I'll just get this out of the way. I love Sade. So I was going to find a way to put Sade in this list no matter what. She could have simply mentioned the word "Black" and "Greek" in a song randomly, then moved her feet in a way that I could have rationalized as stepping, and that would have qualified her. Don't like it? Sue me.
But as it turns out, there is a reason to include her in our list of Black Greek videos. As you all know, Sade came out with a new album called Soldier of Love, and the video for the title track featured some shadowy figures stepping in the background. Now let me be clear, I don't know if they guys stepping are Black Greeks. They might be, they might not be. But hey, it's Sade and I'll count them.
In this video, we see classic fraternity stepping that could come from any of the organizations. It's like being at a stepshow, accept Sade is there singing and the microphone works and there are no fights and the deejay doesn't play the wrong track to your performance. Other than that, just like being at a stepshow. So whether you're talking about the United States or the United Kingdom, the influences of Black Greekdom, particularly when it comes to stepping, run deep. And without further ado…Our #8 Hip Hop Video With Black Greeks (sort of)…
Lawrence Ross is the author of the Los Angeles Times best-seller The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities. His newest book, Blackballed: The Black and White Politics of Race on America’s Campuses, is a blunt and frank look at the historical and contemporary issue of campus racism on predominantly white college campuses. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.