group down to our finalists. With the deliberation, this is a really tough round because we have gotten to know these dancers. This is a really coveted spot that people want. And it’s hard to make these decisions, but we are really looking for the best, most cohesive team. So, that’s really what we’re going to be upstairs looking at is seeing how all these pieces fit together. We’re really looking for someone that can blend with all the different types of dancers on our team. This has been a journey prepping for a try out. So, definitely nervous. It’s still a lot having a cut, but I just have to be confident in myself and what I put out on the floor. And no matter what happens, I’m still proud of my performance out there. I’m just going to be jaw-dropped that I even made it this far because this has been a dream of mine and I think just even making it to the next round would be a success for me. It feels amazing. I’m just going to really going to prepare for the interview and then do my best with what’s next. I had to tell my mom right away. She’s my biggest supporter, my number one role model in my life. I’m totally in shock right now. Like such an honor to even be on that board. I’m just honestly so proud of all of us who have made it this far. I text my mom, but I think she’s asleep. So, I’m going to call her on my way home. [Music] Today is finals day, so we started the morning with interviews. We did one-on-one interviews with all our rookie candidates, and then we did group interviews with our veteran candidates. We’re looking for brand ambassadors for the Detroit Lions. So, we’re looking for maturity, professionalism, knowledge of the sport of football and Detroit as a city and people who could really represent the Detroit Lions and the Detroit Lions cheerleaders in the very best light. Now, we’re moving into the dance portion of the night. So, we’re going to repeat some of the choreography that the contestants learned in the preliminary and semi-final round and then we’re also going to teach more choreography tonight. So, the workload is growing. The nerves going into my fourth season are all still there, but after getting out on the field and hearing the music and being next to some former teammates, it feels really comfortable. [Music] The talent level every single year just gets better and better and I know I have to continue to push myself like it it never gets easier. Okay. Precision and power. If this is one, it’s not one one. It gets her immediately on everything we do. At this point in finals, every single dancer that is on the field is incredibly talented. So, the things that we’re really looking for here are attention to detail. Get these. Get there fast. These are feeling slow and boring. Duh. Duh. This is again I’m high. I’m low. Up. Down. Everyone here is so talented, but we’re taking it to that next level. The team members we are looking for are able to really pay attention to detail and fine-tune this choreography. Hi, my name is Kari. I’m from Scottsdale, Arizona. I currently teach dance and I work with all levels including competitive dancers, girls who are just starting out and everywhere in between. Dance is absolutely my passion and I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else. Last year when I came to auditions, I was a little bit more immature in my dance abilities. I didn’t have the confidence that I have now. After taking this last year to really train one-on-one and focus on building myself as a professional and as an individual, I felt a lot more confident and really being able to perform at my best ability. I need you to do two things at the same time. I need you to perform to the judges, like look them in the eye, but then also pretend that the stadium’s absolutely full and your dancing needs to fill the bowl. Okay? Typically, a lot of our candidates have never danced with palms before. A palm is used to enhance the visual effect. And when we’re in a stadium like Ford Field that is so large, we really need to utilize the palms to look bigger and more energetic and really eye-catching when we’re down on the field. So, we are looking for people to really fill the stadium. Heat up [Applause] [Music] here. We just wrapped our final round. We’re going to deliberate tonight and then make one more cut and take the candidates to what is called the final look. If I were to make it to the next round, I would be ecstatic. I only made it to finals last year, so being able to go to final looks would be a new experience for me, but it would also be an amazing accomplishment for my self-esteem and just knowing that I can pursue dance professionally. Being on this field is like nothing I’ve ever experienced. If I get the opportunity to be on this team again, it will just continue that dream. [Applause] Tonight we are here for our final look rehearsal. This is the last bit of our audition process. This is pretty close to what we would do in our normal rehearsals leading up to game days. See them up close a little more than maybe we get to see in the stadium. We will go back and evaluate everything that we saw tonight and then make another cut. And after that cut is when we get to make job offers. And that’s a really exciting piece of this puzzle. It’s hard seeing