KPop Demon Hunters fans inspire Belfast dance classes

During term time their classes often fill to capacity with people who gather to learn the dance routines to popular K-pop releases.

At their latest class, a K-fitness workout which teacher Lauren L’Estrange compares to Zumba with K-pop music, the students were all very excited to hear what music would be featuring in their session.

Every face in the room lit up as the distinct opening to Golden started to blare through the speakers.

Lauren said the film did a great job of capturing the spirit of the fandom.

“The way they portray a K-pop concert, where everyone’s souls are coming together, is genuinely what a K-pop concert feels like,” she said.

“It’s just so euphoric and to see that portrayed with such beautiful animation, and to know it’s made by people who also love K-pop just kind of solidifies that it’s a really lovely experience.

“It brought tears to my eyes.”

Amy Ferguson, from Newtownards, has been listening to K-pop music since 2015 and said she joined the society because she did not have groups like it on offer to her when she was at university.

“I’m not the best dancer but I come to have fun with other people who enjoy things that I would enjoy,” she said.

“It’s just a great community.”

The biggest change she’s noticed in the K-pop community is how much easier it has become to access the music.

“Back in 2015, you would very rarely find anyone else who would listen to K-pop,” she said.

“Now there’s a whole section dedicated to it in shops.

“It’s good to see that it’s come to this small part of the world.”

Maud Barr, a 22-year-old student from west Belfast, said the K-pop genre offered more to its fans than other genres.

“I feel like I’m getting different styles of music from K-pop that western music isn’t really giving anymore,” she said.

“We’re getting a lot more dance performances, there’s way better live performances and there’s just so much more content to get involved in.”

She was pleasantly surprised by the movie, which she was worried would be “gimmicky”.

“I’m used to people making a lot of jabs at K- pop ever since Gangnam Style,” she explained.

Now the fandom of K-pop has expanded, Northern Ireland-based fans are hoping it might mean bands consider bringing their tours to Belfast or Dublin.

“I think I would cry, honestly. I would be first in line for those tickets,” said Maud.

“I’m so used to going to London to see groups I want to see but if somebody came here, there would be droves of people.”

Rebecca Fogarty, who has been teaching Korean language and culture to students in Northern Ireland for the past 13 years, said the people who wanted to learn Korean had diversified since classes opened up online after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“It’s purely to enjoy and appreciate Korean culture, some for work-related reasons, and a few because they’re dating or married to a Korean person,” she explained.

“People want to be able to sing along to Korean pop songs and be more fluent.

“They get excited when they can understand phrases in K-Dramas or movies.

“There’s also a big social side to it. A group of my students booked to go to a K-Pop concert. They travel to a lot of European countries for it,”

On a personal level, the growing familiarity with Korea in Northern Ireland has been a welcome change for Rebecca.

“I don’t need to explain too much about where I’m from now because people know the country and more about the culture,” she said.

“When I was travelling around Europe in the 90s, I had to explain about my country, even where it was located. It almost seemed ‘alien’ to people then.

“It’s given me confidence about my culture.”