Hidden Gems: Lesser-Known Live Performances From Dreamcatcher's Dami
Dami's fierce and passionate rap style serves as a big part of many Dreamcatcher songs, but she's certainly done some things some fans may not know of.
If I got cash for every time that someone who was a Dreamcatcher fan said that they were drawn in to seek out their music in part because of Dami’s raps, I’d probably have a pretty tidy sum of money. Rappers in K-Pop groups are a very common standard in the industry, but it takes someone with strong stage presence as well as the gith flow and rhythm to accomplish a rap excellently.
It’s possible I might be very obviously biased since I’m a Dreamcatcher fan, but Dami checks all these boxes and more. Many of Dreamcatcher’s most memorable songs contain a line or two that Dami is responsible for that sticks in peoples’ minds, a testament to her unique vocal color. From “Hold up/I’m a geek the big paradox” to “Like Jackie Chan, quickly, swiftly” and more, Dreamcatcher fans have used Dami’s rap lines as an anchor that serves as a way to remember why songs in their vast discography are so good. That said, even though there are plenty of well-known Dami moments in performances, there may be a few that some fans aren’t quite aware of. Let’s take a look at some!
Name: Dreamcatcher Dami Birthday Fanmeeting - Rap Medley
Date: March 4th, 2019
Live birthday fanmeetings are, as I’ve said in the other articles in this series, a way to find some interesting performances that fans might not know about. This rap medley, from Dami’s 2019 birthday fanmeeting, is definitely one of these. Running through a bunch of rap lines from songs like “BANG BANG BANG” by Big Bang, “Love Scenario” by iKON and more not only served to show off Dami’s rap versatility but was also delightful for attendees. Of course, Dami couldn’t do a rap medley without throwing a couple Dreamcatcher songs in there, and doing so was just the cherry on top for delivering a few bars from some iconic songs.
Name: IdolPlus Idol Picknic - Dreamcatcher Yoohyeon and Dami’s Favorite Songs
Date: August 28, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic ensured that a lot of K-Pop variety shows had to make adjustments, but one of the few shows that remained an outdoor one was the briefly-lived IdolPlus Idol Picknic show, which Dreamcatcher had the fortune to appear on. There are a lot of memorable moments but one in particular is Dami doing a singing rendition of Billie Ellish’s “idontwannabeyouanymore”.
I’ve got more clips in this article that feature Dami’s singing, but this one in particular, which has the good luck of having a variety show’s production quality, stands out. Dami possesses an airy, high-toned singing voice that seems to be the polar opposite of her naturally low-toned rap style, and it’s always pleasant to hear. Recent discography has showed off more of this vocalizing, but it’s always nice to find them in unexpected places like this one as well.
Name: MIXNINE - 9OOD 9irl - My Number feat. Dreamcatcher Dami
Date: November 27, 2017
The ill-fated MIXNINE survival show in 2017 featured four Dreamcatcher members, of which Dami was one. Before the group pulled out of the show to go on their first tour, there were a couple of fairly memorable unit performances from the show. One of these was one for “9OOD 9irl”, performed by a team including Dami.
While Dami doesn’t figure prominently in the song til late in it (2:20 or so), there seemed to be a reason for it. People talk about rappers “spitting fire” when aggressively dropping their lines during a song and if anything describes that, it’s this performance. Formerly the group’s youngest member when some of Dreamcatcher was once known as MINX, debut year allowed Dami to highlight her paradigm shift from cutesy member to a fierce, in-your-face rapper, and this performance was the perfect opportunity to do so.
Name: AraTV Highlights - Dreamcatcher’s Bursting Moment
Date: February 8th, 2021
These days it feels like the karaoke-type sequences in variety shows are a bit rare, which is unfortunate since I feel like it allows K-Pop groups to shine outside of their traditional discography. Back in 2021, though, they were more prevalent and Dreamcatcher didn’t disappoint when they had it as part of their appearance on AraTV to promote “Odd Eye”. Everyone did great here, but one of the standouts from this seldom-viewed video (only 3,300+ views as of this writing) was when Dami teamed up with Yoohyeon to cover BTS’ well-known song “Dynamite”.
Oftentimes rappers appear to be asked to do a bit more with English as there are often English words placed into many K-Pop raps, which presents additional work for someone in a Main or Sub Rapper position. But the advantages of doing so are pretty clear, as shown when Dami performed here. It helps that the song has rap lines that flow well rhythmically with the melody, and Dami, who’s been heard as recently as the inaugural WeBridgeExpo as being quite comfortable with English, acquitted herself extremely well here, all while being entertaining at the same time.
Name: MBC Idol Radio - Dreamcatcher JiU, SuA, and Dami - “Invitation” cover (orig. by Uhm Junghwa)
Date: April 3rd, 2020
I did just get done talking about how karaoke segments on variety shows need to come back, so this might seem a little redundant, but it’s still no less a bit of a hidden bit of content in Dreamcatcher’s six-year journey insofar as Dami is concerned. MBC’s Idol Radio has always been kind to Dreamcatcher, and their frequent appearances are filled with plenty of fun broadcasts, but for Dami, this one stands out mostly for stage chemistry with other members.
We’ve seen Dami team up with JiU a bunch of times, often in more well-known appearances such as for 2PM’s “My House”, Sunmi’s “Full Moon”, and Flo Rida’s “I Don’t Like It, I Love It”, and there’s a reason for that - the two of them go extremely well together and play off of each other on stage in a way that delights fans. Covering Uhm Junghwa’s “Invitation” is a little less known because of that but still great, especially as this is another good opportunity to hear more of Dami’s vocal singing. Add an impromptu appearance by SuA, who’s also teamed up with Dami before for their Taemin “Move” subunit cover and you have a recipe for a fun, yet talented cover.
Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed this little trip down Dreamcatcher memory lane to see some of Dami’s hidden performance gems. There are, of course, many opportunities to do so in some of the more popular work she’s done, such as the above cover of Clean Bandit’s “Rockabye” but it’s always good to show fans who might not know about the other stuff just how talented Dami is. This much-delayed series is almost done, and next time, we’ll be closing it up with Gahyeon, so be sure to subscribe or otherwise keep an eye on the site for that to pop up!
