Seven members of the SUSS Dance(x) KPOP Dance Crew (KDC) participated in PULSE! Dance Competition 2022 – the annual KPOP dance competition organised by the People’s Association Youth Movement (PAYM). As the youth-focused wing under People’s Association, PAYM engages youths in Singapore through various interest-driven activities and programmes ranging from dance to e-sports. The team’s dance cover of South Korean girl group NMIXX’s song titled “O.O” secured them a spot in the Finals which took place at Ace the Place Community Club, and they were ultimately announced as the first runner-up.
Group photo with the other SUSS KDC members who came down to support the team.
The competition journey was not easy for the team who only had four weeks to practise together. Finding a suitable space and time to rehearse as a team proved challenging as they were from various majors and across the years.
Hannah Wong, a second-year SUSS Public Safety and Security student and the team leader, shared, “We wanted to push ourselves beyond our comfort zone so we went for a song that had stunts and diverse formation. Performing this item successfully would not have been possible without the team’s diligence and resilience. The feedback from our peers during the internal vetting session was incredibly helpful as they aided us in correcting areas which would have otherwise gone unnoticed. Be it virtually or physically, we are grateful for all the other KDC members who had shown their support to us leading up to the competition day.”
The team of seven on stage, post competition.
With this being the first dance competition for some members of KDC, watching other teams perform during the Finals made the wait before their performance even more nerve-racking. Channeling their nerves into their best performances yet, the students reminded themselves to focus on having fun and to enjoy their moment on the stage. Their hard work and efforts paid off when it was announced that KDC came in as first runner-up.
Hannah added, “Overall, the experience helped me to grow and gain experience in leading a team. While we may be the first team from SUSS KDC to participate in an external dance competition, we certainly hope that there will be more to come!”
Keen to find out more about Dance(x)? Check out the other dance genres – contemporary, hip hop and KPOP as well!