{"id":824183,"date":"2026-07-26T03:46:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-26T03:46:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/824183\/"},"modified":"2026-07-26T03:46:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T03:46:16","slug":"the-new-la-how-capital-of-k-pop-catapulted-queensland-dancers-to-stardom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/824183\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The new LA\u2019: How capital of K-pop catapulted Queensland dancers to stardom"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Kaea Pearce has danced alongside Jennifer Lopez at the 2020 Super Bowl and stars in Justin Bieber\u2019s Sorry music video, which has been watched more than 3.9 billion times on YouTube.<\/p>\n

But ask the New Zealand-born, Gold Coast-based performer about the greatest experience of her career so far, and she\u2019ll tell you it was competing on a South Korean dance-battle reality show.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s the new LA,\u201d Pearce says of South Korea.<\/p>\n

Last year, she was approached to lead the squad representing Australia on the show World of Street Woman Fighter, a dance competition against all-women teams from the US, South Korea, Japan and New Zealand.<\/p>\n

\"KaeaKaea Pearce (right) handpicked the group of dancers who represented Australia.<\/p>\n

Pearce had just one week to form the AG Squad \u2013 a crew of dancers that would be catapulted to stardom among South Korean fans.<\/p>\n

Her team came second, beaten only by Japan\u2019s Osaka Ojo Gang.<\/p>\n

For Pearce, it was the best job she\u2019d ever done.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were able to be the stars and show the world we aren\u2019t just back-up dancers \u2013 we\u2019re artists,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe AG Squad spent time touring South Korea and meeting fans.Instagram @agsquadofficial<\/p>\n

Brisbane dancer and choreographer Danica McKenzie, also in the AG Squad, was left just as awestruck after her first experience in K-pop.<\/p>\n

She said South Korean viewers treated the AG Squad like celebrities when they toured after the show aired.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s otherworldly,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsually [dancers] go to a concert backing up for an artist. No one is there for you. It was insane to know that in Korea as a dancer, you are an artist. You\u2019re an idol to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Australian dance squad now has a large following in South Korea.<\/p>\n

Dominique Falla, an associate professor at Griffith University and the author of The K-Pop Content Strategy, said Seoul had become one of the world\u2019s most important centres for commercial choreography.<\/p>\n

And she agreed that the South Korean attitude towards dancers was hugely different to that in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201c[In Australia] you\u2019re a back-up dancer, a body in a music video, and your name rarely appears anywhere,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s very little pathway from skilled dancer to recognised artist.\u201d<\/p>\n

In South Korea, however, the pop industry places choreography at the centre of musical performance. Dancers \u201care presented as artists and competitors in their own right\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Korean entertainment industry invests in dancers in a way the West simply doesn\u2019t,\u201d Falla said.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe AG Squad in Seoul, South Korea.<\/p>\n

But while programs such as World of Street Woman Fighter delivered fame to their contestants, Falla warned that sometimes the work was precarious.<\/p>\n

\u201cDancers and choreographers can still experience insecure freelance work, demanding schedules, limited bargaining power, and difficulties receiving appropriate credit or ownership of choreography,\u201d Falla said.<\/p>\n

\"DanicaDanica McKenzie is a performer and choreographer based in Brisbane.<\/p>\n

McKenzie is a champion for Brisbane\u2019s dance scene, teaching at Mad Dance House in the Brisbane CBD and The Home Base in Darra.<\/p>\n

But she said she could understand why performers often flocked to Sydney and Melbourne \u2013 or further afield \u2013 to advance their careers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s minimal opportunities for performers in Brisbane, which I guess is why so many dancers are moving out of Brisbane,\u201d McKenzie said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt perpetuates the cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related Article\"1300<\/a><\/p>\n

McKenzie said local performers had a lot of talent to offer the industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe we\u2019ve spent more time nailing our craft because we know we\u2019re not being seen \u2013 we\u2019ve spent more time behind the scenes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She hopes to move to the US by the end of the year, and find work in Los Angeles and New York.<\/p>\n

Like many Brisbane dancers who had left to pursue other opportunities, she said she would be back to share what she had learnt with the local community.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m such a homebody. It will be a back-and-forth situation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":824184,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[64,63,134,136],"class_list":["post-824183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-entertainment","tag-music"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=824183"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824183\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/824184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=824183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=824183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=824183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}