Meet The Team

Singer, songwriter, dancer, and founder of Team Sol- Racquel Soledad has been chasing this dream for as long as she can remember. Her first memory of starting to write music was in 2010 when her grandmother Soledad passed away, being the first time Racquel lost someone extremly close to her. It was her first true feeling of lonliness; of solitude. From there, writing out her feelings became her norm. 

Racquel grew up dancing at Gotta Dance Studios and alongside her sister Ciara till joining the Warren Consolidated School of Performing Arts in high school. After graduating, she enrolled into college at Oakland Univeristy, joining the OU Dance Team and really dove deep into her love for music- releasing her first cover to Soundcloud. Here, in 2018, is when she realized there's nothing she wanted more than to put her entire soul into music- So, she packed her bags and moved to Los Angeles to grow alongside those with the same passion and gain the tools she needed to add to her artistry and bring back to Detroit. 

Since moving back home, Soledad has built a name for herself in the city by creating a new path for artists in the underground scene and developing a team of the most talented, driven dancers in Michigan. The goal was to find those just as passionate to bring life to the stories behind the music. To build a family to grow alongside the journey. 

Building her own opportunites, Racquel has waited on no-one to make her wildest dreams happen. With the drive to make something from nothing, she has all the possiblities in the world at her fingertips. Nothing that comes from the heart and soul is deniable. 

Jireh grew up in the Metro-Detroit area and started dancing at the age of 5. She studied multiple dance styles, but Hip Hop and commercial styles became her passion! In 2021, Jireh became an intern at RELEASE where she assisted over 60 classes, earning her a teaching position. She currently performs and choreographs with Detroit artist, Racquel Soledad. Has continuous Training with UnderGods dance crew and Concrete Company, as well as at Hip-Hop conventions, and classes on a regular basis. As she continues to explore her movement, her dedication for dance and love for community/family fuels her growth as a dancer, artist, teacher, and human.

 Jayce is a 22 year-old dancer, born and raised in Michigan. She has been dancing for nineteen years with experience in styles of ballet, jazz, hip hop, contemporary, tap, musical theater, modern technique, heels, and jazz funk. Her dance education began at her hometown studio Spotlight Dance Center in Clarkston, Michigan and moved on to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Los Angeles, California. Currently, she is teaching drop-in based classes at Release Detroit. Jayce takes on many roles as a performer as well, such as; dance crew member of Undergods and Concrete Company, and backup dancing and choreographing for Soledad. To Jayce, dance is more than just a hobby - it’s the “air” she breathes. The artform is a means of communication where words are at a loss. Being part of a family like Teamsol is so meaningful to her because she is able to transcribe Soledad’s lyrics into a visual story. Audiences not only get to listen to Soledad’s stories, but live in them with her through her dancers. She hopes to continue her professional journey as a backup dancer, choreographer, and teacher in order to spread the love of art for as long as she lives. 

For as long as he could remember music and dance has been a synonymous force in his life. He started with impersonating Michael Jackson which lead him to figuring out that he could dance. It wasn’t until he saw choreography from The 20/20 Experience that he realized dance was something that he wanted to do professionally. He started his training at Jordan Mac studios shortly after that at the age of 14, with a certain style and sense of direction already in mind. Without the proper resources to accomplish that vision he started learning how to pick up choreography from video and teaching himself the things he wanted to do. He began traveling around the country to seek out knowledge from dancers like Ivan Koumeav, Marty Kudelka, Ian Eastwood , and Lyle Beniga. From there he was fortunate enough to start training more consistently under Ivan who he feels plays an important role in where he is today in his artistry. After graduating High school he moved to Toronto to train at the Underground Dance Center in more foundational styles like Locking, House, Popping, and the basics of Hip-Hop. Due to the pandemic he returned home to continue his training at Release Detroit, Where he was given opportunities that opened his eyes to the professional side of dance which lead to becoming apart of TeamSol and The Undergods. He hopes to continue maximizing his artistry and collaborating with all different kinds of artist to bring their visions to life at the professional level. He looks forward to sharing his unique style of movement with the world and continuing to make meaningful connections through art.

Sarah Papuga is a dancer, choreographer and teacher born and raised in Michigan. She studied at the University of Michigan studying Elementary Education and earned a minor in dance.

Sarah has trained in a variety of styles of dance for over 20 years. She has performed and trained in concert and commercial dance. During her time as an NBA dancer, Sarah has danced for a multitude of artists and is currently dancing with Racquel Soledad. 

Sarah is inspired everyday by her ability to impact young artists and students and dreams of impacting others in a positive way through the power of dance. 

Started dancing at 7 years old. Throughout her studio years she trained and competed in ballet, jazz, hip-hop, tap, contemporary, lyrical, musical theater and pointe, up until the age of 18. Aleiha started her urban dance journey in 2019 where she started taking drop-in classes and joined a hiphop company where she got training and teaching/choreographing experience. Since then she has been going to various conventions and classes in the midwest and training with Essence MVMT Company and now Team Sol!