Anyway, I really admire how TXT’s individual dance styles are developing. (Note: This was written pre-Name Chapter, where they’ve shown even MORE growth. So proud)
Yeonjun’s is the most developed, of course. I think he has a lot of charisma and control in his style which makes him so great at both personal choreographies and covers. If you look at his Studio Choom and girl group covers and Tiktoks, he’s able to perfectly execute dances with his great level of body control, and embody them with the both the power of the original and his own flair. I’m sure he has a list of styles he wants to try, but for me I’d love to see more freestyles and for him to try modern dance
You could think that Soobin’s tall frame isn’t made for dancing, but he has mastered how to adapt his frame to be perfectly in sync with everyone else. He has a beautiful cleanliness to his dancing, never an angle or line of his body out of sync. And he uses his height to advantage, as it imbues his dance with power. Now adding how he’s a killer at facial expressions, and he kills performances like Can’t You See Me and the MAMA 2022 blidnfold dance. Precise, sensual, drawing you in with and keeping you there. Please please please, someone give him a sensual song to cover. It will kill me, but I’m okay with that.
For me, bc Beomgyu has the narrowest frame of the group, I often miss focusing on him in dances. But truly, Beomgyu’s strength is that his style involves so much emotion without losing sight of the choreography. He has precision in his form; his moves down to his fingers are never out of places. He has so much energy and emotion and is getting absolutely insane at facial expressions. You could strip away the rest, and Beomgyu’s NYE We Lost the Summer performance is still so beautiful precisely because he can embody so much emotion. He steals the show in the DNA cover bc he lets loose and gives it that Bangtan-inspired swagger. He captured everyone with the lighter mishap at MMA 2021. It’s a mistake to miss him because he is brilliant at telling the whole story in his dance alone. I really just want more solo performances from him so that I can focus more on him; I’d love something contemporary, but truly I want more power stuff like BTS covers
Taehyun is a king of clean, sharp dancing. His lines and angles are clean. He can hit every beat. He has precision on a microscopic level and nimbleness to switch and alternate as fast as the music. There’s a reason why he’s often featured in the year-end performances; a lot of those performances have been so beat-focused, technically-difficult, and acing a challenge is where Taehyun shines. That’s also why I love his Opening Sequence solo because it’s out of his wheelhouse and he still excellently pulls off the emotion while never losing that perfect form. He’s a perfectionist and while I would love to see more techno-beat choreography from him, my secret wish is for him to dabble in ballet.
Hueningkai’s duality will forever be one of my favorite things. Off-stage, he’s a tall, broad-shouldered boy who gives off this puppy energy, tumbling and rumbling around. But the minute you put him on stage, he’s like a rockstar. It’s like the world is rewritten and all that awkward boy stature is perfect for a dancer. Hueningkai has strong power to his dancing style bc he just so completely embodies stage presence. He is amazing at bringing the emotion to the performance; his NYE 2021, his Lovesong and Loser=Lover and GBGB performances are all testatments that he is so in tune with his emotions while never losing sight of putting on a fantastic show for the audience. I’d pay good money to see him do any styles of dance, but my deepest wish is for him to try some classical styles like ballet, jazz, tap dancing, ballroom, or Korean classical dance
Let's talk about TXT's MAMA Performance: Lyrics and Stage Analysis
That was amazing! Better than their mma. Idk if the camera work is largely to blame for mma but also narrative wise this one felt like it followed much more of a concrete storyline, and just WOW that entrance with all the crosses and cathedral background...!
Is is a stretch to say it reminded me of yeonjun's "in this endless darkness, like oh my god so holy"?
I found it clever how they utilized religious motifs like the crosses and the coffin in the background to emphasize how their love progressively shifts from something sacred and sanctified to painful and buried. Accepting their loss is much like accepting a death. It makes sense then that they started their performance with opening sequence, which has lyrics that align to this loss:
And also that they then did good boy gone bad, a song that reflects them taking that pain and vulnerability from before, and nurturing it for the worse:
Notice how they start their performance in a cathedral setting, wearing black and white. It feels rather symbolic since black and white are the characteristic opposites used to portray good versus evil, light versus dark, innocence versus impurity - very much in line with the song.
Then when Yeonjun gets dragged away, the cathedral background starts to tilt a bit and it looks like he's being taken outside.
The VCR effect of him falling seems to indicate he's falling into his own grave or maybe even hell. Would make sense with the GBGB lyrics.
