An Introduction: Seventeen, the Performance Team

Welcome back to my series “An Introduction, Seventeen.”  After my previous post which delved deeper into the members and general role of the Hip Hop team, this post will detail some of the background and basic information on the members and roles of the Performance Team.  The performance team is comprised of the main and lead dancers and choreographers in Seventeen: Hoshi, Jun, The8, and Dino.

The Performance Team are responsible for leading, and often creating, the distinctive complex and synchronized choreography for Seventeen performances.  While the group works with some of the most prominent choreographers in the K-pop industry as well as Pledis choreographers, the Performance Unit largely contribute to their unit specific performances and main choreographers, Hoshi and Dino, often contribute to group dances.  Many members of the Performance Team also choreograph and perform solo dances and series, such as The8 Contemporary ART and Dino’s Danceology.

Note: The words “unit” and “team” can be exchanged.  These are the official sub-groups Seventeen are divided into based on their roles: vocal, hip hop, and performance.

Kwon Soon-Young – Hoshi (Leader), 6/15/1996

The leader of the Performance Unit and main choreographer within Seventeen is Hoshi, real name Kwon Soon-Young.  His stage name is derived from the phrase “tiger’s gaze,” made by combining the Korean words for tiger (horangi) and gaze (shiseon) because he is known for having the energy and intensity of a tiger’s gaze when he performs onstage.  The word “hoshi” also means star in Japanese, and Hoshi has since adopted both meanings.  In addition to being in the Performance Unit, Hoshi is also a lead vocalist, a part of the Leaders line, and a member of the Seventeen sub-unit, BooSeokSoon.  He was a trainee under Pledis for four years and has professionally contributed choreography for other Pledis groups, including NU’EST.  He also works as a composer and writer for numerous Seventeen songs and released both his first solo mixtape, Spider, and a solo song, “Tiger (Horangi) Power,” earlier this year.  Hoshi frequently guest MCs music shows and celebrations for SBS and Mnet with other Seventeen members.

Wen Jun-Hui – Jun, 6/10/1996

Wen Jun-Hui, stage name Jun and Korean name Moon Jun-Hwi, is a lead dancer, sub vocalist, and visual for Seventeen.  He and fellow Performance Unit member The8 are the only Chinese members in the group.  As a young child, Jun competed in wushu (Chinese martial arts) and worked as an actor in films, television series, commercials, and ads within mainland China and Hong Kong.  He started acting at the age of 2 and won the Hong Kong Film Directors’ Guild’s Best New Performer Silver Award and was nominated for Best New Performer at the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards for his film debut in the 2006 release, The Pye Dog.  In 2012, Jun moved to South Korea to pursue his career as an idol and began working as a trainee under Pledis before debuting in Seventeen.  In addition to his work with Seventeen, he frequently works out of China with fellow Chinese member The8 as the guest MC for music shows and making numerous songs for OSTs.  The two also appeared on the music reality show together, Chao Yin Zhan Ji.  He works as a writer for numerous Seventeen songs and in 2018, he released his first solo single, “Can You Sit By My Side.”

Xu Ming-Hao – The8, 11/7/1997

Xu Ming-Hao, stage name The8 and Korean name Seo Myung-Ho is a lead dancer, sub vocalist, and sub rapper for Seventeen.  As mentioned before, he and Jun form the “China line” of Seventeen and he was scouted by Pledis while competing as a break-dancer in China.  He was the last member to join Seventeen, working as a trainee for 1 year and 5 months before debuting.  He chose his stage name as the number 8 is lucky in Chinese culture and when it is laid down the 8 forms an infinity sign, symbolizing infinite luck.  After making his solo debut in 2019 with the song “Dreams Come True,” he has also released solo singles “Falling Down” and “Side by Side” in addition to an unofficial solo, “Night and Rain.”  Although he is originally a break-dancer and martial artist,  he is also known for his solo contemporary dance series: “The8 Contemporary ART.”  In addition to competing (and winning second place) on the Chinese music show, Chao Yin Zhan Ji, The8 also worked as a dance coach on the Chinese idol survival show, Idol Producer 2.  He has also worked as a writer and composer for numerous Seventeen songs and often releases songs for OSTs with Jun.

Lee Chan – Dino, 2/11/1999

The maknae (youngest member) of Seventeen is Lee Chan, stage name Dino.  Dino first joined Pledis in 2012 and worked as a trainee for 3 years before debuting in Seventeen.  He is the second most frequent choreographer within the group (just behind Hoshi) and is also a main dancer, sub vocalist, and rapper for Seventeen.  His stage name is from the word dinosaur, and it was given to him because he will dominate the stage.  In addition to working as a writer on many Seventeen songs, including their OST for A-Teen, Dino released solo mix-tapes 0 (“Zero”) and The Real Thing.  He is also known for choreographing and filming short dance videos to popular music in a series called “Dino’s Danceology,” where he has also featured fellow Seventeen member, Vernon, and Korean dancers/choreographers Yu Seung-Hyun and Park Jong-Ho.  While he choreographs many dances, including the official choreography for Seventeen’s songs “Jam Jam” and “Flower,” Dino is also popular for his freestyle skills and has been known to perform freestyle dances in a variety of genres on variety shows.

Performance Unit Song Recommendations:

1. HIGHLIGHT
2. Lilili Yabbay
3. OMG
4. 247
5. My I (Jun & The8)
6. Jam Jam
7. Wave
8. Swimming Fool
9. MOONWALKER
10. Who