‘Spreading joy through two ropes’: Rondo Double Dutch shares skills with new generation

(SINGING) Strawberry shortcake, blueberry pie

Rondo Double Dutch got a team

And we know why

It's A, B, C

NINA MOINI: Does this sound bring back memories of jumping rope? It's from a song that a Double Dutch class in St. Paul made with the Twin Cities artist Bionik. The class is the brainchild of Mercedes Yarbrough, an educator who wanted to bring Double Dutch to a new generation in her community. She joined up with Jelahn Prentiss, who goes by Coach Twist, to expand her vision for Rondo Double Dutch.

It includes the class we heard, as well as a team that now shows up to events around the metro. In fact, they're booked Monday for a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration in south Minneapolis. But today, Ms. Mercedes and Coach Twist are here with us in the studio. Thank you both for being here.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Yes, thank you for having us.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Hey, hey. Thank you for having us. How you doing?

NINA MOINI: Oh, I'm so glad that I don't have to Double Dutch with you because I am not coordinated enough. I was like, are they bringing a jump rope?

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: I mean, we--

JELAHN PRENTISS: We usually do have the ropes in, so--

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Yep, we do keep it in the truck. Yeah.

NINA MOINI: Well, you all are serious. I've seen the videos, so I won't even try. But--

JELAHN PRENTISS: We're going to let you slide this time.

NINA MOINI: All right.

JELAHN PRENTISS: But if we catch you outside, you got to promise us you'll at least try.

NINA MOINI: I would at least try--

JELAHN PRENTISS: Thank you.

NINA MOINI: --but it has been many years for a lot of people.

JELAHN PRENTISS: That's OK.

NINA MOINI: This is a younger-in-life memory. Ms. Mercedes, how did Rondo Double Dutch get started?

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: So it started in 2023. I had just finished with my husband. We made a comic book called Broken Robots. And we were on a mission to inspire this generation to be a broken robot because we are in a spiritual warfare with the evolution of technology, and a lot of kids are not playing outside. So we wanted to create events that inspired kids to play outside and teach them how to have fun outside.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Without technology.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: And Double Dutch was one of the events. And then when I had the event, that's where I met Twist, and the magic unfolded.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yep. She had the vision and the passion. And with my skill and my passion, we made it a dream.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Yeah, so--

JELAHN PRENTISS: And the rest is history. We've been working, doing the work of the people, bringing back this lost art ever since.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: And I didn't know how to Double Dutch.

NINA MOINI: Oh!

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: It was just a vision that I say God put on my heart and mind, and I listened. And now I do know how to Double Dutch, thanks to Coach Twist.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Right!

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: So you were saying--

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yes.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: --oh, I was worried you guys were going to bring the ropes. Like, don't worry because she will teach anyone. And anybody listening--

NINA MOINI: Oh!

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: --and that caught us, she's taught hundreds of people all around the Twin Cities in less than five minutes. She's amazing.

NINA MOINI: Well, next time, maybe I will want to learn. But so hundreds of people, such growth here, such community and joy. Coach Twist, how can people get involved with what you all are doing?

JELAHN PRENTISS: So you can follow us. We're on all the platforms, Rondo Double Dutch. And we have our calendars. We post our calendars because we get hired for gigs all across the Twin Cities, in and out of the metro areas as well.

And if you feel the urge to pull up, we welcome. We do crowd participation. And we love to engage with the people and get people moving their bodies, even if it is for only an hour or even for 10 minutes, whatever it is. And so that's what we've been doing.

We've deemed Wednesdays as Hump Day, Jump Day, while weather permits. We were outside, going from community to community, giving, spreading love, and joy, and peace, and unity to these communities. And it was crazy because the people would see us, and they would almost tear up their cars to get out and jump rope--

NINA MOINI: Aw!

JELAHN PRENTISS: --with us.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Yes. And we were very intentional to go in areas that just needed more positive energy. So--

JELAHN PRENTISS: We bring that.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: --for instance, we're from Rondo. So we went to Dale University, which has experienced a lot of hardship with just homelessness, addiction. And from the outside looking in, it's not a pretty sight. So we wanted to change that perception.

And there's a superpower that I teach my kids called the magic glasses, where you have the power to change what you see in your life. But you have to put on your magic glasses and envision what you want to see. But what are you going to do to make that vision come true?

JELAHN PRENTISS: You gotta be the change.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: So that's what we did. We put on our magic glasses, brought our ropes. Shout out to DJ Mitchell. He's our personal DJ, a friend of mine who pulls up, and he DJs. We have--

NINA MOINI: Aw.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: --loud music.

NINA MOINI: I love it.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: And we just vibe out. And the team really formed from community. So all of the girls that are on our team just came out of love. And then people hired us, and we go to schools. We're booked for schools for Black History Month this month, Martin Luther King Day, lots of events. We were at Rondo Days, Grand Ole days, the Minnesota Zoo.

NINA MOINI: Amazing.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: The list goes on.

NINA MOINI: Yeah, congratulations.

JELAHN PRENTISS: We've been doing the runs. And we're bringing--

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: And it's intergenerational. Like, I'm--

NINA MOINI: Well, that's what I was going to say because, for so many people, they are craving just movement, community. And it's amazing how physical movement of your body can have such a great mental and spiritual effect, too, and how it's all connected. And I read that you've got from 80 to 7 years old--

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yes, ma'am.

NINA MOINI: --on the team. Tell me about that.

JELAHN PRENTISS: All genders, all nationalities, all ages, everybody is welcome. And it was crazy because one of our other teammates, her mom was in town. So she was there with her mom. She brought her mom and her daughter as her special guest.

