Ever wonder how a leap of faith can pirouette into a life-changing career move? Miss Chanel TooT Williams, a professional dancer known for her electrifying performances and choreography, joins us to share her riveting journey from college stages to the limelight of world-renowned artists like Teddy Riley. Her story is a testament to the power of conviction and the grace of divine timing; as TooT reveals how a moment of doubt led to a cascade of opportunities that shaped her path. Through her candid tales, we uncover the intricate dance of maintaining one's values amidst the allure of the entertainment industry, and why sometimes, making room in life can create space for blessings to flourish.
As the curtain rises on Toot's narrative, we're enveloped in the heart and soul of her book "Built Different," a beacon of hope that transcends the dance community to touch anyone seeking spiritual strength and self-assurance. TooT's insights into the unpredictable nature of careers, and the ever-present need for mentorship, will inspire listeners to embrace their unique rhythm in life's choreography. We'll step into the shoes of a mentor with the Star Power Mentorship Program, understanding how dance can be much more than an art form—it's a medium to mentor and mold principles that resonate with our innermost values. So, lace up your dancing shoes and join us for an episode that will move you, body and soul.
If your in the music industry- singer, songwriter, composer, indie, neo singer, rapper, country artist, promoter, manager, music lawyer or blues please email me to be a guest on my show at myguest@spit2dabeat.com I would love to hear your Spit about the Music Industry.
Ever wonder how a leap of faith can pirouette into a life-changing career move? Miss Chanel TooT Williams, a professional dancer known for her electrifying performances and choreography, joins us to share her riveting journey from college stages to the limelight of world-renowned artists like Teddy Riley. Her story is a testament to the power of conviction and the grace of divine timing; as TooT reveals how a moment of doubt led to a cascade of opportunities that shaped her path. Through her candid tales, we uncover the intricate dance of maintaining one's values amidst the allure of the entertainment industry, and why sometimes, making room in life can create space for blessings to flourish.
As the curtain rises on Toot's narrative, we're enveloped in the heart and soul of her book "Built Different," a beacon of hope that transcends the dance community to touch anyone seeking spiritual strength and self-assurance. TooT's insights into the unpredictable nature of careers, and the ever-present need for mentorship, will inspire listeners to embrace their unique rhythm in life's choreography. We'll step into the shoes of a mentor with the Star Power Mentorship Program, understanding how dance can be much more than an art form—it's a medium to mentor and mold principles that resonate with our innermost values. So, lace up your dancing shoes and join us for an episode that will move you, body and soul.
If your in the music industry- singer, songwriter, composer, indie, neo singer, rapper, country artist, promoter, manager, music lawyer or blues please email me to be a guest on my show at myguest@spit2dabeat.com I would love to hear your Spit about the Music Industry.
Just ettitious to pickup uk one All the way from Atlanta, georgia, but the native Memphis, born and raised right here in the studio with me. Look, it's 2024, it's time to get it. I know you all had these New Year's resolutions or whatever, but look, hey, what better way to get it started to do the right thing? So I would love for you to be a sponsor of my show, a spit to be podcast. I will have information later on in this show, but joining me today live in the studio is Miss Tutie Williams.
Speaker 1:Hey y'all.
Speaker 2:How you doing.
Speaker 1:How you doing Amazing, how are you?
Speaker 2:Great, great, look, let's get right into it. You know, yeah, yeah, yeah. So we're rolling right now. Hey, if you have any comments, you definitely comment in the comment section. I will get it on the screen as well. So don't hesitate to leave a comment for the guests, and if it's a desirable answer, a question to be answered, we would do that. No thanks, so let's start with your career. I wanna I've been knowing you all my life and, as far as career, let's start with your dancing. You've been dancing pretty much all your life, forever forever let's go with professionally.
Speaker 2:When did you start professionally dancing?
Speaker 1:Professionally, I started towards the end of college, so I would say about 2014. I booked something with Chris Blue. I don't know, if we remember him, it was a show he won, but at the time this was before he won, so he was doing like concerts and small things in Knoxville.
Speaker 2:And I booked that.
Speaker 1:And then when I moved home that's when Auntie Shione shout out to Auntie she booked me to choreograph for a ballet show, and so after that it's like once I opened up myself to okay, I'm gonna do this professionally it's just a gig here, a gig there? Auntie was like. Well, as soon as you start getting paid for, you're considered professional.
Speaker 2:I was like first Okay, then Was that first professional tour was the one in Atlanta that we attended when you was on Keepswet Was that, the first one With Teddy Riley?