When they return, notice how they are now outside the cathedral:
The lighting is red and ominous, a great color to convey their anger. There are crosses around, indicating they may be in a graveyard. Again, all of this lines up so well with the lyrics, of burying their past selves, coming back "like a zombie, dead and alive".
But then the dance break UMMM IT WAS INCREDIBLE?!!!_!$(##(
I can't be the only one who finds it super emblematic how Yeonjun is blindfolded while Soobin is biting on the lace - unable to speak. Basically, Yeonjun's lost his sight and Soobin has lost his voice.
Like this, they'd be unable to find one another. But the thing is, they do. They dance around one another like they're seeking each other out in an almost cat and mouse game of hide and seek, reaching, grabbing then tearing away. But what really caught my attention was Yeonjun cusping Soobin's chin and slowly bringing him closer before Soobin cast him aside.
I wish my screenshots could do it more justice but with the lighting and camera work changing so quickly, it's hard to capture. The dance practice will surely be clearer.
Listen, if you follow me you'll know I'm super gay and I see gay subtext in like everything I consume lmao but I don't think it's much of a stretch to say this moment felt intentionally queer? Religious motifs have been a medium for homosexual representation for ages, mainly because of religion's staunch anti lgbt attitude. And just...the way Yeonjun is blindfolded and Soobin unable to speak...it just screams to me as being representative of a love that cannot be seen or dare to speak its name. And yet they still found each other, among the crosses.
(There is room to assume Soobin wasn't able to tie the blindfold in time and simply put it in his mouth instead, but either way it's an interesting detail and I'm curious to see what the dance practice reveals)
In any case, I found their paired dance shared a similar sentiment to their 0x1=lovesong dance, so if anything they are probably paying homage to their past title tracks
I want to give a big kiss to the performance directors and staff that makes this all possible!!! And of course TXT for bringing it all together so beautifully. They can be proud of this one.
When I watch the MV I can see what Jimin is communicating with his dancing but I can't write it down in any way that does it justice. I simply don't have the language to describe dance correctly. So that I will leave up to others who do know how to talk about it.
And this is the perfect example of that.
The description is incredibly emotive as is the dance.
Sienna Lalau and The Lab are masters at what they do and have interpreted Jimin's emotions and words perfectly with the choreography. Jimin would undoubtedly have been incredibly hands on with the choreography, and all aspects of the video, this is his baby and his chance to say exactly what he wants and how he wants.
Jimin you are outstanding and so incredibly talented. I hope your words are heard and understood.
Now go and enjoy some Ramen with Jungkookie, he has missed you A LOT
Hey Caro ☺️ I just took your super m quiz - thanks for making such a fun quiz, I feel like it helped me get into super m! I know nothing about them yet but I thought it fit soo well that I got Kai bc I’m a full time dancer - now you have me super curious about him 👀👀
KAI :: INTRODUCTION MASTERPOST (dance focus)
so you wanna know about the god of k-pop choreo? oh yeah, i’ll talk to you about fucking kai! if you dance, this guy is the #1 must-know. once you see him move, there’s no going back. i don’t exaggerate: kai is the gold standard. brace yourselves, i’ll show you why.
kim kai aka kim jongin (27) is a solo artist and super m’s plus exo’s main dancer — est 2019 and 2012 respectively — heading either group with a passionate, hyper-physical style that roots in his early practice of of jazz dance and ballet. the influence definitely shows.
learning choreography, he’s become the gorgeous fusion of emotional grace and explosive power that unites both tension and extreme accuracy. while at the same time: never sacrificing his interpretation. and HOW MUCH HE BLEEDS FOR HIS CRAFT. he enjoys it so much.
and he’s communicating it 100%, jongin’s dance is so interactive and raw, luring. i swear to god, put the seatbelts on for this one. it’s never just him, it’s you as well. you’ve never seen this before. he’s like “yes, i meant you, i’m looking at you”:
he’s even gonna modify the choreography to point right at you to underline that very thought. he’s so good, he can learn it, ace it, epitomize it, and do his own thing anyway. even the person in the last row will get whatever point kai wants to make. this is dance that belongs on the biggest stages.
even when he films without a crowd, it’s like you’re literally standing opposite to him. he focuses on two people: his moves, and the viewer. he has it look like you made him smile and self-aware, or you made him determined. INCREDIBLE. he shows his charisma, BUT he also shows your own (!) impact on him. it’s a duet. he wants you to join him on the dancefloor. this is from exo’s call me baby mv where kai does his famous come-hither:
he flirts and he encourages. he values the audience and wants them to be confident as well. i think it’s the reason why he’s so outstanding and addictive, kai thinks beyond himself. it’s a tango he involves you in with his eyes and how he opens his body, interprets a lyric.
