South Korean boy band BTS’s usage of sign language into their July 2021 “Permission to Dance” music video received global acclaim. In particular, the band was commended for incorporating American Sign Language (ASL), Korean Sign Language (KSL) and International Sign Language (ISL) into their performance. The particular video’s choreography features signs for the words “dance,” “peace,” and “enjoy.”
This video is set in a post-pandemic world, where the band members are viewed dancing in a number of settings including a laundromat, a sunny location, and a patio. The sign language use in “Permission to Dance” takes place at the end of the song, whereby all the band members collectively sing “na, na, na.”
To make sure that the meaning of “Permission to Dance” was clear, BTS and their team of choreographers paid added awareness to the details within their signing. BTS’ entertainment company representative Big Hit Music said, “After choosing keywords and symbolic gestures, we turned that into choreography. And we went through a process of holding many discussions with experts [including Deaf people and sign language interpreters] to make sure the meaning was coming across.”
The experts the group consulted highlighted the value of such expressions in performing sign language. For instance, the sign for “enjoy” also conveys “welcome.” So, to unambiguously communicate the lyric regarding “enjoy” to their Deaf and Hard-of-hearing fans, the band had to clearly show happiness on their faces.
Reactions of Deaf Children Who Viewed the Music Video
The YouTube channel Deaf BTS just recently uploaded a video of children’s reactions towards the “Permission to Dance” music video. In earlier times, the channel has published other videos where they have done sign language for a number of BTS songs. This time around, several Deaf children fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) were shown reacting to the music video whilst sitting on the floor.
One girl was really greatly surprised when she observed BTS member J-Hope performing in ASL, and shared a touching reaction. She signed, “I’m stunned. That’s ASL ‘dance!’ They signed ‘dance.’ How’d they do that?” She added, “They signed ‘dance’! Cool. They signed ‘dance’ twice. Just like here in the US. I’m gonna pass out.” The enthusiastic girl then pretended to pass out by dramatically falling forward on the floor.
Once the other kids also realized what the band was executing, they couldn’t believe that BTS had used American Sign Language in their performance. One girl pondered pertaining to when the group members had learned ASL.
The Video’s Good Outcomes From Using ASL
By using sign language in their choreography the group provided the youngsters and numerous other Deaf or Hard of hearing (D/HoH) sign language users world wide a sense of greater inclusion in mainstream culture. These kinds of thoughtful acts by celebrities and other public figures make members of the D/HoH community feel like they are being heard and seen by the larger society.
BTS’s utilization of sign language is additionally increasing awareness of the D/HoH culture among hearing individuals. The fans were also tremendously impressed by the sign language incorporated into the “Permission to Dance” choreography.. One particular fan wrote on Twitter, “You know what’s cool? The motion that they were doing for ‘dance’ is the actual sign for ‘dance’ in American Sign Language.”
Such responses suggest that “Permission to Dance” can definitely help to lower the preconception with regards to the Deaf and Hard of hearing in our culture. They additionally deliver hope to the D/HoH community by showing that hearing individuals are wanting to acknowledge them and their language as equals. In this manner, the video is an important steppingstone toward greater inclusion and acceptance of D/HoH people in mainstream society.
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