Speaker 1:yeah, okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was claiming you already did at the hotel, you remember?
Speaker 1:Very no thanks. Yeah, but that was like my first, like big, big artist, big arenas, you know type of shows.
Speaker 2:How was dealing with being on tour first time ever, dancing behind major artists?
Speaker 1:I don't think that one was really considered a tour, so it was like more so spot dates.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:So that just means that we have a show here and then we have a show here, like sporadically. But honestly, to work with them was really dope, but I feel like I feel like I was made for it. So it was not something that was I'm trying to worry at this. It wasn't something that I couldn't believe and at the same time it was like all right, but like this is a stepping stone to get to, to get some more and to get to where I really wanna be. So, I was excited.
Speaker 2:I was excited. You've been dancing so long. Yeah, dance. Do you feel that dance has opened up a door, or the opportunity, or, we'll say, the key to impacting other people's lives? Of course Okay let's talk about it.
Speaker 1:Gratefully, gracefully yeah yeah.
Speaker 1:Gracefully. I think dance has, but also me, having my own relationship with Christ was the main gateway for me to impact other people. But because I've always felt like everybody in Memphis don't get access to this, so let me go back. Every time I learn something, let me go back home and teach it, let me you know what I'm saying, and then, along the way with me building my relationship with God, it was just like okay, now we can create a mentorship program, now we can you know what I'm saying, like tell more dancers about who God is and help them build their relationship, and now, like they're working hand in hand. So I definitely I think dance is my way of is my way of bringing people in the room to impact them. But mainly my relationship with Christ is was the is the glue to all of it, you know. But if I couldn't dance, I'm pretty sure God would allow me to do something else that impacts them, but like write a book.
Speaker 2:And we're going to dive into that, but I want to ask you a few more questions About the dancing career. You said that it had impact not on yourself, but also in people that's around you, and you sold into their life through dance. However there may be has now taken dance to another level. So last five months, in 2023, you talked about making room, making room and coming. You know coming up making room, so God had revealed that to you. What, what is that all about?
Speaker 1:Man. Honestly, that was from. So, after I finished doing this show tour with my program I I'm so proud of them and I'm so proud of the accomplishments and what we did, but I just I felt so drained and I felt so like, okay, god, well, well, now, like I thought this is going to open door for this and this is going to have and it seems like I was. I was back at zero, so I was like you know what? I'm about to walk away from this. I don't care what happens with dance, I'm going to get a job. I'm fixing up my resume, my corporate resume, that I ain't used in years, cause I just was like these I feel like it's not really paying off.
Speaker 1:And I feel like the minute I say, all right, god, you take it from here, like I'm going to do less, he showed up. He showed up and showed out and I feel like he was like, yes, my turn. You know, like their space from instead of me, like on the hustling bustle, like, oh, let me go to this class, let me be seen here, let me go network with this person, and it was just like you know what I'm not doing? None of that I'm. If you want me to go, you want to tell me to go, and at that point, man, things start rolling. So make room, Just really don't. Don't try to feel, don't try to pave your own way, don't try to fill in your path with oh, it's a resting period, so now I'm trying to be busy. Now, being busy and productive are two different things, right? So making a choice that I don't want to do this out of my own will, like God, if you send me, I'll do it, but if you ain't sent me, I'm not putting myself in that room.
Speaker 2:How has the when those professional calls came in to go on tour to you know back background dance and also core graph portion of the show, right, mm? Hmm, I have seen.
Speaker 1:So, how?
Speaker 2:how has that? How was that when that first happened?
Speaker 1:What's crazy is a lot of those conversations are happening in spurts. So you kind of I have been training myself to like, yeah, until we get the paperwork, don't you know?
Speaker 1:like don't get your hopes up, Because sometimes shows cancel, they, the artists and stuff decide to go a different way. So we had already been in conversation. Keith Andre is one of my mentors and he's also the court choreographer for one 12. So we had been in conversation, I had been submitted my resume, my head shot. So at this point I'm thinking it's not going to happen. I'm thinking I sleep, forgot about it, Like don't bank on it. And yeah, I was at Planted Fitness. I remember I was working out and he was like all right, they want to bring you on. And like the manager called me shot to Abraham. And yeah, it was. It was very seamless and I was like, oh, this is really happening.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Oh, it's like it's up, but even still it's like. So when I got on with Teddy Riley, it's almost like PTSD. When I got on with Teddy Riley three months after getting on with him, that's when the pandemic hit. That's when COVID hit. So all the shows were canceled, like oh wow yeah. For I'm fresh in it. You know like I came to the show Really to go yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm like, oh, we got this show, we got this cruise line that we going out the country, maybe everything was like. So that has humbled me to a point of like, if it happens, it happens, and if it don't, then something else will fall into place. So I mean I was excited, but I still be, I still be like Don't get too far ahead, you know what I'm saying, just be in the now, yeah. And so yeah, okay, cool.
