Human Jukebox

The Human Jukebox
The Human Jukebox
Nickname	The Jukebox
School	Southern University and A&M College
Location	Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Conference	SWAC
Founded	1947
Director	Dr. Kedric D Taylor
Members	270
Website	Official Human Jukebox website

The Human Jukebox is the marching band representing Southern University and A&M College located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Band profile

T. Leroy Davis is credited with establishing Southern University's marching band and served as the band director between 1947 and 1964. He also helped organize the first Southern University Band Festival and Band Day and was well-known for his contributions and achievements in music. Davis was given the title of Professor Emeritus for his many years of service to the university in 1989.^[1]

The band is anchored by the Isaac Greggs Band Hall on campus. Dr. Isaac Greggs (Doc) was an award-winning band director and alumnus of Southern University that led the band for 36 years (1969 - 2005). Under his leadership, the band grew in popularity and established a distinctive identity. In addition to having the band hall renamed in his honor, he was inducted into the Louisiana Black History Hall of Fame in 2013 and had a display case dedicated in his honor at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in 2016.^[2]^[3]

The Human Jukebox has been recognized as among the best marching bands in the nation by the NCAA.^[4] The band is highly regarded for its powerful, high-volume sound, soulful arrangements, extensive song catalog, and entertaining showmanship.

Since 1969, the Human Jukebox has been often accompanied by The Fabulous Dancing Dolls. Gracie Perkins co-founded the Dolls with Dr. Greggs. The Dolls are best known for their beauty standards, stylish dance uniforms, and graceful choreography.^[5] A notable highlight in Dolls' history is when they were invited to perform with world pop-star Madonna for her live Super Bowl halftime performance in 2012.^[6] In 2019, the Dolls were shown in Beyonce's Netflix documentary "HΘMΣCΘMING: A film by Beyonce".^[7] In 2022, the Dolls starred in an eight-episode docu-series executive produced by NBA player Chris Paul on ESPN+ entitled "Why Not Us: Southern Dance".^[8]

One of the most anticipated traditions of the Human Jukebox is the Friday night "Battle of the Bands" versus Grambling's "World Famed" Tiger Marching Band during Bayou Classic weekend in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The annual event draws tens of thousands of alumni, fans, and spectators. Clips of it is aired on NBC's nationally televised broadcast of Saturday's football game. A YouTube video of the Human Jukebox's soulful rendition of Adele's hit single "Hello" from the 2015 Bayou Classic Battle of the Bands went viral which resulted in the band garnering overwhelmingly positive press both nationally and internationally. The video received over 1 million views in less than two weeks and was one of the nation's top trending topics on social media the week of its release.^[9]^[10] In 2019, Vice Media released a documentary detailing the historical and cultural significance of the Human Jukebox and their annual band battle against Grambling's "World Famed" Tiger Marching band in New Orleans.^[11]

In October 2017, Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers (Baton Rouge-based national restaurant corporation) announced a partnership with The Southern University Human Jukebox, making Raising Cane's the "Official Chicken of the SU Human Jukebox." At the 2017 Bayou Classic Battle of the Bands, State Representative Ted James & J Morgan & Associates unveiled the official Human Jukebox state license plate for the citizens of Louisiana, making The Human Jukebox the first marching band in the nation with a license plate.^[12]

The Human Jukebox has performed at the Super Bowl six times as of 2020 and has a long-standing reputation of making appearances at many types of highly visible events.^[13] For example, in 1997, the Human Jukebox performed at the inaugural parade for President Bill Clinton.^[14] In 2015, the Human Jukebox performed for the grand introduction of Floyd Mayweather in the MGM Grand Arena of Las Vegas for "his bout with Manny Pacquiao".^[15] Lizzo featured the Human Jukebox and Fabulous Dancing Dolls in her 2019 music video "Good as Hell".^[16] The Human Jukebox and Fabulous Dancing Dolls traveled to Pasadena, California in December 2019 to participate in the 131st Rose Parade. This was the marching band's second appearance in the parade, with the first occurring 40 years ago in 1980.^[17]

The Human Jukebox is a highly watched and followed collegiate marching band with over 200,000 followers on Facebook, over 100,000 subscribers on YouTube, over 100,000 followers on Instagram, and several social media videos reaching over 1 million views.^[18]^[19]^[20]

Primary repertoire

The Human Jukebox primary repertoire includes the following:

The SU Alma Mater
The SU Fight Song
The SU Spirit Song, inspired by a 19th century Gospel song
"Do Watcha Wanna", a New Orleans brass band classic
"Talkin' Out the Side of Your Neck", a Funk/R&B classic by Cameo
"I Don't Give A", a Hip-Hop song by Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz
"Got My Whiskey", a Blues/R&B song by Mel Waiters
"Black and Blues", a Jazz/R&B song by Al Jarreau
"I'm So Glad I Go to Southern U.", inspired by "I'm So Glad" from Delta blues legend Skip James

Band leadership

Position	Name
Director	Dr. Kedric D. Taylor
Associate Director of Bands	William J. Young
Assistant Director	Kenneth Collins
Arranger	Jaron “Bear” Williams
Percussion Instructor	Lorenzo Hart
Business Manager	Sandra Byrd
Program Manager	Myrikle J. Rosette
Fabulous Dancing Dolls Sponsor	Traci Greene
Announcer	Darren Bedell
Human Jukebox Media Director	Garrett Edgerson
Drum Major ('24-'26)	Demarcus Hill
Fabulous Dancing Dolls captain ('24 - '26)	Herbreyana Daniels

