Interview with Halima (aka BeriiLove) about her kpop love.

We think Bo Peep Bo Peep by T-ara is one of the most enjoyable K-pop songs ever and it reminds us of one American girl every time we listen to it.  Yeah, we finally contacted her.

This is about her K-pop story.

1. please introduce yourself briefly.

Hi! My name is Halima (BeriiLove). I turn 18 years old in June and I am currently enjoying my last year of high school in South Florida, USA 😀 I am also a part of the International Baccalaureate program. Wish me luck on my IB exams in May xD Kekeke~

2. when and how did you get to know kpop?

I did not become really involved in Kpop until 2008. Before Kpop, I was really into Jpop during my middle school years. The first Korean artist that I ever listened to was BoA. I was introduced to her music through her activities in Japan. Because of her dancing and singing capabilities, BoA is an artist that I truly respect and admire. Moreover, a website called jpopasia.com introduced me to a lot of other Korean artists like Younha, Big Bang, Wonder Girls, Brown Eyed Girls, and SHINee. I am actually a HUGE SHINee fan <333 I have many of their albums, photobooks, and their latest calendar <3333

3. what made you into kpop?

The most amazing thing about Kpop is that every entertainer is extremely talented, charismatic, and very good looking. What impressed me the most is how much training they endure and their ability to present such flawless stages. I also like that the dynamic concepts, sounds, and choreography of each artist/group are always so creative and fun. I love that Kpop has the ability to engage the audience, whether it be moving someone to tears with a ballad or having everyone groove to a fun dance track. There’s just so much to appreciate and enjoy!

4. how come did you start dancing to Kpop?

I’ve loved to dance ever since I was a little girl, and after seeing many dance covers on YouTube I decided to give it a try. I was not extremely confident in my ability when I posted my first dance cover to SHINee’s Juliette, but its been almost two years since then, and thanks to the continuous practice in addition to the viewers comments, I have been able to improve. Although I may not be the best dancer in the world, dancing is what I love to do and I hope to get better with each new video that I post.

5. have you ever taken a dance lesson?

I do take dance lessons! I’ve trained in ballet, tap, jazz, flamenco, modern, and hip hop since I was about 5 years old. But as much as I love to dance, it’s not something that comes to me naturally, so I often look a bit awkward in my videos lol.

6. I find your voice really good. Have you tried covering kpop songs? If not, why don’t you give it a try?

Because I’ve never really had any vocal training I never know how to approach a song, for example what note or pitch to sing. I often practice singing Kpop songs alone in my room, but since I have more of an alto voice it’s hard for me to hit the high notes that are included in almost every Korean song ahaha~ But I hope to do more singing covers in the future, I’ll practice a lot and try not to embarrass myself xD

7. who is your favorite kpop star?

BoA and SHINee are my favorite Kpop stars!

8. which kpop artist most influenced you?

BoA and SHINee have influenced me the most. These artists have inspired me to dance and to live life well. Part of the reason why I dance kpop is because I hope to be as talented as them someday.

In a way, I am also somewhat inspired by the majority of kpop artists out there right now. Their determination to perform well, please their fans, and succeed in life is truly admirable.

9. I think your Bo Peep Bo Peep Dance Cover was the first one that made you known to international kpop fans including Korean netizens. I also really enjoyed it. Did you expect that much response to it?

Honestly I never expect much response to any of my videos xD I remember being so happy just because my Bo Beep Bo Peep video reached over 1,000 views kekeke~ When I saw that it had reached over 20,000 views I was really happy and surprised that so many people from around the world had taken interest in my dancing. I’m really glad that you enjoyed it! 😀

10. your아잉♡ (A~ing♡) by Orange Caramel seems to have got the most views and, after all is considered, I think it was the best one so far. How about you? What is your favorite one among all the dance covers you have done and why?

My A~ing Cover was the first time that I ever tried the split screen effect while editing. Although my editing skills were a bit lacking, I had a lot of fun putting together the outfits and learning the dance parts for each member. This cover is definitely one of my favorites, but if I have to choose an absolute favorite, I would say Miss A’s Bad Girl Good Girl. This dance really enabled me to show more power and confidence in my dancing and I really love the choregraphy in that dance. I also like the song’s sassy lyrics 🙂

11. in the A~ing cover, you made three differrent versions and put them together. Different outfits as well. How did you come up with making the three different versions and how did you prepare the outfits?

In order to learn each version I memorized the movements of each individual member of Orange Caramel during their performances of A~ing. I messed up a lot while recording this cover because I would accidentally do Nana’s part when I was supposed to be doing Lizzy’s part lol. I tried to put together three different outfits that would match Orange Caramel’s fairytale/storybook concept. I used different tutus and other costumes from my past dance recitals. I even wore a blonde wig xD but many people thought that the wig made me look a bit…manly? lol

12. You have a me2day account. As you know, it is the Korean version of twitter. When and how did you know about it? What made you create your account on it? Did you make many Korean friends since then^^?

I heard about me2day over a year ago on allkpop.com. I made an account after SHINee made one :))) I thought that it would help me understand more about their personal lives xD Unfortunately, I do not know a lot of Korean, and found the website extremely hard to navigate >.< I made a lot of friends at first, but it’s been a while since I last logged into my account….These days I use Twitter more often x)

13. tell us about kpop in your city. Is it picking up popularity now?

Although Kpop is not very popular in my city, there is a small population of Koreans living in the area, and I believe that within a few years it could be really big!! At the beginning of tenth grade, I was probably the only Kpop fan at my school, and three years later I’ve gotten many of my classmates and friends to enjoy Korean music too! In May, my school’s Club of the Arts will be performing several Korean dance numbers in our Multi-cultural play 😀

14. how do you choose a Kpop song for your dance cover?

I usually cover dances that I enjoy, or dances to songs that are really popular at the moment. Girl’s Day is preparing for a comeback this week and I will probably cover their new song as soon as possible 🙂

15. where do you practice? How long does it usually take to master a dance cover?

I usually practice in my bedroom when my family is at home, but when I’m home alone I practice downstairs in the living room or in the kitchen. Depending on the difficulty of the dance and how much free time I have, it could take a few hours to a few weeks to learn a dance. I’m somewhat of perfectionist so I practice as much as I can to get the dance right before uploading it to YouTube.

16. which kpop dance cover was the hardest one so far?

So far, SHINee’s Lucifer has been the hardest dance cover. It has a lot of intense, fast-paced choreography. I had to watch SHINee dance in slow motion for hours and hours to get the steps right. Even now this dance still gives me a hard time lol xD

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