Speaker 2:Look whole time. We're gonna take a break and then we're gonna come back. We're gonna talk about that book, okay.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:And get started and let people know that now you are author.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm learning good. You're listening to Spit to the Beat Podcast with your host, the One, the only Stacey B unstoppable per year.
Speaker 2:Hey, this is Stacey AK A B unstoppable per year with Spit to the Beat Podcast. Would you like to be my guest? If you're a singer, songwriter, musician, producer or promoter, give me a call at 901-341-6777 or email me at myguest at spit to the beat dot com. Yeah, and we're back to Spit to the Beat Podcast. I'm your host, stacey AKA B unstoppable per year, and join me live in the studio. My guest, chanel to Williams Now, I know y'all know her all over the city of Memphis, atlanta, nashville. She be traveling all the time, so we definitely, we definitely want to embrace her. What she got going on in 2024. We're gonna talk about that, but now she's an author. We're talking about the book. Start off about the industry, but it evolved with thought and we're gonna dive right into the. Tell us a little bit about the book built different.
Speaker 1:That's my baby. That's my baby. It really it started out being a guide for dancers and how to maneuver this industry, because you know, right now, with music and entertainment, it's been, it's been wild, it's been let's just keep it a hundred it's been demonic, it's been very. I feel like a lot of artists are unintentional about their message and so with dancers, sometimes we're so like I want to be booked, I want to be in a room, but it's like we need to create a standard we need to have like that's not okay. You know what I'm saying. Like if you book something but down the line your spirit is not at peace or you're disturbed, and so that, and then also with me being a mentor, I've noticed that a lot of people place their value in these gig booking, gigs and being noticed in class, and it's like, really, my thought is that if you have a confidence that God made you, that you're already amazing, that you are equipped, you walk in a room different you know like you don't let that room change who you are.
Speaker 1:You go in looking to change it. You need to be an inspiration in that room. So I felt like a lot of these people are looking for me to validate them and it's like you should know who. Like God made you, you are already good. You're already good and I can't help critique your skill set, but that should not make or break who you are as a person.
Speaker 2:Okay, great, let's go into a little deeper than your thought pattern about the book when it first developed in your mind. You talk about the demonic spirit that's in the industry. At first you was going to refer to the dance part and then God changed that avenue, but let's just touch on it right quick the dance part of your first thought. Did you see anything or witness anything that the demonic that?
Speaker 1:shook you up. Oh, my gosh man, when it's a couple of instances, you know, we have like little nods with the blood and shoes and stuff like that, like just the crazy messages. You got some stuff with Kanye and that was a performance that Doji did in like they just had blood like smeared all over them. It made me realise what the hook was. Like we playing them games, why y'all playing, why don't y'all play it with the Lord? Like it was. It was just some stuff. That's like, bro, we got to learn to say no to some things. We got it. We was getting on because I just was like I was watching it. I was like Lord, protect their spirits, you know, like went into them like a moment of prayer.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because I mean because I never want to be like judgmental or be like I would never do that. This is like sometimes you don't know. Sometimes being a dancer, especially going, you don't know where your next meal come from. Sometimes, you know, you don't know how you're going to pay your rent. Sometimes it's like, bro, I'm going to just take this gig and like it's okay, you know what I'm saying. But eventually you and then also to, with us having like gun violence as an issue and you got so many artists that's like murder, this shit. It's like I can't at some point I can't glorify way was I can't glorify the problem. But also, you know, I just think dancers need to have more of a standard, especially Christian dancers.
Speaker 2:Great, great, great. And now going into the second, when God revealed to you the change that Avenue. Just don't space it off the dance industry, but make it, you know, a level that everybody can reach.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it can reach everyone.
Speaker 2:And so your purpose changed a little bit to not why I said to another level yeah, it didn't go lower, it went a little higher, yeah, so evolve your mindset to think different about a whole totality versus just a small section.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So, with that being said, so where's God taking you in 2024 with this? You're like I said, you talk about making room, so let's go there.
