2016 is less than a month away, which means that the roaring twenties will be closer to us than the 2010’s. KultScene’s staff is always excited when it comes to throwback elements in K-pop songs, and you can hardly get more retro than the 1920’s jazz and swing music. This week’s Playlist Sunday is dedicated […]
What does the all-girl slayage choreography on Justin Bieber’s “Sorry” video and Taeyang’s hard-hitting moves on “Ringa Linga” have in common? No, not a hot male artist who excels at dance, but the “Polyswagg” creator and world-renowned choreographer who’s taking the industry by storm. I’m, of course, talking about Parris Goebel. Even if you’re not familiar […]
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/PARRIS-KULTSCENE.jpg17712480Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelumhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngAlexis Hodoyan-Gastelum2015-12-11 17:55:542015-12-11 18:05:19‘Hello Bitches:’ Choreographer Parris Goebel Talks CL & Women Empowerment Through Dance [INTERVIEW]
2016 is less than a month away, which means that the roaring twenties will be closer to us than the 2010’s. KultScene’s staff is always excited when it comes to throwback elements in K-pop songs, and you can hardly get more retro than the 1920’s jazz and swing music. This week’s Playlist Sunday is dedicated […]
What does the all-girl slayage choreography on Justin Bieber’s “Sorry” video and Taeyang’s hard-hitting moves on “Ringa Linga” have in common? No, not a hot male artist who excels at dance, but the “Polyswagg” creator and world-renowned choreographer who’s taking the industry by storm. I’m, of course, talking about Parris Goebel. Even if you’re not familiar […]
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/PARRIS-KULTSCENE.jpg17712480Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelumhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngAlexis Hodoyan-Gastelum2015-12-11 17:55:542015-12-11 18:05:19‘Hello Bitches:’ Choreographer Parris Goebel Talks CL & Women Empowerment Through Dance [INTERVIEW]
2016 is less than a month away, which means that the roaring twenties will be closer to us than the 2010’s. KultScene’s staff is always excited when it comes to throwback elements in K-pop songs, and you can hardly get more retro than the 1920’s jazz and swing music. This week’s Playlist Sunday is dedicated to the roaring twenties, and to all the brassy jazz songs we can’t but help to love.
Every other K-pop song nowadays incorporates soul and funk into their hybrids, but TVXQ mixed in jazz and a swing elements to their 2014 single “Spellbound.” And while the choreography is meant to seem as a magic show to fit with the song’s theme of love as a spell, it’s the ‘20s style of it all that stood out most to me. The dancers wearing what a “Sexy Mobster” Halloween costume would look like and the modern art deco-lite casino room made me think of the Prohibition era in the US, when citizens were constitutionally barred from drinking alcohol and Al Capone and the likes terrorized cities like Chicago over bootleg alcohol and drugs. Not to mention the music video starts out in grayscale and eventually changes to color, even though the palette remains mainly black and white, hinting at when subtractive color in film was first introduced (which was also in the 1920’s). But of course, “Spellbound” isn’t that deep. Regardless, it’s a gem of a song and choreography and should be recognized.
Brown Eyed Girls are the purveyors of jazz in K-pop. In particular, their album “Sixth Sense” is full of jazz tracks that burst with retro excitement. Each one is single worthy but right now my favorite is “Vendetta.” It is, naturally, about a girl out for violent revenge against a boy. Ferocious acid jazz accompanies the passionate vocals of Brown Eyed Girls who bite and snarl every line to great effect. Drums roll at lightening speeds and horns blow loudly in a song that updates the ‘20s jazz as a soundtrack for bitter women. Also the way Miryo says ‘vendetta’ at the end of her rap is the coolest.
— Joe
Most people’s first impression when they hear Lee Hi sing for the first time is “wait, how is that voice coming out of a little girl like her?” I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel that same shock the first time I heard her voice. How can one possess as much pizazz and soul at her age? A number of Lee Hi songs contain a jazz element but “Rose” in particular is a beautiful blend of jazz and R&B, both genres in which she excels at. It’s always refreshing to hear a K-pop song that isn’t under the influence of dubstep and auto tune. It’d be great to see more musicians who were able to apply their great vocals and deep emotions like Lee Hi towards all their songs in order to improve it metaphorically. Like many others, I’m just waiting for a Lee Hi come back because it’s been way too long!
You can’t get more jazzy than the princess of K-pop, IU herself. Recent scandals aside, IU’s voice was practically built for jazzy, all-over-the-place numbers and she does it the best in “The Red Shoes.” The song is technically (at least according to its official information) a bit more like the big band swing of the 30’s than the roaring 20’s, but the brass elements and tapping beat would have any flapper getting her game on. IU’s voice goes all over the place in accompaniment to the spiraling, twisting and turning elements of the song and music video, and throws in some nice onomatopoeia elements for good measure. If Gatsby was Korean, he’d probably be as in love with this song as I am.