NINA MOINI: Aw.

JELAHN PRENTISS: And it just so happened that my mom was here. So we had my mom, my daughter, and my granddaughter. We had three generations in one family. And then four generations--

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: That was four. Yours was four generations.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yeah, I was going to say. Yeah, so we had four generations.

NINA MOINI: And Coach, what skills do you need to Double Dutch? Because people can do it at different ages. But what's the one thing that if people are thinking like, I haven't jumped rope in years, where do you start?

JELAHN PRENTISS: Drive and determination, that's all. That's all it takes. And I got you on the rest. As long as your body can move, you can pick your feet up off the ground, I can get you to jumping. All it takes is just a little bit of will and a little bit of determination. And I got the skill to get you because we possess this one little superpower that we both possess, and we bring it together. And it's called what, Mercedes?

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Love.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Black girl-- and love--

NINA MOINI: Yeah, both.

JELAHN PRENTISS: --and Black girl magic. We got Black girl magic. We real life superheroes. And we're spreading it and sprinkling it around the world.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: And Black girl magic is confidence, just for people that don't know. And that's something that everyone has because scientifically, it's shown that the first person to give life on Earth came from a Black woman, which means we all have it inside of us somewhere.

And then, I always preach love is power. And we are your kids' favorite teacher, which is anyone. Your kids' favorite teacher is the person who's loving them. So whoever is giving love, patience, time and energy to the kid, that is who they're learning from. And yeah.

NINA MOINI: Well, you're also preserving Black history. You're preserving culture.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yes.

NINA MOINI: Coach, do you want to speak about how that feels and how people respond to it?

JELAHN PRENTISS: Oh, man. It's wonderful because I don't know if you know the history of Double Dutch, but it was brought and discovered in New York in the early '30s, right? Which is a dear year to me. My father was born that year. We lost him last year. So I always remember that.

NINA MOINI: I'm sorry.

JELAHN PRENTISS: And then it was discovered a little bit later on the year I was born. So--

NINA MOINI: Wow.

JELAHN PRENTISS: --in 1971 was when it was discovered by actual-- a police officer in New York City. And then it just spread and sprinkled on from Chicago to different parts of the other continents as well. And we just grasping that, bringing it on here. And we just keeping it going. And that was something that I did as a kid, and I love it.

And we're keeping it. I want to bring that back because these kids today, they don't really do a lot of that. They're not moving their bodies like we did. We used to be outside. And so that's what we're doing.

NINA MOINI: Oh, all day, all day until it was time for dinner. And we know we have a lot of screens and a lot of other things that people are doing. But in preserving culture, in creating community, in using your superpowers, I have to imagine that performing at the MLK Day celebration is pretty special.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yes.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Oh, yes.

NINA MOINI: Mercedes, what are you looking forward to the most on Monday?

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: I just want to give a shoutout to Tabitha Montgomery. She is the ED from Powderhorn Neighborhood Association. And--

JELAHN PRENTISS: And she's been there 10 years. She's been doing it for 10 years. And she's amazing.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: So they were very intentional on just getting artists that are going to create a vibe. And that's what Rondo Double Dutch does. We're very medicinal, meaning we heal. When you're in our presence, it doesn't matter if you're jumping or watching. You're going to feel something.

And energy is really real. And we're losing a sense of community, just with the evolution of technology, because so many things are social distancing. And so it's really important that we're in person so we can feel each other's energy, just like, before, you guys asked, do you guys want to come in person or do it over the phone? I was like, we want to be in person--

NINA MOINI: Oh, I'm so glad.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: --so we can feel each other's energy.

NINA MOINI: We love when people come to see us in person. Since the pandemic, it's been difficult.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Exactly.

NINA MOINI: But we love, love, love to see it. Coach, before I let you both go, it's not just physical. There's song, and there's collaboration, and there's chants.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yes, the whole protection.

NINA MOINI: Tell me a little bit about how important that is. And then if you want to share a favorite chant or something that people do that makes you chuckle.

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Oh, but before we do that, can I just say the MLK program is really important because it's also the same day of the presidential inauguration. So Tabitha was very intentional on just creating a space of healing and artists that will provide that so people can leave and just have a sense of hope to keep going on and leave with more of a positive mindset and not be so worried about what else--

JELAHN PRENTISS: What's going to happen in the future?

MERCEDES YARBROUGH: Yeah, out in the world.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Yeah.

NINA MOINI: OK.

JELAHN PRENTISS: So we're bringing joy. We're spreading joy--

NINA MOINI: It's about joy.

JELAHN PRENTISS: --through two ropes. Imagine that, through two ropes. People leave really, really full of joy. And because from our culture and our ancestors, as they were enslaved, they did a lot of chanting and singing, as they were working out in the fields or working in whatever field they were in. So that's always followed us through, and we just kept it going.

And with Bionik, he was able to come in and work with us with these babies, and we got these babies. They are now not only Double Dutch team members, but now, they're recording artists and producers. They made the beat. We wrote the song. Their songwriters wrote the song. And now we're singing it. So yeah, that's real important, especially for these babies to hear this music as they're jumping to their own music. It's a real good vibe.

NINA MOINI: It's the past, and the present, and the future, all in one. Mercedes Yarborough, thank you very much for your time. Jelahn Prentiss--

JELAHN PRENTISS: Thank you.

NINA MOINI: --thank you for your time as well.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Thank you.

NINA MOINI: I appreciate you both. And thanks to everybody for listening to Minnesota Now. We'll see you back here on Monday.

JELAHN PRENTISS: Peace.