If school spirit is the heart of a school, then the 630 high school pupils at St David’s Marist Inanda in Sandton are its beating rhythm.
This week, videos of the pupils’ enthusiastic rendition of the popular song All the Way Up, the school’s war cry, went viral on social media. In the videos, students jump, dance and chant the lyrics from the song, “Nothing can stop me, I’m all the way up”.
The videos were recorded three weeks ago while the boys were practising the war cry, which they do each week during rugby and hockey season. “These videos have really won the hearts and minds of people,” said Lara Klement, the school’s advancement manager.
“The boys practise the war cry regularly at the school, and it centres on building spirit and tradition - and just having a fun time within a contained, disciplined environment.
“This particular group of boys is particularly passionate. It’s about having something relevant to the boys in a modern context, and ramping up the school vibe and passion.”
The school, she said, had received “amazingly, positive feedback” from the pupils’ war cry, which put a spin on traditional war cries.
Another war cry practice done & dusted for the week, wishing all our boys & staff heading down to @Clifton_Durban tomorrow morning a safe journey & enjoyable fixtures. #hockey #rugby #crosscountry pic.twitter.com/FUG7N9HwpU
— St_David's_Marist (@StDavids_Marist) May 30, 2019
“People are enjoying the vibe of it, the spirit of it. It’s something quite unifying. There’s an African element to it, and the boys have put their own twist on it. There’s been a hugely positive response.”
The school, she said, had a spirit and ethos committee, headed by some of the boys featured in the video, and which included members of the school’s music department. “It’s (committee) driven by them and not imposed on them by the school. The boys are given a bit of freedom to be creative, and it brings together our cultural activities.
“There are lots of boys who, behind the scenes, helped create the music (for the war cry), and filmed and edited the videos.
“I think that, clearly, the boys upfront caught the eye of the world. When something goes viral, you don’t quite understand what it means. The youth clearly do. They are teaching us a lot, the boys are teaching us so much about the world, and it’s been a very interesting experience.”
The videos, Klement said, had created a platform from which other schools in South Africa could also showcase their war cries.“It’s about children supporting their school and each other and unity. What it’s done is open up a platform for other schools to express themselves.”
Watch the video at: https://twitter.com/LuloCafe/status/1133270201246584832