it’s not about imposing himself going one way. instead: he plays the back and forth ALL. THE. TIME. in any context. whether it be frivolous, or fun, or gloomy, or sweet. even with a simple little smiley wink it’s happening. and he acts like you had a reaction to it. there’s literally just a camera.
this guy’s physique, strength, elegance, feeling for the beat, character portrayal (!), and control is unbelievable. he’s destroyed it in every fancam out there. he can’t switch it off even if he tried. your eyes would go toward him in the largest group formation still. put him in the center, that’s his spot, he showcases it.
because he doesn’t just show learned moves, he makes it radiate something dynamic and animalistic (he embodies superm’s ‘tiger inside’ all the way).
jongin’s dance says: i love this, you love this, let’s do this, the feeling is right. he makes bodies and unrestrained touch the opposite of wrong, he pronounces it a source of having fun and being instinctual. and he never breaks the tie with you throughout, and uses his shoulders and lips to put the oomph into it.
he uses innuendo and a ‘we both know’ sentiment perfectly as an invitation rather than just going through his routine. that’s how he can make each move fascinating. you can tell kai knows exactly how to make everyone scream their lungs out. i bet somebody held their breath just reading this post already.
exo’s most famous choreo is ‘monster’ (kai focus linked) with good reason: jongin can turn himself into nothing short of a roaring beast. it’s one sharp, complex move after the other. kai can bend any gravitational law he wants to show any feeling and pose he wants. a glimpse:
now, how to spot him in general if you’re new to him? here are some pointers. kai’s execution is clean, fast, and powerful. those are two decades (!) of experience showing. kai is an all or nothing dancer, he plays no games. he treats every group and solo stage like his best and last. his work ethic is beyond words. yeah, he’s a capricorn. his style is direct as can be, working every axis.
as you can see, jongin is hard to overlook anyway: he’s a 182cm giant made of steel. he strives to acutely visualize impact in his style and it is always successful. in fact, it’s his signature. it’s like he creates invisible objects and pushes through them. boom, he just burst another bubble.
when the song gets to his part, i guarantee you won’t miss him and all the boldness and expression he brings to enrich the performance. hell... he carries it. jongin can handle the center, i’m telling you. (look how fast he rotates here)
talking features — this is what to look for when he dances in a group setting: you can recognize kai’s face by how wide, bluntly structured and sensual it is. jongin is a sight. he has such an aura, serious, sultry, and smiling alike.
with a very recognizable silhouette (like... holy hell!):
he’s very cute as well ♡ the fandom and kai himself have an adorable analogy going on. jongin calls himself a teddy/nini bear and we joined in on it. (i made a thread about it here, it talks more about his offstage life) — hence kai’s fans are called eri-gom, eris as in exo’s fanbase and gom meaning bear.
and i mean. look at him. what an attractive guy. he’s that handsome. strong brows, teddy eyes, square jaw, swept hair, glorious lips, tan skin.
now yes, something important concerning his appearance and a serious topic: i don’t want to list you the endless instances of colorism that kai has to endure but it has to be mentioned. jongin has been called every name in the book and people agonize him over his skin incessantly. it goes on and on and on. every day a new terrible comment about him emerges because some pitiful person thought it was funny and would elevate them.
he’s had to deflect, ignore, reframe, defend, remotivate, assert, harden, prove, denounce, and push himself, protect his confidence, decline skin bleaching constantly, laugh along, dance and practice thrice as hard to get the respect, and still see his dignity torn to pieces all day. i’ll just give it to you straight, that’s all fucked up. kai’s skin is perfect, he’s amazing and wonderful.
in his own words:
— exactly right. say it even louder.
having him at the bottom of every joke is weird and messed up. this man is an utter beauty and nothing has to be fixed. it is up to him to define himself rather than get called ugly for his skin’s appearance by default, and get whitewashed at every opportunity. it’s been going on for 27 years, he scrunitizes himself all the time and doesn’t look at himself fondly because he hears these beatdowns daily.
it’s heartbreaking that this happens literally with no end in sight (’kai is just a stripper!’... ‘he has bad vibes’... ‘darkest guy jongin!’). for his skin, and how he decides to show it, too. jesus christ his skin looks fantastic, end of debate. they just can’t handle him, kai couldn’t be any more immaculate.
