America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, the Netflix docuseries marketed as a humanizing look behind the scenes of the football franchise’s elite dance operation, returned for a second season last week.
From director Greg Whiteley (Cheer), the show delves into familiar territory with teary-eyed scenes of DCC hopefuls’ dreams being dashed, the laborious process dedicated to perfecting choreography and the strenuous balance (if there is one) between team responsibilities and personal life.
What was new, however, was the huge labor win — a 400% pay raise — the squad said it attained.
Some veteran cheerleaders advocated for increased wages to reflect the value DCC brought to the Cowboys. Although the issue of pay loomed over the season, other moments ranged from team strife to heartwarming joy.
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Here are five takeaways from Season 2 of America’s Sweethearts.
Diversity in the approach to hairstyling
Beyond their star-spangled uniform, hair is a part of the cheerleaders’ signature look. It’s voluminous — not quite as big as that of the Farrah Fawcett-emulating dancers of the past, but it still typically flows past the shoulders. Head choreographer Judy Trammell has described the way dancers’ hair whips around during routines as “hairography.”
Jada McLean, a dancer who was in her fifth season with the squad, has stood out for performing with her shorter, natural coily hair.
Fellow veteran Armani Latimer made headlines in December for embracing her lack of hair on the field. She performed with a bald head — a scene captured in the finale of Season 2 — to raise awareness for alopecia, an autoimmune disease she has that causes hair loss.
“In the Black community our hair is such a statement, so the fact that I don’t have any, it’s very hard,” Latimer said in Episode 3.
Related:‘A conversation starter’: Dallas Cowboys cheerleader on performing without a wig
Textured hair specialist Rosemary Osondu fitted her with a wig in the episode. Osondu joined the Cowboys around when Latimer’s hair loss accelerated, the dancer said.
Osondu alluded to the challenges that Black cheerleaders may have faced to keep up with a certain hair look. “I know for a lot of the girls it was a big shocker to them that they had to go out of their way to get their hair done,” she said.
Kelli Finglass the ‘Girl Boss’?
The season was filmed months ago, which is no surprise. It’s documentary-style after all, not the daily churn of a reality show like Love Island or Big Brother, and the Cowboys’ season ended in January.
One comment DCC director Kelli Finglass made in the show brought to mind the political milieu of last year, when Kamala Harris was vice president and a presidential contender.
Finglass went through items on a clothing rack with her stylist Lindsay Weatherread. The two decided which clothes to keep and which to toss. Finglass rejected some dresses adding colorful commentary: “I look like I’m in a choir”; “Rock and roll or funeral?”;“Does this look like prison?”
Finglass then expressed a desire to wear pantsuits. “I like Kamala Harris’ pantsuits,” she added, complimenting the California politician’s sartorial choice on the campaign trail.
The passing comment was hardly an endorsement. But given how Harris’ outfits were associated with those of a girl boss — a buzzy term for trailblazing women — it could be a sign of the image Finglass wants to project.
Related:On the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and the risks and rewards of being That GirlThe dancers were (mostly) united in their labor fight
Thirty-five of the 36 girls on the squad were in support of advocating for higher pay, dancer Kylie Dickson said in Episode 6.
Latimer, McLean, Amanda Howard and Megan McElaney were among the leading voices for increased compensation.
Howard and McElaney were willing to risk their spots on the team to secure a better contract for future members. A walkout from an upcoming practice was briefly discussed, but the plan was mysteriously leaked, effectively making it a nonstarter.
“I have my assumptions,” McLean said in Episode 6, when asked about how Cowboys executives found out about plans to protest. “I did hear that someone on the team was recording the meeting and then sent it over to staff.”
“Whether that was true or not, I don’t know. I hope it wasn’t.”
Chandi’s struggles
Toward the end of the season, six-year veteran Chandi Dayle opened up about a previous abusive relationship.
Her ex-boyfriend, she said, had continued to stalk her. As she grappled with the turmoil in her personal life, she said she turned to a male companion for platonic comfort during the team’s trip to the Bahamas. She brought him into her hotel room, violating a DCC rule and resulting in suspension.
Dayle decided not to return for another season, expressing a desire to discover who she is outside the squad. She performed at the last game of the season sans her former title of group leader.
Kelli Finglass and Kacey Musgraves are friends
“Kacey is a hometown girl of Kelli’s,” Trammell said in Episode 7.
The country singer and East Texas native sent Finglass a message one day, asking for the cheerleaders to perform with her. Musgraves enlisted the team’s help as early as 2016 for a performance at the State Fair of Texas.
Last November, the dancers joined Musgraves onstage as she sang “High Horse” during one of her Deeper Well tour shows at the American Airlines Center.
At a rehearsal, Musgraves greeted the squad and Finglass.
“You’re my therapist now,” Finglass told her. “Y’all gotta really listen to her words.”
Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders say they will receive 400% pay raise next season
“Happy isn’t even the right word for it,” dancer Jada McLean said of the wage increase in season two of Netflix’s “America’s Sweethearts,” which dropped on Wednesday.
First look: Netflix drops trailer for season 2 of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders show
“America’s Sweethearts” returns to the streamer on June 18.
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