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Lucy Jeong

It takes more than a single pop star to put on a truly epic performance. More often than not, our favourite K-pop idols rely on backup dancers who make their shows stand out with stunning choreography.
More recently, the success of Korean dance competition reality show Street Woman Fighter has brought some much deserved attention to the backup dancers of K-pop. We took a look at the dancers who might be on the way to becoming idols themselves – getting featured in their own commercials, showing up in magazines and making dance videos that go viral.
Kim Ji-hyang

Famously dubbed a lookalike of Blackpink’s Jennie, the 28-year-old dancer Kim Ji-hyang has been stealing hearts and shows alike with her doll-like looks and incredible performances. She caught the public's attention when she performed with Exo’s Baekhyun, appearing in his Candy music video in May 2020, as well as with Daniel Kang for his song 2U in the same year. As part of the dance crew Freemind, her career and popularity have been on the rise as she has also danced for former Wanna One member Park Ji-hoon and Somi.
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Broadcasting outlets have taken note: Mnet’s YouTube channel uploaded a video of Kim dancing to Hyuna and Dawn’s song Ping Pong in September, which currently has 1.6 million views. With her Seoul Arts College background, she certainly knows what she is doing and even has a growing fan community of her own, according to Soompi.
Honey J

Honey J is one of the most sought after dancers on the scene right now. She also led her team Holybang to win first place on Street Woman Fighter. The 35-year-old dancer has come a long way; prominent choreographer J Black praised her in his YouTube video, saying that her way of dancing, according to Korea’s street dance scene, is “not a popular girls’ hip-hop style, but it’s actually Honey J’s style, she’s her own genre”.


Proving her influence in the industry, she also recently appeared on top Korean entertainment shows such as I Live Alone, where she showed everyone what her busy schedule is like with photo shoots, teaching as a professor at the Educational Center of Kyung Hee University and much more.
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So what’s next for her? On I Live Alone, she revealed that she’s about to launch her own brand in order to have a more stable income during a time where many performances regularly get cancelled because of the pandemic.
Noze

When Exo’s Kai made his solo debut with the song Mmmh in November 2020, he ended up sharing the spotlight with the girl dancing next to him in the track’s music video. The viral video of Noze moving to the groovy beat while wearing cyberpunk goggles became the talk of the internet, with a fan-made video focused on Noze reaching 3.7 million views on YouTube, at the time of writing.


The aforementioned Honey J was actually Noze’s high school teacher. According to Koreaboo, Honey J used to always say to Noze: “You’re so pretty, why are you not trying to become a celebrity?” On the show You Quiz on the Block, Noze said that, although she was thankful for all the attention, she has more to offer than just her looks.
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On Street Woman Fighter, Noze proved herself when she choreographed a dance to David Guetta’s Hey Mama, winning her the votes of her fellow dancers on the show. Her choreography went viral, with celebrities such as Shinee’s Key and Super Junior’s Heechul even doing dance covers of her choreography. According to Koreaboo, Noze’s fee per gig shot up from a modest US$1,680 before the show to around US$126,000 after it aired.
Moon Sung-hoon

While I.O.I. member Chungha certainly has enough stage presence to be one of the most successful K-pop solo artists, it seems like her dancers have star potential too. Moon Sung-hoon, who goes by the stage name Wood, is the man behind Chungha’s viral performance of Roller Coaster in 2018. Apart from being one of the three directors of the dance team A.ssa, Wood is also a model and choreographer.


The 24-year-old dancer set tongues wagging when he appeared on stage next to Chungha with his long hair and good looks. He’s featured in Chungha’s performances for her songs Snapping, Stay Tonight and more, and the pair seem to be good friends too.
In a Q&A video on his YouTube channel, Wood TV, he revealed that he is also close to idols like AB6IX’s Kim Dong-hyun, Stray Kids’ Bang Chan, Somi and the girls from Twice, as he also used to be a trainee at JYP Entertainment.
Cha Hyun-seung

Cha Hyun-seung made media headlines after dancing next to Sunmi during the 2018 Waterbomb festival, where his muscular figure drew plenty of attention. He partnered with Sunmi many times since her solo debut with the song 24 Hours in 2014, as well as other top K-pop idols from Exo to Girls’ Generation.
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Like Wood, Cha is also a model and he makes videos too. On his YouTube channel, he shares everything from casual vlogs to behind-the-scenes clips of photo shoots, dance covers and even his workout routine. According to Koreaboo, in his YouTube video with Edward Avila, Cha revealed that he originally wanted to become a singer but then became mesmerised by dancing instead.
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K-pop idols

5 K-pop backup dancers stealing the show, from Blackpink’s Jennie lookalike Kim Ji-hyang and Chungha’s choreographer Wood, to Noze who shared the spotlight with Exo’s Kai

Kim Ji-hyang, Cha Hyun-seung and Moon Sung-hoon, aka Wood, are just a few of K-pop’s hottest backup dancers right now. Photos: @sk8soxer, @502bright, @a.ssa_wood/Instagram

Kim Ji-hyang got attention when she performed with Exo’s Baekhyun in 2020. Photo: @sk8soxer/Instagram

Honey J led her team Holybang to first place on Street Woman Fighter. Photo: @__honey.j__/Instagram

Noze gained attention when she danced for Exo Kai’s solo debut. Photo: @nozeworld/Instagram

Moon Sung-hoon and Chungha. Photo: @a.ssa_wood/Instagram

Cha Hyun-seung gained popularity after dancing with Sunmi. Photo: @502bright/Instagram

