Dance whiz Poppin Hyun-joon
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As B-boys have come to the fore, a growing number of people want to learn break dance. But many give up after realizing the brutal effort hidden behind the glamorous facade. The popularity of B-boys today is greater than in the past but their lives are still difficult. Perception has changed but the social prejudice classifying them as no more than delinquent teens is not easy to change. The first performance that brought street dance to the theater was the musical "The Ballerina who Loved a B-Boy". The popular show has been running since the world's first 'b-boy theater' opened near Hongik University in Seoul late last year. At the center of the hit performance is Poppin Hyun-joon, a solo artist as well as the leader of the performance group Gorilla Dance Factory. Tens and thousands of fans are members of his online fan club. The star b-boy has especially gained more recognition since appearing in the Korean drama 'Over the Rainbow.
Fateful start in dance
But Hyunjoon's journey to reach star status wasn't all that easy. He started dancing from a very young age. It all fatefully started when he started dancing by imitating Michael Jackson's moonwalk at age 12. Then at 17, he debuted as a backup dancer for a new singer. Already by then, dance was an ingrained part of his life. And now he is no longer a backup dancer but a fully independent performer in his own right known as Poppin Hyun-joon. He also studied in the US and Japan to learn hiphop where he realized that Korean dancers must find their own identity. In Japan, b-boys are systematized and hiphop is better recognized with exclusive b-boy shops and hiphop museums. But it's still difficult to do hiphop in Korea. Experiencing the differences, Hyunjoon learned hiphop in the two countries not for his own dancing, but to develop a Korean style for other Korean hiphop lovers. He says that when he gets older with more experience, he wants to provide opportunities for junior dancers.
Releasing a solo album for a comeback as a singer, Hyunjoon has also gained attention for his confession of a hurtful past. While in high school, his father's business went belly up and his mother and father began a life as fugitives. He also quit school and roamed about. Having no place to stay, he stayed in the boiler rooms of apartment rooftops but continued dancing. He says, "I loved dancing so much, and that passion got me through the desperate situation". Listeners were touched by his stories relating the times that his friends turned their backs on him when he couldn't change his clothes or wash for days. He also ended up shedding regretful tears when talking about his determination to dance even when his father had his tongue amputated because of cancer.
Promoting Korean break dance to the world
Dance king Hyunjoon took the grand prize in popular arts at the inaugural Asian Teen Arts Festival held Oct. 24 in Shenzhen, China. He participated in the festival as a Korean representative. Sixty-eight teams from 33 countries, at the invitation of CCTV, attended the event to promote their own traditional and popular arts and culture. Hyunjoon sang his title song 'Don't Stop' accompanied by a flashy dance performance which international judges all called an impressive performance. His singing and dancing, not well known in China, generated amazement and grabbed the attention of many in the 1.3 billion Chinese population. He says that he doesn't slack when dancing, which is his central passion, saying he always practices every day, even on special occasions such as a friend's birthday. Such passion is what made him who he is.
Meanwhile, from late October, Hyunjoon will launch full fledged activities in China and release his first Chinese album, entitled "ONE & ONLY", in China in November. He knows all too well that he couldn't have come this far without a competitive spirit and passion to conquer new fields. We see the future hope of Korean b-boys advancing to the world stage in Hyunjoon, who says he's head over heels in love with dancing.
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Poppin Hyun-joon
Real name: Nam Hyun-joon (born Jan. 30, 1979)
The moniker "Poppin Hyun-joon" was created by Seo Taiji & Boys ex-member Lee Ju-no.
