“Street Woman Fighter”‘s Monika Receives Criticism For Saying “Poppin” And Not “Popping”

It all happened because of one letter.

A few of the Street Woman Fighter dancers made an appearance on the most recent episode of Knowing Bros, which brought forth a lot of laughter. And while their humor and variety show abilities really shined on the broadcast, it was something that Monika said during her time on the show that has become the center of attention.

“Street Woman Fighter” dancers on “Knowing Bros” | JTBC

It was during the PROWDMON dancer’s talking segment that she shared information regarding the dance genre, popping. She introduced the dance style by explaining the difference in the names “popping” and “poppin.”

PROWDMON dancer Monika, (second from right) explaining “poppin” | JTBC

When you do ‘pop’ moves, you take the ‘g’ off of ‘popping’ and refer to them as ‘poppin.’

— PROWDMON’s Monika

And while the statement had no extra meaning to ordinary netizens, it was fellow dancers that had a lot of negative things to say about Monika’s statement. Following the airing of the Knowing Bros episode, hundreds of dancers began to attack the PROWDMON dancer for her incorrect explanation of the popping dance style.

An unknown Instagram dancer shared their disappointment with Monika’s statement, while educating their followers about some of the dance’s history.

Unknown dancer | Instagram

Usually, we use nicknames such as POPIN or POPPIN, but the correct name of the dance style is POPPING.

LOCKING, POPPING are dances that were created back in 1970.

You can dance LOCKING in a FUNNY way, but FUNNY and FUNKY are different.

The true nature of house dancing is club dancing.

While it’s important to be funny….since that’s the only way people will tune in…I believe that dancers have a responsibility to relay accurate information to the public. I hope you don’t forget that.

— Unknown Instagram user

This particular viewer expressed their sadness with Monika’s statement, while sharing a still from the Knowing Bros episode.

Caption: “Why would you take off the ‘G.’ It’s sad” | Instagram

Here’s another Instagram dancer who demanded that Monika fix her “incorrect information ASAP.”

Unknown dancer | Instagram

Please correct your incorrect information ASAP.

You’re a street dancer. I believe that you know how many dancers have a deep affection for this dance genre.

It’s unfortunate because if you had shared accurate information, everyone would have been grateful and excited.

— Unknown Instagram user

PROWDMON dancer Monika | @monika_shin/Instagram

The criticisms became so severe, that other netizens began accusing the dancers of cyber bullying Monika. In light of the growing situation, Poppin’ Hyun Joon, who has been considered as the pioneer of South Korean breakdancing, shed his opinion on the controversy.

On a YouTube video, he shared his personal thoughts on the matter, stating that “popping can be called poppin,” while providing details on where the differentiation lies within the two terms.

Poppin’ Hyun Joon’s statement | YouTube

‘Popping’ can be called ‘poppin.’ When someone is talking about it or explaining the dance genre, it’s oftentimes referred to as ‘popping.’ When you read the word, it’s referred to as ‘poppin.’

— Poppin’ Hyun Joon

The dancer didn’t stop there. While explaining the small differences between the two words, Poppin’ Hyun Joon also expressed his desires for the attackers to apologize to Monika.

| YouTube

I don’t believe that Monika belittled the genre nor do I believe that she purposely provided inaccurate information. She didn’t talk about it with the intentions of creating a debate but rather, she just introduced it on a major program.

As one of the older members of the community, I am really disappointed. I hope that the dancers who were involved with the cyber bullying apologize to her.

— Poppin’ Hyun Joong

While it was reported that one dancer made a formal apology to Monika, the hundreds of others who have previously criticized her have decided to remain firm in their stance.

| STARNEWS

In related news, Monika has been keeping busy despite her ongoing situation with Street Woman Fighter‘s spin-off series, Street Girls Fighter. She will appear as one of the judges on the show, along with some of the other dancers from the Mnet survival program.

Check out the trailer for Street Girls Fighter down below.

Source: WikiTree 1 and WikiTree 2