–Tamar
What’s your favorite 1920’s themed K-pop song? Or maybe any of the other cities? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
What does the all-girl slayage choreography on Justin Bieber’s “Sorry” video and Taeyang’s hard-hitting moves on “Ringa Linga” have in common? No, not a hot male artist who excels at dance, but the “Polyswagg” creator and world-renowned choreographer who’s taking the industry by storm. I’m, of course, talking about Parris Goebel.
Even if you’re not familiar with the 24-year-old’s name, you’re aware of her work. If not from taking center stage in the Biebs’ video, her participation with her female dance squad ReQuest on “America’s Best Dance Crew,” or acting in the movie “Step Up 5,” then you might remember a certain girl in chains in BIGBANG’s “Bang Bang Bang” music video or the dancer with the bangs on CL’s “Hello Bitches.”
via gd-peaceminusone @ Tumblr
Yep, that’s Parris.
The New Zealand native has been in demand by everyone these days for her strong and sexy presence and style, especially empowering female artists who’ve noticed how she’s empowering women through dance. So just to give you an idea of the magnitude of her caliber, let’s just grace the surface of her resume by saying her work includes choreographing Janet Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, and even Chinese pop diva Jolin Tsai’s latest tours. No biggie.
After working with BIGBANG and on Taeyang’s solo, she has now teamed up with the YG Entertainment artist that embodies female empowerment and sexiness, the baddest female herself CL and helped her shape the precedent of what we’re to expect from her upcoming American debut album. And not only did Parris choreograph and, along with ReQuest, star in CL’s teaser song “Hello Bitches,” but she directed and produced it as well. As a result, we got a fierce and flawless dance performance video that highlights CL’s sexy, sassy, and self-empowering image fans have loved her all along for.
via seungriseyno @ Tumblr
KultScene recently caught up with Parris shortly after her stellar MAMA performances — where she and rest of ReQuest danced on CL, BIGBANG, and 2NE1’s stages — to talk about CL and “Hello Bitches,” and how she’s revolutionizing the dance game one collaboration at a time.
First and foremost, congratulations on your MAMA performances. You completely owned them and it genuinely seemed like you and the rest of ReQuest were having a blast. How was the whole experience for you? Parris Goebel: It was a great experience for me and my girls. The awards is a massive event and it has a star line up of artists performing.
via femaleidol @ Tumblr
You’ve described your style of dance “Polyswagg.” Can you give us a crash course on what it is and how you coined the term? We had to come up with a description of our style of dance on “America’s Best Dance Crew” when we were on it [Season 6]. So we had swagg but our own style and I’m Polynesian so I put the two together.
What would you say sets you apart from other dancers and choreographers that has made you so in demand by artists? My own individual style and always trying to be fresh with what I create.
For “Hello Bitches,” you didn’t only choreograph the song but you also directed the video. How did you come up with the whole concept, choreography and theme wise? I just took the song and then thought about what would make CL look hot. CL is a great dancer in her own right and loves to do different things so it was a lot of fun to put it all together for her.
What I really enjoyed about this particular video was that the dancers weren’t mere props adorning the singer, like we often see in a lot of music videos nowadays. You were all main characters and the way the choreography was done conveyed a very interactive vibe. Was that the point or what did you want to portray with the concept? Really the main essence of the video is dance so shooting CL with the girls around her all the time dancing all made sense.
In the “Hello Bitches” behind-the-scenes video you said you had never connected so well with an artist as you did with CL. How was working with her different and more special than other artists you’ve collaborated with in the past? We really like all the same things – dance, music, and fashion. CL is more my age and very creative and making a difference for women so all those things make her so much fun to work with.
You’ve worked with great female artists of color that embody female empowerment like Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, Janet Jackson, and now CL. What does it mean to you as a woman of color working with these artists that have done wonders for representation and visibility of WOC in the media and industry? It’s always a pleasure to work with such strong females each in their own right. They are all successful, they all work hard and they are all very driven. So for me to get to work with them is a real blessing and it makes my job easy because they all embrace womanhood.
What do you think about CL and other Korean artists taking artistic elements from non-Korean societies and cultures? Where do you see the line drawn between cultural appropriation and appreciation? In music there are no lines – it’s all about expression no matter what race or culture you are. That is the beauty of music – it has no borders.
Will you continue to work with CL for her American debut? I definitely hope so.
Other than BIGBANG, 2NE1, and CL, is there any other Korean artist you would like and/or wish to work with? I really enjoy working with the YG Family as they are all professional and dedicated artists so happy who I am currently working with.
Thank you so much for answering my questions for KultScene. What’s next for you and ReQuest? Keep changing the game and keep traveling the world.
How much did you love “Hello Bitches?” Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
Pictures courtesy of Parris Goebel, edited by Alejandro Abarca.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/PARRIS-KULTSCENE.jpg17712480Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelumhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngAlexis Hodoyan-Gastelum2015-12-11 17:55:542015-12-11 18:05:19‘Hello Bitches:’ Choreographer Parris Goebel Talks CL & Women Empowerment Through Dance [INTERVIEW]
