December 23, 2025 • 50 mins
Jennifer Jones made history as the first Black Rockette, breaking barriers in one of the most iconic dance institutions in the world. In this episode, she sits down with Eboné to share her journey—from her early love of dance to the discipline, rejection, resilience, and faith it took to step onto the Radio City Music Hall stage. This conversation is a powerful reminder of what happens when preparation meets purpose and representation finally takes its place.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Pretty Private with Ebine, a space where no
question is off limits and storylines become lifelines. The views
shared by our guests are meant to inform, entertain, and empower,
from the laughs to the lessons. Just remember tough times
don't last, but professional home girls do enjoy the show.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
What's up y'all? Aeshagara Ebine here, and I hope all
is cute, y'all. Can y'all believe? Like we are two
days away from Christmas, which is crazy, but I'm not
gonna hold y'all. Holiday season is my favorite time of
the year, Like y'all. I love holidays, Like I'm the
girl that gets excited about Saint Patrick's Day, Like I'm
(00:54):
that type of person. So I am super excited. And also,
for the first time in forever be home in Memphis
for Christmas, So I'm super excited about spending time with
my loved one and my friends, my childhood friends, my
new friends, and just being at home in Memphis. And
also it's a lot warmer down there, which I'm like
ecstatic about because it is brick up here. Okay, So
(01:17):
I'm super excited about that. Make sure you follow me
at the Professional Homegirl and at pretty private podcasts because
I will be posting pictures of my holidays and Memphis.
And also I'm just feeling really good right now, like
I'm really looking forward to the new year. Is anybody
else feeling good about twenty twenty six? You know, email
me and hello at the phgpodcast dot com. I do
(01:38):
respond back to my emails. It may take me a
little minute, but I will respond back and just let
me know. What are your goals for twenty twenty six? Like,
what are my Professional Homegirls working on for the new year.
I'm going to share a couple of things in the
new year of what I've been working on. But one
of the things that I'm super super excited about is
volume four of the Professional Homegirl coloring book. So I'm
(01:59):
super excited about this. If you have not purchased Volume
three or any of my other coloring books, please please
please make sure that you support by clicking the link
in the show notes below. Volume three has been getting
so much love, and I truly appreciate all the amazing
reviews and listen when I tell y'all, Volume four is
so fire like baby. The way my graphic illustrator pushed
(02:24):
her pen with these illustrations like it is so spicy
and Volume four is strictly for adults, okay, like it
is Chef's Kiss. Okay. However, I might even drop a
little sneak peek for my YouTube members, So if you're
not a member of my YouTube channel at the Professional Homegirl,
(02:45):
please make sure you sign up and support your girl. Okay. Now,
I am super excited for you all to hear this
week's episode because I am sitting down with the trailblazer,
Jennifer Jones. She us the first black rocket. Okay. Jennifer
takes us behind the curtains of one of the most
(03:06):
iconic stages in the world and shares what it truly
meant to break barriers in a space that wasn't built
with her and mind. Her journey is about more than dance.
Is about courage, discipline, and being a first when there
was no road map. So we talk about perseverance, we
talk about representation and just the quiet shrenth it takes
to walk into history while simply chasing your dreams. So
(03:30):
get ready, y'all, hands down, this is one of my
favorite episode. I also got a little emotional what you
would hear in the episode as you listen, but please
please get ready. I was the first Black Rocket with
Jennifer Jones. Starts now and also Merry Christmas everyone. Oh
my god, I am super excited about today's episode. I was, okay,
(03:51):
a little nervous, and I haven't gotten nervous but about
having a conversation with somebody in a very long time.
But today we are joined by a true trailblazer, Miss
Jennifer Jones. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much
for coming to the show. She is the first black Rocket.
How are you feeling. How are you doing.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
I'm blessed today. I'm feeling good. Thank you so much
for having me on your show.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
Yes, gud okay, So take us back. What was your
introduction to dance and when didn't you know that this
was your calling?
Speaker 3 (04:20):
Growing up, my parents always had my older sister and
I involved in some type of activity, whether it was
dance or baton twirling, gymnastics. We were always involved in
some kind of extra curricular activity. I always loved to dance,
but it wasn't until my fourth grade recital when my
(04:42):
teacher picked me to be one of the leads in
a fourth grade recital doing a nineteen forties dance and
I'm not quite sure why he picked me. I was
the shyest child in school. I never talked, I never
raised my hand. But that first experience being on that stage,
(05:02):
there was something about it that felt magical to me,
and I fell in love with it. And at the time,
my parents were also big Broadway goers, and they would
see all the latest and greatest Broadway shows Ben Veren
and Pippin, Jesus Christ Superstar.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
I remember that one.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Yeah, And when The Whiz came to Broadway with an
all black cast with Stephanie Mills and Mabel King and
the Powerhouses Hidden Battle, they took my sister and I
to see it and not once, not twice, but five times.
At what time, it was ingrained in me that this
(05:41):
is what I want to do. I want to dance
on a grand stage and I want to walk out
of the backstage door. And that's kind of where the
seed was planted.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Okay, so I'm jumping ahead, But have you ever met
Stephanie Mills?
Speaker 3 (05:55):
I haven't.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
Oh, yeah, because you speak about her a lot in
your book and I'm like, I heard if she ever
met her before?
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Yeah, I've never met her, but she was. She really
inspired me. My parents got the cast album and I
would my sister and I would act out all the songs.
I mean, by the by the fifth time I saw
the Whiz, I was Dorothy.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Right right, I think I was Dorothy too. So one
thing I love about your book is because a lot
of parents, like your parents were very hard working. And
when I was reading your book, you know a lot
of parents from the generation even to this day, they
just don't understand being a creative and like using your
talents to be as a skill. So I can only
(06:40):
imagine how many times you heard them say you need
to get a real job. So how did those comments
shape your drive or doubt? In the beginning In the.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Beginning, through throughout my high school and the beginning of
my college years, my parents were accepting of me going
into the city, taking dance classes, kind of learning the
ropes of how to audition, what to expect. It wasn't
It wasn't until maybe my second semester they kind of
were like, you know, we're gonna cut you off it
(07:11):
it's time for you to get a job. I had games, yes, yeah,
so and you know, I look back and most of
my friends were already in college, they had their majors,
and all I had was this passion of being a
Broadway star and that it was. It came to a
(07:32):
point where I had to make a decision. Am I
going to stop dancing and get a nine to five
job something that doesn't resonate with me? Or am I
going to continue and follow my dream of dancing and
not live in regret. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
But I feel like when you first started dancing, and
you like sell it through, you were really hustling, Like
you were traveling back and forth, going to New York,
you were trying to find a place to stay. Like
it was like the grind was real.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Right, I mean it was challenging, you know, I had
to work for my dream, and I think that's where
the growth comes in. If you don't have that challenge,
if you don't have that pressure, there's no growth. You
have to take those leaps of faith for your own self,
you know, for your own worth in the world, your
own gift to come out. It's never handed to you.
(08:24):
It's always hard work.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
Yeah. And another thing I love about your story is
because you were very transparent about your relationships, and earlier
on you were saying how you saw this music video?
And you were saying like I want to do that.
I want to do that. And then the guy was
with he was like, you would never be in a
music video.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
Oh he left at me. Yeah, he left at me.
And that kind of fueled me to see to say
watch and that was the first thing I did. The
first thing I did was a music video.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
You're not trying to find it, right?
Speaker 3 (08:54):
Did you find it? You look it up some more.
I'll send you the link.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
I'm going to include in a show. But yeah, you
were saying that he was discouraging you because you were
saying how you wanted to be in a music video.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
It was something that I saw MTV had just come
out and it was a Zzy Top you know, music video,
and I was like, oh my gosh, that is I
would love to do something like that. And I was
actually expressing something that was close to my heart and
some one of my dreams. Someone laugh and walk out
(09:31):
of the room was not a reaction that I was expecting,
and so that just kind of fueled me to let
go of that because of him, because I wanted to
keep going and you know, fuel my passion.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, what did I experience teach you about choosing the
right partner that supports your dreams. Because I had that
was like a very important lesson that you learned early on.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
Yes, it's I think it's different for everyone. You know,
I was married and I got and I was I've
divorced my first husband, I'm now remarried, and I think
it's an evolutionary process of finding the one. Some people
find their sweethearts in high school, some find it in college.
(10:18):
Everyone's growth journey, relationship journey, karmac journey is different.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Well, one thing I will say, miss Jennifer, you stay
with a man.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Yes, that is true. That is true. I stick it
out right, I stick it out.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
So for the listeners who may not know, can you
explain the legacy of the rock Gets and what makes
them so iconic.
