Grant Gilmore is a professional dancer and choreographer known for touring with top artists like Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, and Sam Smith. He’s now the Choreographer and Performance Manager for the rising girl group KATSEYE, where he shapes their dynamic performances and choreography.
Q: Hey Grant! To start, can you tell us a little about your background?
Grant: Hey everyone! I’m Grant Gilmore, a professional dancer and choreographer from Houston, Texas. I’ve been working professionally for about eight years now, and for the last two years, I’ve been focusing on my choreography career.
Q: You’ve toured with some major names in the music industry like Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, and Katy Perry. What was it like performing on such massive tours, and how did these experiences shape you as a performer?
Grant: My first big tour was with Taylor Swift, and that was a turning point in my career. I had been working as a dancer, but after booking Taylor’s tour, everything shifted. Touring with her opened me up as a performer in ways I didn’t expect. Before that, my style was very intense, mysterious, and internal. But Taylor’s tour taught me how to connect with the audience, how to open up and bring more color into my performances. It wasn’t just about being “dark” and “moody” anymore—I learned how to express more relatable emotions and make my dancing more dynamic.
With each tour, like Sam Smith and later Charlie XCX, I kept evolving. By the time I toured with Charlie, I was full of energy and color—I had completely transformed. It’s funny because if you watch footage of me on Taylor’s tour and then on Charlie’s, you’d think they were two different dancers. Touring really helped me develop as a performer and find new ways to express myself.
Q: Wow, it sounds like each tour brought out a new side of your performance! You’ve now transitioned into choreography and are working as the Choreographer and Performance Manager for the global girl group KATSEYE. How did that opportunity come about?
Grant: That’s been such an exciting and recent development! After dancing in Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance in 2023, I felt this creative craving. I loved dancing, but I wanted something different, something more. So, I decided to put my dance career on pause and fully commit to choreography. I started teaching in LA and focused on putting my work out there, even though it was tough at times.
Everything changed when Sohey Sugihara, a well-known dancer I had worked with before, reached out to me about submitting choreography for a project. That project turned out to be for KATSEYE, a global girl group produced by HYBE and Geffen Records. After choreographing a number to the Spice Girls’ Wannabe, the team loved my work and invited me to join as their Performance Manager. It’s been an incredible experience—I get to choreograph, train, and work on the overall performance direction, which is so much more than just dance. It’s been a huge leap for me, and I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity.
Q: That sounds like a dream! What does your creative process look like when working on choreography for KATSEYE?
Grant: We usually start with the song. I listen to it over and over until it’s in my veins. Then, we sit down and figure out what kind of feeling, world, or message we want to communicate with the performance. We create a whole presentation on the vision for the song before we even start working on choreography. Once we have a clear idea, we begin rehearsals with skeleton dancers and start piecing it all together. Sometimes the best moments just happen spontaneously—it’s an amazing process.
Q: You’ve mentioned that sometimes choreography just “clicks” for you, while other times it takes hours to perfect. Could you expand on your creative process? What goes into creating memorable moves for a group like KATSEYE?
Grant: It’s definitely a mix! There are moments where I see something, and I just instinctively do it well. But there are also times where I spend hours trying to figure out one move, especially with K-Pop and girl group choreography. The goal is to create something iconic and memorable, something other people will want to imitate. That’s not always easy. I’ll spend hours each day making sure the moves are catchy, unique, and also doable for others. It’s important that the choreography is visually pleasing and makes people want to get up and try it themselves, all while communicating the message of the song. Balancing those three things is a challenge, but it’s what I aim for.
Q: When you’re in that creative zone, do you record everything? How do you refine the final version of choreography?
Grant: Oh, absolutely. Everything gets recorded because sometimes, choreography just flows out of you. It’s like pulling something out of a magic hat, and you’ve got to capture it. But at the company I work for, we have really high standards, so it’s not just about the first version that feels right. For some songs, like KATSEYE’s Touch and My Way, I created over 100 versions of just the chorus alone. All of those are filmed and stored somewhere. It’s crazy, but that’s what pushes me to explore every crevice of creativity. Ultimately, it helps us land on the best version for the performance.
