Meet Bree Jordan and Rosetta Riley of Poletry in Motion

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bree Jordan and Rosetta Riley.

Bree and Rosetta, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Our journey began with sisterhood. The two of us met in 2016 as newbie pole dancers at the same pole studio. We’d both begun our pole journeys as a way to get fit without going to the gym, but quickly discovered something much greater. Through pole dancing we were able to develop and embrace our strength, femininity, and sensuality within a safe space — and we found each other. We became fast friends (no pun intended) while bonding over the latest pole spins, slipping off the pole together, and in between moves, we bonded over our shared love for holistic health, twerk breaks, and creativity. The Scorpio-Cancer bond was real and soon we weren’t just pole sisters, but soul sisters.

It didn’t take long for us to figure out that we shared a love for writing as well. From this, Poletry in Motion was born. As committed pole dancers we learned that while popularity of the dance form is growing, much of society still has trouble understanding the many facets of pole dancing. We created a space where we as pole dancers can define ourselves for ourselves, while proudly sharing our love for the artform, and highlighting the authentic stories of the women behind the pole.

Since our launch one year ago, we have covered many stories. From interviewing the world’s highest-ranked, competitive pole champion, Ashley Fox, to sharing one woman’s story of overcoming loss and reclaiming self-love through pole. We’ve learned from several couples what it’s like to be in love with a pole dancer, heard from pole mama Clarise Amala and her eight year old daughter’s love for pole, chatted with studio director and choreographer Kelly Yvonne about her work with artists like FKA Twigs and pole dancing in the mainstream culture, and captured the story of a North Carolina teacher who was fired for pole dancing. We’ve created our own visual content featuring pole artist Ayriel Talbert, and hosted several events that brought pole dancers from across Los Angeles together. All of this and more was accomplished by our intense drive and focus on our mission and love for pole.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The pole community is extremely supportive, empowering and encouraging, so collaborating with other pole dancers has been fairly smooth. However, outside of Poletry in Motion, both of us hold full-time jobs and are also working on our individual pole growth. While we love what we do, creating quality content takes time. We’ve often had to make the choice between attending pole classes or working on new content, and have spent many nights burning the midnight oil, instead of sleeping. Learning how to strike a balance is a work-in-progress and is something we are constantly reflecting on.

By far, social media has been the most time-consuming aspect of this journey. In many ways social media, specifically our Instagram, has been a blessing because it has connected us with so many pole dancers globally and is the best way to share what we do. The gag is, neither one of us is social media savvy and we are not personally huge social media users, so there has been a significant learning curve. (Holla at us if you’re looking for a social media internship). We choose to power through it together, because we love what we do. Knowing that on the other end of our posts are loving and supportive pole family is what keeps us going.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Poletry in Motion – what should we know?
One of the things we noticed when starting Poletry in Motion is that currently, there are not many platforms that feature pole dancing from our perspective. Much of what exists now is directed specifically to the pole community and consists mostly of resources and technical tips. Part of our mission is to bridge the gap between pole dancers and non-pole dancers. Just as people who don’t play basketball can love and appreciate the sport and have their favorite players, we want society to be able to understand and enjoy pole dancing in the same way. We believe this begins with visibility and seeing the many forms pole dancing takes. We are not of the belief that we have to justify our art by distinguishing ourselves from strippers, which is the first thing most people try to do. Pole dancing can look like stripping. Or it can look like ballet. Or it can look like gymnastics. Or it can look like all of those things in one. Pole dancing is about freedom of expression, in whichever way speaks to you. There is no age limit, size limit, gender limit — there is no limit. Many people don’t know this because they have limited themselves to one view. Our specialty is that we lift up ALL forms equally.

As we’ve evolved, a part of work has also been advocacy and activism. We partnered with Pole Dancers Vote for the 2018 election cycle calling all #polerstothepolls. This campaign centered on both in-person and digital civic engagement. Pole dancers were able to learn about local and state elections, share who they were voting for and why, while dancing together and having a good time. Recently, we’ve also helped spread the word about Instagrams censorship of women, which largely impacted the pole community.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Our bond with each other and the ability to trust and communicate with each other has definitely been critical. This has been our foundation from the very beginning and it allows us to work seamlessly together. Having a sisterhood within our work keeps it fun even in the face of challenging times and tight deadlines. Additionally, the fact that we are both pole dancers ourselves allows us to connect with the work more intimately. We are very intentional about the way we represent pole dancing and the women who pole because both are close to our hearts. Ultimately, there wouldn’t be a Poletry in Motion without the vast amount of love the pole community has shown us. We are deeply grateful and honored to be part of this beautiful and strong community.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.poletryinmotion.com
• Instagram: @poletryinmotion

Image Credit:
Photographers: B Houston-Johnson aka BJ the Photographer & Larry Bartholomew

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