Speaker 3 (10:41):
So the Rockets were founded in nineteen twenty five by
Russell Market and Saint Louis, Missouri, and his idea of
a dance troup was based off the British Tiller Girls
and he thought if he can get an American group
of ladies that could do intricate tap steps and high
kicks at the end, that he would knock the American
(11:02):
people's socks off. And I don't think if he was
here today that he could even fathom this line of
one hundred years that's now so iconic and the threat
of American you know, American traditions. But in nineteen twenty five,
black people were not allowed to dance on the same
(11:24):
stage as white people. That's just how it was. But
you would think in nineteen eighty seven, under the backdrop
of New York City, there would have been a black dancer.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Right.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
So we've birthed a lot of, you know, beautiful black
dance companies like Dance Theater of Harlem and Alvin Ally
and Twilat Tharp. But still it did take the Roquettes
Radio City a long time to diversify as much as
they have.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
So tell us about the moment when you found out
that you became a rocket.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
It was my first big job. Violet Homes had called
me and asked me if I wanted to do a
Super Bowl twenty two halftime show. I was nineteen twenty
years old, and I asked her if I could call
her back because I was so nervous. I took a
walk around the block and about a half hour later,
I called her back and I accepted the job. But
(12:20):
at that point I still hadn't known. They didn't tell
me I would be the first black woman to break
the race barrier, and you.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Didn't notice that there were no other like people of color,
Like did you think, cause I'm just thinking that at
the time. I'm like, wow, like you were really like
the first black woman to ever be a part of
this history, and I'm just like, I don't know. I
just think it's kind of crazy how that never stood
out in the beginning, because I feel like you were
just so like, I'm just gonna dance, dance, dance, like
it even hit you.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Yeah, I didn't realize it. Even when I went to
the audition, I noticed that there wasn't, you know, another
black dancer on the line, and I thought, I know,
I did think about leaving. I thought I can make
my favorite jazz class, but there was an inner voice
that kind of pushed me back in the line and
told me to stay. It wasn't until my callback where
(13:10):
I would see another black woman. And at still at
that point, I had no idea of the Rockhead's history.
I didn't even when I went to the audition, I
didn't even know who the rockheads were. I didn't know
what Radio City was or the Christmas Show. My parents
never took me to see that Broadway, so it was
(13:32):
just all new and I was trying to learn the
ropes to become a Broadway star.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
So tell us about the first time you perform a
Radio City music hall, because that had to be like
overwhelming in a good way.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
It was amazing. I was actually surprised to be called
back for the Christmas Show because my first job was
Super Bowl twenty two, which was January February third, January
thirty first, nineteen eighty eight. So I had a whole
year of not really knowing if I was going to
(14:06):
be called in for the Christmas Show or not. And
when I was called again, those nerves came in, but
I knew this time it was an immediate yes. I
was not calling back, And it was a learning process
because it was my first really big job and there
were nerves there. I was still learning rocket precision and
(14:30):
language and terminology and towing the line, and I was
learning up to eight numbers. That I was a lot,
a lot for a ninety minute show. But you know what,
I loved rehearsing eight hours a day, and I loved
walking out of the backstage door of Radio City Music Hall.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
What's up, y'all, it's Shagara m and A here, and
be sure to follow me on and TikTok at pretty
private podcasts, and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube
channel at the Professional Homegirl. Now let's get back to
the show. Okay, So this might be a stretch, but
you started in nineteen eighty seven, and when I was
(15:16):
a little girl, my grandma used to take me to
go see the rock ass And when I was preparing
for our conversation and I was reading your book, I'm like,
I remember my grandma telling me. And it could be
a stretch, but I feel like I saw you on
stage when I was a little girl.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Probably yeah, probably yes, because we always got good seats.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
And she's like, she was like, there's only one, she said,
there's not there's hardly any black girls on stage, she said,
but there's one. And I was like, well, where is she?
And I could have sworn she pointed to you, And
I feel like I remember seeing you when I was
a little girl.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Oh n no, And that's what I was like.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
I'm like, I didn't want to cry and get nostalgic.
But I'm just like, wow, like it's just so crazy
how life is like circle.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
Yes, yes, it is amazing. There's Actually we were celebrating
the Rockets one hundredth anniversary and I got together together
with some Rockettes of color and one of the ladies
came up to me and she said her father was
watching the Thanksgiving Day parade one year when she was
a little girl and I was performing, and he called
(16:22):
her in and he said, look, they hired a black
woman and she watched and she said that encouraged me
to go an audition and perform because I saw you,
and I think that's so important that we have representation
on that stage. So any child can say I can
do that too.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Yeah, that's so cool. Friends with missus Jennifer Jones. So
what are some of the challenges you face stepped into
this space, because I feel like when you are the
first or when you are pioneer, it's a lot that
comes with it.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
Absolutely. I think a lot of people think that, oh,
once you've made it to be the first of anything,
that you've got it made. But within organizations with firsts,
there comes challenges at resistance with change, so there were
some ladies on the line who did not want me there.
(17:22):
It was so to you, I know, I know, I
just wanted to keep dancing, and I was I was
by myself, yeah, and so I just had to I
just held onto my dream. And there were people within
the organization who made it clear that they did not
want me there. And it was my sheer love of dancing,
(17:45):
wearing those costumes with the rhinestones under the lights and
red lipsticks and lashes and walking out of the backstage door,
out of you know, from dancing all day. I was
living my dream and I got to dance on the
same stage they did. I got to do the same choreography,
wear the same costume, and walk out of that door.
(18:08):
And so I felt good. I felt confident, yeah, and that.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
But I feel like there was no room for error
when it came to you, because if you messed up, like,
they really pointed it out. And even like when I
think about some of the situation that you've been in,
like even with one of the dancers putting on dark foundation,
doing blackface, or even when you were saying how you
wanted the stockings to match your skin tone, and that
was a problem too, and I'm like wow, Like I
(18:34):
just couldn't imagine like being in that space and being
the only one having this stand up for yourself and
then you heard girls talking about you when you was sleeping,
like she got to start cursing these people out.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Yeah, I mean it was a lot, and you know,
I was by myself a lot. Of course, there were
some ladies who were on the line who were very
nice and very friendly and taught me how to be
the best rock cat possible, and I thank them for that.
But I didn't have like the close you know friendships
(19:08):
where people would go out to lunch in between shows
all or we didn't have cell phones back then, but
you know, go to you know, each other holiday parties
or things like that. So I was by myself, but
I was living my dream. And it took me a
long time to really figure out, you know, my fifteen
(19:30):
year tenure and opening the doors for other black women
to call themselves radio city music Hall rockets because that title,
as soon as I got it was taken away from me.
So it took me a long time to like own
this power and realize that this does matter.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
What do you mean? It was taken away from you.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
I talk about this in the book, where like I said,
there are people people within the organization who did not
want me there. And right before I for before the
Super Bowl halftime show, I was pulled aside and I
was told that I'm old news, nobody cares about me
or own a pr lady yes, and I'm lucky to
(20:12):
be there. And I thought she was right, and so
I muted myself. I dimmed my light, and I thought
nobody cared.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Well, you wrote this book and you go back and
you share these stories. Have anybody from the organization reached
out to you or like no, oh wow, well no.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
I was actually surprised when I went to see the
one hundredth anniversary show this year. They did a film
beforehand and asked rockheads throughout the decades to come and
talk about their journey. They did not ask any of
the first ladies who broke the color barrier. They did
(20:55):
not ask the first Asian latina or myself to speak
in the video which is playing throughout the Christmas show.
And my thought process is and what I've kind of
been told from like other people that I share this
experience with, which is very hurtful that they've been trying
(21:15):
to whitewash it kind of blended, saying we've always been diverse.
They don't want to bring up the past for some reason.
They don't want to acknowledge my journey or any of
the other ladies that are first.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Dang, and I was gonna take my niece to go
see it.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
So there goes there. It's a wonderful show.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
We're not going.
Speaker 3 (21:39):
No, it's a great show. And the ladies that are
on the line today, it's a different vibe from when
I was there. The ladies on the line are very
inclusive and respectful of each other. When I was on
the line, the thoughts I believe still are very antiquated
and are still back in the nineteenth sixties and fifties.
(22:02):
But it's Radio City, Madison Square Gardens decision not to
acknowledge me.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
So where do you get this grace from? Because I
feel like not because I feel like you've been through
so much and like you broke barriers, Like if it
wasn't for you, there wouldn't be any other African American rockets.
So like, where do you think that comes from? Because people,
a lot of people in have felt a way. I'm
pretty sure when people just here and it's just like wow,
like they try to erase your history.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
Yes, that's exactly what they're trying to do. And you know,
and I speak publicly about it because they're they're not
going to do anything about it. But it's the truth.
And I want, I still want girls and boys to
go see the show because it is iconic, it is
a part of history. It's a part of our Black history,
(22:50):
is a part of our American history, a part of
dance history, and it's important. And the ladies that are
performing on the stage today, they want to encourage black
and brown children to follow their dreams, no matter what
it is, whether it's being a chef or an astronaut
or a race car driver, just to show that you
(23:11):
can whatever you put your mind to, that you can
do and that's the important thing.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
Do you still think that there needs to be more
work done in the performing arts when it comes to diversity.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
Yes. Absolutely. I think that representation, diversity, inclusiveness all need
to be expressed, and I think that, especially in today's climate,
it needs to be acknowledged and I think there should
be representation for all in the arts and creativity.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
Wow, that really just.
Speaker 3 (23:49):
So sorry.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, So talk about how you made the transition from
being a rocket to now working on Broadway, because how
long were your rocket?
Speaker 3 (23:57):
For? Fifteen years?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Okay? And he stopped doing it because you got pregnant,
so you took him maternity.
Speaker 3 (24:02):
Leave, yes, And then when I came back, I did
one more year of the Christmas Show. And at that
point they were Madison Square Garden had bought the Rockheads
and they were breaking the roster, and the roster consisted
of thirty six women who had full time health benefits
for oh one k job security. I could take a
(24:26):
leave of absence, maternity leave and come back to my
job on the line. And Jim Dolan wanted to break
the roster, and he did so successfully. I kind of
thought to keep it because it helped me in my situation.
So when it was broken, I was cast in a
Broadway show, and I chose to leave the Rockheads and
(24:48):
continue on Broadway. Oh man, But I have to say
when he did break the roster, the Rockets want for nothing.