Q: It sounds like there’s a science behind creating choreography for specific songs. Can you walk us through your thought process when you start working on a new song?
Grant: It’s kind of like cracking a code for each song. The choreography needs to match the song’s feeling, be unique, and also be easy for others to follow. If I can tick those three boxes, then it’s good. But that’s much harder to execute than it sounds. Sometimes I create something unique that matches the song but isn’t easy for non-dancers to do. Other times, I’ll experiment with something easy and unique, but it might not match the song’s energy. It’s a process of trial and error, especially when you’re 50+ versions deep into a chorus. But eventually, we always hit the target.
Q: You also have a TikTok where you post choreography. How does creating content for TikTok differ from creating for a group like KATSEYE?
Grant: It’s completely different! When I film TikToks, I don’t think too much about it. It’s more instinctive, just for fun. But when I’m creating for KATSEYE or for a company, there’s a lot more strategy involved. It’s not just about creating something catchy but something that aligns with the group’s image, their fans, and the company’s vision. It requires a lot more thought and coordination.
Q: Speaking of coordination, as a performance manager, your role involves much more than just choreography. What does a typical day look like for you?
Grant: It really depends on what we’re working on. If we’re creating choreography for a new song, I’ll be in the studio from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. After that, I’ll go home, upload the videos, and create a report explaining what we did that day. When we’re rehearsing with KATSEYE, it’s a lot of long hours—sometimes eight-hour days. Even though they’ve debuted, they’re still training hard, not just in dancing but in vocals, facial expressions, and performance techniques. We monitor their progress closely. I also work with their vocal coach to ensure their performances are improving across the board. It’s a full-on job managing every aspect of their performance, not just the choreography.
Q: The behind-the-scenes work sounds intense. How do you maintain your relationship with the group members while balancing such a demanding schedule?
Grant: It’s definitely intense, but working closely with the group has helped me form really strong relationships. I’m really grateful for the bond I’ve built with So Hey, for example, because we share the same intense experiences in creating. And the members themselves are so unique and funny—they remind me of real-life Sailor Moon characters with their individual personalities. Watching them grow, especially as we’ve worked together from the start, is a dream come true. I’ve always wanted to work with an artist from the beginning of their journey, and being part of KATSEYE’s rise feels incredibly fulfilling.
Q: You’ve worked with huge artists like Taylor Swift and Charli XCX. Are there any new influences or styles you’d like to bring into KATSEYE’s performances?
Grant: Each album with KATSEYE feels like a new era, and we always want to take fans on a journey. I’d love to see them push boundaries with something more edgy and experimental. All of the girls have such chaotic, wild energy—it would be fun to channel that into something artistic and maybe even a little dangerous. Their current era is more about strong, and sisterhood, but I’d love to see them push the limits creatively with something abstract, yet still hype. It’s only a matter of time before we get there!
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring dancers and choreographers who want to break into the industry?
Grant: It might sound simple, but it’s really about never giving up. I’ve had moments where I questioned why I was in LA and thought about going home because nothing was working out. But if I had given up, I wouldn’t be where I am today. The light always turns back on, no matter how dark it gets. You just have to keep going.
For choreographers, specifically, don’t put too much pressure on yourself to create something amazing right out of the gate. When I first started, my work wasn’t great, but every experience helped me fine-tune my craft. Choreography and dancing are two very different skills, so be patient with yourself if you’re starting from zero. Keep exploring, and eventually, you’ll find your voice. Once you do, everything clicks, and you just keep growing from there.
Q: Finally, what’s one key message you want readers to take away from your journey?Grant: Hope. You always have to have hope. The world can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re chasing your dreams. But no matter how hard things get, you have to believe that better things are coming. That belief will carry you through, even when it seems impossible.
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