This dance crew of women over 40 has all of the right moves.
'I'm not just 'over the hill,' but I'm coming down that hill with speed, baby!'
On a beautiful Saturday morning in Los Angeles, a group of women gathered together to get down.
It looked just like this.
All images from Ole Skool, used with permission.
And this.
The moves are top-notch. But this isn't your run-of-the-mill dance crew.
Meet Ole Skool, the dancers for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks.
These women are mothers, grandmothers, teachers, and retirees to name a few — but the common bond they all have is they're over 40 years old and are passionate about dancing.
The fierce ladies of the Ole Skool dance crew.
News flash: No matter what the media tries to tell you, women don't expire at 40.
Are you looking for women over 40 in television or movies? Good luck with that because they are few and far between. Even though the majority of the female population in the U.S. is over 40, older men appear almost 10 times more often than women in the media.
The ladies on the Ole Skool crew want to flip the script. Not only are they all over 40, but they're here to tell you that they're living the best years of their lives right now.
Let's meet a few of them.
The baby of the crew: 42-year-old Richelle.
Richelle is a high school teacher and said that she learned to dance right around the time she learned how to walk. When she was in her 20s, she was a dancer for the Chicago Bulls during the Michael Jordan era.
Now? She's a 41-year-old mother of two with a simple message for her fellow moms:
"Show your kids that you can do anything and be anything," she said. "That will inspire them do anything and be anything, too."
The OD (Original Dancer): 63-year-old Marilyn.
When the L.A. Sparks formed a dance team back in 2004, Marilyn was one of the original members. 12 years later, the 63-year-old grandmother is still kicking (literally). With a smile to light up any room and the personality to match, Marilyn shares her perspective on the current state of her life.
"People say you're over the hill when you're 40," Marilyn told Upworthy. "I'm not just 'over the hill,' but I'm coming down that hill with speed, baby!"
The daughter of a legend: 58-year-old Virginia.
To say that Virginia's background is interesting would be an understatement. She's the daughter of musical legend Johnny Guitar Watson and said she was the casting director for Prince's first small acting gig in Los Angeles.
While growing up, she watched her dad revolutionize the music industry, and she's honored to be a part of team that's doing the same in the dance world.
"Make today the day that you step into your dreams," Virginia told Upworthy. "At the end of the day, the only person who can tell your story is you."
The leader: 31-year-old Lindsay.
OK, so 31-year-old Lindsay's technically not a member of the team, but that's because she's the director and choreographer of the Ole Skool crew. She will be the first to admit that she was a little hesitant at first about coaching women who are old enough to be her mother, but now she understands the effect her team is having on women everywhere.
"Being around this team is one of the biggest blessings in my life," Lindsay told Upworthy. "Just by watching them, you can tell that they make the world a better place by performing and when they're out in society."
Make no mistake about it. The Ole Skool crew are doing amazing things on the dance floor, but their most valuable contribution is reminding us that anything is possible.
The bond between these ladies is a powerful one.
In a world where people throw the word "love" around so loosely, it's great to see a group of diverse women who truly love each other.
Their bond is forged by the intense happiness that comes from doing what they love in an environment where looks and age mean nothing (unless you're under 40, that is — then you'll have to wait your turn).
And in reality, if we all danced more — the world would be a happier place.
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.