Who’s dancing with Black Betty?

Oh, Black Betty... She really gets me high... You know that’s no lie... She’s so rock steady... and she’s always ready.... – Ram Jam, 1977

Black Betty is every woman who starts her day preparing meals for her family. She either cleans the house while everybody’s away or does her office work promptly. When the sun has already set, she assists her kids with their assignments and waits for her husband when he goes home after a hard day’s work.

But Black Betty is also every woman who finds time for herself other than the time she devotes to her loved ones. She stands up for every multi-faceted woman who juggles priorities like a pro.

So when businesswoman Jovy Aquino decided to push through with the plan of putting up a dance bar, "Black Betty" was definitely the best choice for a name.

"It’s actually a funny story," she began, settling down on the sofa for the interview. Jovy didn’t look tired at all, though she just stepped out of the dance floor. "I had a friend who, when asked to dance, would never oblige. But when Black Betty is played, she would give in," she continued. "That’s how appealing the song is."

Two years before the business opened, Jovy was already dancing. In fact, it has been her passion ever since. But her dancing shoes had to be kept in the closet for the mean time because her family was on top of her priority list. It was in 2004 when she joined a group of dancing buddies and had to wear her dancing shoes again. "I would go dancing after my kids had dinner. My husband was very understanding with my late-night activity," she recalled. "I was able to make time for myself. With our age kasi, madali na ma-depress kapag walang ginagawa. At least I’m enjoying and at the same time, I was losing weight." Her dance sessions proved beneficial for her as she was getting trimmer and fitter in time for her high school homecoming.

"We need to dance for the homecoming and lahat kami medyo malalaki so it helped a lot in my confidence," shared Jovy, a Batch ‘75 graduate of the College of the Holy Spirit. After the homecoming, she continued her dancing sessions with Brando Balmedina, now a certified dance teacher by the Professional Dance Teachers Association (PDTA). One time, she went out dancing with her cousins who she had never seen for a long time. Coincidentally, a cousin of Jovy is the president of PDTA. "She told me, ‘Hey, help me naman promote dancing as a sport.’ I said okay. So I would watch their shows," she related.

Little did she know that later on, she would not only be helping her cousin realize a vision to promote dancing but would actually provide a venue for people to enjoy it. The new dance hub is located on Connecticut Avenue, Greenhills in San Juan, where Jovy and husband Cris (Manny Pacquiao’s flag bearer in his boxing matches) originally hail from. "It’s actually a plan among friends," she said. "Sadly, they backed out after we signed in. I guess they were not ready for a business like this."

When Black Betty opened its doors to the dancing (and non-dancing) public a month ago, it offered facilities and services worth the customer’s money (and patronage). "We really had it set up like a dance studio – we have mirrors on the walls. I’m actually planning to add more mirrors. Our main asset is our long dance floor. Yung ganitong length, bihira especially here in Greenhills. It can accommodate up to 150 people," said Jovy, who added that "customers like the concept of looking at themselves in the mirror while dancing and love it when there’s so much space for moving, especially if they dance the tango."

Most of the regular clients who frequent the dance bar also compliment the food. It comes as no surprise because Jovy was in the catering business for seven years prior to her Black Betty days. "I just love to cook for friends. In the house, I feed a big group when my kids would bring along their friends and classmates," she related. After a tiring dance, indulge on a variety of food choices: Caesar’s Salad, Clubhouse Deluxe, Chicharong Bulaklak and Black Betty Special Pizza.

Black Betty is close to jam-packed during band nights. "We have our regular bands on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Saturdays naman, anything goes. But most of the time, we have to leave Saturdays open because of reservations," Jovy explained. The dance bar, with its spacious floor plan, is just so perfect for special events, occasions and parties. "We’re actually planning to offer the place for dance practices and shows in the afternoons where there are only a few people. There are so many dancing schools that do not have the facilities for students to practice their routines."

"We are a dance bar, so any dance will do," she stressed. That’s why a total of 12 dance instructors (eight guys and four girls) are just roving around to assist. "We allow customers to book them if they inform us in advance." Constant training is important for any dancer, and Jovy knows it only too well. With Brando Balmedina as Black Betty’s resident trainer, the in-house DIs are given the proper training for the different dances. And by the way, a staff is in the ladies room to attend to you and even offers free blow-dry for your hair!

In an unlikely season of typhoons and storms, the dance bar boasts of a regular crowd that frequents the place almost every night now. Jovy is confident the dance bar will thrive amidst the heavy downpour. "I believe that I should work like I don’t need the money and dance like nobody’s watching." She’s set to prove that when it rains, literally and figuratively, blessings will pour over the two-month-old Black Betty.

"People often mistake me as Betty," she joked. But yes, she’s the perfect epitome of Black Betty.

(For more information, please call 723-1821.)