DANCE CHOREOGRAPHER REACTS - STRAY KIDS (스트레이 키즈) - “Hellevator” MV + Dance Practice Comparison

[@Selande3]

Hellevator was the first song they made together as a group and was their first mission to accomplish on the survival show "Stray Kids" to see if all the members would debut together. To clarify the timeline a bit, the first dance practice you watched (9 member version) was recorded prior to them showing JYP at the mission itself. They were dancing to the guide track and also the final adjustments that JYP made at the end of the mission were not showcased in this dance practice. I'm not sure when the change was made as they didn't show all the changes in the show, but they had Changbin do vocals at the end of each chorus (I'm on a Hellevator!) and we didn't know about that change until the busking mission in the show (like Episode 7 or 8). They released this practice as a present to Stay for the 1st anniversary but it was filmed way before that. Then 5 years later, they released an OT8 version. I'm not sure if it's the concert version or not, but I would guess it is as they perform it at concerts and not really for like a music show anymore.

[@jess_holyfield]

This is very insightful!!! Thank you so much for providing such great context!!

[@raquel5401]

Love that you chose this to analyze, it's one of my favorite choreso, and Lee Know did the choreo for this one himself. So it made it that much worse when he was temporarily eliminated on the reality show and didn't even get to perform it with the group. In the original "gift" version- the 1 year, Lee Know is in the white long-sleeve shirt with the skinny black stripes, and the most recent he is in all black, short sleeve tee shirt with fluffy black hair, no hat- he is on the right hand side when looking at your screen. It's funny you called him out in the 1 year for not matching, yet if Lee Know looks different in a dance practice it's because he's the one who is hitting what the actual choreo is. He never tries to stand out, and keeps his energy very level, but if he does a move the others don't or at a different angle, you can bet he is following the exact original dance, it's just what he does. Your analysis is exactly the type I love, very nice.

[@jess_holyfield]

Crazy that he choreographed it and was eliminated for a bit ☠️☠️☠️ bless all of that because it sounds like a legit freaking NIGHTMARE logistically…. Maybe they did that to bring an extra level of sympathy , but goodness….

[@ashurasama]

​@@jess_holyfield Lee Know didn't choreograph it, that's just a misconception that's been spread in the fandom for ages. The actual choreographers are credited in the survival show, I'd have to look it up to find who did it exactly, but I'm pretty sure Lee Know isn't there at all. However he did teach the choreography to the other members, since he was specifically added to the team for them to have a dance leader. He learns dances very fast and gets the small details immediately, so it's a very efficient way to proceed for them since they don't need choreographers to spend a lot of time with them. What really shows in those early times is how much more experience he had compared to other members ! He had worked as a backup dancer for like a couple of years prior to joining JYPE, and basically just stopped right before Stray Kids was formed (he was touring with BTS up to june 2017, and they started to film the survival show at the JYPE trainee showcase of august 2017 ; in the meantime he had cleared the dance requirement JYP has to be considered for a debut team - it had taken him two weeks when the previous record holder, Twice's Momo, had taken three months). Realistically, Lee Know being cut early during the show was a means for JYPE to focus on him training in aspects that weren't dance ; I watched the show while it aired and when they showed Lee Know's video message to the members the episode after the was cut, I knew he was going to come back - if they hadn't planned to add him back they would never have talked about him in a later episode, that's just how reality TV works. Felix was also cut in a later episode, and considering the flimsy reasoning presented to cut him, it was just for the sake of drama (and he only was away for like one episode anyway). They knew watchers LOVED Felix and that the public would vote for adding him and Lee Know back in the final (which they did, in overwhelming majority). So basically, both being removed and then added back was just a tactic to generate interest and solidify the group's bond. Were the members lied to by the show's production team and JYP himself ? Yes, of course, they wanted to test them and get genuine reactions, and it was a cruel thing to do. However I believe it really benefitted them long term, the fandom was pretty small when they started but it was fierce and unified.

[@jess_holyfield]

@@ashurasama THANK YOU SO MUCH! This is incredible insight and it helps me tremendously! I'm very thankful you took the time to write all of that out to make it more clear for me! I truly appreciate it!!! I am very excited to continue watching this group thrive and flourish through the years! ONE TRACK AT A TIME!

[@Notanymore343]

@@jess_holyfieldyes Ali Lee did the choreo for this. I’m unsure why this narrative that Lee Know did it is still around. Ali actually came onto IG to correct this misinformation, which is never want you want to see, choreographer needing to defend her choreo claim publicly. But she has been incredibly supportive of this group and has done great choreo!

[@hey_im_jai]

SOOOOOOO HYPED FOR THIS SERIES!!!

