On Saturday, UCLA gymnast Nia Dennis celebrated “Black excellence” with her floor routine, which was soundtracked by Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Missy Elliott, Soulja Boy, 2pac and Megan Thee Stallion.
The college senior even stunned the most decorated U.S. gymnast, Simone Biles, and her 2016 Rio Summer Olympics teammate Laurie Hernandez, as well as Karamo Brown from Netflix’s Queer Eye. Missy commented “Snappin” with a fire emoji under the viral video, which has garnered more than 7 million views on Twitter.
Her routine, which kicked off with Lamar’s “DNA” and concluded with 2pac’s “California Love,” scored a 9.950 out of 10, and her nearly perfect score helped UCLA beat Arizona State over the weekend. She also paid homage to her father’s fraternity past in her floor exercise by stepping.
“This routine definitely reflects everything that I am today as a woman,” Dennis told Los Angeles Daily News following her viral victory performance. “And of course I had to incorporate a lot of parts of my culture. I wanted to have a dance party because that’s my personality and of course I had to shout out LA because we out here, UCLA.”
But this isn’t the first time Dennis’ hip-hop-inspired routines have made the rounds on social media: Last February, when she was a junior, the UCLA student athlete got everyone crazy in love with her Beyoncé-honoring floor exercise that earned a 9.975 score and has more than 17 million views on Twitter. Alicia Keys marveled at her “unstoppable power and confidence,” while Vice President Kamala Harris wrote, “.@DennisNia is ending #BlackHistoryMonth the right way―by showcasing her Black excellence. Beyoncé herself would be proud.”
See the stars’ reactions to Dennis’ latest A-list hip-hop floor routine below.
Snappin🔥
— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) January 24, 2021
okay @DennisNia do the damn thing girl 🔥 this was so fun to watch! keep killing it! https://t.co/eDntwMpC4R
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) January 24, 2021
YOU BETTER WORK SISSS https://t.co/cCBzTc10GO
— Laurie Hernandez (@LaurieHernandez) January 24, 2021
Because of @jvn love of gymnastics I found a love for the sport too! And this young woman from @uclagymnastics is a star! Who is she? pic.twitter.com/JmAAWyNCuq
— Karamo (@Karamo) January 24, 2021
