Hidden Gems: The Best Of 2,000 Days Of Dreamcatcher
K-Pop — Dreamcatcher Series
Dreamcatcher’s 2,000th day since debut is a reminder that the group has produced a ton of content that hasn’t gotten as much attention.
July 5th, 2022 marks the 2000th day since K-Pop’s Dreamcatcher debuted - a girl group with a seemingly inexplicable storyline of re-starting itself with new members and a new, non-traditional concept. The longevity of the group and the successes they’ve had despite those challenges, has been nothing short of impressive, and even though Dreamcatcher is still growing in popularity domestically as well as internationally, they’ve created a respectable place in the industry and have proven that you don’t have to color within the lines to succeed in it.
One of Dreamcatcher’s claims to fame given how long they’ve been around is just the sheer amount of content they’ve created. Hundreds of videos across the group’s (currently) five-plus years exist, with every member of Dreamcatcher highly motivated to keep themselves visible and viable in a world where the lack of either can be the end of you.
Thankfully, all current indications point to the fact that Dreamcatcher isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and as such, this is a good time to add to my “Hidden Gems” series by looking at some of the lesser-viewed media out there, as the advantage of having such a huge breadth of raw content means some of it gets overlooked. Let’s take a look at some videos that could use just a little more love from Dreamcatcher fans!
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyCmamTnTro[/embed]
Name: The Tiny Showcase by Heyo TV feat. Dreamcatcher
Date: August 31, 2017
Era: Fly High
Views (as of this writing): 25,000+
Dreamcatcher was a hard-charging group during their debut year, rolling out three comebacks, long promotion schedules that ran a month and a half, and, of course, a ton of variety content appearances as a result. This hour and a half showcase by Heyo TV gave fans a metric ton of Dreamcatcher fun, from fun stage covers, to stories about training and food, to a few solo or duo (literally) close up songs. Want to see the early days of what would become Dreamcatcher’s most-viewed cover in BigBang’s “BANG BANG BANG”? Handong covering a Pristin song? One of the origins of the “Siyeon eating a whole onion without flinching” meme? This is the video to watch.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7upAocqROk[/embed][embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05W6rOMsQtA[/embed][embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQGXMNfBAdc[/embed][embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mO1UmsImlQo[/embed]
Name: KWAVE/UOOSEE Fanwish feat. Dreamcatcher (4 parts)
Date: August 3, 2018
Era: YOU AND I
Views (as of this writing): Between 1,900–6,200 views depending on part
Veteran fans of Dreamcatcher know that when it comes to variety they tend very much towards the loud and chaotic. There have been a ton of memorable variety moments from Dreamcatcher over the years (the infamous “pepero game”, Siyeon smashing fruit, the entirety of Dreamcatcher’s reality show), but one that doesn’t get nearly as many views is a KWAVE/UOOSEE app collaboration from 2018. The appearance starts normal enough with a standard random play dance segment but heads into a sandwich-making contest with poor JiU as the judge of two very different sets of ingredients. A leader does their best to make every group appearance a fun one, so even if the sandwiches contain ketchup and ham or blatant bribery through food is on the table, you know JiU (and the other members) will do their best.
[embed]https://www.vlive.tv/video/151380[/embed]
Name: K-Pop Afterparty feat. Dreamcatcher
Date: September 26, 2018
Era: Deja Vu
Views (as of this writing): 46,000+
Two hours of Dreamcatcher means two hours of activities that are chock-full of that traditional Dreamcatcher energy, but the reason I’m linking this one is due to the fact that there are plenty of comedic moments that I’ve found are the source of many a fun Dreamcatcher GIF. This little-viewed vLive through the ALL THE K-POP channel has the group singing and dancing their hearts out in a bunch of karaoke-fueled challenges, decorating a cake, enjoying delicious food, and trolling each other with jokes. Combine that with some fun costuming and you have a recipe for fun times that stands in opposition to their fierce stage presence.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnpY6si4JzI[/embed]
Name: WHY NOT ME (Dreamcatcher feat. Win-Win Crew)
Date: April 7, 2020
Era: Scream
Views (as of this writing): 50,000+
Rarely do you see content that involves a dance crew or other group outside of K-Pop on an official broadcast, but if there is anyone who would be willing to work with such a group, it’s Dreamcatcher. They set the stage for this back in 2018 when they made a few fan musicians’ dreams come true with a collaborative Special Clip of “Escape the ERA” b-side “Mayday”, and here in 2020 before things went pear-shaped with the COVID-19 pandemic, they were able to work with artist crew Win-Win crew to have a fun little dance-off followed by a mashup performance of “Scream” that showed off both groups’ talents. To top it all off, this was done on a helipad rooftop that was able to show off some really cool views of both groups.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfOoGlgP9aw[/embed]
Name: ARATV Highlights feat. Dreamcatcher
Date: June 27, 2021
Era: Odd Eye
Views (as of this writing): 3,000+
Though originally a SEEZN app exclusive that aired earlier in the year, ARATV eventually put up a highlights video of a broadcast featuring Dreamcatcher up on YouTube. The group’s willingness to clown around is on full display here, with them donning a few different costumes and funny props for laughs, as well as playing a few games to see how well they were in sync with one another. Aside from that, Dreamcatcher got to highlight their ever-present vocal talent with a few subunit covers (I personally thought Yoohyeon and Dami’s rendition of well-known hit “Dynamite” by BTS was the best, but the award for most crazy goes to SuA and Siyeon with Norazo’s “Bread”, which not surprisingly retains most of the original’s ridiculous energy.
There are so many more fun moments from the group’s 2,000 day (and counting) history but not enough room to go over here (the above 2018 Dreamcatcher x Happiness Train featuring food, lie detectors, and funny stories among them). My recommendation to you as fans is that if you’ve become intrigued by some of the lesser-viewed hidden group appearances from Dreamcatcher, to go searching them up yourself. Beyond some of the highest-viewed results might be something you’ve never seen before from the group, and giving it a click is certainly one way to help celebrate their long history, and hopefully bright future. I’ll be continuing the individual Hidden Gems series moving forward, but until then, enjoy the “road less traveled” content that I’ve highlighted for Dreamcatcher, in the hopes of seeing much more from them for a long time to come.