Speaker 1:Honestly, I don't know, and that's the thing about, that's the thing about making room is that like I could plan for this and plan for that? But honestly, I'm not sure. Like when I again, when I finished that tour, I didn't know what the rest of the year was going to look like for me. But God like blew my mind this is the toy you just came off.
Speaker 2:Yeah, london, yeah.
Speaker 1:And we had shows building up to that. It was just a season of bookings, like and also when we didn't have shows, like November we were supposed to have some but they went and did some shows without the dancers. I was still able to like choreograph for the Gris Girls and choreograph for some dance companies here back in Memphis and also prep for another Belet show that I choreographed for. So I didn't know that all that stuff was going to line up. I didn't know that. You know what I'm saying. And so now I'm just, I'm just open. I don't know what God going to do. I'm hoping that I can keep living in my art, in my, in what I love. But I don't put about, I don't box God in at all. I don't want to say, oh, I want to focus on movies, or he may be taking me to another tour. Or if I say I want to do a tour, but now he's taking me to commercials and you know, like choreographing for different artists and stuff like that. So I don't know.
Speaker 2:But I'm hoping you also had a mentor program. You talked about it a minute ago. What was the name of it?
Speaker 1:Star Power Mentorship Program.
Speaker 2:And through that program you mentor a lot of dancers and help them choreograph I mean, help them learn that craft better and stuff like that. How long have you been doing it and how has it been so impactful?
Speaker 1:I started SP, which is Star Power, october of 2021. And we've done five seasons. Season six is coming soon. That I do not, that I do not. He's already placed in my heart to do another season, but it'll be in Atlanta and, honestly, I think my greatest reward with Star Power is people who are like my relationship with God is better. I didn't know where to start. I didn't know. You know, like I've. I've been in church and I've been a part of religion, but I didn't really understand true relationship, and so that's been great. And also like giving them the giving them free game about the industry, the industry, so they be gatekeeping. I don't want to help nobody, why y'all, that's that, that's that, that's that mean, that mean spirit, and that, too, is the thing where it's like oh, you got to figure it out on your own, why cutthroat.
Speaker 1:Yes, cutthroat, and it's like real mean, girlish attitudes and stuff. So I'm like, look y'all, this was see, don't walk in our audition looking like these, do it. You know like, don't be a rehearsal Send down when you know you ain't got the step, little stuff like that where people just don't think about it. It's like, all right, now let me put you on so that once you get in the room you can stay in the room.
Speaker 2:Awesome, awesome, you got to come back on. Take another quick break on comeback. We'll talk about your new to channel called to talk, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Okay, cool. Hey, this is Stacy aka be unstoppable per year. Thank you for listening to our show, spit to the beat podcast. If you would like to be a sponsor, visit our website at wwwspit to the beatcom and click the support tab and leave a donation. We really will appreciate you again for listening. Also, catch every episode Thursday morning at 8am and we are back to spit to the beat podcast. I'm your host, stacy aka be unstoppable per year. Thank you for joining us today live on Facebook. Stacy be unstoppable per year and Stacy spit to the beat per year. Definitely. Don't forget to go on my YouTube channel, subscribe, like and hit that notification bell so you can stay in tune to all my live episodes. We are doing only live episode in 2024. So you'll be notified once you click that notification bell and you can stay tuned and you can also join me again in the studio. It's miss Chanel.
Speaker 1:To Williams I want to say dance to everybody wants to say dance to, which is fine, I'm here for you.
Speaker 2:So we're just trying to keep the artist life yeah. So, let's talk about that. Your YouTube channel. You'd have you got. I said it was called to talk, but what is? What is?
Speaker 1:so technically is dance to entertainment and I do my to talks through there but, I, still post like my dance clips and stuff like that. So I don't want to just limit it to my to talk. So it's like all my entertainment, everything, everything. But yeah, my to talks, my to talks, are something I feel like I do for myself, because I be wanting to share my revelations and stuff, and so, yeah, there's a revelation from just life.
Speaker 2:It's been an industry or what?
Speaker 1:it's from everything. It's from everything I tried to correlate my life with, like my biblical studies and stuff. Oh yeah, like, look at that, I just learned this and this is how it applies, because I think a lot of times we read the Bible but don't know how does how does this apply to me? So I feel like when God shares with me revelations, I mean the tail, people and also sometimes with dance to it's like people want to know what's the life of a professional dancer, what happens before you hit the stage. So it's really, I think, because I'm an open book is just my own way of providing that what would be the format for a professional dancer teach my audience.