They are very well taken care of. They're given everything
that they need that they want, so he does take
care of them in that respect.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Did you make it like good money? Doing it back
in the.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Day during the Christmas run, which is the biggest money
maker for Radio City, you know, the Rockheads and the
Christmas Show. It was anywhere from thirty five to forty
thousand dollars. Those are real.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
Cute, especially being single. And he was able to open
up your own studio. You was an entrepreneur.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Yes, I owned Jennifer Jones Dance and Fitness Studio, which
was an aerobics studio and there was another small room
with some fitness machines and some weights and step aerobics
was really big back then. Gave step classes and I
was I also taught dance to the underprivileged kids from
(25:54):
Easter Seals and United Way, which was nice.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Oh do you hate like, do you have any regrets
when it comes to selling your business looking back?
Speaker 3 (26:02):
No, it was time for me to sell and I
went on tour with the Rockheads. I'm glad I did it.
I'm glad I had the experience, but I'm not upset
that we sold it.
Speaker 2 (26:15):
Yeah, okay, so talk about your time on Broadway.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
So I got to live my childhood experience of performing
on Broadway, which was forty second Street, The musical The
Revival and I danced in that from beginning to end.
And I loved doing eight shows a week and getting
that family for all those years, seeing the same people
(26:41):
day in day out, the stage hands, the musicians, the dancers.
It was really beautiful, something that I really enjoyed. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Eight, Oh my god, I'm just thinking, like, how did
you have time to do anything else?
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Like?
Speaker 2 (26:54):
Were you not tired?
Speaker 3 (26:57):
My body was tired, But I that I love to
do it. I loved to dance. I loved to be
on stage. I loved to sing. I loved the live audience.
It was something that was just innate in me that
I never it never grew old.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Have you seen Alicia Keys play I Have Not So Good?
Speaker 3 (27:20):
Really so good?
Speaker 2 (27:21):
You will like it, you will love it. Actually, yeah,
it's so good. Yeah. What's your favorite Broadway shows?
Speaker 3 (27:28):
I haven't seen a Broadway show lately. The last show
I saw was Jersey Boys, and that was off Broadway.
The last show I did see was Radio City the
Christmas Show, and I have to say, you know, it
was amazing, all right.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
I guess if you say it's amazing, I think about
taking my knees clude you like that would have been
like so like historical to have you the first Asian
and that first Latina.
Speaker 3 (27:52):
Like, yeah, they just didn't want us there. They do
have you know, blacklea that speak and Asian ladies that speak.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
But it's not y'all.
Speaker 3 (28:05):
Yeah, yeah, So.
Speaker 2 (28:06):
Can you talk about the feeling and why breaking barriers
doesn't always come with security or stability, because after you
left Broadway, you know, you talked about your journey with
like just trying to find a career and stuff, and
I'm like, damn, like it was like kind of it
was sad, and no, it was because it's just like
you push your all into your passion. You was the
first black Rock get you performed, You're part of a
(28:28):
Tony Award win Broadway team. You was also Miss Jerks
my not Miss Jersey, but Miss.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
Morristown, Miss Morris County. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
I'm like, you had all these accolades and I'm just like, damn,
Like it shouldn't have been a hard Yeah.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
Well, after Broadway, you know, auditioning doesn't pay the bills.
My children were very young, I was going through my divorce,
so act.
Speaker 2 (28:52):
Like that, are y'all cool?
Speaker 3 (28:56):
Now? No? I mean I am with him, He's not me,
you know, but for whatever read the book.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
Yeah, because I was like, Wow, you just really don't
know people.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Yeah, so, you know, I really had to provide for
my children, so I had to, you know, find a
way to make money and navigate a nine to five job. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
How what are you feeling like? Did you feel like like,
I don't know, if you feel like just giving up?
Speaker 3 (29:25):
You know, the pr woman's voice always resonated in my head.
You know, nobody cares. You know my you know, your
story is old. I was lucky to be there. I
wasn't talented enough, So yeah, I did feel defeated. I
didn't think that anybody cared, but I just knew I
had to put food on the table and close on
(29:47):
my kid's back. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
Have you ran into her lately or have you seen her?
Speaker 3 (29:51):
No? I don't. I don't know where she is. I
even after when I was during my tenure there, at
some point she left, so to be honest, I don't
even really remember her name, but she was gone. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
And then you mentioned at the age of fifty, you
noticed that your body was changing, but you push your
concerns to the side. So what were some of those
signs that you realized that you was noticing, but you
just felt like, you know, I'm just gonna worry about
it later. Well, I wanted to do delay on ecanum.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
Okay. So the symptoms that I was feeling was like
my stomach was, you know, felt like a little irritated.
I was a little gassy and bloated. I would eat
something and I just wouldn't feel right. So I thought
it was maybe a gluten allergy or now I'm lactose intolerant.
There was always something, you know. I didn't see a
(30:46):
doctor immediately because I was going through an interim of
health insurance, so I had to wait for health insurance
to kick in right and as soon as it did,
I did go see a doctor.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Yeah. And then also when you was talking about going
to visit the first surgeon, I was like wow, like
they were just so me and dismissive towards you.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
Yes. So when I when I finally went to see
the gastro enterologist, I told her I'm not feeling right,
and I would like I had just turned fifty and
at that time, colonoscopies were at fifty years old, so
I was right on time. And she was just like, ugh,
(31:31):
you're healthy. You know you're vegetarian. You know my scheduler
will schedule you when I have time. Wow. I sat
down with the scheduler. Can you please put me in
as soon as possible? She was like two weeks, So
I had another two weeks of waiting. And after I
came out of my endoscopy and colonoscopy, I was coming
(31:54):
out and she delivered the news that I had coorectal
cancer and she gave me five years to live. Wow.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
And the way she said it was just so cold.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
Yeah, And that brought on shame and embarrassment. I was
the healthy one in my family. I didn't tell my
family for a month and I went to do screenings
and lab work all in private. So that was another
(32:27):
layer of work that I had to do, and not
only changing my jobs, but now my life was changing
with this cancer diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
Did it bother you when people were saying they were
just so surprised you had cancer because you were you
were a healthy one.
Speaker 3 (32:44):
I think during that month of my shame and embarrassment,
I did a lot of reflecting. And when I came
out to my family with this, they of course immediately
had had my back and told me to go to Sloan,
and at that point, no matter what anyone said, it
(33:05):
was just a concern for me to get better.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
Yeah. But also both of your parents had cancer too.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
Right, Yes, my father had prostate and my mother had breast,
but no one in my family had colon cancer. And
I did the genetic testing and it doesn't run in
my genes. But at the time, I'm telling you, I
was stressed out to ten. And I think stress levels
(33:36):
and the way we care for ourselves has a lot
to do with that.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Yeah, Because when I was reading your book, I'm like, Wow,
if she wasn't so stressed up, maybe this wouldn't happen.
Like do you think about that?
Speaker 3 (33:47):
Oh yeah, all the time. All the time I had
to like really do a complete one eighty of my
life and let some situations go, let people go, just
like kind of drop anything that didn't really matter, wasn't
didn't matter to my life. Yeah, And I still carry
(34:10):
that today. But I think stress is a big contributor
to cancer and other ailments.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
Yeah. So talk about your recovery journey, because I know
when you went to the second doctor at Sloan, like
for you, it was like I don't want the bag
I don't want and I'm like, nobody wants to slow bag.
But tell us about that, because I feel like you
were just so like very adamant, like you said, you
change everything, and even the doctors were very surprised that
you were healing fast because I guess the cancer was
(34:44):
like shrinking.
Speaker 3 (34:46):
Yeah, so they my doctors had Sloan tattooed where the
tumor was, and they put me on a kpox chemotherapy treatment.
And after four rounds of chemo, and after four rounds
of reflection and adding more juicing to my diet and
(35:10):
whak grass shots, they did another Lookxie, and both of
both my oncologist and my surgeon came in and they
just looked at me and they said, what are you doing?
And I said, what do you mean? And they said,
the tissue is almost all healed. You can't even really
(35:31):
tell where the tumor is. It's just that we know
because that's where it was tattooed. And I just told them,
you know, my reflection and the changes that I was making,
and I thought, great, I'm done with chemo, no more,
I don't have to have surgery. I was going to
walk out scot free and they said, we need you
(35:52):
to do another four rounds of chemo, and you do
need surgery to take the tumor out. So I did.
I did four more and I had my surgery.
Speaker 2 (36:02):
And you're six seven years cancer free.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
This January will be seven years.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
Wow. How do they feel like the fact that they
gave you five years to live like it's like they
wasn't even trying to help you.
Speaker 3 (36:14):
They Yeah, we really have to advocate for our own health.
I have friends who have sadly passed away because doctors
did not identify the colorectal cancer soon enough. And if
they had given him a colonoscopy, they could have identified
(36:35):
it and he could have been treated. And they're finding
coorectal cancer in younger and younger adults and they don't
know why. So if anyone is feeling off with their
bowel movements or their stomach, they really need to go
to a gastro entrologist and tell them that they want
a colonoscopy. They have to advocate for themselves. Unfortunately, could
(36:59):
you have food? I don't think so, because I did you.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
Know black people trying to get a check.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
Like that?
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Sue, what you was going to say?
Speaker 3 (37:14):
I don't think I could sue, but because she did
see me and she did diagnose me. And the first surgeon,
like you mentioned, I was not a fan of. I
was his next family vacation. And so you really have
to find the doctor that you fit well with, who
really cares about your best interest. And when that happens,
(37:38):
you're already halfway cured.
Speaker 2 (37:41):
And then when you got back from being cancer free,
you went back to work, but then you was having
problems with your employees or your coworker. Should I say, Look,
I didn't understand it. Why day was coming at too.
