The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders on Navigating Fame, Fair Pay, and Life in Formation

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders have been central to the football team since its founding. And in the past year and a half, Netflix’s massively popular reality show America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders has brought the squad a new level of fame. Reece, you’ve been the show’s main focus. Why do you think you’ve connected with so many viewers?

Reece: I wanted to be as authentic as possible. A lot of people put DCC and the girls on this pedestal, but, at the end of the day, we still go through the same struggles and wins that everyone else does.

The show helped the squad secure a 400 percent raise this year; before that, members earned just $15 an hour, plus $500 per appearance. Parker, as a first-year cheerleader, how did those negotiations shape your experience?

Parker: I didn’t even know about it, because I didn’t watch season 2 until after training camp.

Parker, you auditioned for the squad in 2023 and didn’t make it, so you spent the year dancing for another Cowboys team, the hip-hop troupe Rhythm & Blue, which performs before games. Did that help prepare you for DCC?

P: Rhythm & Blue uses the same facilities, but the style of dance we’re doing is different, our uniform is different, even the practice schedule is different. But it helps to have any sort of professional experience.

DCC makes all the cheerleaders re–try out every year. Reece, you’ve been through the process three times now.

R: Auditioning for your rookie year is definitely scary. However, you have nothing to lose. You definitely feel different when auditioning for your third season because you have something to lose. As veterans, we don’t take a single second for granted. We have to work just as hard to earn back our boots.

What do you both dread about the audition process?

R: I get really nervous for the solos.

P: Uncertainty is an undeniable element of our training camp process, where you never know what material you may have to perform, as well as when roster decisions will be made.

DCC is known for its routine to AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck.”

R: Although I love “Thunderstruck,” I really love “Baby I’m a Star” [by Prince], which we do outside the stadium before the game. It’s the closest we get to the fans, and you can feel everyone’s excitement.

P: “Thunderstruck” has so many elements, including the kickline and jump-split finale. The sheer fame of the routine adds another layer of pressure.

Reece, assuming you leave after five seasons, like most cheerleaders do, are you thinking about what you’re going to do after you retire?

R: I’m just on this roller-coaster ride, strapped in. I know this is temporary. Yes, there are great things in the future, but, at the end of the day, I’m doing what I’ve always dreamed of.

Reece, since America’s Sweethearts debuted, you’ve accumulated 1.1 million followers on Instagram. Have women on the team parlayed their popularity into influencing careers?

R: I would say so, but I don’t think we see ourselves as influencers. Our main focus is DCC.

P: I’m definitely not a big social media person. I post once a year. As soon as I made the team, I gained 7,000 followers and had brands reaching out. These people just saw the DCC uniform, and they wanted to follow.

The team is made up of 36 women. How do you maintain individuality?

R: We’re all here on purpose, for a purpose. [DCC director Kelli] Finglass once explained our team as a bouquet of 36 flowers—36 individual flowers that make up this beautiful arrangement.

P: I heard about the bouquet years ago, and it gave me a lot of hope. I definitely get imposter syndrome, especially as a rookie. I’m like, Oh my gosh, I don’t even know how to tie my own blouse by myself. But you need every single one of us to make up that 36. When we put that uniform on, no one is going to know that it’s my first year and Reece’s third year. That reassured me. We all earned this, and we continue earning it every single day.