Cotton Club Museum & Cultural Center hosts dance to raise funds for SE G'ville museum

Music from the 1950s through the 1980s inspired the dancing at a dance party held to raise funds for the Cotton Club Museum & Cultural Center.

Held Friday night at the museum at 837 SE Seventh Ave., the event was billed as the Boogie Woogie Rock N Roll Dance Party. The theme was “Dance Like You Did Back in the Day.”

Barbara McDade Gordon, lead coordinator of the event, said a poll taken at a prior event similar to the one held Friday showed that people wanted a place for older adults to dance.

“People enjoyed it, so we decided to host it again,” she said. “We added another decade, which was the 1980s.”

Gordon said CCMCC Chairwoman Vivian Filer told her to incorporate a music history lesson in the event.

“Our mission is to promote and preserve African American history and culture,” Gordon said. “She told me, 'Remember Barbara, it is not just a dance.'”

Lenell Lucas, also known as DJ LLoverLord, served as the disc jockey and briefly talked about the history of music, especially Black music, during the event.

“Most musicians know about history and when I asked him if he could give a lesson, he said 'Sure,'” Gordon said. “Music is universal and it spans time.”

Debra Zarur attended the event with her husband George Zarur.

“I’m a 50s baby and I think that was the best music,” she said. “The artists from Motown brought me through the years growing up.”

She said she loves a variety of music such as jazz, R&B and country.

“I’m looking forward to listening to good music and being with friends,” she said.

Darrell Manuel, a jazz fan who helped organize the event, is from the Washington, D.C., area and has lived in Gainesville for four years.

“This is a nice opportunity to be out and have a place for seniors to come to,” he said. “People can learn the history of music and see what it’s all about.”

Volunteers from the African Student Union at the University of Florida helped out with different aspects of the dance party.

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“One of our missions is to spread African culture on campus and in the community,” said Zee Kamara, president of the ASU.

Promoting African culture is one of the primary missions of the Cotton Club Museum and Cultural Center is the main reason the ASU volunteered to support the dance party, Kamara said.

“We wanted to do everything we can to make it successful,” Kamara said.

Kamara said her favorite kind of music to listen to is Afrobeats and shared how music brings us all together.

“Music is a big part of our culture,” Kamara said. “It brings a sense of community. Even if we don’t speak the same language, it’s a way for us to connect.”

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Gainesville residents support Cotton Club Museum & Cultural Center