PH dance group UPeepz proceeds to next ‘World of Dance’ round
The two yeses Pinoy group UPeepz got recently on “World of Dance” were enough to bring them to the next level. The approvals for their performance to the tune of Ludacris’ “Get Back” came from judges Derek Hough and Ne-Yo.
Ne-yo compared the group’s style to another dance troop from the Philippines, VPeepz, which bagged the Junior Team Champion title last season.
“I completely see where VPeepz gets it from. Totally see it,” he said. Derek added he “loves” the style. “It’s like the expectation now. You’ve created a sort of, like, a name. Like with Peepz. It’s like ‘Oh the Peepz are in, here we go.’ You know what I mean? And I have to say you lived up to that.”
Judge Jennifer Lopez agreed with both observations but with a bit of reservation.
“They (VPeepz) were great. So you guys have to surpass it, I would say,” she told UPeepz. “And right now I’d say you’re right about where they are if not a tiny bit below. There’s a thing in the routine that kinda fell flat. Like you guys have to not just make it clean but also make it feel like gritty and dirty.”
Ne-Yo advised UPeepz to add even more energy to their choreography.
“The choreo itself kinda stayed in one place for me, a little bit,” he said.
Derek gave pointers that the dance should get more creative in the highlight parts of the song.
When the judges started casting their votes, Jennifer put UPeepz on the hot seat.
“For me, I’m gonna say it’s a... I’m gonna give you a callback,” she said, explaining that it’s not a yes or a no but rather she just want to see what else the artists have.
Derek voted yes, saying UPeepz has what it takes to up their game.
Ne-Yo initially said that like Jennifer,
he’s on the fence over UPeepz but he eventually made a call.
“I think that you guys got what it takes,” he said. “I wanna see what you’re going to do. You know what, it’s a yes!”