7+ Ways You Can Tell You’re Watching A (G)I-DLE Choreography

When watching K-Pop choreographies, you may notice some repeated moves and formations in your favorite groups choreographies. Your eyes aren’t deceiving you, many groups have an unspoken choreography vocabulary, or a set of distinct moves and formations associated with the group. This makes it simpler for a group when learning dances as well as allows the group to develop their own unique dance style. To celebrate leader Soyeon‘s recent comeback with “Beam Beam” let’s take a look at some of the ways to tell just what makes a (G)I-DLE choreography a (G)I-DLE choreography.

1. The (G)I-DLE Signature Move

In every major (G)I-DLE Choreography, You’ll find a moment (usually in the chorus) where the girls end up in shoulder width stance with a knee popped and proceed to swap which leg is popped. This allows their choruses to remain upper body focused while still providing some interesting movement in their lower half. The position also pops the hip, giving the choreography a more feminine and powerful look which is a highlight of all of their performances.

2. Upper Body Control

Where (G)I-DLE differs from other 4th generation girl groups is their focus on fluidity, specifically in the arms. Soojin specifically is a master of this fluidity as she has a more traditional dance background which the group often makes use of. As previously mentioned, their footwork is rarely too complex so their skill with arms can shine. Some common upper body moves to watch out for include:

Fan Arms

A part of their impressive upper body work, fan arms are frequently used in transitions between formations as they propel the girls forwards gracefully while still keeping with the fluidity the group is known for.

Hand-ography

(G)I-DLE choreographies tend to showcase the girls’ precision as well by moving focus from the fluid to arms to the rhythmic snap of the hands. This has been a killing point in a few of their choreographies including their debut “LATATA”.

3. Hidden Miyeon

It can be tough to choreograph for a group with even members because you want your formations staggered with a clear center. Because of this, some members can get placed in less visible positions. Like Disney has its hidden Mickeys, (G)I-DLE has its hidden Miyeon. While other members do get placed in the position behind center, it seems like Miyeon gets stuck there at least once per dance. But don’t worry, usually she’s back there preparing to wow you in the next moment with her killer vocals.

4. Kneel to Reveal

With six members, sometimes it can be hard to create an impactful formation where everyone is visible but for (G)I-DLE one you can often find is a “kneel to reveal”. This is where a hidden vocalist (usually Minnie or Miyeon) are suddenly revealed by members kneeling down or sometimes just bending over. With (G)I-DLE’s more recent trend of emotionally intense songs, this creates a good release of tension in the context of the dance before a musically impactful moment.

5. Straight Line Surprise

Another formation trick used in (G)I-DLE’s choreography is the straight line. A choreographer may avoid a vertical straight line as it will most likely obscure all but one of the members. (G)I-DLE makes this dynamic by forming a single file line before bursting into the full group,Often leading into a chorus. This provides a visually dynamic image which looks great both on camera and onstage.

6. Flat Line for Impact

Flat lines are often considered a choreography don’t because they are visually uninteresting. Some notable exceptions to this are the traditional chorus line (where a group of usually women line up to do a series of coordinated kicks, sometimes known as a kick line) and when levels are introduced. (G)I-DLE often combines both of these like in “Senorita” where the girls form a flat line across the stage with different arm and torso positions while doing Latin inspired dancing. This presents a unique stage picture and allows the flat line to remain dynamic. While they’ve only used the flat line a couple of times and mostly early on in songs like “LATATA” and “Uh-Oh”, we can’t wait to see it again.

7. Final Act Footwork

Soyeon is an incredible composer who knows how to build a song for maximum effect. This means that their choreographies often have to follow this tone. For those choreographies, this is where (G)I-DLE is given a chance to show just how fantastic they are with complex footwork. To match the music’s amplification, the choreography often takes previously used movements and adds more lower body work to create a more climactic feeling for the end of the song.

Have you noticed any of these before? Watch their dance practice playlist below and see how many of these you pick up on and if you notice any other signature moves (G)I-DLE brings to the stage.