♡
jongin has vigorously protected fans from discrimination, bullies, and shaming himself whenever it came up. in a very straightforward and deadpan manner because he knows exactly how it damages you. (”J” in the subtitles = jongin, he’s wearing the plain white top at the very back)
we need to protect and praise him that way right back. it’s important.
so, needless to say. all in for jongin getting the center stage he deserves. because he has the wow factor in every regard. kai usually opens an MV because there’s no better way to get people’s attention with that level of presence. with kai, you can’t go wrong. if you get the center in a an all star group like superm, you are the king.
being part of that presence, kai’s stage alter ego has reached levels of infamity you can’t even imagine. it’s great to see him being sovereign without apology.
and it doesn’t stop there. he shows time and again that acting, props, and commanding the audience has to be mastered to be an exceptional dancer. kai owns his sex appeal. sometimes, he even dances a portion of choreo with his eyes closed because he’s feeling it so much.
he is a pro in using his surroundings as well, superm’s stages are a glorious opportunity for kai to show how he comfortably ‘lives in’ the 3D space around him.
which makes the viewer do the same: watching kai makes you feel amazing, energized, but also serene and enjoying the moment.
there’s always balance. it’s the magic of it. e.g. he comes along with so much impetus and decisiveness but eventually, he halts to offer himself. here i am — take me. i’m yours. closed arms, open arms. walking, kneeling. looking down, looking up.
kai goes every extra mile there ever was and makes each eye contact count. involving the audience, one grin at a time. it works. it’s about establishing contact. he connects to the onlooker with so much nuance.
kai’s smirk is notorious and you can see why it’s so raw and real: he makes it linger. it’s such a duality since his dancing says i’ll come over, while his message is come and get me, i know what’s on your mind.
with a hilarious twist – kai expertly uses humor. you don’t get that in many dancer repertoires. i love it. all those quick expression changes. his smile! 😊 what a man.
so — what makes him so good and known: yes, his style doesn’t deny that dancing and eroticism are one in his business. that takes courage. kai has it. iconic performances have been his reward. point dance/killing part: exo’s love shot choreo.
that suit has swept the nation. what’s more: kai shows you it’s more than just good hip movement that a good dancer needs. he does everything at once, he puts the pleasure on his face, all his limbs are following the template he chooses.
the thing is. kai couldn’t be any shyer, but when the music starts he becomes a oscar-winning madman. he emotes constantly (!) and stays in character. this is gold.
jongin always plays it up. he knows how to use that face and does a lot of power posing. this is how visceral looks like. he’s interpreted exo’s aggressive concepts to a T.
and he has so. much. fun. it propels him. on every beat.
past every hurt, heartbreak and injury, man. if you know about his genre you knew this was coming, kai does all of that with 4 herniated discs. since debut days, never recovered. every gif in this thread, he dances with a battered spine. wheelchairs, stage collapses, relapse-recovery-schedule tales, the dilemma of injuries being inevitable, limping, kai falling into depression during breaks, constant pain killers, countless tears on stage, we’ve seen it all, the extreme end of it.
kai works out like hell to literally keep his body from falling apart. but it doesn’t help the nerves in his back that are impacted. doing choreo you can sometimes literally see the pain kicking in and he pulls himself through with force for the last minute. once you know how strained his back is, you can see it.
at the end his expression goes fuck now it’s coming when the adrenaline fades. he takes every second-pause he gets to rest but still finishes each move. even when he holds back, he keeps it together and executes each turn. sometimes, he has to restrict himself and soften his movements to protect his health (especially in hard choreographies such as lucky one which is universally disliked by exo — still jongin makes the very best of it smiling bright and dancing so hard his sleeves come off).
he frequently states he ‘dances in any case unless his legs are affected by something’. all torso injuries are fair game, this guy is hardcore. and people claim he’s just pretending. chen (a fellow exo member) says not a single part of jongin’s body is intact. he has paid every price to get this far to follow his love. he’ll step on stage with crutches. he works SO HARD.
that being said: exo being called the official nation’s group, i say kai is the nation’s dancer. period. he has had his great moment at the korean olympics flawlessly dancing in a hanbok with traditional instruments and fulfilling his dream.
i love the tension and drama he can bring. he can also thrill with slow, vulnerable movements alike.