Speaker 3 (37:54):
I was I was the new kid on the block
in this nine to five job. Yeah, and I was.
I was taking time off for my chemo treatments. And
my boss knew, and HR new, but they I wasn't
comfortable telling these strangers about my personal prognosis, and they
(38:18):
felt a need to document when I was in the
office and when I was out of the office, and
when I went back to work, I was called into
HR and they wanted me to, you know, tell these ladies,
these white ladies, why I was out. It was just
like just tell, just tell them that you have cancer
(38:40):
or you know, I was like no, right, So you know,
it was the whole process of me even still fighting
and I just coming back from surgery. It took me
a good year and a half for my body to
like get fully healed. So I'm healing, I'm fighting, and
and you know, just trying to provide for my family still. Yeah,
(39:07):
it was a battle.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
I feel like you could have got a check from
them because you did try to go to a lawyer.
Speaker 3 (39:14):
I did, Yeah, I did, and and they back down
that my I've been you know, my attorney never had
to contact them, but they did back down, and I
was able to I was treated like one of the
ones again.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
Yeah, And during the entire process, I was thinking about
your husband now, because when y'all met, he has just
lost his wife, or maybe a couple of years ago
before y'all met, he lost his wife to brain cancer.
So I can only imagine like what he was going
through throughout this journey.
Speaker 3 (39:44):
Right, Yeah, And you know, I say I say in
my book that when you know, he was one of
the first people that I told and I did not
even know if he was going to stay because that
journey that he had gone through, I can imagine was
so horrific. Yeah, he could not even go through it again.
So he is a lifeline not only for his late
(40:07):
wife but for me.
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Yeah, now tell us about you telling you a story
to Lifetime because I'm like, I feel like they missed
out on a big opportunity, like they come back around.
Speaker 3 (40:18):
Oh yeah, Lifetime is not interested. You know. I am
still trying to find the right home for my book,
whether it's a documentary or I think it could be
a great TV series or even just the idea of
a dance troupe, you know, day in and day out
(40:40):
of what it's like in the life of a quote
unquote rocket could be very interesting. Just trying to find
the right home and that I understand that always takes time.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Yeah, but why didn't they go with it? Because at
first it seemed like they was interested because you changed
your pitch, Like what was that process?
Speaker 3 (40:56):
Like they wanted a book out first, and so, but
I always wanted to put my story in black and
white and and and document my legacy, my journey because
as you know, Radio City, Madison Square Garden is not
going to talk about it. Yeah, so I needed to.
(41:18):
I needed to. I needed to write it down no
matter what no matter what lifetime was thinking or wanted.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
So what I aspire you to share your story like
it was because I know this year was one hundred
year for the rock Ast, But there's something else inspire you,
like it's time for me to tell my story.
Speaker 3 (41:34):
I always wanted to tell my story. I always wanted
to share my legacy. And I had picked up the
pen and paper so many times and started writing, and
it wasn't the right time. It wasn't the way I
wanted to say it. But I think the universe always
is working with us, and it just turned out to
(41:57):
be the right time for me to to find a
writer to help me put the words out on the paper,
the right publisher, the right literary agent to come along
and push for my book and push for my legacy,
and everything works in divine timing.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
Yeah, And what has been a feedback And how has
it made you feel? Because this is history and that
part of y'all.
Speaker 3 (42:21):
The feedback has been very positive, and I've been very
fortunate to have people reach out to me and let
them know, let me know how inspiring the book has
been for them. And just being able to speak at
different venues and moderated discussions and telling my story and
(42:41):
getting questions from the audience has been very fulfilling, and I'm,
you know, so thankful people are interested in the history,
and I'm glad that I can pay it forward. And
you know, if someone else is going through a challenge,
hopefully my story can help them.
Speaker 2 (43:00):
Do you feel like the industry give you, give you
your flowers?
Speaker 3 (43:05):
No?
Speaker 2 (43:06):
Yeah, I don't feel like it either, Like I feel
like they should have you everywhere and you still look good.
It's like you still like do the moves and stuff.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
I mean, I mean, I'm very active. Of course, I'm
always dancing in my kitchen and at weddings. I'm a runner,
I practice hot yoga all the time. Yeah, it's it's
it's hurtful, especially with Radio City when you go on
(43:37):
to their social media websites and they bring in all
of these people Amanda Klutes, former Rockets, Jennifer Gardner, Jordan Childs,
Sierra just to promote and do dance moves and everything,
but they'll never ask one of the firsts.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
You know, well, you never know. We have a lot
of people listening, so I have to change that tone.
Just having on stage I can just duel it this.
Do you have any regrets looking back over your journey, Like,
is there anything you would have done differently?
Speaker 3 (44:12):
I don't think that I could ever go back and
say I would have done something different because that wouldn't
put me to the place where I am today. I
think I knew what I knew at that point, and
I made the best decision possible in that mindset. I
(44:34):
think looking back, I would have been like, yeah, maybe
I would have, you know, changed my mind. Yeah, But
I'm older now, I'm not twenty years old, I'm not
twenty five. I think I always made the best decision
possible in any circumstance that I was in, So I
can't say that I am regretful, but as an older
(44:56):
and wiser person, which I was not back then, I
did my best when I could.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Yeah, I'm just curious. What do your kids think about you? Like, like,
I think it's so cool you're they have a rocket
as a mom.
Speaker 3 (45:10):
Thank you?
Speaker 2 (45:11):
Yeah, my kids, they kids don't be caring.
Speaker 3 (45:15):
Right, Yeah, they were born into into me being a rockhead,
so they kind of My son came with me to
the one hundredth anniversary celebration and he loved it. My
sister came with me and she loved it. Yeah, but
they're my family, and I think they just kind of
look at me as Jen Jones.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
And what about your mom and dad?
Speaker 3 (45:38):
My mom and dad are proud. Uh. My mom, I know,
is very proud of me. My father, he lives in
Saint Croix. I don't really get to see him as often,
but I know that he is very supportive of all
of all of my endeavors.
Speaker 2 (45:55):
You know, I know this book is a memoir, but
I really do feel like this is a love story
to those who want to just chase their dreams. Like
I really really because I'm in like with my passion
things that I'm doing, and like you say, it's not
always easy and it's also not always affordable. And so
just reading your story and just like seeing all the
things you went through and talking to you, like it's
(46:15):
really inspiring. And I really do hope that you get
to smell your flowers from me and everybody else that
really really grew up watching you, because like I think
you're just it's just iconic.
Speaker 3 (46:26):
Thank you, Thank you. That means a lot. And I
love that you equate that my book to a love story.
Speaker 2 (46:33):
Yeah that is.
Speaker 3 (46:37):
Yes, I love that and thank you for saying it's
inspirational because no matter who you are in life, and
no matter what happens, there are challenges. And at the
end of my book, I equate us all to diamonds,
and diamonds are formed under pressure and you're scraped and scrubbed,
and those are the challenges. But that's only making us
(47:00):
shine brighter. So that's fostering growth. And that's what we
all need to share our gift to the world. And
everyone has their own unique gift and even though it
looks like we are all doing the same thing, we
all have our own uniqueness to bring to the world.
So never compare yourself because your gift needs to be
(47:20):
shown not only for you, but as a community. We
need to see it and and and live from that.
Speaker 2 (47:27):
Yeah. And last, but not least, what does Jennifer Jones
want the world to remember remember about Jennifer Jones?
Speaker 3 (47:34):
Oh? Well, I would love them to remember that the
ladies that are dancing at Radio City Music Hall, the
the black ladies. I open the door for them. And
I'm so proud.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
Of you open the door for the ladies exactly.
Speaker 3 (47:59):
And and im and I'm glad that they're relishing in
all of their successes and just for people in general. Never,
like I said, never compare yourself to anyone else. We
all have our own unique gift and journey for the
world at large, and we all need to see that.
And once we all know that there are pressures and
(48:19):
challenges in life and that fosters growth, to not shrink
from that, but to lean into that.
Speaker 2 (48:25):
Yeah, oh my god, how much my grandma was here
to see this. I'm so excited. I cannot wait for
everyone to hear it is. This has been definitely one
of my favorite episodes. So thank you, thank you, thank
you so much. Let everybody know where they can buy
your book, how we can support you, where we can
follow you at all those good things.
Speaker 3 (48:41):
Yeah. So you can buy my book Becoming Spectacular, The
Rhythm of Resilience, and my children's book On the Line,
The Story of Becoming the First Black Roquette anywhere HarperCollins, Amazon,
Barnes and Noble. You can find my Dancing gen doll
at Walmart Marketplace. That's just a tangible reminder for kids
(49:07):
that thoughts become things and to never let go of
your dream. And you can find my website at www.
Rockheadgen dot com and you can follow me on social
media Instagram, Rockhead, Underscore, Gen, j E n N.
Speaker 2 (49:22):
Okay, I think you follow me because I know I
follow you. Yeah, okay, she's not gonna follow y'all, but
she follows me.
Speaker 3 (49:30):
But thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (49:31):
I'm so so so excited that we were able to
do this, and then hopefully soon I know it's a holiday,
so definitely even the new year, we are going to
link up and then I'm going to treat you to
coffee and I can get my autograph in my picture.
Speaker 3 (49:41):
Of course I would love that. I can't wait. We're
too close not to link up.
Speaker 2 (49:45):
Yes we are, Yes we are so thank you so
much into the listeners. If you have any questions, comments,
or concerns, please make sure to email me a hello
at the phgpodcast dot com. And until next time, everyone,
Later you're gonna say.
Speaker 3 (49:59):
Bye bye, thank you.
