omonatheydid | Kpop Culture Plunder: Haka Edition

justkyhdding.livejournal.com posting in

Video: Korea's biggest boy band performs haka

Korea's most famous pop act appears to have incorporated a choreographed interpretation of the haka into their latest tour.

Fan footage from the EXO's first ever solo-headline concert on the May 23 shows the 11-member Korean-Chinese boy band breaking into a haka-like routine, before launching into their debut single 'Mama'.

The song features a Gregorian chant-inspired chorus.

One member in the crowd at Seoul's Olympic Stadium was 28-year-old English teacher Stephanie Town, from Auckland.

"Tickets were about 100 bucks, and went on sale about a month ago and created one of the biggest ticketing wars I've seen. Fan-girls all over Korea all went out to internet cafes with the fastest internet to bid on the most coveted tickets of the year, which sold out in under two minutes," says Town, who describes herself as a huge EXO fan.

Town says some concertgoers ended paying up to $1000 for good seats to see the group, who formed in Seoul in 2011.

The band performs their music in both Korean and Mandarin, and really hit the big-time with last year's hit 'Growl' .

Town says the moment the haka happened, she was separated from her friends and was surrounded by local Korean fans.

"I am unashamedly a huge fan-girl for these guys and so as the concert began I was screaming and cheering and waving my little silver fan light-stick in the air along with everyone else".

Then the haka happened.

"When I realised this was some version of the haka I was witnessing, I just gasped and covered my mouth in shock. I had no one to talk to about it and so I thought, Thank god for fan-cams, because no one will ever believe me!'"

Where the idea for the haka interpretation came from is unclear, but American Tony Testa choreographs many of EXO's videos. Testa also worked with EXO on this concert, called From EXOPlanet: The Lost Planet.

"The idea didn't come from the band themselves, as their have very little to no creative control themselves as is pretty much the norm here. I'd put my money that it was all Testa," says Town.

"I guess they wanted to an alternative 'exotic' theme for the concert".

Town says her reaction was mixed.

"I felt uncomfortable upon seeing it, because of how meaningful it is. No one likes to see their heritage used for entertainment value like that. Knowing that they didn't personally choose to do it makes me able to forgive it. It's the choreographer who should have known better".

However Town says there are positive things to take from it.

"Maybe I'm being too generous, but it's nice to see people enjoying parts of New Zealand culture internationally, and flattering in some way to see these idols of mine pay a kind of homage to our culture".

EXO are now taking their show on a tour around Asia. One can only assume their choreography will go with them.

'criiinge' as K-pop band performs the Haka">Cultural 'criiinge' as K-pop band performs the Haka

EXO, an 11-member boy band from South Korea, made the cultural misstep when it opened its headline concert in Seoul, prompting a mixed response both online and in New Zealand.

Many online attacks took aim at the band’s choreographer, Tony Testa, who has previously worked with artists such as Britney Spears and Janet Jackson.
He is yet to respond to the comments on Twitter, where he posted the show had been a "success" and a "night to remember".

New Zealand media also carried reports from an Auckland local at the concert, Stephanie Town.
“I felt uncomfortable upon seeing it, because of how meaningful it [the Haka] is,” she told 3news NZ.

“No one likes to see their heritage used for entertainment value like that. Knowing that they didn't personally choose to do it makes me able to forgive it. It's the choreographer who should have known better.”

Despite the shock, the 28-year-old said the experience ultimately left her feeling proud.

"Maybe I'm being too generous, but it's nice to see people enjoying parts of New Zealand culture internationally, and flattering in some way to see these idols of mine pay a kind of homage to our culture," she said.

Others, too, responded positively to the performance.

(you can see tweets at source)

Tony Testa Teaches Exo The “Haka”

In Maori language, the word “haka” simply means “dance;” and while there are several different types of haka, the most well-known are the “war” Haka, or Haka peruperu (from “peru,” which means “anger”). Other Polynesian peoples have their own dances analogous to the Haka, under different names.

The aim of the war Haka are to challenge and intimidate the opponent; men protrude their tongues, widen their eyes, contort their faces and hit their bodies to appear fearsome. At the same time, the dance provides a surge of energy to its performers, strengthening their fortitude. Women and children have also traditionally performed the Haka, with the women even leading the men in the dance; but in modern times, the Haka has become more well-known as a dance performed by men.

As with all cases of colonisation, Maori culture diminished in the wake of the British Empire’s invasion of New Zealand in the 19th century. It wasn’t until the 20th century that the renaissance of Maori culture began in earnest; and the Haka is a key symbol of this resurgence, serving as a reminder to all Maori of their culture and tradition. The Haka is a key part of Maori activism, being performed at protests; it is also treated as an artform, with Haka competitions taking place between schools and other groups throughout the year; and it has been absorbed into New Zealand’s official ceremony as well, with the Haka performed to welcome dignitaries and on important occasions.

The most famous use of the Haka, however, is in sport, especially rugby. New Zealand’s men’s rugby team, the All Blacks, perform the Haka “Ka Mate” before every international match. This is a tradition that began in 1905, and though other Hakas are also performed, “Ka Mate” — created by warrior chief Te Raupuhara as he evaded capture by a rival tribe hidden in a sweet potato pit guarded by his host tribe’s cheiftainess – remains the All Blacks’ calling card, and their performance of it is a highlight of their matches.

The verse chanted by the All Blacks above is identical to the one Exo did at their concert, though SM did have them did throw their group name in there as well, as is their wont. The “genius” behind this performance is none other than Tony Testa, a person who does not appear in any way or form to be Maori to any degree. Like I’m not already pissed off at the man…

It is not necessary to be Maori to perform it — many All Blacks players, past and present, are non-Maori — but the Maori connection always remains intact and never far from people’s minds. Yet Exo’s performance has very little connection to actual Maori culture besides the chant and some of the moves — and this is the key point, because taking something that is an important symbol of a resurgent, but still marginalised, culture and divorcing it from its origin comes across as insensitive.

(Only included stuff about the history etc, rest of post can be read at source)

Exo DO France, 3 News, SBS, Seoulbeats

Saw no one had made a post here and it wasn't talked about in the last exo post, so here we go.

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From:

benihime99.livejournal.com

I'm still no over the first time I saw the all Blacks perform the Haka, I was just a child and it was on TV but I got chills nonetheless
And not over the fact that I actually met some of them back in Cardiff, they're super friendly and HUUUUGE

From:

sakuragirl24.livejournal.com

Lucky you!!! was it during the 2007 world cup? that legendary 1/4 finall? lol

endless charms, endless possibilities

Kpop Culture Plunder: Haka Edition

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