That’s a question that can go really deep. I have my own type of philosophy and way of listening to music. My upbringing naturally made me very open-minded to music. Because my dad is Korean, but he was adopted in Chicago, I heard a lot of rap and even sometimes rock. And then my mom is just African, straight from Liberia. So I heard a lot of African music and even church gospel music, which can lead to R&B. I heard a wide range of music when I was young, and I think that already opened my mind up.
And then when I got into dance training, I was never shy to dance to anything. If I enjoyed the music, I was never shy to dance to it. And I think over time, that made me build a formula in my head that makes sense to me. The way I listen to music is almost like a relationship. If you’re with a partner, you have a relationship, or if you meet somebody new for the first time, if you’re hearing a song for the first time, it’s a little awkward at first, you might not know this person, you might not know how they work, but eventually, if you guys keep trying to get to know each other, you guys are going to blend together and have a connection. That’s how I look at the music.
For me, it takes me a solid 10 to 15 seconds to really know 90 percent of a song, just because I stay present, and I really listen and try to connect. But I don’t try to anticipate the song. I just react to the song. I let it lead me. But with my emotions and my dance, I lead the song almost like we’re dancing together, me and the song and it blends into one.
So that’s my biggest formula, I would say. I try to become one with the music by just taking my time, breathing and really listening as if it’s just a new person I’ve never met. This is your story. This is my story. Let’s bring them together.
