This Wednesday the first episode of the docuseries, “Hope on the Street” was released on Amazon Prime Video. The docuseries focuses on J-Hope, one of the main rappers and dancers for the powerhouse K-Pop group BTS. With this series, J-Hope aims to go back to his underground dancing roots before he was a member of the group, and he hopes to gain new inspiration for what is to come.
The docuseries dive into J-Hope’s dance career before he debuted, and it will showcase his dance skills in a variety of different genres as he travels all over the world to meet top dancers. In total the series will have seven episodes and an accompanying album, “Hope on the Street.” The album will be released at midnight ET on Friday, March 29. It will consist of six tracks that feature many artists, including one with fellow BTS member Jungkook and another with LE SSERAFIM’s Huh Yun-jin, who is under the same entertainment company: HYBE.
J-Hope, whose real name is Jung Ho-seok, was born in Gwangju, South Korea on Feb. 18, 1994. From a young age, dancing had been a major aspect of his life. From fourth grade to his first year in high school, J-Hope took dance classes at Gwangju Music Academy.
From middle school through high school, he was a member of an underground dance group called NEURON. Later in the series, viewers will be introduced to the other members of this group, who taught him almost everything he knows today. He was one of the youngest members to join the group due to his immense talent, and he won awards in several dance competitions before debuting. Because of his impressive reputation and his masterful skills in several different styles of dance, he is considered to be one of the best dancers in the K-pop industry.
In this first episode of the series viewers see old footage of J-Hope practicing multiple dance genres such as popping and Hip-Hop. The episode then shows him discussing how after all the fame he got as a member of BTS, he completely forgot about his roots and how much he loves to dance. J-Hope said simply, “I used to love dancing so much but had forgotten all about it.” Eventually, due to his growing fame and workload as a member of BTS, his love for dance died out. Dance became something he had to do rather than something he enjoyed doing. He then reflects on truly how important dancing is to him and says, “If I didn’t have dance I wouldn’t be where I am right now. Me without dance doesn’t make sense. J-Hope would not exist. Even Jung Hoseok would be a different person too.”
Immediately after this insightful interview, the docuseries transitions into J-Hope performing the solo version of his pre-released song, “Hope on the Street,” which initially had J-Cole as a feature artist. Throughout the rest of the episode, he continues to perform several different styles of dance in public, such as locking and hip-hop. The episode points a spotlight on famous street dancers in several different countries, including Japan and the United States. Not only is this docuseries about J-Hope and his dance roots, but it is also about dance in general.
Overall, for BTS fans and non-fans alike, the docuseries “Hope on the Street” is a must-watch. For fans of the group, it will reveal a new side to J-Hope that is very different from the happy-go-lucky persona they see on camera. Instead, J-Hope embraces a side that is more serious and truly passionate about what he does. For non-fans it will be a series that helps viewers gain a greater appreciation for dance and what it takes to truly be a master in the field. Episodes will continue to be released every Wednesday and Thursday at 11 a.m. ET on Amazon Prime Video, so make sure to stay tuned!
Rating: 5/5