Jonah Aki poses for a photo at a dance studio in Seoul’s Dongjak District on May 5. (courtesy of Amnesty International Korea)
Editor’s Note:“It’s pointless to hate me.”That was the message sent out by the South Korean chapter of Amnesty International, a human rights organization, to celebrate the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia on May 17 last year.The same phrase was used in this year’s Pride parade, garnering positive attention from both LGBT people and their allies.This year, Amnesty International’s Korean chapter has launched a campaign called “Hate Is Pointless 2023.” Whereas last year’s campaign showed LGBT people and allies fighting back against hatred and discrimination, this year’s campaign focuses on self-affirmation and living in the moment.The Hankyoreh has joined hands to take part in that campaign.“The next stop is Gangnam Station.”A blonde man in a tracksuit twerks while the sonorous haegeum from “Eolssiguya,” the Seoul subway transfer tune, plays in the background. The figure of the dancing man is transposed over an interior shot of the subway.This “Subway Dance” TikTok video went viral and soon racked up more than 5 million views.The twerking man is Jonah Aki, a dancer and choreographer, who has planned dance moves for such K-pop stars as Brown Eyed Girls, HyunA and BoA. He’s currently handling choreography for the group Alice.Aki has more than 27,000 followers on his Instagram account where he posts his dance videos. After “Subway Dance” went viral, he also recorded a dance inside an actual subway station with the permission of Seoul Metro.Aki first came to Korea ten years ago, on Feb. 4, 2013. It happened to be his birthday.After graduating from university in the US, Aki wanted to get experience overseas, and Korea was the first place that came to mind.Since first encountering K-pop in 2009, Aki had been an avid listener of popular Korean acts such as the Wonder Girls and Brown Eyed Girls. He’d minored in the Korean language at college and was quite fond of the country.
