Shamari DeVoe Was in Bring It On, and Yes, She Can Still Do the Cheers
The Real Housewives of Atlanta's Shamari DeVoe has spirit, yes she does.
Long before The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Shamari DeVoe was kind of a big deal — OK, she was definitely a big deal. As one-third of the group Blaque, she's had a spot on basically every one of your playlists, thanks to her hits "808" and "Bring It All to Me."
But you've also certainly seen Shamari on your screen before. Back when she was known as Shamari Fears, she starred as Lava, one of the main cheerleaders from the East Compton Clovers, in the 2000 hit film Bring It On.
Shamari told The Daily Dish earlier this season that she and fellow Blaque group members Natina Reed and Brandi Williams got the gig after the success of their singles. "They reached out to us, and they wanted Blaque to do it, which is a blessing," Shamari recalled in the above clip. "We went away to a cheerleading camp for two weeks, we learned how to do the stunts and go up in the air. I really felt like a real cheerleader, like, it was so much fun."
Shamari said one of her favorite memories from filming Bring It On was hanging out with Gabrielle Union, who played Clovers captain Isis in the movie. "I was like her little sister, so we got along really, really well," she gushed.
Fast forward 19 years, and Bring It On now has a place in pop culture history forever. "I had no idea it was gonna be so huge, like I thought the movie was corny, actually. I was like, 'Oh, this is so corny. I don't even know how it's gonna come off.' But it was like the No.1 movie at that time," Shamari said. "After that one, there were so many other versions of Bring It On, but none matched the one I was in, the original, the only one that went to the big screen. And, you know, there's plays out, there's musicals, there's Broadway. Now Ariana Grande is showing us love. Every Halloween there is somebody dressed up like me and Gabby and Natina and Brandi as the East Compton High Clovers. So I was like, wow. And a lot of people still talk about it to this day. If you don't know me from Blaque, then you know me from Bring It On. I'm just amazed."
Bring It On was Shamari's first time on the big screen ever, but she's hoping it won't be her last. "That was my very first movie, and it was a new experience for me, and it was amazing," Shamari said. "I definitely want to get back on the big screen again so I think I’m going to take up some acting coaching as well, yeah, so I can get back into it. Because I want to do Broadway, yeah. And I had the chance to go see the Bring It On musical, which they did in Atlanta at the Alliance Theatre, and it was amazing, so I could see myself doing something like that at 38, soon-to-be 39. I think it’ll be great!"
But does Shamari still have what it takes to perform the iconic Bring It On cheers? Press play on the above clip, and get ready to feel the chill.
Find out what Shamari thinks of the RHOA crew's past fashions, below.
Photo: Universal Studios
