Ancestral connection through the arts is something Mhoon learned early on. Born on the South Side of Chicago during the Chicago Black Arts Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, both of her parents were artists who were deeply socially and historically conscious.  

“This was the Black is Beautiful Revolution,” Mhoon said. “My mom shaved her head; she and my father changed their names; they were shedding some of the 'slave names’—that's what they called it. They were really in search of identity.” 

Her father was a musician—“one of the most sought-after in the city!” Mhoon loved her father's music: As a child, she wouldn't go to bed until he came home and started playing the drums. 

Mhoon's mother enrolled her in dance classes, and she began studying African dance with Muntu Dance Theatre (a current member of the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project). According to Mhoon, these early dance classes were incredibly influential. 

"Another thing about Chicago is the gun violence—my father was shot and killed when I was eight. I am a success story of how dance can change your life and change your trajectory," Mhoon said. 

Upon completing high school, Mhoon attended Howard University as one of the university's first dance majors. There, she encountered many more “dance ancestors.”

“At Howard, we had really strong connections to some of the early pioneers,” Mhoon said. “Pearl Primus came; we volunteered at the Katherine Dunham Conference and I sat at the feet of Dunham.”

In addition to practical dance training, the dance major required lots of research and writing. Mhoon enjoyed this part of her studies; However, she noticed that something was missing.