[@jess_holyfield]

We got a couple coming on KZbin but we are in DEEP on Patreon 😂♥️ SO MUCH STRAY KIDS

[@reikot77]

Love that you’re staring the series with Stray Kids discography. So basically Stray Kids music they write the lyrics, the top line melody by themselves from the beginning before their debut. The arrangement (track making), they haven’t been involved so much at the beginning, but slowly 3RACHA especially Bang Chan has been leading on the arrangement and direction as well. Around the year 2020, after becoming the 8 member group, they have evolved. They have released God’s Menu and Back Door, and it became a hit. After that Stray Kids members are more confident about their music and can kind of push to the company what they want to do. I remember also J.Y. Park was saying in an interview in late 2020, that Stray Kids huge change in growth was before and after God’s Menu. Stray Kids write all the songs by themselves, and they still have to discuss with company from the marketing perspective which song when to release, but they have pretty much freedom on the music production creative side. Of course the other elements like music videos, styling, business elements, the company supporting them, and giving suggestions to Stray Kids members. The relationship between Stray Kids members and the company (Division 1) is going very well.

[@jess_holyfield]

This is great news to hear and I can't wait to get to the God's Menu era of their discography!! I can totally see how that time really pivoted the group and I'm very happy to be taking a look at them in this way!!!

[@SoraiaLMotta]

thank you for your informative analysis. it was cool to see, specially how the younger members improved a lot in their strength and style.

[@jess_holyfield]

Thank you so much for your encouraging words! I also enjoyed seeing their growth so early here!

[@Sara-mp1bs]

I can't wait for more videos. It's so interesting to see the differences and how they've developed. Btw, Idk if anyone has mentioned this yet, but from 2022 on Felix's back injury becomes an issue and he isn't able to do some movements from older choreos now. It's also the reason he only does some parts of Maniac in the dance practice. Though he's a lot better now, I do think they adjust the new choreos so he isn't doing certain moves that would hurt his back.

[@jess_holyfield]

Thank you so much for letting me know about Felix! That will help me with that era more effectively!

[@cara3566]

Excited to see more! I love hearing from people who know dance talking about stray kids!

[@jess_holyfield]

Thank you for taking the time to watch! I have LOTS of stray kids which is really exciting! With MORE to see in the future!

[@yeelengher2242]

Yesssss skzzzz

[@jess_holyfield]

Loving it!

[@Postpunkmandalina]

Thank you for this reaction! I’m so happy that you watched all 3 versions. I love this in depth analysis and look forward to watching more of your SKZ videos!

[@Postpunkmandalina]

I can’t wait for you to get to some of my personal favorites - Domino, Double Knot, and Miroh. This will be a fun series😊

[@jess_holyfield]

I really enjoyed this one! THank you for taking the time to watch!

[@jess_holyfield]

So at this point in time I have seen Miroh and Double Knot! Domino is coming up on my schedule though!

[@Postpunkmandalina]

@@jess_holyfield I’ve already joined the Patreon hoping that was the case 😂

[@jess_holyfield]

@@Postpunkmandalina oh boy 🥹🥹 welcome to the other side 😆🎊

[@Resistance_Is_Futile1of3]

Yes, I want in... I am so glad that you will be guest lecturing at the Stayville dance studio lol... getting my tickets now.. 🖖🏽 What makes Stray Kids different is that unlike other K-pop groups who were chosen by the studios, Bang Chan (Christopher), the leader actually individually chose each of the members. 3Racha (the producing unit) also compose both the music & lyrics to all songs, produce their own songs (check out their videos where they are putting their songs together, there are many); they assist in creating their own choreography. In other words, 3Racha do have control over their own music. They can go to the company & say they want to change things up. That is how the track God's Menu came to being created, because they changed it at the last minute & the company went with it. Of course, if something went wrong, they were responsible for that also. The whole situation was kind of an experiment on JYP's part, but since Bang Chan had been a trainee for so long & JYP knew his skill set as a musician [he plays piano, guitar, drums & the ukulele], lyricist, composer, producer, rapper, singer & dancer - all by the time he was 19 years old], he was willing to take a risk that Bang Chan would know how to pick great performers. And his gamble paid off, in spades.

[@jess_holyfield]

Stayville Dance studio 😂☠️☠️ love this so much 😂 I didn’t know Bang Chan chose the members! That’s awesome!! 3racha has been a blast to look at and knowing they produce their own music has made this marathon of theirs work different than every other group I’ve done, because I am also looking at their other music videos with no dancing to see their tone and lyricism develop alongside their dancing! Love it!!

[@Resistance_Is_Futile1of3]

​@@jess_holyfield The huge amount of time & effort you are using to create these reactions are amazing. The choreo details explained so clearly and simply makes the MV even better for me. I love listening to pro people who Know what they are speaking on. The format you are using is great and just FYI, Chan is a big part of changing up the beat to match the choreo to fit whatever live stage they may be preforming on. The same song may have several difference themes which are so fun to watch.. you could choose between different versions and see something new.. nice.. It was a nice catch to see that the lyrics does fluent the choreo & the MV at times. Looking forward to the next one..🖖🏽

[@jess_holyfield]

@@Resistance_Is_Futile1of3 such encouragement 😭😭means a lot to hear and I truly appreciate it!!!