References

^ "History of Southern University Marching Band".
^ Leslie D. Rose. "Can Play". DIGBR. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
^ "Southern's Dr. Isaac Greggs featured as part of the new Smithsonian museum". September 24, 2016.
^ "NCAA ranks Southern's 'Human Jukebox' marching band second in nation | NOLA.com". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
^ Writer, Darrius Harrison / Digest Staff. "Dancing Doll tryouts approaching". The Southern Digest. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ Olivia LaBorde (February 5, 2012). "SU'S Dancing Dolls perform with Madonna in surprise show". WBRZ. Archived from the original on May 26, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
^ Times-Picayune, Melinda Daffin, NOLA com | The (April 17, 2019). "Beyonce's new documentary features Southern University's Dancing Dolls". NOLA.com. Retrieved August 30, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ "The Dancing Dolls of Southern University Will be Featured in ESPN+ Series". June 29, 2022.
^ "Southern University marching band does mind-blowing cover of Adele's 'Hello'". For The Win. December 1, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ "Watch Adele's 'Hello' Get The Marching Band Treatment". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ "VICE World of Sports Episode Guide: The Bayou Classic". Vice.com. May 11, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ "New license plate features tribute to SU's Human Jukebox Marching Band". WBRZ. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ "SU's Human Jukebox headed to the Super Bowl - again". Southern University and A & M College. January 12, 2013. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
^ Miller, Robin (July 9, 2014). "SU Director of Bands Lawrence Jackson takes final bows on a 38-year musical career". The Advocate. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ Quincy Hodges (April 28, 2015). "The Southern University 'Human Jukebox' Marching Band to perform at Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao event Tuesday". The Times Picayune. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
^ "Lizzo premieres video with SU's Human Jukebox and Dancing Dolls". WBRZ. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ Vincent, Mykal (January 2, 2020). "Human Jukebox performance listed as one of Rose Parade's Top 5 moments". WAFB. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
^ "Top 10 Legendary HBCU Marching Bands". October 8, 2018.
^ "WATCH: Lizzo's Human Jukebox music video gains over 1M views in a day". December 10, 2019.
^ "The Human Jukebox • Rouses Supermarkets". September 2017.

External links

Official website

[1] "History of Southern University Marching Band".

[2] Leslie D. Rose. "Can Play". DIGBR. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2015.

[3] "Southern's Dr. Isaac Greggs featured as part of the new Smithsonian museum". September 24, 2016.

[4] "NCAA ranks Southern's 'Human Jukebox' marching band second in nation | NOLA.com". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2015.

[5] Writer, Darrius Harrison / Digest Staff. "Dancing Doll tryouts approaching". The Southern Digest. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[6] Olivia LaBorde (February 5, 2012). "SU'S Dancing Dolls perform with Madonna in surprise show". WBRZ. Archived from the original on May 26, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.

[7] Times-Picayune, Melinda Daffin, NOLA com | The (April 17, 2019). "Beyonce's new documentary features Southern University's Dancing Dolls". NOLA.com. Retrieved August 30, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[8] "The Dancing Dolls of Southern University Will be Featured in ESPN+ Series". June 29, 2022.

[9] "Southern University marching band does mind-blowing cover of Adele's 'Hello'". For The Win. December 1, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[10] "Watch Adele's 'Hello' Get The Marching Band Treatment". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[11] "VICE World of Sports Episode Guide: The Bayou Classic". Vice.com. May 11, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[12] "New license plate features tribute to SU's Human Jukebox Marching Band". WBRZ. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[13] "SU's Human Jukebox headed to the Super Bowl - again". Southern University and A & M College. January 12, 2013. Retrieved May 26, 2015.

[14] Miller, Robin (July 9, 2014). "SU Director of Bands Lawrence Jackson takes final bows on a 38-year musical career". The Advocate. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[15] Quincy Hodges (April 28, 2015). "The Southern University 'Human Jukebox' Marching Band to perform at Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao event Tuesday". The Times Picayune. Retrieved May 26, 2015.

[16] "Lizzo premieres video with SU's Human Jukebox and Dancing Dolls". WBRZ. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[17] Vincent, Mykal (January 2, 2020). "Human Jukebox performance listed as one of Rose Parade's Top 5 moments". WAFB. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

[18] "Top 10 Legendary HBCU Marching Bands". October 8, 2018.

[19] "WATCH: Lizzo's Human Jukebox music video gains over 1M views in a day". December 10, 2019.

[20] "The Human Jukebox • Rouses Supermarkets". September 2017.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

v t e Southern Jaguars football
Venues	A. W. Mumford Stadium (1928–present) BREC Memorial Stadium
Bowls & rivalries	Grambling State: Bayou Classic Jackson State
Culture & lore	Lacumba The Human Jukebox Marching bands brawl
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
National championship seasons in bold

v t e Southern University and A&M College
Academics	Southern University System Southern University at New Orleans Southern University at Shreveport Southern University Law Center
Athletics	Jaguars and Lady Jaguars Baseball Basketball Men Women Football
Campus	A. W. Mumford Stadium F. G. Clark Activity Center Lee–Hines Stadium Laboratory School
Student life	Human Jukebox
People	University presidents Theophile T. Allain
Category