kai’s is called a legend, he’s all that and even more. the facial expressions alone are feared by any kai stan because they hit home.
this guy is a sex icon and goes off like a gun, messing around was never kai’s incentive.
while at the same time being incredibly nuanced and so, so descriptive with his movements.
point dance: baby don’t cry. yep, kai has danced in water. must-watch.
this man loves what he is doing. he said he wouldn’t regret to die on stage because dancing is his destiny. boy, it shows. this guy has found his purpose. he can tell any story he wants. he’s a complete artist.
he’s perfectly portraying his incentive and he couldn’t look any more like a god on earth.
long story short, kai is dance and motivation goals. if you dance professionally, you can easily look toward him for the right words.
if you want to further your study and knowledge: he released a self-titled solo album recently. highly recommended. he worked forever on it, and he’s really dishing it on there. you get to hear his soft voice plus sizzling footwork. and he isn’t even getting started yet. you’ll hear from kai, i promise. he constantly achieves new levels of artistic perfection.
a last remark. jongin is amazing for a myriad of reasons that go beyond what i show you here given the post focuses on his work on stage. but the point stands, while other people have tried to break him, he broke through every barricade instead and stood up for himself. we can be extremely happy to have him and witnessing his unreal dance is an exceptional pleasure. here’s to jongin continuing his passion and confidence, healing, and getting the sweeping respect and acknowledgement that is his.
minghao's dance mirrors the untamed nature of the forest before transitioning into man's pursuit to strip that nature down for our own desires(as shown when minghao drops his outer layer and dances frantically) only to end the video with the dance moving backwards - signifying a desire to see the world returned to its original state as minghao, nature personified, disappears from man's view. in this essay i will
Stan OnlyOneOf ya cowards (Long Post - Dance & Song Analysis)
Woah....wow....just WOW
I just watched the 1theK dance mirrored video for OnlyOneOf’s “Savanna” (the one for the dance cover contest, and can I just say, W O W.
I remembered watching this last year (It was the very first video of OnlyOneOf I watched) and I was like, yeah, this song sounds pretty good. But now, after rewatching it, I’m amazed at the amount of imagery they put into the dance. By no means am I a pro dancer or something, but I’ve been dancing to Kpop for a few years now, so I got used to pretty much how the dances are like. Nowadays, most boy group dances are pretty hip-hop / popping / maybe some contemporary dance mixed in for some of the slower parts in songs, so I pretty much know what to expect. There would be some crazy choreo, fast paced tempo you need to follow, etc., etc. Yeah, 4th gen is starting to become some sort of dance competition.
But...THIS. THIS GODDAMN CHOREO SHOOKED ME. I already love how different OnlyOneOf’s songs are from the generic mainstream songs, instead of going for some hardcore rap or edm songs, they always go for mellow tunes and beautiful melodies mixed with entrancing vocals (YES YES YES VOCALS, THERE ARE ACTUALLY V O C A L S IN THEIR SONGS, NOT SOME SORT OF WEIRD NOISE INSTRUMENTAL. I CAN GO ON A WHOLE RANT ABOUT THEIR VOCALS). Anyways, I might make a whole other post for their songs, but right now, let’s focus on their choreography, specifically this one.
It’s strange, in a way. I got into OnlyOneOf because of the dance for “_Sage.” I saw it in a random play dance video, and it was my first time seeing OnlyOneOf in one of these videos, actually. I remembered seeing the dance and got shocked when they yeeted to the ground during Mill’s part in the chorus. Idk the name for the move, but it caught me offguard on how smoothly they did it. After the random play dance ended, I immediately went to watch their dance practice for “_Sage” and decided to learn the move, bc, you know, it looks cool (and I want my awkward self to show a different, cooler side of me on stage). I only wanted to just learn the chorus, but I ended up learning the whole choreo. And it literally started with “i just wanna learn their names so I can tell them apart during the dance” to finally “Ok, I’m gonna stan.”
“_Sage” has a pretty intense choreo, compared to their other songs, but I feel like, with OnlyOneOf’s choreos, you need to properly EXPRESS the song’s meaning. Ofc, it’s always important to convey the meaning of a song, since dance IS a form of art and expression (as a very smart Hwanwoong said, it’s not just about the performance, it’s whether you can convey the emotions well or not).
