Japanese dance troupe Chibi Unity can count themselves lucky to get a golden buzzer on their AGT 2023 audition. They deserved the buzzer, make no mistake, but they were the final act of the last night of auditions. In the past golden buzzers have run out, causing consternation among the judges when faced by an unusually deserving act. This season there was an extra golden buzzer, an audience buzzer, but the new buzzer was used in the very first show (on The Mzansi Youth Choir from South Africa).
By the time Chibi Unity auditioned, all of the judge and host golden buzzers had been used. Fortunately, in addition to the audience buzzer, this season saw the return of the group golden buzzer, which hadn’t been used. The judges and host Terry Crews happily joined hands to press the buzzer while the talented young dancers could barely contain their excitement. The golden buzzer is significant as it sends the buzzed straight through to the live shows and it marks them as potential winners. Look
That’s great isn’t it. It’s more than just a dance routine, it’s performance art. Bravo! The comments on YouTube have two recurring themes. Some commentators remark on Chibi Unity’s attitude, others write about the quality of their act. Anonymous2010116 states “I am awestruck by how they bowed and knelt down before the judges as a sign of their ‘Thank you’. So much humility and gratitude. That is the best of Japanese culture. It’s just so beautiful and humbling that I got teary eyed”.
Kelvinatie writes, “This is one of the best group choreographies I have ever seen. Song selection, dance movies, story line, transitioning, attitude etc was all on point. They definitely deserved the golden buzzer. Thumbs up Chibi Unity.” Speaking of the song selection, the track is Hometown (2017) by Canadian rock duo Cleopatrick. The track addresses emotions prompted by being unnoticed and suited both the theme of metamorphosis and Chibi Unity’s dynamic, youthful energy. Here’s another video:
That was Chibi Unity’s first-place winning entry for the “team category digital video” in the 2021 Covid-era Global Dance Visual Competition. The submissions were judged by a panel of 5 industry specialists using both dance and video production criteria.
CHIBI UNITY is the junior division of Japan’s Chronicle Dance Academia. Junior division means that the dancers are under 18, which in turn means that there is a turnover of members as the dancers get older and younger members join. Chibi Unity is based in Niigata, Japan. In 2020, the troupe participated in the Jennifer Lopez-fronted World of Dance competition on NBC, where they were eliminated in the duels. According to Talent Recap, Chibi Unity has participated in Street Dance of China season 4, and won VIBE Jnrs in 2017, 2019, and 2020.
To conclude, here is judge Sofia Vergara’s comment on Chibli Unity’s AGT 2023 audition: “I was getting goosebumps. My heart was beating. It was the best dancing I’ve ever seen in my life. I would say it was a perfect AGT audition.”
The Music Man wishes Chibli Unity well on their AGT 2023 journey. Well done, and thanks for the entertaining audition! If you would like to see more from CHIBI UNITY, you can subscribe to their YouTube channel or follow them on Facebook or Instagram.