Speaker 2 (50:08):
Pretty Private is a production of the Black Effect podcast Network.
For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Don't forget
to subscribe and rate the show, and you can connect
with me on social media at pretty private podcasts,
Welcome to Pretty Private with Ebine, a space where no
question is off limits and storylines become lifelines. The views
shared by our guests are meant to inform, entertain, and empower,
from the laughs to the lessons. Just remember tough times
don't last, but professional home girls do enjoy the show.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
What's up y'all? Aeshagara Ebine here, and I hope all
is cute, y'all. Can y'all believe? Like we are two
days away from Christmas, which is crazy, but I'm not
gonna hold y'all. Holiday season is my favorite time of
the year, Like y'all. I love holidays, Like I'm the
girl that gets excited about Saint Patrick's Day, Like I'm
(00:54):
that type of person. So I am super excited. And also,
for the first time in forever be home in Memphis
for Christmas, So I'm super excited about spending time with
my loved one and my friends, my childhood friends, my
new friends, and just being at home in Memphis. And
also it's a lot warmer down there, which I'm like
ecstatic about because it is brick up here. Okay, So
(01:17):
I'm super excited about that. Make sure you follow me
at the Professional Homegirl and at pretty private podcasts because
I will be posting pictures of my holidays and Memphis.
And also I'm just feeling really good right now, like
I'm really looking forward to the new year. Is anybody
else feeling good about twenty twenty six? You know, email
me and hello at the phgpodcast dot com. I do
(01:38):
respond back to my emails. It may take me a
little minute, but I will respond back and just let
me know. What are your goals for twenty twenty six? Like,
what are my Professional Homegirls working on for the new year.
I'm going to share a couple of things in the
new year of what I've been working on. But one
of the things that I'm super super excited about is
volume four of the Professional Homegirl coloring book. So I'm
(01:59):
super excited about this. If you have not purchased Volume
three or any of my other coloring books, please please
please make sure that you support by clicking the link
in the show notes below. Volume three has been getting
so much love, and I truly appreciate all the amazing
reviews and listen when I tell y'all, Volume four is
so fire like baby. The way my graphic illustrator pushed
(02:24):
her pen with these illustrations like it is so spicy
and Volume four is strictly for adults, okay, like it
is Chef's Kiss. Okay. However, I might even drop a
little sneak peek for my YouTube members, So if you're
not a member of my YouTube channel at the Professional Homegirl,
(02:45):
please make sure you sign up and support your girl. Okay. Now,
I am super excited for you all to hear this
week's episode because I am sitting down with the trailblazer,
Jennifer Jones. She us the first black rocket. Okay. Jennifer
takes us behind the curtains of one of the most
(03:06):
iconic stages in the world and shares what it truly
meant to break barriers in a space that wasn't built
with her and mind. Her journey is about more than dance.
Is about courage, discipline, and being a first when there
was no road map. So we talk about perseverance, we
talk about representation and just the quiet shrenth it takes
to walk into history while simply chasing your dreams. So
(03:30):
get ready, y'all, hands down, this is one of my
favorite episode. I also got a little emotional what you
would hear in the episode as you listen, but please
please get ready. I was the first Black Rocket with
Jennifer Jones. Starts now and also Merry Christmas everyone. Oh
my god, I am super excited about today's episode. I was, okay,
(03:51):
a little nervous, and I haven't gotten nervous but about
having a conversation with somebody in a very long time.
But today we are joined by a true trailblazer, Miss
Jennifer Jones. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much
for coming to the show. She is the first black Rocket.
How are you feeling. How are you doing.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
I'm blessed today. I'm feeling good. Thank you so much
for having me on your show.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
Yes, gud okay, So take us back. What was your
introduction to dance and when didn't you know that this
was your calling?
Speaker 3 (04:20):
Growing up, my parents always had my older sister and
I involved in some type of activity, whether it was
dance or baton twirling, gymnastics. We were always involved in
some kind of extra curricular activity. I always loved to dance,
but it wasn't until my fourth grade recital when my
(04:42):
teacher picked me to be one of the leads in
a fourth grade recital doing a nineteen forties dance and
I'm not quite sure why he picked me. I was
the shyest child in school. I never talked, I never
raised my hand. But that first experience being on that stage,
(05:02):
there was something about it that felt magical to me,
and I fell in love with it. And at the time,
my parents were also big Broadway goers, and they would
see all the latest and greatest Broadway shows Ben Veren
and Pippin, Jesus Christ Superstar.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
I remember that one.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Yeah, And when The Whiz came to Broadway with an
all black cast with Stephanie Mills and Mabel King and
the Powerhouses Hidden Battle, they took my sister and I
to see it and not once, not twice, but five times.
At what time, it was ingrained in me that this
(05:41):
is what I want to do. I want to dance
on a grand stage and I want to walk out
of the backstage door. And that's kind of where the
seed was planted.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Okay, so I'm jumping ahead, But have you ever met
Stephanie Mills?
Speaker 3 (05:55):
I haven't.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
Oh, yeah, because you speak about her a lot in
your book and I'm like, I heard if she ever
met her before?
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Yeah, I've never met her, but she was. She really
inspired me. My parents got the cast album and I
would my sister and I would act out all the songs.
I mean, by the by the fifth time I saw
the Whiz, I was Dorothy.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Right right, I think I was Dorothy too. So one
thing I love about your book is because a lot
of parents, like your parents were very hard working. And
when I was reading your book, you know a lot
of parents from the generation even to this day, they
just don't understand being a creative and like using your
talents to be as a skill. So I can only
(06:40):
imagine how many times you heard them say you need
to get a real job. So how did those comments
shape your drive or doubt? In the beginning In the.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Beginning, through throughout my high school and the beginning of
my college years, my parents were accepting of me going
into the city, taking dance classes, kind of learning the
ropes of how to audition, what to expect. It wasn't
It wasn't until maybe my second semester they kind of
were like, you know, we're gonna cut you off it
(07:11):
it's time for you to get a job. I had games, yes, yeah,
so and you know, I look back and most of
my friends were already in college, they had their majors,
and all I had was this passion of being a
Broadway star and that it was. It came to a
(07:32):
point where I had to make a decision. Am I
going to stop dancing and get a nine to five
job something that doesn't resonate with me? Or am I
going to continue and follow my dream of dancing and
not live in regret. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
But I feel like when you first started dancing, and
you like sell it through, you were really hustling, Like
you were traveling back and forth, going to New York,
you were trying to find a place to stay. Like
it was like the grind was real.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Right, I mean it was challenging, you know, I had
to work for my dream, and I think that's where
the growth comes in. If you don't have that challenge,
if you don't have that pressure, there's no growth. You
have to take those leaps of faith for your own self,
you know, for your own worth in the world, your
own gift to come out. It's never handed to you.
(08:24):
It's always hard work.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
Yeah. And another thing I love about your story is
because you were very transparent about your relationships, and earlier
on you were saying how you saw this music video?
And you were saying like I want to do that.
I want to do that. And then the guy was
with he was like, you would never be in a
music video.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
Oh he left at me. Yeah, he left at me.
And that kind of fueled me to see to say
watch and that was the first thing I did. The
first thing I did was a music video.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
You're not trying to find it, right?
Speaker 3 (08:54):
Did you find it? You look it up some more.
I'll send you the link.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
I'm going to include in a show. But yeah, you
were saying that he was discouraging you because you were
saying how you wanted to be in a music video.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
It was something that I saw MTV had just come
out and it was a Zzy Top you know, music video,
and I was like, oh my gosh, that is I
would love to do something like that. And I was
actually expressing something that was close to my heart and
some one of my dreams. Someone laugh and walk out
(09:31):
of the room was not a reaction that I was expecting,
and so that just kind of fueled me to let
go of that because of him, because I wanted to
keep going and you know, fuel my passion.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, what did I experience teach you about choosing the
right partner that supports your dreams. Because I had that
was like a very important lesson that you learned early on.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
Yes, it's I think it's different for everyone. You know,
I was married and I got and I was I've
divorced my first husband, I'm now remarried, and I think
it's an evolutionary process of finding the one. Some people
find their sweethearts in high school, some find it in college.
(10:18):
Everyone's growth journey, relationship journey, karmac journey is different.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Well, one thing I will say, miss Jennifer, you stay
with a man.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Yes, that is true. That is true. I stick it
out right, I stick it out.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
So for the listeners who may not know, can you
explain the legacy of the rock Gets and what makes
them so iconic.
Speaker 3 (10:41):
So the Rockets were founded in nineteen twenty five by
Russell Market and Saint Louis, Missouri, and his idea of
a dance troup was based off the British Tiller Girls
and he thought if he can get an American group
of ladies that could do intricate tap steps and high
kicks at the end, that he would knock the American
(11:02):
people's socks off. And I don't think if he was
here today that he could even fathom this line of
one hundred years that's now so iconic and the threat
of American you know, American traditions. But in nineteen twenty five,
black people were not allowed to dance on the same
(11:24):
stage as white people. That's just how it was. But
you would think in nineteen eighty seven, under the backdrop
of New York City, there would have been a black dancer.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Right.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
So we've birthed a lot of, you know, beautiful black
dance companies like Dance Theater of Harlem and Alvin Ally
and Twilat Tharp. But still it did take the Roquettes
Radio City a long time to diversify as much as
they have.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
So tell us about the moment when you found out
that you became a rocket.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
It was my first big job. Violet Homes had called
me and asked me if I wanted to do a
Super Bowl twenty two halftime show. I was nineteen twenty
years old, and I asked her if I could call
her back because I was so nervous. I took a
walk around the block and about a half hour later,
I called her back and I accepted the job. But
(12:20):
at that point I still hadn't known. They didn't tell
me I would be the first black woman to break
the race barrier, and you.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Didn't notice that there were no other like people of color,
Like did you think, cause I'm just thinking that at
the time. I'm like, wow, like you were really like
the first black woman to ever be a part of
this history, and I'm just like, I don't know. I
just think it's kind of crazy how that never stood
out in the beginning, because I feel like you were
just so like, I'm just gonna dance, dance, dance, like
it even hit you.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Yeah, I didn't realize it. Even when I went to
the audition, I noticed that there wasn't, you know, another
black dancer on the line, and I thought, I know,
I did think about leaving. I thought I can make
my favorite jazz class, but there was an inner voice
that kind of pushed me back in the line and
told me to stay. It wasn't until my callback where
(13:10):
I would see another black woman. And at still at
that point, I had no idea of the Rockhead's history.
