If there’s one phrase on each dancer’s lips these days, it’s “gnarly.” The track by the identical title, carried out by worldwide Okay-pop lady group KATSEYE, has captured the eye of Okay-pop followers and dancers alike as re-creations of the choreography have flooded social media.
Grant Gilmore and Sohey Sugihara are KATSEYE’s efficiency administrators. Their choreography for “Gnarly,” featured in sections of the music video, evokes a collage of feelings: It’s concurrently humorous, flirty, intense, and unusual. The actions are sharp and decisive, interspersed with flashes of the weird. In Gilmore’s phrases: “The track was so jarring, I needed the choreography to be simply as jarring.”
Dance Spirit caught up with Gilmore to speak about crafting the video’s quirky motion, working with KATSEYE, and what it means to be gnarly.
How He Bought the Gig
Gilmore, now 26, taught himself to bop in his pc room as a toddler, utilizing YouTube movies. “It’s very early–Gen Z of me,” he says. After his mom seen his knack for dance, he started to take courses in Houston and attend competitions at age 14. The conference circuit launched Gilmore into his efficiency profession, which he constructed for seven years (and through which he toured with the likes of Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, and Sam Smith) earlier than turning his focus to creating, choreographing, and educating. Two years in the past, HYBE America, the U.S. subsidiary of the South Korean leisure firm HYBE Company, employed Gilmore to work on a mission: a brand new lady group that may finally turn into KATSEYE.
Crafting Gnarly Motion
Choreographing to “Gnarly” was a delight for Gilmore as a result of the track intersects together with his private style in music. “I felt very aligned with it from the start,” he says. When he heard “Gnarly,” he was instantly impressed to make the choreography really feel cinematic, and he needed every part to have its personal iconic second.
Viewers initially had blended responses to the music video. “I wasn’t anticipating there to be a lot backlash when the track first got here out,” Gilmore says. He takes pleasure in the truth that his work with Sugihara helped audiences see what “Gnarly” is admittedly about: “As soon as they noticed the complete choreography [on social media], it actually resonated with them.”
On Working With KATSEYE
Gilmore met the now-members of KATSEYE as contestants on “Dream Academy,” HYBE x GEFFEN’s competitors actuality present about assembling a world Okay-pop lady group. “I first knew them as these younger women who simply labored so exhausting they usually had a dream,” he says. “They’ve matured a lot.” Gilmore provides that his work relationship with KATSEYE has additionally developed over time, permitting him to create tailor-made motion that feels good to the artists. “I like a symbiotic relationship with them, and to ensure they really feel snug. By means of that we’ve gotten actually shut, and we’ve additionally created a cool concord that’s mirrored of their performances.”
So What Does It Imply to Be Gnarly?
“What’s gnarly for me shouldn’t be being scared to discover each single aspect of your self,” says Gilmore. He provides himself permission to love the issues he likes—crochet, nation music, and Jap European meals, for instance—with out worrying about whether or not or not they match collectively. “If you happen to love one thing, simply find it irresistible. You don’t should be this aesthetic,” he says.
The Future Is Gnarly
Gilmore is loving his work with KATSEYE in the meanwhile, and he needs to proceed to assist its members develop. “I’m simply having fun with my present second,” he says. Sooner or later, Gilmore sees himself utilizing his expertise as efficiency director to transition into inventive path. “My job is extra than simply choreographing—it’s additionally very visible.”
After the success of “Gnarly,” Gilmore says he needs to proceed to create dances that problem the established order and inject freshness into popular culture. “I believe that’s why ‘Gnarly’ has been such a particular period for me,” he says. “It’s one of many first occasions the place I did one thing in an expert surroundings that has influenced tradition on a much bigger scale. We set a brand new commonplace for what a lady group can do.”
Gilmore’s Prime Tip for Aspiring Dancers
Gilmore’s most necessary recommendation for younger dancers is to remain true to themselves whereas being intentional about what they current to the world. There’s a candy spot on the intersection between being genuine and resonating with different individuals: “When these two issues align, individuals can’t assist however acknowledge you,” he says.