everybody in this room knowing that we can’t take everybody with us. However, there are people in this room and currently on this team that have gone through this process. They’ve made it all the way to the final look and they were not chosen to move forward. When I made it to the final look, like I was at this point so close with all the vets on the team and like I was like, “Oh my god, I fit in perfectly. It’s awesome. Like I can’t wait to be on the team.” And then I got my rejection email. But and then like a few weeks later I’m like, “No, you know what? This lit a fire under my butt and I, you know, I stayed close to the girls. I supported them throughout the season. I came to the games. I took videos. I cheered them on and like I learned from them. We’re going to head back to Ford Fields in the morning and we’re going to really just go through everything in the office. Make sure that we’re giving everyone equal consideration, review their applications, make sure we really know who these dancers are as people and as dancers and what they would be as ambassadors and Detroit Lions cheerleaders. And then once we feel good about our final team that we’ve assembled, we’re going to make phone calls and offer them officially as Detroit Lions cheerleaders. It’s really rewarding to see at the end that they finally get the call that they’ve been waiting for and we get to officially make them members of the team. Hello. Hi, Carly. This is Jordan and Tori with the Lions cheerleaders. Hey Olivia, this is Tori with the Detroit Lions. Hi. Is this Rihanna? Uh yeah. We’re calling people today and um wanted to give you a call and obviously I know you auditioned last year so we’ve seen you for a while and I know how bad you want this and um unfortunately um you’re going to have to pack your bags cuz you’re moving to Michigan. We’re excited. Oh my god. We’re excited to offer you a position as a Detroit Lions cheerleader for the 2025 season. Oh my god, I’m going to cry. Thank you so much. Oh my god. Oh my god. Thank you so much. I was not expecting this right now. I thought it was a spam call cuz that’s how today surprise lines cheerleader for the 2025 season. I’m so excited. I can’t wait. Congratulations. I’m going to be like, did that even happen? Was that a dream or was that real? Oh my god. Congratulations for the 2025 season. No way. Yes. Congratulations. I’m so excited. Oh my gosh. Thank you so much. Yeah, we’re so excited. You’re going to be such a great asset to our program. We’re so excited. Thank you. I’m so honored. Yes, absolutely. Oh, excited. I’m so glad I just parked cuz I probably would have like ran off. That is good. We don’t want that. So, I’m glad. Okay. Thank you so much. Absolutely. I’m so happy right now. Thank you so much. This is such an amazing opportunity. I’m so excited. We’re at our 2025 Detroit Lions cheer photo shoot. It’s the first time the rookies get to put the uniform on. It’s such a special moment when they walk out in the Honolulu Blue. They are smiling ear to ear. And I think it’s the first time it really sinks in for them and feels real. They really did make the team. They’re here. Those two days were the longest two days of my life just waiting for that call. But once I got that call, I was ecstatic. I was like in pure shock. I immediately just burst into tears. It was like the best thing ever. It was so exciting. It still doesn’t feel real. Like this is a dream come true. I feel like it might not feel real till I’m on the field for the first game, which is crazy to think. But all of this has been amazing so far. And I’m just so happy to be here. I have been dreaming of being able to be a Detroit Lions cheerleader since I was 16 years old. I was on cloud9. I was jumping up and down. I was crying in the parking lot. Everyone knew that something good had just happened. I feel like majority of my dance training and dance experiences have led up to me being able to perform on Ford Field and with this team and for some of the best fans in the NFL and I’m just ecstatic. I’m so excited. This was such a hard audition. It gets harder every single year, but this one especially felt extremely hard with all of the talent and the sheer numbers that showed up. This is the 10th team of Detroit Lions cheerleaders that we selected. There are 100 women that have ever worn this Detroit Lions cheerleaders uniform. And while they’re all unique in their own regards, at their core, they all have the same strength. They’re really hardworking. They’re really dedicated to the city and the Lions, and they really love being a representative of Detroit. I’m so excited, and we’re really happy with the final team and the final product that is going to hit Ford Field come this football season. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. [Music] [Music]

Watch as the Detroit Lions take you through the full process of auditioning and selecting the 2025 team of Detroit Lions Cheerleaders. You’ll see each dance round of the audition process, meet rookie candidates hoping to make the roster, get a behind the scenes look at formal job interviews and deliberation, as well as meet the entire 2025 roster after hearing their reactions to making the team.

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