Raquel Williams began her dance journey at the young age of 3. Her participation in shows and competitions within ballet, tap, jazz, gymnastics and hip hop continued through her youth. In 2000, she stumbled upon a ballroom dance studio and never looked back.

In the first years of her dance career, she trained extensively in International Latin. With a few competitions under her belt, she began discovering other types of dance styles. Her spectrum of dance increased to include West Coast Swing, Standard/Smooth dances, Hustle and the Country Western circuit.

After dancing and competing for 6 years, she began her teaching journey. Studying syllabus manuals, private lesson sessions and social dancing were her means of dance education. She believed in accomplishing her education and teaching goals through studying, dancing and advice from her private lesson instructors. Additionally, competitions were a great resource for dance growth as she had access to nationally ranked instructors. In 2010, Raquel opened her own business, DPM Studios (also known as Dance-Performance & Modeling) in downtown Clayton.