MTV’s upcoming Rah! Paula Abdul‘s Cheerleading Bowl had me at Rah! (It’s possible that my initial excitement — fueled by passionately fond memories of Bring It On and Lifetime’s underappreciated reality series Cheerleader Nation — was so intense that I promised to forsake all other television shows for just this one 90-minute special on Jan. 3.) But now, having recently discussed the matter with the former Laker girl herself, I will go out on a limb and say it: I truly believe it will, in fact, deliver on the promise of its name. Just a few of the reasons to watch:
1. Paula herself selected squads from the University of Arizona, the University of Hawaii, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, the University of Montana, and the University of Miami at Ohio to compete for the prize (something about appearing at MTV Spring Break and in American Cheerleader magazine, which is actually better than the lame trophy you get at most national cheer competitions). She wanted to include squads that are not only awesome but also are "teams that don’t usually get bragging rights" because they can’t afford to get themselves to a national-level competition or simply haven’t gotten the credit she thinks they deserve.
2. Her fellow judges are UMass Dartmouth head coach Scott Bouchard, New Jersey Nets dancer Brenna Klinger, and — my personal favorite — Bring It On choreographer Hi-Hat.
3. The squads will compete in preliminary elimination challenges that sound, well, kind-of awesome. There’s the "Play It Like Paula" challenge: "Each squad was given one of my videos," she explains. "I went over the choreography with them for 10 minutes, and then they had to compete with those routines the same day." There’s a rolloff (that domino-effect-type-thing)/pyramid challenge, and a relay involving back handsprings, partner stunts, and jumps. The two teams remaining after the eliminations will compete in the final cheer-off, a more traditional competition featuring their own routines.
4. Paula’s new single, "Boombox," will debut during the broadcast.
5. Seriously, there is a person called Hi-Hat.
Are you rooting for Paula’s cheer special (and Hi-Hat) as much as I am?
More on Paula Abdul and cheerleading:
The spontaneity of Paula Abdul
‘Idol’ producer responds to Paula’s claims, previews new season
Paula Abdul calls out ‘American Idol’ for encouraging stalker
PopWatch Quote of the Day: ‘Bring It On’ Edition
Review: ‘Bring It On’
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what fun! I love anything having to do with cheerleading. and unlike most mtv reality shows, this one features people with actual talent!
and I hope paula breaks out with her “barbie” dance. anyone remember that video from the 80s??
hold on… her new single??? she has a new single?? thats cool! im definitely gonna watch it, cheerleading is like Never on TV
cant wait! im a big paula fan and a big cheer fan so thats like xmas for me hehe
She is awesome. Didnt know she has a new song!
I AM SO READY FOR HER SHOW!
I LOVE HER, I CAN NOT WAIT
TO WATCH MORE OF HER SUCCESS!
paula is my idol and i love cheerleading, so I will definitely be watching.
cool! cant wait! im into cheerleading, i love her, and i wanna hear her new song! too bad its just a special and not a series.
It Should be a series. and not just a special. because MTV kind of sucks and is on decline, so its not like they have soo many other hit shows to show this spring. I wish they would have given her a series. oh well. I’ll be watching anyway, for sure.
cuz paula rox. and so does cheerleading.
One word, NO! Get this woman off my TV permanently! (and she can’t sing – another Britney electronicized voice)
I don’t care much for Paula, but I’ll always watch cheerleading! By the way, Cheerleader Nation was an awesome show (although I wish people could recognize awesome squads other than Dunbar – which has now had two reality shows on two different networks). And anything that shows people how difficult and physically demanding it is to be a cheerleader is always good by me.
PAULA IS THE BEST
So, obviously, I will be watching! cheerleading rox
Love Paula, and I love that she’s is having a show that highlights her strengths. I hope this doesn’t just get brushed under the TV door mat and critics and reviewers actually talk about it and pimp it some. Cheerleaders never get the credit they deserve. And I can’t wait to hear Paula’s new song. Awesome!
love cheerleading and her