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Professional dancers have often praised BTS' j-hope for his impeccable dance skills, but the latest to do so even admitted to feeling a little jealous of the idol.
In an interview with Esquire Korea, Shin Seung-hoon, aka Ocheon (5000), famously known for being a member of the Street Man Fighter fame dance crew MBITIOUS, revealed that he had battled with the BTS member before the latter's debut as an idol.
For the unversed, j-hope was a well-known underground dancer before he became part of the iconic K-pop band, BTS. He was a member of a street dance crew named Neuron and performed with the stage name Smile Hoya.
In the interview, Ocheon recalled feeling a little competitive towards the BTS member during their old days and wishing to defeat him in a dance battle. He said:
"Oh, it’s really nothing, kinda embarrassing even to call it a connection. But long ago we did a battle. This was way before BTS debuted. Our seniors praised j-hope so much that I used to feel jealous and thought ‘I am gonna defeat him.’"
Ocheon further shared that after all those years when he met the Daydream singer backstage during the MAMA Awards, the idol was the first to recognize and greet him:
"After that we couldn’t see each other for a long time until I ran into him at the MAMA Awards. He remembered me and greeted me first. It was so nice."
"Talented and humble": Fans react to Ocheon and j-hope's interaction
Fans were delighted to hear that a skilled dancer like Ocheon once treated j-hope as competition. They said that it only proves why the idol is famously dubbed as a "dance genius."
ARMYs also praised the Jack In The Box rapper for warmly greeting Ocheon during their reunion backstage, adding that he is as humble as he is talented. Many were happy to know that the two artists, who have similar interests and hail from the same city, Gwangju, had a chance to reunite.
j-hope to perform at NYC's Times Square for New Years
Jung Ho-seok aka j-hope will be ringing in the New Year at New York's iconic Times Square as he is scheduled to perform at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve.
The 28-year-old mentioned that he will perform a medley of three songs, starting with a popular song from his debut solo album Jack in the Box, = (Equal Sign), his fan-favorite collaboration with Becky G, Chicken Noodle Soup, and his version of BTS' Butter (Holiday Remix).
Ho-seok will be accompanied by labelmates TXT, who are also part of the event's lineup. However, their performance will be pre-recorded from Disneyland.
Both acts were also part of an American music festival called Lollapalooza, which took place in Chicago, earlier this year.