Singing debut in May 2007 with solo album
- Korean team representative at the 1st World Hiphop Festival
- Member of Japanese dance team Cyborg 007
- Appeared in music videos of Jo Seong-mo, Jo PD, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Hyun-woo-I, Lee Ju-no
- Choreographed dance for JTL, Jo PD, Lee Hyeon-do, Super Junior
- Single album <사자후> released
- Musical
- 2006 World Cup performance (with Choi Sori)
- Film <"Fly, Daddy, Fly">
- MBC drama <"Over the Rainbow - Drama">
- Choreographed & produced by PMC which produced
- Appeared in ads for Kia Motors' Carens, HEAD, Samsung MP3, Hite beer, LG Telecom, SK EnClean
- Current leader of PJ Crew
Fateful start in dance
But Hyunjoon's journey to reach star status wasn't all that easy. He started dancing from a very young age. It all fatefully started when he started dancing by imitating Michael Jackson's moonwalk at age 12. Then at 17, he debuted as a backup dancer for a new singer. Already by then, dance was an ingrained part of his life. And now he is no longer a backup dancer but a fully independent performer in his own right known as Poppin Hyun-joon. He also studied in the US and Japan to learn hiphop where he realized that Korean dancers must find their own identity. In Japan, b-boys are systematized and hiphop is better recognized with exclusive b-boy shops and hiphop museums. But it's still difficult to do hiphop in Korea. Experiencing the differences, Hyunjoon learned hiphop in the two countries not for his own dancing, but to develop a Korean style for other Korean hiphop lovers. He says that when he gets older with more experience, he wants to provide opportunities for junior dancers.
Releasing a solo album for a comeback as a singer, Hyunjoon has also gained attention for his confession of a hurtful past. While in high school, his father's business went belly up and his mother and father began a life as fugitives. He also quit school and roamed about. Having no place to stay, he stayed in the boiler rooms of apartment rooftops but continued dancing. He says, "I loved dancing so much, and that passion got me through the desperate situation". Listeners were touched by his stories relating the times that his friends turned their backs on him when he couldn't change his clothes or wash for days. He also ended up shedding regretful tears when talking about his determination to dance even when his father had his tongue amputated because of cancer.
Promoting Korean break dance to the world
Dance king Hyunjoon took the grand prize in popular arts at the inaugural Asian Teen Arts Festival held Oct. 24 in Shenzhen, China. He participated in the festival as a Korean representative. Sixty-eight teams from 33 countries, at the invitation of CCTV, attended the event to promote their own traditional and popular arts and culture. Hyunjoon sang his title song 'Don't Stop' accompanied by a flashy dance performance which international judges all called an impressive performance. His singing and dancing, not well known in China, generated amazement and grabbed the attention of many in the 1.3 billion Chinese population. He says that he doesn't slack when dancing, which is his central passion, saying he always practices every day, even on special occasions such as a friend's birthday. Such passion is what made him who he is.
Meanwhile, from late October, Hyunjoon will launch full fledged activities in China and release his first Chinese album, entitled "ONE & ONLY", in China in November. He knows all too well that he couldn't have come this far without a competitive spirit and passion to conquer new fields. We see the future hope of Korean b-boys advancing to the world stage in Hyunjoon, who says he's head over heels in love with dancing.
-
Poppin Hyun-joon
Real name: Nam Hyun-joon (born Jan. 30, 1979)
The moniker "Poppin Hyun-joon" was created by Seo Taiji & Boys ex-member Lee Ju-no.
Singing debut in May 2007 with solo album
- Korean team representative at the 1st World Hiphop Festival
- Member of Japanese dance team Cyborg 007
- Appeared in music videos of Jo Seong-mo, Jo PD, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Hyun-woo-I, Lee Ju-no
- Choreographed dance for JTL, Jo PD, Lee Hyeon-do, Super Junior
- Single album <사자후> released
- Musical
- 2006 World Cup performance (with Choi Sori)
- Film <"Fly, Daddy, Fly">
- MBC drama <"Over the Rainbow - Drama">
- Choreographed & produced
- Appeared in ads for Kia Motors' Carens, HEAD, Samsung MP3, Hite beer, LG Telecom, SK EnClean
- Current leader of PJ Crew
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