Alexa queue, Beyoncé’s “Run the World (Ladies).”
2025 has been a notable yr for Black girls, as they proceed to pave a means for future generations to see what’s doable. Among the many many Black girls who celebrated changing into the primary to do one thing was Florida A&M College senior theater main, Oluwamodupe “Dupe” Oloyede. Oloyede turned the primary feminine head drum main in FAMU’s historical past, main the varsity’s Marching 100.
“Once they referred to as my identify, I needed to hold my composure,” Oloyede informed Andscape.“It didn’t hit me immediately. I simply knew the true work was about to start.”
“Appointing Dupe as the primary feminine Head Drum Main of the Incomparable Marching 100 is without doubt one of the proudest selections I’ve made,” FAMU Director of Bands and Professor of Music Shelby Chipman stated in a press release, per the Tallahassee Democrat. “She’s a mannequin pupil, a theater main, a high ensemble musician, and has persistently taken on management roles throughout the band, together with present planning. Her heat, spirited nature, regular demeanor, and skill to guide with integrity make her the perfect selection.”
For Oloyede, whose full identify means “Lord I thanks,” the appointment looks like she’s strolling in her function. Earlier than changing into the primary head drum main, the FAMU senior was the second ever lady to function a Marching 100’s drum main, following within the footsteps of Cori Bostic. Bostic, who turned the varsity’s first first feminine drum main in 2018 says the Oloyede’s appointment is “the very factor I prayed for.”
“We have been taught that excellence wasn’t an exception,” Bostic defined to Ansdcape. “It was the norm, particularly for younger Black girls. Watching Dupé, somebody from my very own highschool, stroll into this place and simply belong, that’s the dream. She didn’t must show herself the best way I did. The truth that it was a no brainer for her to guide, that’s the very factor I prayed for.”
Impressed by the hustle her mom taught her and the “energy and care” of her Nigerian heritage, Oloyede has led FAMU’s “incomparabale” Marching 100 band into ESPN’s 2025 HBCU Band of the 12 months nationwide championship, the place they may have the prospect to defend their 2024 title as band of the yr.
“I’m the dream fulfilled. I need to depart a legacy rooted in excellence,” she mirrored. “Folks ought to bear in mind how we represented the college, on the sector, in our communities, throughout the nation. We didn’t simply carry out. We represented. We have been the face of our college in some ways, and we made positive the world knew what excellence from an HBCU appears to be like like.”