K-drama’s top 10 male luxury brand ambassadors, from Crash Landing on You’s Hyun Bin for Omega, and Kim Soo-hyun for Tommy Hilfiger, to Squid Game’s Gong Yoo for the Chanel J12 watch

Meet some of K-drama’s top male brand ambassadors. Photos: @vast.ent, @soohyun_k216, @bn_sj2013/Instagram

Hyun Bin for Tom Ford Beauty. Photo: @tomfordbeauty/Instagram

Hyun Bin for Omega. Photo: @vast.ent/Instagram

Ji Chang-wook for Calvin Klein. Photo: @jichangwook/Instagram

Kim Soo-hyun for Tommy Hilfiger. Photo: @soohyun_k216/Instagram

Kim Soo-hyun for Mido. Photo: @soohyun_k216/Instagram

Park Seo-joon for Skechers. Photo: @skecherssg/Instagram

Park Seo-joon for Calvin Klein. Photo: @bn_sj2013/Instagram

Yoo Ah-in for Burberry. Photo: @burberry/Instagram

Nam Joo-hyuk for Dior Beauty. Photo: @skawngur/Instagram

Nam Joo-hyuk has worked with Dior previously too. Photo: @skawngur/Instagram

Kim Woo-bin for Jaeger-LeCoultre. Photo: @jaegerlecoultre/Instagram

Jung Woo-sung for Longines. Photo: @longines/Instagram

How did Kim Seon-ho survive cancel culture? The Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha actor’s star power returns amid controversy, from his increased Instagram following to lead role in Sad Tropics

Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha’s Kim Seon-ho seems to be making a comeback following a scandal with his allaged ex-girlfriend. Photo: Salt Entertainment

Kim Seon-ho’s career prospects crumbled after an ex-girlfriend accused him of urging her to have an abortion. Photo: @seonho_kim/Instagram

Canon Korea restored ads with Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha star Kim Seon-ho. Photo: @canonkorea/Instagram

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K-drama actor Kim Seon-ho was mired in controversy … but his Instagram follower count actually increased afterwards. Photo: @seonho_kim/Instagram

Kim Seon-ho in a still from Netflix’s Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha. Photo: Handout

Meet Kim Hye-jun, the serial killer in Netflix’s Inspector Koo: she rose to fame in hit K-drama Kingdom and calls her Chip In co-star Oh Na-ra ‘unnie’

Kim Hye-jun will star as a serial killer in Netflix’s Inspector Koo. Photo: @hyello._.o/Instagram

Kim Hye-Jun, who starred in Netflix’s Kingdom, is set to star in Inspector Koo next. Photo: @hyello._.o/Instagram

Kim Hye-Jun was a regular cast member of SNL Korea. Photo: @hyello._.o/Instagram

Kim Hye-Jun rose to popularity after her role in Kingdom. Photo: Netflix

Kim Hye-Jun in Sinkhole. Photo: The Tower Pictures

Despite facing criticism, Kim Hye-Jun persevered and focused on honing her skills. Photo: @hyello._.o/Instagram

Kim Hye-jun and Chip In co-star Oh Na-ra are very close. Photo: @sabita_5/Instagram

Kim Hye-jun is set to star in Inspector Koo with actress Lee Young-ae. Photo: JTBC

4 rising Korean stars whose careers crumbled overnight, from Kim Seon-ho of Netflix’s Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha and Crash Landing on You’s Kim Jung-hyun, to NCT idol Lucas Wong

Korean celebrities Kim Ji-soo, Kim Seon-ho and NCT’s Lucas Wong have all been rocked by scandals recently. Photos: @actor_jisoo, @seonho_kim, @lucas_xx444/Instagram

Many Korean stars, including Kim Seon-ho, have faced controversy at the peak of their careers. Photo: @seonho_kim/Instagram

Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha star Kim Seon-ho was wrapped up in a scandal right after the end of the hit K-drama. Photo: @seonho_kim/Instagram

A recent report on the Kim Seon-ho scandal revealed a different side to the story. Photo: @seonho_kim/Instagram

Kim Jung-hyun also had controversy involving an ex-girlfriend. Photo: @jhkim0405/Instagram

K-drama star Kim Jung-hyun in Crash Landing On You. Photo: TVN

Kim Ji-soo was met with several accusations of violence and sexual harassment. Photo: @actor_jisoo/Instagram

River Where the Moon Rises star Kim Ji-soo was accused of sexual harassment. Photo: @actor_jisoo/Instagram

NCT’s Lucas was embroiled in a scandal in August. Photo: @lucas_xx444/Instagram

The reactions to Lucas Wong’s scandal were varied. Photo: @lucas_xx444/Instagram

What were these Korean stars like during military service? Song Joong-ki apparently stole snacks and G-Dragon made army slippers go viral, while Exo’s D.O lived out his passion for cooking

What were Song Joong-ki and Exo’s D.O like in the Korean military? Photos: Blossom Entertainment, Military Manpower Administration

A still from hit Korean drama series Descendants of the Sun showing actor Song Joong-ki. Photo: Blossom Entertainment

Exo’s D.O served as an army cook in the military. Photo: VLive

Jang Hyun-seung’s appearance changed drastically during his military service. Photo: @89_h/Instagram

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Kim Ji-hyang may look like Jennie but has moves that rival Lisa’s, earning her dance gigs with former Wanna One members, Exo’s Baekhyun and many more idols
Chungha’s choreographer Wood has a star-studded list of friends from his time as a JYP Entertainment trainee, including Twice, Somi, Stray Kids’ Bang Chan and more



These backup dancers’ moves are so impressive, they almost outshine the idols themselves … here are five dancers with a swiftly growing fan base, from Kim Ji-hyang to Honey J