I didn't even when I went to the audition, I
didn't even know who the rockheads were. I didn't know
what Radio City was or the Christmas Show. My parents
never took me to see that Broadway, so it was
(13:32):
just all new and I was trying to learn the
ropes to become a Broadway star.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
So tell us about the first time you perform a
Radio City music hall, because that had to be like
overwhelming in a good way.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
It was amazing. I was actually surprised to be called
back for the Christmas Show because my first job was
Super Bowl twenty two, which was January February third, January
thirty first, nineteen eighty eight. So I had a whole
year of not really knowing if I was going to
(14:06):
be called in for the Christmas Show or not. And
when I was called again, those nerves came in, but
I knew this time it was an immediate yes. I
was not calling back, And it was a learning process
because it was my first really big job and there
were nerves there. I was still learning rocket precision and
(14:30):
language and terminology and towing the line, and I was
learning up to eight numbers. That I was a lot,
a lot for a ninety minute show. But you know what,
I loved rehearsing eight hours a day, and I loved
walking out of the backstage door of Radio City Music Hall.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
What's up, y'all, it's Shagara m and A here, and
be sure to follow me on and TikTok at pretty
private podcasts, and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube
channel at the Professional Homegirl. Now let's get back to
the show. Okay, So this might be a stretch, but
you started in nineteen eighty seven, and when I was
(15:16):
a little girl, my grandma used to take me to
go see the rock ass And when I was preparing
for our conversation and I was reading your book, I'm like,
I remember my grandma telling me. And it could be
a stretch, but I feel like I saw you on
stage when I was a little girl.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Probably yeah, probably yes, because we always got good seats.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
And she's like, she was like, there's only one, she said,
there's not there's hardly any black girls on stage, she said,
but there's one. And I was like, well, where is she?
And I could have sworn she pointed to you, And
I feel like I remember seeing you when I was
a little girl.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Oh n no, And that's what I was like.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
I'm like, I didn't want to cry and get nostalgic.
But I'm just like, wow, like it's just so crazy
how life is like circle.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
Yes, yes, it is amazing. There's Actually we were celebrating
the Rockets one hundredth anniversary and I got together together
with some Rockettes of color and one of the ladies
came up to me and she said her father was
watching the Thanksgiving Day parade one year when she was
a little girl and I was performing, and he called
(16:22):
her in and he said, look, they hired a black
woman and she watched and she said that encouraged me
to go an audition and perform because I saw you,
and I think that's so important that we have representation
on that stage. So any child can say I can
do that too.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Yeah, that's so cool. Friends with missus Jennifer Jones. So
what are some of the challenges you face stepped into
this space, because I feel like when you are the
first or when you are pioneer, it's a lot that
comes with it.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
Absolutely. I think a lot of people think that, oh,
once you've made it to be the first of anything,
that you've got it made. But within organizations with firsts,
there comes challenges at resistance with change, so there were
some ladies on the line who did not want me there.
(17:22):
It was so to you, I know, I know, I
just wanted to keep dancing, and I was I was
by myself, yeah, and so I just had to I
just held onto my dream. And there were people within
the organization who made it clear that they did not
want me there. And it was my sheer love of dancing,
(17:45):
wearing those costumes with the rhinestones under the lights and
red lipsticks and lashes and walking out of the backstage door,
out of you know, from dancing all day. I was
living my dream and I got to dance on the
same stage they did. I got to do the same choreography,
wear the same costume, and walk out of that door.
(18:08):
And so I felt good. I felt confident, yeah, and that.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
But I feel like there was no room for error
when it came to you, because if you messed up, like,
they really pointed it out. And even like when I
think about some of the situation that you've been in,
like even with one of the dancers putting on dark foundation,
doing blackface, or even when you were saying how you
wanted the stockings to match your skin tone, and that
was a problem too, and I'm like wow, Like I
(18:34):
just couldn't imagine like being in that space and being
the only one having this stand up for yourself and
then you heard girls talking about you when you was sleeping,
like she got to start cursing these people out.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Yeah, I mean it was a lot, and you know,
I was by myself a lot. Of course, there were
some ladies who were on the line who were very
nice and very friendly and taught me how to be
the best rock cat possible, and I thank them for that.
But I didn't have like the close you know friendships
(19:08):
where people would go out to lunch in between shows
all or we didn't have cell phones back then, but
you know, go to you know, each other holiday parties
or things like that. So I was by myself, but
I was living my dream. And it took me a
long time to really figure out, you know, my fifteen
(19:30):
year tenure and opening the doors for other black women
to call themselves radio city music Hall rockets because that title,
as soon as I got it was taken away from me.
So it took me a long time to like own
this power and realize that this does matter.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
What do you mean? It was taken away from you.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
I talk about this in the book, where like I said,
there are people people within the organization who did not
want me there. And right before I for before the
Super Bowl halftime show, I was pulled aside and I
was told that I'm old news, nobody cares about me
or own a pr lady yes, and I'm lucky to
(20:12):
be there. And I thought she was right, and so
I muted myself. I dimmed my light, and I thought
nobody cared.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Well, you wrote this book and you go back and
you share these stories. Have anybody from the organization reached
out to you or like no, oh wow, well no.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
I was actually surprised when I went to see the
one hundredth anniversary show this year. They did a film
beforehand and asked rockheads throughout the decades to come and
talk about their journey. They did not ask any of
the first ladies who broke the color barrier. They did
(20:55):
not ask the first Asian latina or myself to speak
in the video which is playing throughout the Christmas show.
And my thought process is and what I've kind of
been told from like other people that I share this
experience with, which is very hurtful that they've been trying
(21:15):
to whitewash it kind of blended, saying we've always been diverse.
They don't want to bring up the past for some reason.
They don't want to acknowledge my journey or any of
the other ladies that are first.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Dang, and I was gonna take my niece to go
see it.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
So there goes there. It's a wonderful show.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
We're not going.
Speaker 3 (21:39):
No, it's a great show. And the ladies that are
on the line today, it's a different vibe from when
I was there. The ladies on the line are very
inclusive and respectful of each other. When I was on
the line, the thoughts I believe still are very antiquated
and are still back in the nineteenth sixties and fifties.
(22:02):
But it's Radio City, Madison Square Gardens decision not to
acknowledge me.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
So where do you get this grace from? Because I
feel like not because I feel like you've been through
so much and like you broke barriers, Like if it
wasn't for you, there wouldn't be any other African American rockets.
So like, where do you think that comes from? Because people,
a lot of people in have felt a way. I'm
pretty sure when people just here and it's just like wow,
like they try to erase your history.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
Yes, that's exactly what they're trying to do. And you know,
and I speak publicly about it because they're they're not
going to do anything about it. But it's the truth.
And I want, I still want girls and boys to
go see the show because it is iconic, it is
a part of history. It's a part of our Black history,
(22:50):
is a part of our American history, a part of
dance history, and it's important. And the ladies that are
performing on the stage today, they want to encourage black
and brown children to follow their dreams, no matter what
it is, whether it's being a chef or an astronaut
or a race car driver, just to show that you
(23:11):
can whatever you put your mind to, that you can
do and that's the important thing.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
Do you still think that there needs to be more
work done in the performing arts when it comes to diversity.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
Yes. Absolutely. I think that representation, diversity, inclusiveness all need
to be expressed, and I think that, especially in today's climate,
it needs to be acknowledged and I think there should
be representation for all in the arts and creativity.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
Wow, that really just.
Speaker 3 (23:49):
So sorry.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, So talk about how you made the transition from
being a rocket to now working on Broadway, because how
long were your rocket?
Speaker 3 (23:57):
For? Fifteen years?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Okay? And he stopped doing it because you got pregnant,
so you took him maternity.
Speaker 3 (24:02):
Leave, yes, And then when I came back, I did
one more year of the Christmas Show. And at that
point they were Madison Square Garden had bought the Rockheads
and they were breaking the roster, and the roster consisted
of thirty six women who had full time health benefits
for oh one k job security. I could take a
(24:26):
leave of absence, maternity leave and come back to my
job on the line. And Jim Dolan wanted to break
the roster, and he did so successfully. I kind of
thought to keep it because it helped me in my situation.
So when it was broken, I was cast in a
Broadway show, and I chose to leave the Rockheads and
(24:48):
continue on Broadway. Oh man, But I have to say
when he did break the roster, the Rockets want for nothing.
