Chapter Text
Wang Yibo was born on 5 August 1997 in Luoyang, Henan, China. He is his parents' only child. Yibo was a naughty kid, he was well-known for mischief in his neighborhood. His grandma would chase after him and pay him 50 cents for each dumpling he eats, his parents would give him conditions like drinking bottles of water before leaving to play or after, those were the only ways to control him.
But like other kids Yibo loved to discover and try all types of things. He enjoyed unlocking new talents, he learned yoyo which he got very good at it. He bought magic tools with his allowance but gave up on it later. He learned calligraphy, art but soon gave up on those too. That was the routine until he found something he was very passionate about, dancing. Yibo started dancing in 2008; he practiced dancing at Luoyang Children's Center twice a week on Saturday and Sunday. Initially he started learning breaking, because dancing was divided into genres, at that time the most common type to learn was breaking. But because he was a kid likely to get sick during Winters, he had to take a break. One winter season, Yibo suddenly couldn't breathe, his entire chest felt stuffy. When he went to the doctor, he was told that it was myocarditis and was advised to stop any intense physical activities. When he was having his infusion (8 drips or IV per day) at the hospital, he would usually watch TV; there was a street dance competition which was very popular back then. He liked it and thought "their dancing was cool, their breaking was cool" it inspired him and gave him the determination to ask his mother to let him learn dance again. For once, Yibo didn't want to give up on something, he liked dancing, he wanted to stand on stage.
In 2009, he returned to dancing after a full recovery, it was the same year he became a junior high school student. Yibo joined a small dance studio where classes were held every day after school. He wanted to try everything but there wasn't enough time so he decided on Hip-hop and Locking as his two courses. He had to give up Breaking because during that time, there were not many people who continued Breaking; after all, Breaking training was too hard. This is one of the reasons why many dancers, including Wang Yibo, are very respectful of those who practiced and mastered this dance style. However, Yibo's parents weren't too happy with that. Firstly because they were concerned that Yibo is still in school and learning dancing everyday was tiresome and it might affect his studies. Secondly, street dancing, 2008-09 didn't have a positive image, it didn't have a good reputation. But Yibo never stopped begging his mother to let him learn street dance, he told her he would get full scores on his subjects, he exchanged all types of terms with his parents until he got their approval. His grandma would always tell his mother to let Yibo do what he wishes to do. So whether it was decision making or doing things he likes, his hobbies - Yibo's parents always supported him. In 2010, he had only practiced dance for one year but compared to the kids of his age Yibo's crazy amount of training brought obvious results. He would train for 10 hours everyday with no rest. His wide-ranging exposure to different dance styles and long-term concentration during dance practices made him a quick learner of Freestyle. Yibo enjoyed dancing, it was so much fun for him to learn from his troupe and play together. He also participated in performances with them. He was popular among the girls and whenever he was at the studio performing his solo dance, you would always find girls gathered around.
Wang Yibo in middle school was very much like the protagonist of every shoujo anime, groups of girls chasing after him with gifts, letters and food, picked on by guys for being handsome; you could even find his name in the girls' toilets. When in the 1st semester of 7th grade, a senior girl bought Yibo drinks and lollipops every afternoon, as a way of indirect confession, but he was thinking that he doesn't need to buy drinks for himself anymore. At the end of 2010, Wang Yibo and the dance troupe participated in a local performance in Luoyang, and he was given the center position. In addition to performances, Wang Yibo, who had notably advanced in Freestyle by now, also participated in competitions with his teammates long before participating in the well-known IBD (I'm the best Dancer), which left a deeper impression on him. He also participated in the battles with other popular kids in Henan.
Wang Yibo started dancing hiphop only in early 2010 and became one of the few good hip-hop dancers among boys. In 2011, which was Yibo's last year in the street dance circle, he participated in the well-known IBD competition and made it to top 16. The referee for this competition was Wang Ziqi. (Wang Ziqi and Li Qi, also known as the Twin Stars of Wujiawu, were two important figures influencing the style of the first generation of hip-hop in China.)
At that time 13 years was an uncommon age in the street dance circle for a dancer, but a 13-year-old Yibo passed the audition, and made it to the round of top 16. Furthermore, it was the same year Yibo was scouted and recruited by YUEHUA China Ent. In winter 2011, he signed the contract and was one of the two 1st trainees of YueHua (YH). In fall 2012, Yibo got his 1st experience of standing on the big stage (with other trainees), when he joined Hangeng's (former Super Junior member) World Tour Beijing Concert as one of the backup dancers. He had dyed his hair blonde back then.
Later, YueHua decided to send their trainees to Korea to train under YG Entertainment. Having left home at a young age of 13 to become a trainee in an unknown country, without knowing their language, Yibo looks much calmer and more mature in his career than most people his age. Yibo has always been shy even as a young kid, but over time his shyness transformed into aloofness. Partially because he always played with children older than him, no matter where he went, he was always the youngest. That being said, he's still a kid at heart who's afraid of ghosts and darkness and would change from cool to adorable if left alone in the dark.
Yibo's time as a trainee was very meaningful and important to reach his goal. It wasn't easy though as they had to prepare a song and a dance for monthly evaluations to get rated in addition to the daily 10 hour practice. But because he enjoys dancing, he never felt tired. Besides Yibo didn't really need to choose between dancing and work, since being a trainee also meant dancing. Nevertheless, as trainees they're taught choreographies and little Krump from Monster Woo (an OG level figure of Krump in SK) who was their dance teacher at YG. But breaking, locking and popping were not included. During this time, Yibo liked Les Twins so much, they represented a direct bridge to Hip-hop. He would take every opportunity given to him for resting in between classes, to watch Les Twins' dance videos and practice. After going to Korea, Yibo only had one chance to get back to his motherland, in 2013. But it was only for a short while because soon after, in spring 2014, the line-up of his future group was determined. Yibo and his groupmates were often in the main building of YG in Korea to prepare for their debut. On October 20, 2014 they officially debuted as UNIQ.