With OnlyOneOf though, each of their song has a special meaning, all linked to a storyline (I’m probably gonna go on a whole other rant when I piece together the theories), and their songs are so different as well, they don’t talk about the topics that most groups today usually explore with their discography, instead going to a different route and just listening to their songs and watching them dance makes me feel like I’m in a different dimension.They’re just...UNIQUE. I don’t know any other way to say it. Y’all are probably like “how about Group X, they always talk about blah, blah, blah” and I am NOT dragging down other groups, but smth abt OnlyOneOf really stands out to me. I listened to their song “dOra Maar” this morning and got emotional after finding out the meaning behind the song. Even though I finished learning “_Sage” yesterday, I still feel like I need to practice more to make sure the emotions and meaning of the song is properly conveyed through the dance, bc the meaning behind “_Sage” is just so complex. And now, let’s actually go into the semi-analysis I did for “Savanna” so you guys will understand what I’m talking about.
THE ACTUAL ANALYSIS
Imagery is used by many groups today to give choreography a deeper meaning, or in some cases, like a signature move (SKZ “God’s Menu” uses many cooking references, for example). With “Savanna,” I was amazed by the amount of imagery they use. As I mentioned before, groups these days are more into difficult hiphop dances, so I feel like imagery is being used less and less and choreos are just a bunch of difficult moves strung together to look powerful and difficult and...yeah, 4th gen is really turning into a dance competition. Anyways, i DIGRESS ONCE AGAIN (I can complain for hours about 4th gen music and dancing but let’s save that for some other time).
I will say this again: I am NOT a professional dancer, I only had a few years of ballet + Kpop, and is self-learning popping and hiphop right now. This is only based on what I observe and how I interpret the dance.
Ok, let’s start at the beginning of the choreo. All the members form a ring around one member (KB) and waved their arms to enclose a circle, trapping him, before moving apart. Next, the members seemed to form a path for KB to walk on, with Yoojung and Junji at the end, arms forming a line that KB ducked under and passed through. Right off the bat, we have a beautiful imagery. I think it portrays time travel (since the song seems to hint towards that subject). The four members forming the path that KB walks on, are frozen like statues, like time just froze. KB is the person that wants to break out (he was trapped within a circle in the beginning) and seems to find a loophole through time that he manages to walk through.
Now, onto my favorite imagery for the choreo that really surprised me. At 0:33 in the video, When they formed lines by Nine’s side and opened their arms in sync, creating almost like an illusion. It might be to match the lyrics about “dry, chapped lips,” but that part mesmerized me, and drew me in to continue watching.
The next key point of imagery, is at 0:47, when they formed a line and stood in alternating positions, moving their arms in an alternating pattern as well. It really matches with the lyrics “among the intertwined people, I hide myself again” and creates another illusion that’s JUST. SO. CAPTIVATING. I might be a tad bit overdramatic abt this, but really, I LOVE LOVE LOVE how they put so much imagery and meaning into the choreo.
Another piece of imagery is Love’s and Nine’s solo portion after the chorus, when they mirrored each other with their bodies and made a drinking motion with their hands. Might seem small, but it emphasizes the lyrics “Watchin’ all your silhouette / Drink one more time, Sweepin’ huh.” The lyrics might not make sense, but this part is just so mysterious and mesmerizing.
They did another beautiful imagery for the start of the second prechorus for the same lyrics (”Among the intertwined people, I hide myself again”), but this time, forming a V formation around Nine. They also formed the same ring around Junji when he sang, “I feel like I’m locked in” but with some floorwork this time. I love how they tried variations of the moves, so the image is still there but switched up to keep it engaging.
These are the key details of the dance I’m going to write about here, there are many other parts and some imagery I probably missed, but if I’m going to actually analyze every single move along with the song lyrics, you guys are probably gonna get bored XD. So to wrap this up, I think the important factor about the dance that really draws me in is that, unlike choreos nowadays, the dance is composed of smooth movements and transitions, like contemporary but keeping that Kpop feel, ya know? The song itself is already mellow and vocal-centered, so ofc the dance has to match it, but I wasn’t ready for the imagery (i dare you to count the amount of times I used this word lol) they used. Watching this is like a breath of fresh air, listening to this song is so refreshing. I strongly recommend you guys check it out!
