Currently, the K-pop world is buzzing with Bada Lee’s Smoke Dance Challenge on TikTok. Several idols, including Kim Tae-hyung, Jungkook, ITZY’s Yeji, and Ryujin, have attempted the dance challenge. While many K-pop idols were praised by fans for their moves, social media became a hotbed for critiquing idols who were unable to figure out the complex choreography.
Created by Bada Lee as part of the female dance survival show Street Woman Fighter 2‘s dance missions, the Smoke Dance Challenge has been joined by many K-pop idols since it went viral on social media.
As different idols jumped on the bandwagon, fans have been closely monitoring how well they executed the choreography and whether they performed the steps correctly. SEVENTEEN’s Hoshi and DK have been praised by fans for perfectly mastering the Smoke Dance Challenge. In addition, Jungkook, V, ATEEZ’s San, ITZY’s Yeji and Ryujin, and WJSN’s Yeoreum were able to garner praise from fans for their Smoke Challenge performances as well.
Fans believe that this challenge sets real dancers apart from idols, sarcastically noting that not many idols can execute it precisely, and only a handful are able to do so.
Fans debate the dancing abilities of K-Pop idols allegedly exposed by the Smoke Dance Challenge
The Dynamic Duo and Lee Youngji’s song Smoke is about having a tenacious mindset and being prepared to confront any obstacle head-on. Bada Lee perfectly captures the spirit of the song in her moves. Unfortunately, not many K-pop idols were able to own the dance moves, as per social media users.
While the disputes on social media continue, K-Pop idols are being chastised for not performing the difficult choreography well. Some think that idols overdo it, while others believe that the Smoke Dance Challenge, created by professional dancers such as Bada Lee, reveals the limitations of idols who dance merely for the sake of being idols.
The challenge is revealing the true dancing abilities of idols, sparking ongoing debates on social media about what sets their favorite idols apart.
On the other hand, those who have considered the backlash and criticism against idols for not performing the Smoke Dance Challenge perfectly unreasonable argue that fans who aren’t dancers themselves should refrain from criticizing real dancers. Some have even gone so far as to criticize the Smoke Dance’s choreography itself, labeling it the worst choreography.
Some fans are even wishing for j-hope of BTS to do the aforementioned challenge, calling him one of the best dancers in the K-pop industry. However, that won’t be possible since the Arson rapper is currently enlisted for his mandatory military service.
While some idols, including XODIAC members Lex and Gyunmin, posted a video of themselves attempting the Smoke Challenge, to fans’ surprise, the idols chose to run away from the challenge instead of dancing. This reflects their fear of being criticized for not executing the choreography perfectly.
Meanwhile, one of the idols, former Produce X 101 trainee Choi Suhwan, addressed the criticism when someone shared a small part of his Smoke Dance Challenge where he wasn’t actually dancing. He took to social media personally and wrote,
“Nooo, why would you only use that part of the whole dance?! LOLOLOLOLOL. This is so embarrassing… But that’s OK! I’ll try to do better for my next challenge.”
He added,
“The other parts of the dance, I did OK. So I’d be grateful if you went and watched the full video! I admit… On its own, that part does look funny to me, too. LOLOL. So much respect for Bada!”
Idols are now wary of taking part in the aforementioned dance challenge due to fan comparisons and the resulting criticism for failing to match the spirit of Lee’s original choreography.
