Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2 ; Jada Mclean poses for a photo in March 2025.
Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2 ; Jada Mclean poses for a photo in March 2025.
Season 2 of America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders was released on Netflix on June 18
Fifth-year veteran Jada Mclean was one of the cheerleaders who led the team's fight for fair compensation
By the end of the season, the group leader hung up her uniform and announced her retirement
America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders follows rookies chasing their lifelong dream of making the team — and highlights veterans, like Jada Mclean, as they close their chapters with the squad.
In season 2 of the Netflix docuseries, which premiered on June 18, fifth-year veteran Mclean stepped into the prestigious role of first leader, assisting with choreography, helping with team communication and serving as a mentor to the rest of the squad. On top of her team duties, Mclean was a key advocate in the cheerleaders' fight for fair compensation — which ultimately paid off.
"'Happy' isn't even the right word for it," she said. "[It] kind of felt like a relief, like everything had paid off ... finally we were done fighting."
But, the veteran wouldn't be experiencing the 400% pay increase herself, as she also announced her retirement from the team.
"I'm just looking forward to what's next for me in life, and give it my all like I did when I was here," Mclean said.
So, where is DCC's Jada Mclean now? Here's everything to know about the cheerleader's life after retiring from the squad.
Who is Jada Mclean?
'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
Mclean, who is from Palm Springs, Calif., grew up dancing at a local studio called The Dance Program, where she trained in ballet, modern, jazz, lyrical, hip-hop, tap and swing, per her Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders bio.
According to her bio, she was part of the Palm Springs High School dance team and, upon graduating, joined the University of California, Davis' dance team for two years.
As her mom shared in season 2 of America's Sweethearts, Mclean "wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader" from a "young age."
While her family didn't have the "financial means" to fly her to Dallas for tryouts at first, things changed during the pandemic in 2020 when the audition process transitioned online, leading her to chase her dream at 20 years old.
"Making the team after how difficult it was for us to get her there, it had to be the proudest moment of her life, 'cause it was definitely one of the proudest moments of my life," her mother said.
During her five-year tenure with the DCC, Mclean rose to the role of first group leader, all while balancing her cheerleading responsibilities with her day job as a cosmetic associate.
Why did Jada Mclean retire from DCC?
Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
When it came time for uniform returns, Mclean confirmed to DCC director Kelli Finglass and head choreographer Judy Trammell that she was retiring from the team.
"I would do this forever if I could. I think we all would. That's the dream, but we have to be realistic. This is only a short part of our lives," she told Finglass and Trammell. "I'm sad, but it's a bittersweet sadness. It's just sad that it all is over, but I'm very happy with how the last five years have gone."
Mclean said she was at a place where she needed "to see what's next in life," adding that she wanted to "leave on a high."
The cheerleader assured Finglass and Trammell that she still had their phone numbers and would call them, to which the DCC director emotionally replied, "Well Jada, when I met you in the parking lot, I wouldn't have thought I'd be sitting here five years later in tears. I'm very, very proud of you."
In a May 2025 TikTok video, Mclean discussed her retirement further, saying, "It's time to take off those boots and hand those poms over to someone else."
"I just know it's time for me to hand those over and let another girl live out this dream," she continued. "I'm ready to see what is next for me in life."
Will Jada Mclean come back as a DCC All-Star?
Megan, Armani and Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
Megan, Armani and Jada in 'America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' season 2.
In seasons past, some retired veterans — such as Kelcey Wetterberg — have returned to help out the team as a DCC All-Star.
The DCC All-Stars are a group of retired cheerleaders who step in for appearances and events when the current squad is unavailable due to game prep or rehearsals.
While answering questions from fans in her May 2025 TikTok video, Mclean said she was "undecided" about whether she would audition for the All-Star group as she wasn't sure if she would "continue to call Dallas home."
Where is Jada Mclean now?
Jada Mclean attends the ACM Awards in May 2025.
Jada Mclean attends the ACM Awards in May 2025.
Since handing in her DCC uniform, Mclean has traveled to Chicago, California and Mexico, celebrated a friend's wedding and even presented a trophy at the ACM Awards.
As for her career, Mclean, who celebrated her 25th birthday in February, shared in her May 2025 TikTok video that she was interested in pursuing modeling.
"I have thought about going into modeling after my DCC career comes to an end," she said. "I have no experience. I am as amateur as they come in the world of modeling."
Is Jada Mclean still doing DCC performances?
Although she has retired, Mclean has put her DCC cowgirl boots back on in recent weeks as she's promoted America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders season 2 and hit the road for Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders On Tour, in which the team performed across five Texas venues in May, per their site.
In early June 2025, just before the season premiered, she shared an Instagram carousel of photos from the May performances, captioned, "A last game wasn’t enough, decided to go on a farewell tour⭐️."
In the weeks since season 2 premiered, Mclean joined the team for a performance on the Today plaza and traveled to Los Angeles with some of the squad for promotional videos, including a demo with country artist Tanner Adell.
Most recently, Mclean and some of her fellow squad members performed DCC's famous "Thunderstruck" routine on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.