This is the longest post I ever wrote lmao, and if you read all the way to the end, congrats! Anyways, I might learn this after I polish up “_Sage.” Hmm....should I also do vocal covers for the songs too? I was actually thinking of remixing “Savanna” into a diss track because of the misheard lyrics (”i don’t give a shit what they think abt us / you’re like a bitch from Savanna”). Who knows?
i just read some of your dance analysis posts and whoa you're so cool skdjhsdf !!!!!!! well i was wondering, since fiesta has been out for quite some time and they also posted the dance practice vid, what are your thoughts on it choreo-wise?? u should answer this only if u have time though!!! (ps i love ur posts btw! they inspire me to make gifs too hehe keep it up! ^^)
HAHA thank you!!! i appreciate you appreciating my thoughts adkfjsa come join izonetwork if you want to hear more 🥰
i actually went wild about the choreo when it came out so i guess this is a good opportunity to re-evaluate now that i’m calm LOL. thoughts below the cut!
(yall insp me to make gifs too 😭😭)
to sort of premise my thoughts on the dance, i want to say that i really think fiesta set a new standard for gg dances. most of the time, gg dances that are praised are honestly not tHAT interesting to me… not to say that their work is for naught, but as someone who has seen a lot of dances of different levels, gg dances tend to fall flat in choreography and execution. ggs are usually not taught to use grooves or textures as basics, and companies dont want to spend effort teaching them to do so. then they are restricted to choosing choreographers that tend to make choreographies with “arms and legs”, and barely any torso movement besides basic body rolls or chest rolls. on top of that, they are usually given restricted outfits that make the dancing even more underwhelming for me and then i just prefer bgs for dance :( to be honest, even recent gg dances that people have been wowed at have not really been… that interesting for me either because of execution or choreography or both, but i dont want to mention them because i dont want to disregard the work of any idols! i respect them all and hope you will just take my word for it haha
i just watched the dance practice again and honestly the first thing that i think of is that the choreographers really put a lot of time and effort into this. usually to keep things dynamic, i try to change formations every 8-16 counts in a competitive set. this isnt usually something you see in kpop, but the choreographers had a lot of formation changes going on every 8 counts, and most of them werent just simple center or window changes… very nice. the use of stage was nice as well, and varying the number of members on stage at once is a good way to keep things dynamic. there are also points in the choreography that match the lyrics with movements that would normally be cheesy, but it ended up not being cheesy because the formations were so nice e.g. yujin’s first line using a waking up gesture, but having the other girls do level changes and fan their arms out… i enjoy that a lot
another thing i want to comment on about the choreography that is kind of rare to see in gg dances is the use of textures and how the musicality changes. to understand this, the intro is a good example. if you really listen to the music and match it with the choreography, you can tell that the choreographers try to follow a different instrument every 4-8 counts, and this is something i really value and look for as a choreographer. the choreography for fiesta isn’t just a simple one that follows an 8 count strictly (e.g. one that would probably look fine to any song as long as you follow the beat), and i appreciate that a lot
at the same time, izone gets equal credit, because theyre able to see it and interpret the choreography in relation to the music, showing that they have understanding and appreciation of textures and musicality in dance. i think this can be attributed to chaeyeon eunbi and yena and this is an asset in making a dance performance interesting
the only feedback i have about the choreography is that the formations are usually centered and the girls are usually brought up one by one either by walking up or being hidden behind a member that goes down when it is their part. it would be a lot more interesting if the attention was moved around with more variety, like having the attention move from one side of the stage to another. when done well this could be very interesting. the only place i see this happen is minju’s part at the beginning of the bridge
moving away from choreography, and before i talk about the girls, i just want to mention that i feel the stylists are very mindful about izone’s mobility while dancing this comeback. the outfits are generally easy to move in, and the part that stands out to me the most is the shoes. in the comeback show, they were wearing boots, which are easier to dance in than other shoes that ggs usually wear. in the other stages where the stylists have them wear heels, those are the best heels you can wear for dancing lol (boot heels). a lot of dancers i know who have to dance in heels use boot heels because those are the most comfortable to dance in, and give proper ankle support to keep you safe. i also found that the outfits from the comeback show (although many people thought they werent flattering for the girls individually) worked really well with the dance, like when the camerawork showed an arial view
ok now for izone
i think for this comeback, my favourite member to watch is yena. this choreography has a lot more musical complexity this time around, and i think this is yenas greatest strength. to kind of show what i mean, i watch yenas fancam and see how well you can hear the music from her movements, and then watch another member, and it just doesnt match the same. (but also i have a weird thing where i can basically “hear” when someone moves, so it might be a personal thing lol. try it out anyway!).