They are very well taken care of. They're given everything
that they need that they want, so he does take
care of them in that respect.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Did you make it like good money? Doing it back
in the.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Day during the Christmas run, which is the biggest money
maker for Radio City, you know, the Rockheads and the
Christmas Show. It was anywhere from thirty five to forty
thousand dollars. Those are real.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
Cute, especially being single. And he was able to open
up your own studio. You was an entrepreneur.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Yes, I owned Jennifer Jones Dance and Fitness Studio, which
was an aerobics studio and there was another small room
with some fitness machines and some weights and step aerobics
was really big back then. Gave step classes and I
was I also taught dance to the underprivileged kids from
(25:54):
Easter Seals and United Way, which was nice.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Oh do you hate like, do you have any regrets
when it comes to selling your business looking back?
Speaker 3 (26:02):
No, it was time for me to sell and I
went on tour with the Rockheads. I'm glad I did it.
I'm glad I had the experience, but I'm not upset
that we sold it.
Speaker 2 (26:15):
Yeah, okay, so talk about your time on Broadway.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
So I got to live my childhood experience of performing
on Broadway, which was forty second Street, The musical The
Revival and I danced in that from beginning to end.
And I loved doing eight shows a week and getting
that family for all those years, seeing the same people
(26:41):
day in day out, the stage hands, the musicians, the dancers.
It was really beautiful, something that I really enjoyed. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Eight, Oh my god, I'm just thinking, like, how did
you have time to do anything else?
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Like?
Speaker 2 (26:54):
Were you not tired?
Speaker 3 (26:57):
My body was tired, But I that I love to
do it. I loved to dance. I loved to be
on stage. I loved to sing. I loved the live audience.
It was something that was just innate in me that
I never it never grew old.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Have you seen Alicia Keys play I Have Not So Good?
Speaker 3 (27:20):
Really so good?
Speaker 2 (27:21):
You will like it, you will love it. Actually, yeah,
it's so good. Yeah. What's your favorite Broadway shows?
Speaker 3 (27:28):
I haven't seen a Broadway show lately. The last show
I saw was Jersey Boys, and that was off Broadway.
The last show I did see was Radio City the
Christmas Show, and I have to say, you know, it
was amazing, all right.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
I guess if you say it's amazing, I think about
taking my knees clude you like that would have been
like so like historical to have you the first Asian
and that first Latina.
Speaker 3 (27:52):
Like, yeah, they just didn't want us there. They do
have you know, blacklea that speak and Asian ladies that speak.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
But it's not y'all.
Speaker 3 (28:05):
Yeah, yeah, So.
Speaker 2 (28:06):
Can you talk about the feeling and why breaking barriers
doesn't always come with security or stability, because after you
left Broadway, you know, you talked about your journey with
like just trying to find a career and stuff, and
I'm like, damn, like it was like kind of it
was sad, and no, it was because it's just like
you push your all into your passion. You was the
first black Rock get you performed, You're part of a
(28:28):
Tony Award win Broadway team. You was also Miss Jerks
my not Miss Jersey, but Miss.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
Morristown, Miss Morris County. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
I'm like, you had all these accolades and I'm just like, damn,
Like it shouldn't have been a hard Yeah.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
Well, after Broadway, you know, auditioning doesn't pay the bills.
My children were very young, I was going through my divorce,
so act.
Speaker 2 (28:52):
Like that, are y'all cool?
Speaker 3 (28:56):
Now? No? I mean I am with him, He's not me,
you know, but for whatever read the book.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
Yeah, because I was like, Wow, you just really don't
know people.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Yeah, so, you know, I really had to provide for
my children, so I had to, you know, find a
way to make money and navigate a nine to five job. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
How what are you feeling like? Did you feel like like,
I don't know, if you feel like just giving up?
Speaker 3 (29:25):
You know, the pr woman's voice always resonated in my head.
You know, nobody cares. You know my you know, your
story is old. I was lucky to be there. I
wasn't talented enough, So yeah, I did feel defeated. I
didn't think that anybody cared, but I just knew I
had to put food on the table and close on
(29:47):
my kid's back. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
Have you ran into her lately or have you seen her?
Speaker 3 (29:51):
No? I don't. I don't know where she is. I
even after when I was during my tenure there, at
some point she left, so to be honest, I don't
even really remember her name, but she was gone. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
And then you mentioned at the age of fifty, you
noticed that your body was changing, but you push your
concerns to the side. So what were some of those
signs that you realized that you was noticing, but you
just felt like, you know, I'm just gonna worry about
it later. Well, I wanted to do delay on ecanum.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
Okay. So the symptoms that I was feeling was like
my stomach was, you know, felt like a little irritated.
I was a little gassy and bloated. I would eat
something and I just wouldn't feel right. So I thought
it was maybe a gluten allergy or now I'm lactose intolerant.
There was always something, you know. I didn't see a
(30:46):
doctor immediately because I was going through an interim of
health insurance, so I had to wait for health insurance
to kick in right and as soon as it did,
I did go see a doctor.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Yeah. And then also when you was talking about going
to visit the first surgeon, I was like wow, like
they were just so me and dismissive towards you.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
Yes. So when I when I finally went to see
the gastro enterologist, I told her I'm not feeling right,
and I would like I had just turned fifty and
at that time, colonoscopies were at fifty years old, so
I was right on time. And she was just like, ugh,
(31:31):
you're healthy. You know you're vegetarian. You know my scheduler
will schedule you when I have time. Wow. I sat
down with the scheduler. Can you please put me in
as soon as possible? She was like two weeks, So
I had another two weeks of waiting. And after I
came out of my endoscopy and colonoscopy, I was coming
(31:54):
out and she delivered the news that I had coorectal
cancer and she gave me five years to live. Wow.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
And the way she said it was just so cold.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
Yeah, And that brought on shame and embarrassment. I was
the healthy one in my family. I didn't tell my
family for a month and I went to do screenings
and lab work all in private. So that was another
(32:27):
layer of work that I had to do, and not
only changing my jobs, but now my life was changing
with this cancer diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
Did it bother you when people were saying they were
just so surprised you had cancer because you were you
were a healthy one.
Speaker 3 (32:44):
I think during that month of my shame and embarrassment,
I did a lot of reflecting. And when I came
out to my family with this, they of course immediately
had had my back and told me to go to Sloan,
and at that point, no matter what anyone said, it
(33:05):
was just a concern for me to get better.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
Yeah. But also both of your parents had cancer too.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
Right, Yes, my father had prostate and my mother had breast,
but no one in my family had colon cancer. And
I did the genetic testing and it doesn't run in
my genes. But at the time, I'm telling you, I
was stressed out to ten. And I think stress levels
(33:36):
and the way we care for ourselves has a lot
to do with that.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Yeah, Because when I was reading your book, I'm like, Wow,
if she wasn't so stressed up, maybe this wouldn't happen.
Like do you think about that?
Speaker 3 (33:47):
Oh yeah, all the time. All the time I had
to like really do a complete one eighty of my
life and let some situations go, let people go, just
like kind of drop anything that didn't really matter, wasn't
didn't matter to my life. Yeah, And I still carry
(34:10):
that today. But I think stress is a big contributor
to cancer and other ailments.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
Yeah. So talk about your recovery journey, because I know
when you went to the second doctor at Sloan, like
for you, it was like I don't want the bag
I don't want and I'm like, nobody wants to slow bag.
But tell us about that, because I feel like you
were just so like very adamant, like you said, you
change everything, and even the doctors were very surprised that
you were healing fast because I guess the cancer was
(34:44):
like shrinking.
Speaker 3 (34:46):
Yeah, so they my doctors had Sloan tattooed where the
tumor was, and they put me on a kpox chemotherapy treatment.
And after four rounds of chemo, and after four rounds
of reflection and adding more juicing to my diet and
(35:10):
whak grass shots, they did another Lookxie, and both of
both my oncologist and my surgeon came in and they
just looked at me and they said, what are you doing?
And I said, what do you mean? And they said,
the tissue is almost all healed. You can't even really
(35:31):
tell where the tumor is. It's just that we know
because that's where it was tattooed. And I just told them,
you know, my reflection and the changes that I was making,
and I thought, great, I'm done with chemo, no more,
I don't have to have surgery. I was going to
walk out scot free and they said, we need you
(35:52):
to do another four rounds of chemo, and you do
need surgery to take the tumor out. So I did.
I did four more and I had my surgery.
Speaker 2 (36:02):
And you're six seven years cancer free.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
This January will be seven years.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
Wow. How do they feel like the fact that they
gave you five years to live like it's like they
wasn't even trying to help you.
Speaker 3 (36:14):
They Yeah, we really have to advocate for our own health.
I have friends who have sadly passed away because doctors
did not identify the colorectal cancer soon enough. And if
they had given him a colonoscopy, they could have identified
(36:35):
it and he could have been treated. And they're finding
coorectal cancer in younger and younger adults and they don't
know why. So if anyone is feeling off with their
bowel movements or their stomach, they really need to go
to a gastro entrologist and tell them that they want
a colonoscopy. They have to advocate for themselves. Unfortunately, could
(36:59):
you have food? I don't think so, because I did you.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
Know black people trying to get a check.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
Like that?
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Sue, what you was going to say?
Speaker 3 (37:14):
I don't think I could sue, but because she did
see me and she did diagnose me. And the first surgeon,
like you mentioned, I was not a fan of. I
was his next family vacation. And so you really have
to find the doctor that you fit well with, who
really cares about your best interest. And when that happens,
(37:38):
you're already halfway cured.
Speaker 2 (37:41):
And then when you got back from being cancer free,
you went back to work, but then you was having
problems with your employees or your coworker. Should I say, Look,
I didn't understand it. Why day was coming at too.
Speaker 3 (37:54):
I was I was the new kid on the block
in this nine to five job. Yeah, and I was.
