Hip-hop dancing krewe brings American enthusiasm levels to city unprepared for synchronized maternal energy
Britain Braces for Tactical Mom Deployment
The United Kingdom has quietly activated its “excessive enthusiasm contingency plans” as approximately 60 members of New Orleans’ Bad Moms That Dance krewe prepare to descend upon London’s New Year’s Day Parade armed with hip-hop beats, varsity jackets, and the kind of unapologetic confidence that makes British reserve crumble into uncomfortable politeness.
The groupwhich started in 2021 as a casual dance class and has since evolved into a 1,200-member organization that terrifies municipal parade plannerswill perform alongside traditional European marching bands, demonstrating what happens when American suburban mom energy collides with British ceremonial dignity.
From Facebook Post to International Incident
The story begins, as many modern cultural phenomena do, with a Facebook moms group during the pandemic. Alyse Renz, 39, who had “missed dancing” and “figured if I can get five women to take a class with me, at least I’d get to dance again,” discovered that 50 moms signed up for what was supposed to be a one-off class.
This is how grassroots movements begin: with modest expectations and sudden overwhelming response from women who’ve spent years shuttling children to activities and have decided it’s finally their turn to do something for themselves, consequences be damned.
Co-founder Whitney Hebert, also 39, joined that first class and helped transform weekly dance sessions into what can only be described as a full-scale cultural operation featuring turned-down lights, uncensored music, drinks, snacks, and the kind of supportive sisterhood that makes municipal authorities nervous about permit applications.
Not Your Average Carnival Krewe
“We’re in hip-hop pants with varsity jackets and Dunks,” Hebert explained, describing a aesthetic that suggests less “traditional dance performance” and more “extremely coordinated flash mob with professional choreography.”
“It’s a more comfortable, laidback vibe,” she added, which in American terms means “we’re going to be very loud and having a wonderful time” and in British terms translates roughly to “dear god, what have we agreed to?”
The group has grown from 60 performers in their first Mardi Gras appearance to 300 for the 2026 Carnival season, with over 1,200 total members. This represents either remarkable grassroots success or evidence that New Orleans has a statistically significant population of women who’ve been waiting decades for permission to dance in public while wearing comfortable pants.
The Invitation That Seemed Like Spam
When London parade organizers initially reached out, Hebert thought the email was spama reasonable assumption given that “Winston Churchill’s great-grandson wants you to dance in London” does sound like the opening to an elaborate phishing scam.
After confirming the invitation’s legitimacy, Sir Duncan SandysChurchill’s actual great-grandson, medals and alltraveled to Covington to formally present the invitation. The juxtaposition of British formality meeting American casual irreverence created what witnesses describe as “a beautiful cultural collision that neither party was fully prepared for.”
“He was so proper and we are so not,” Hebert laughed, describing a meeting where centuries of British ceremonial tradition confronted the organized chaos of American suburban mom culture. “It was such a funny thing to me because he was so proper and we are so not.”
London’s Assessment: “Very Colorful”
British parade organizers described the Bad Moms as “very colorful” and noted they would “bring a different vibe to the parade”diplomatic British phrasing that translates to “we’ve never seen anything quite like this and we’re not entirely sure what we’ve unleashed.”
“We’re just going to do our thing out in the streets of London,” Renz said, displaying the kind of confident American attitude that simultaneously charms and terrifies British event coordinators who are accustomed to precise choreography, measured enthusiasm, and participants who understand the concept of “indoor voices.”
The performance will occur from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. London time, broadcast to approximately 500 million viewers worldwidemeaning half a billion people will witness American mom culture at full operational capacity, dancing through London streets with the determination of women who’ve fundraised their way across an ocean and intend to make it count.
The Sisterhood That Fundraising Built
Getting 60 women to London required extensive fundraising including fish fries, street festivals, and what participants describe as “aggressive community enthusiasm.” This level of commitment typically reserved for launching satellites or bribing small governments demonstrates what happens when you combine maternal determination with collective organizing skills.
“I don’t think we realize how many women can’t find friends in today’s modern world because they’ve been too busy being a mom,” noted Melissa Rouse, 49, who joined that first class in 2021 and found not just dance lessons but an entire community of women navigating similar life transitions.
The group has become what sociologists might call “a support network” and what members simply call “friendship”women attending each other’s kids’ events, providing support through health scares, and generally existing as the kind of community suburban American life supposedly provides but often doesn’t.
Cultural Exchange Nobody Anticipated
As the Bad Moms prepare to perform, British parade veterans have reportedly briefed American participants on cultural norms such as “queue respect,” “inside voices,” and “the concept of understated achievement.” Early reports suggest these briefings were received with polite Texas nods that suggest comprehension without promising compliance.
The parade will be viewable via livestream on the London Parade YouTube channel or PBS starting at 7 a.m. New Orleans time, allowing local residents to watch their neighbors represent American enthusiasm to a global audience that has never experienced this particular intersection of hip-hop choreography and maternal energy.
Legacy Church of God is hosting a viewing party at 8 a.m. for those who want to experience the event communally while remaining at a safe cultural distance in Texas, presumably with emergency tea supplies in case British sensibilities prove contagious.
The Broader Mission of Public Hip-Hop Dancing
Beyond London, the Bad Moms will march in 22 Mardi Gras parades across the region from Lafayette to Mobile, Alabama, demonstrating that once women discover the joy of synchronized public dancing in comfortable pants, they cannot be contained by geographic or cultural boundaries.
“We meant it just to be something fun,” Renz reflected on the group’s explosive growth. What began as a single dance class has evolved into an international cultural operation with chapters across Louisiana, book tours, parade appearances, and apparently the kind of organizational structure that can deploy 60 women to London on New Year’s Day.
As New Year’s Day approaches, London prepares to experience American mom culture at peak operational capacity: choreographed, confident, comfortable, and completely unbothered by British standards of measured public enthusiasm.
The Bad Moms are coming. Britain has activated its politeness reserves. The world will watch.
Nobody is entirely sure what happens next, but it will definitely be “very colorful.”