another person i notice is eunbi. normally the choreography and concept is softer or cuter, so eunbi hasnt really been able to show off her strength, but there are parts in this choreo that let eunbi really go off and it feels like she literally slaps me in the face when she hits lol. good example of this is in the comeback show at her last part… that hip hit… i actually felt like she punched me lol… thats when i realized that eunbi could beat me up in an instant she is so strong lol…
other things i noticed… hitomi sakura and nako’s musicality has improved, yujin is learning to dance as a tall person (match your levels with shorter people… it’s a skill LOL), hyewon and nako are learning to put more strength in their movements (my heart flipped when i saw), and izone is really unified when they are in good condition. i say good condition because idk about you, but in the first week of their performances, watching them made me feel kind of uneasy. i could feel their anxiousness from the way they moved and from the looks in their eyes and i could eunbi being dizzy and losing balance and it made me sad… esp compared to comeback show. in comeback show, you can see that they have the same fire in their eyes, that they really are performing as one, and thats honestly what you want to aim for when you are dancing as a group
but for the show, izone really hit different… the fire was coming back and i watched it like ten times… i think the best part is seeing the fire in the eyes of members you dont really see it from, like minju and nako. not to say that they dont perform well because this isnt what i mean at all, but their intensity and focus made me feel their genuine effort on stage and i loved it. theres just a Look that dancers have when their condition is good and they’re performing better than usual. and there’s just this Vibe that a team gives off when things are going Right. it’s really hard to explain because it’s not really something you practice, but it’s just when your hearts match and everyone is on the same page and when you dance with your team the energy you share with your team and the energy you have on the stage is literally TANGIBLE. there is really no other way i can find to explain it, and im honestly normally a super sciency person… but this is just something i will never be able to explain…
the only thing about that performance was that they performed with such energy and intensity that they kind of lost it after the bridge LOL. there are times in choreographies when you’re really tired and theres a resting point and ur adrenaline dies down a bit and ur like shit im tired LOL. and you can kind of see that happen… yena seems tired, and then the formation kind of gets messy,,, but it’s understandable because that jumping is tiring looool
if i had to give izone some constructive feedback:
the pathing for some of the arms in certain parts of the choreo are not the same, so it gets a little messy and loses effect. i know this is something they can fix if they know how to though, since there are other arm parts that are very clean
the timing for some of the canons need to be cleaned up.. i understand this is very hard though. the choreographers gave them pretty quickly timed canons that dont really follow any part of the music. this is generally really hard on the people in the middle vs. the people at the beginning and end who have it easier knowing exactly when to start and stop their movement (google dance canon if you dont know what im talking about)
it would be best if izone learned to pace themselves throughout the performance while keeping the focus and intensity. e.g. if youre going hard all the time, youll run out of energy real quick, so usually when dancers perform they kind of gauge when they put in 80% effort vs 110%, so the performance can have ups and down, and they wont get tired that much. this is honestly hard though and im still working on it hehe i get excited really easily and then halfway im wheezing like holy shit i shoulda calmed down LOL
to make things cleaner, it would be best if some members adjusted their height more e.g. wonyoung esp when they are near nako LOL it’s tough but yea it’s a skill… i got yelled at for like 6 months before i learned so
some formations need to be adjusted e.g. the last one, yuri and hitomi need to move out a bit to adjust to the formation change for the end formation. sakura is actually quite attentive and readjusts her formation mid movement to fix the line - this just needs to happen on the other side now
some random things i noticed:
yena has clean hands and arms and i appreciate this
their facial expressions change collectively at some parts e.g. minju’s first part, they all start smiling and their dance gets light and it’s cute. also during yenas rap in so curious they collectively get more serious and i like that uwu
if chaewon stomps on me one more time in the beginning ill probably cry
i really like the crossing behind wonyoung with their arms up (at the beginning) that goes into the hits (yena hits HARD) and then the hair flip canon (this is always so good omg)
my dance friend acknowledged this choreo, like its good can confirm
that leg part where they go down in the chorus is hard lol i was talking to my dance friend like yea if i had to do that in a set id quit like i cant man LOL
i miss chaeyeon’s chest hit that was in the mv during her part she doesnt do it anymore :cry:
more members are figuring out how to spot during spins and SO AM I i feel an emotional connection LMAO
after wizones were worrying about members’ knees, they started being more cautious when doing the floor part and i thought that was the sweetest thing ever
if youre still here, thanks for coming to my ted talk and thanks for supporting my blog and caring if i have time etc etc etc my anons are always always so sweet qq
