Showing their soul
Down syndrome doesn’t stop group of hip-hop dancers
The Soul Brothers get part of their name and much of their chutzpah from Jake and Elwood Blues, that slightly fictional blues duo known as the Blues Brothers.
On stage, the Soul Brothers are less inhibited performing the song “Soul Man” than John Belushi was singing it.
The Soul Brothers are four hip-hop dancers with Down syndrome who will perform their latest routine on Saturday as part of the 11th annual Down Syndrome Association of Northeast Indiana Buddy Walk.
It will be set to the music of ZZ Top’s “Sharp Dressed Man.”
Asked whether they plan to dress up like that famously hirsute band, David Miller, 44, says no.
“Too scratchy,” he said, rubbing his chin and grinning.
Miller is the uncontested leader of this group.
Not only is he 23 years older than the next oldest member, but he is the most articulate and self-assured Soul Brother.
Miller was the one who came up with that name, although he initially called the group the Funky Boys. He is thinking of changing it to the Famous Four.
That may be a reflection of the fact that a little fame has come the Soul Brothers’ way.
Miller devised the group in January with his younger sister, dance teacher Lisa Root of the Premiere Dance Company.
Neither of them probably imagined at the time that the Soul Brothers would one day be asked to perform at national DSNAI events, not to mention weddings and benefits.
Root gained legal custody of Miller 13 years ago when their mother passed away. She said her mother raised Miller to be self-sufficient.
“Yeah, he’s always been ahead of a lot of other children who were in the same situation,” Root said. “My mom put him in as many quote-unquote regular circumstances as possible. He started working in a grocery store when we lived in Michigan and he went to a regular school. He always had his own chores.”
Miller lives with Root’s family, which includes four girls of her own.
“They enjoy him,” she said. “He has an amazing sense of humor. He gets up on his own and does his own laundry. I never know when he goes to work.”
Miller started working at Scott’s as a bagger 13 years ago.
About three years ago, Miller’s supervisors at Scott’s told him that they wanted to train him as a cashier.
“I didn’t think it was going to be possible,” Root said. “But they went ahead and did it, and he’s been doing great.”
Miller has been instrumental in getting a fellow Soul Brother, 17-year-old Michael Peoples, a job as a bagger that starts in the not-too-distant future.
Peoples thinks he’ll be a great bagger.
“I’ve got personality, I’m funny and I’ve got a great attitude,” he said.
Miller and Peoples are best friends who like to get together several nights a week and watch professional wrestling.
It is hard to miss the worshipful way that Peoples gazes at Miller.
“Yeah, David is definitely a mentor to him,” Root said. “He guides him along in everything. They talk about school and table manners. He really enjoys taking that role, as kind of his adviser.”
“He’s been a great big brother,” said Sue Peoples, Michael’s mom. “They have a massive difference in age, but they are functioning at very close to the same level. Michael is without a doubt his best friend.”
Miller said it’s his job to keep all the guys in line, rolling his eyes like an exasperated parent with a sense of humor about his responsibilities.
The other two Soul Brothers, 16-year-old Jordan Blevins and 21-year-old Austin Hamman, form their own nearly inseparable duo.
Hamman is the improvisational loose cannon of the group. He’s prone to strutting some unrehearsed stuff on the dance floor.
“Austin’s the real showman,” said Linda Blevins, Jordan’s mom.
To prove it, Hamman throws off his jacket, gets down on the floor and does a hip-hop move known as The Worm.
Blevins said he is looking forward to the Buddy Walk, but he is a little nervous about babies crying. He doesn’t want babies to be scared.
Blevins and Hamman are charming together.
At one point in the interview, Blevins looked at Hamman, tweaked his nose, and said, “My funny friend, my funny friend” again and again.
Blevins said he and Hamman are “friends for life.”
Linda Blevins said the Soul Brothers has been “a wonderful outlet for them.”
“Music is encoded in their genes,” she said. “They do love music. It speaks almost directly to their souls.”
In the life of a Down syndrome child, the world is awash in inequities, Blevins said. Dance has proved to be a great equalizer for these men.
Sue Peoples believes that the Soul Brothers has boosted Michael’s self-confidence more than any other activity he engages in.
“It provides him a leisure activity that he feels successful doing,” she said. “It allows him to feel elevated by his peers. He has the sense that he is doing something that is truly well done and awesome to watch.”
Peoples thinks this self-confidence carries over into other aspects of their lives.
“Everything is hard for these boys,” she said. “They have low muscle tone and developmental delays. Everything is hard. So when they get together and people acknowledge that they are special, it makes them value the commitment they have made to the dance troupe. They stuck with something hard. And that affects every area of their lives.”
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