Speaker 2:This is what my show about spit to the beat podcast is all about. It's about the music industry and the entertainment industry itself.
Speaker 1:So what would you say?
Speaker 2:to young, young ladies, young guys all that you teach about becoming a professional dancer. What was the steps in the process they would need to do?
Speaker 1:You definitely want to know who you are Like. I say that that's one of the first things to do is like know who you are and know who you are in Christ and where he wants you to go, so that you can start to tailor, because the dance industry is broad, so you don't want to be all over the place all the time and readily available for everything. Don't open up yourself to everything. Have a goal in mind. If you want to be more commercial, or let's say, you want to focus more on like oh, navy commercial, like the family fun, you know, type of things, like I want to be on TV with free form and things like that, there's no reason why you should be at a Megan Estallion audition.
Speaker 1:It don't align. You know what I'm saying. So know who you are and then also train, train, train, train, and that's not in just one specific style. The more versatile you are, the more booked you are and be, be godly, be kind, be nice, be loving, because you never know like relationships are currency. So sometimes it's not about your skill but it's about who you know and how well you stewarded that relationship. So when you walk in a room, don't only look for the CEO, because the daughter the CEO, may be somewhere dressed in a hoodie, that you, just you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:It didn't even know yeah you just bypass and so it's like that person's important to everybody's, important to the picture.
Speaker 2:So yeah, great and definitely what you just said to help teach my audience, those who want to go into the dance industry and face and understand that this dance industry, anything in the entertainment, is real world. Thanks, people care and don't care about you, and you said that earlier. So, taking that in consideration for your next level in 2024, where is God taking you?
Speaker 1:I believe that versus the industry versus the industry.
Speaker 1:I feel that I think my selection is gonna be I don't wanna say picky, but kinda picky, because I wanna show people that you can follow Christ and still be successful. You can still be booked, you can still be whole, but I don't know. Honestly, I don't know. But I'm very open. I feel like with my program, I feel like with the things that I can control, I can control With my program. I can control what type of music we dance to, I can control how we dress. I can control you know what I'm saying when we do shows, when we do performances, anything that's outside of that program. I can either say yes or no too.
Speaker 2:Cool, let's talk. We talked about your book. How can people get your book and has it been released or pre-sale? What's going on?
Speaker 1:My book is on pre-sale right now on Amazon, but it will be available tomorrow. And a lot of people I keep saying e-book but they're like I'm gonna get a copy of it and I'm like you can't go buy a copy. You can't go buy a copy and target a parcel it's a download.
Speaker 1:It's gonna say Kindle, but Kindle has an app, so you don't need the actual device anymore. You just need the app on your phone, the Kindle app. The Kindle app yeah, and then you'll be able to Purchase the book. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and it's a good read. It's not too much. I don't think it's too little. It's comfortable. But it's also the beginning of a series.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay, and we're gonna drop all the nuggets about the book. So we want people to go get the book and read it, yeah, but I'm sure that there are some surprises in that book that people are gonna be like, oh my God.
Speaker 1:It's real. It's real, it's raw, it's honest, it's me in every form. I try to keep the language how exactly I would say it and I also put in some examples. You have some reflection pages, like it's a work of art, I believe. Okay, great, I'm gonna be a little biased because it's mine.
Speaker 2:Hey, no wrong with that Also, where people can reach you on the social media platforms.
Speaker 1:Dance underscore toot, so dance underscore T-O-O-T. And the best way to reach me is on Instagram. But if you want to, Facebook is Chanel Tootie Williams and everything else is dance underscore, t-o-o-t.
Speaker 2:But there you have it. Chanel Toot Dance, toot Williams in the Spit to the Beat podcast studio in the building. Baby, we did this thing right.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2:Awesome, awesome, look y'all wanna be a guest on my show. Give me a call, 901-341-6777,. I wanna talk to producers, promoters, singers, songwriters, artists, entertainers, actors, et cetera all in the music and entertainment industry. You can be a guest on my show or shoot me an email at myguests at spit to the beatcom. Thank you again for joining us on the show, tootie. Thank you had an awesome time, awesome, awesome, awesome. Glad to have you.
Speaker 1:It's an honor.
Speaker 2:Okay, cool, now stay tuned. Stay with me as I wrap up the show. Thank you for watching Spit to the Beat podcast with your host, stace AK B. Unstoppable per year. Join us again next week.