ATEEZ Is Upping The Game When It Comes To K-Pop Performance And Facial Expressions, And It’s A Good Thing
Along with producing phenomenal music that has quickly brought the group to worldwide stardom, ATEEZ is also well-known among K-Pop fans for their intense stages and performance abilities.
Not only are their choreographies powerful, captivating, and a pleasure to watch, but the members know how to match their expressions perfectly to the concept that they’re working with. Whether the stage is for something intense like “HALA HALA” or “Wonderland”, or something softer like “Eternal Sunshine” or “Wave”, ATEEZ’s members have proven over and over again that they are perfectly suited to take on any genre.
Though some of the members — particularly San, Hongjoong, and Seonghwa, a.k.a. the “demon line” of ATEEZ — are more well-known for their intense stage presence than others, all of the members are captivating in their own way on stage, making them a group where each member is vital to their success.
There’s a reason that the group was so highly praised by professionals on Kingdom: Legendary War and by other experienced artists in the industry, despite being a still-young group!
THE lia kim on ateez predebut performance: they’re “the gods of synchronized choreography”. you are allowed to speak only when she says that about your kpop boys. pic.twitter.com/dPhOt06dTt
— – ia – (@desirehwas) December 20, 2019
Some K-Pop fans, however, have tried to drag ATEEZ by criticizing their expressive performances and high energy. It’s hard to imagine such criticism being genuine, but it’s there nonetheless, and ATINYs have repeatedly defended the members against such unfounded hate.
Recently, a fan created a thread on Twitter to explain why they believe ATEEZ deserve only praise for their energetic and expressional performance abilities.
a thread on why using facial expressions to drag ateez, is not a drag at all.
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
The first point they make is that facial expressions are pretty much necessary in a performance if you want to fully express the mood or concept you’re trying to portray. Without appropriate expressions, no matter how good or accurate a dance is, it can appear flat and uninteresting if the audience doesn’t connect with what the performer is trying to convey. It can really separate professional dancers from more amateur ones.
1. they are very important in kpop and dancing in general if u wanna bring the song to life and match the energy, strong or soft concepts, they all have different facial expressions and energies pic.twitter.com/XFR9gykEZx
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
They also bring up the fact that industry professionals and judges look for artists who are able to fit the concept they’re trying to express with their facial expressions, which is far from an easy task.
3. bang pd & 3 other professionals, judged trainees on a survival show, they got a soft concept for the first time when only 1-2 trainees were able to match it. u can see professionals criticizing them over the lack of expressions that did not match the song pic.twitter.com/KMgvv0uNJF
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
As mentioned earlier, masters of dance and choreography such as Lia Kim have been following ATEEZ even since pre-debut due to how captivating their performances are.
4. professional choreographers, very respected in korea, one of the biggest ones, followed ateez since predebut and were amazed by their facial expressions since then. they said it’s what keeps them interested in the performance and brings it to life pic.twitter.com/76yASr6NGq
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
They also bring up the fact that tons of rookie K-Pop idols look up to the members of ATEEZ as inspiration for what they want to be.
7. some idols even pick san as their role model and the thing they point out is his facial expressions and stage presence pic.twitter.com/TSHorU5Lbc
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
To finish everything off, the point is made that ATEEZ are the entire package: Not just dancers that can sing, or vocalists that can dance, but actual performers who fully embrace every aspect what it takes to have phenomenal stage presence and really connect with their audience.
11. in order to match the song concept, you have to be good on stage and portray the song well. cute song = softer dancing, soft expressions. hard song = hard dancing, stronger expressions. it’s what makes someone a performer. not just a singer and dancer, a PERFORMER.
— sara (@HONGSMINGKI) November 23, 2021
That’s what makes ATEEZ unique even among other immensely talented K-Pop groups, and why they should be an inspiration and a role model for other artists in the industry that want to succeed!