I was taking time off for my chemo treatments. And
my boss knew, and HR new, but they I wasn't
comfortable telling these strangers about my personal prognosis, and they
(38:18):
felt a need to document when I was in the
office and when I was out of the office, and
when I went back to work, I was called into
HR and they wanted me to, you know, tell these ladies,
these white ladies, why I was out. It was just
like just tell, just tell them that you have cancer
(38:40):
or you know, I was like no, right, So you know,
it was the whole process of me even still fighting
and I just coming back from surgery. It took me
a good year and a half for my body to
like get fully healed. So I'm healing, I'm fighting, and
and you know, just trying to provide for my family still. Yeah,
(39:07):
it was a battle.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
I feel like you could have got a check from
them because you did try to go to a lawyer.
Speaker 3 (39:14):
I did, Yeah, I did, and and they back down
that my I've been you know, my attorney never had
to contact them, but they did back down, and I
was able to I was treated like one of the
ones again.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
Yeah, And during the entire process, I was thinking about
your husband now, because when y'all met, he has just
lost his wife, or maybe a couple of years ago
before y'all met, he lost his wife to brain cancer.
So I can only imagine like what he was going
through throughout this journey.
Speaker 3 (39:44):
Right, Yeah, And you know, I say I say in
my book that when you know, he was one of
the first people that I told and I did not
even know if he was going to stay because that
journey that he had gone through, I can imagine was
so horrific. Yeah, he could not even go through it again.
So he is a lifeline not only for his late
(40:07):
wife but for me.
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Yeah, now tell us about you telling you a story
to Lifetime because I'm like, I feel like they missed
out on a big opportunity, like they come back around.
Speaker 3 (40:18):
Oh yeah, Lifetime is not interested. You know. I am
still trying to find the right home for my book,
whether it's a documentary or I think it could be
a great TV series or even just the idea of
a dance troupe, you know, day in and day out
(40:40):
of what it's like in the life of a quote
unquote rocket could be very interesting. Just trying to find
the right home and that I understand that always takes time.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Yeah, but why didn't they go with it? Because at
first it seemed like they was interested because you changed
your pitch, Like what was that process?
Speaker 3 (40:56):
Like they wanted a book out first, and so, but
I always wanted to put my story in black and
white and and and document my legacy, my journey because
as you know, Radio City, Madison Square Garden is not
going to talk about it. Yeah, so I needed to.
(41:18):
I needed to. I needed to write it down no
matter what no matter what lifetime was thinking or wanted.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
So what I aspire you to share your story like
it was because I know this year was one hundred
year for the rock Ast, But there's something else inspire you,
like it's time for me to tell my story.
Speaker 3 (41:34):
I always wanted to tell my story. I always wanted
to share my legacy. And I had picked up the
pen and paper so many times and started writing, and
it wasn't the right time. It wasn't the way I
wanted to say it. But I think the universe always
is working with us, and it just turned out to
(41:57):
be the right time for me to to find a
writer to help me put the words out on the paper,
the right publisher, the right literary agent to come along
and push for my book and push for my legacy,
and everything works in divine timing.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
Yeah, And what has been a feedback And how has
it made you feel? Because this is history and that
part of y'all.
Speaker 3 (42:21):
The feedback has been very positive, and I've been very
fortunate to have people reach out to me and let
them know, let me know how inspiring the book has
been for them. And just being able to speak at
different venues and moderated discussions and telling my story and
(42:41):
getting questions from the audience has been very fulfilling, and I'm,
you know, so thankful people are interested in the history,
and I'm glad that I can pay it forward. And
you know, if someone else is going through a challenge,
hopefully my story can help them.
Speaker 2 (43:00):
Do you feel like the industry give you, give you
your flowers?
Speaker 3 (43:05):
No?
Speaker 2 (43:06):
Yeah, I don't feel like it either, Like I feel
like they should have you everywhere and you still look good.
It's like you still like do the moves and stuff.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
I mean, I mean, I'm very active. Of course, I'm
always dancing in my kitchen and at weddings. I'm a runner,
I practice hot yoga all the time. Yeah, it's it's
it's hurtful, especially with Radio City when you go on
(43:37):
to their social media websites and they bring in all
of these people Amanda Klutes, former Rockets, Jennifer Gardner, Jordan Childs,
Sierra just to promote and do dance moves and everything,
but they'll never ask one of the firsts.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
You know, well, you never know. We have a lot
of people listening, so I have to change that tone.
Just having on stage I can just duel it this.
Do you have any regrets looking back over your journey, Like,
is there anything you would have done differently?
Speaker 3 (44:12):
I don't think that I could ever go back and
say I would have done something different because that wouldn't
put me to the place where I am today. I
think I knew what I knew at that point, and
I made the best decision possible in that mindset. I
(44:34):
think looking back, I would have been like, yeah, maybe
I would have, you know, changed my mind. Yeah, But
I'm older now, I'm not twenty years old, I'm not
twenty five. I think I always made the best decision
possible in any circumstance that I was in, So I
can't say that I am regretful, but as an older
(44:56):
and wiser person, which I was not back then, I
did my best when I could.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Yeah, I'm just curious. What do your kids think about you? Like, like,
I think it's so cool you're they have a rocket
as a mom.
Speaker 3 (45:10):
Thank you?
Speaker 2 (45:11):
Yeah, my kids, they kids don't be caring.
Speaker 3 (45:15):
Right, Yeah, they were born into into me being a rockhead,
so they kind of My son came with me to
the one hundredth anniversary celebration and he loved it. My
sister came with me and she loved it. Yeah, but
they're my family, and I think they just kind of
look at me as Jen Jones.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
And what about your mom and dad?
Speaker 3 (45:38):
My mom and dad are proud. Uh. My mom, I know,
is very proud of me. My father, he lives in
Saint Croix. I don't really get to see him as often,
but I know that he is very supportive of all
of all of my endeavors.
Speaker 2 (45:55):
You know, I know this book is a memoir, but
I really do feel like this is a love story
to those who want to just chase their dreams. Like
I really really because I'm in like with my passion
things that I'm doing, and like you say, it's not
always easy and it's also not always affordable. And so
just reading your story and just like seeing all the
things you went through and talking to you, like it's
(46:15):
really inspiring. And I really do hope that you get
to smell your flowers from me and everybody else that
really really grew up watching you, because like I think
you're just it's just iconic.
Speaker 3 (46:26):
Thank you, Thank you. That means a lot. And I
love that you equate that my book to a love story.
Speaker 2 (46:33):
Yeah that is.
Speaker 3 (46:37):
Yes, I love that and thank you for saying it's
inspirational because no matter who you are in life, and
no matter what happens, there are challenges. And at the
end of my book, I equate us all to diamonds,
and diamonds are formed under pressure and you're scraped and scrubbed,
and those are the challenges. But that's only making us
(47:00):
shine brighter. So that's fostering growth. And that's what we
all need to share our gift to the world. And
everyone has their own unique gift and even though it
looks like we are all doing the same thing, we
all have our own uniqueness to bring to the world.
So never compare yourself because your gift needs to be
(47:20):
shown not only for you, but as a community. We
need to see it and and and live from that.
Speaker 2 (47:27):
Yeah. And last, but not least, what does Jennifer Jones
want the world to remember remember about Jennifer Jones?
Speaker 3 (47:34):
Oh? Well, I would love them to remember that the
ladies that are dancing at Radio City Music Hall, the
the black ladies. I open the door for them. And
I'm so proud.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
Of you open the door for the ladies exactly.
Speaker 3 (47:59):
And and im and I'm glad that they're relishing in
all of their successes and just for people in general. Never,
like I said, never compare yourself to anyone else. We
all have our own unique gift and journey for the
world at large, and we all need to see that.
And once we all know that there are pressures and
(48:19):
challenges in life and that fosters growth, to not shrink
from that, but to lean into that.
Speaker 2 (48:25):
Yeah, oh my god, how much my grandma was here
to see this. I'm so excited. I cannot wait for
everyone to hear it is. This has been definitely one
of my favorite episodes. So thank you, thank you, thank
you so much. Let everybody know where they can buy
your book, how we can support you, where we can
follow you at all those good things.
Speaker 3 (48:41):
Yeah. So you can buy my book Becoming Spectacular, The
Rhythm of Resilience, and my children's book On the Line,
The Story of Becoming the First Black Roquette anywhere HarperCollins, Amazon,
Barnes and Noble. You can find my Dancing gen doll
at Walmart Marketplace. That's just a tangible reminder for kids
(49:07):
that thoughts become things and to never let go of
your dream. And you can find my website at www.
Rockheadgen dot com and you can follow me on social
media Instagram, Rockhead, Underscore, Gen, j E n N.
Speaker 2 (49:22):
Okay, I think you follow me because I know I
follow you. Yeah, okay, she's not gonna follow y'all, but
she follows me.
Speaker 3 (49:30):
But thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (49:31):
I'm so so so excited that we were able to
do this, and then hopefully soon I know it's a holiday,
so definitely even the new year, we are going to
link up and then I'm going to treat you to
coffee and I can get my autograph in my picture.
Speaker 3 (49:41):
Of course I would love that. I can't wait. We're
too close not to link up.
Speaker 2 (49:45):
Yes we are, Yes we are so thank you so
much into the listeners. If you have any questions, comments,
or concerns, please make sure to email me a hello
at the phgpodcast dot com. And until next time, everyone,
Later you're gonna say.
Speaker 3 (49:59):
Bye bye, thank you.
Speaker 2 (50:08):
Pretty Private is a production of the Black Effect podcast Network.
For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Don't forget
to subscribe and rate the show, and you can connect
with me on social media at pretty private podcasts,
Host
Eboné Almon
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