Tate McRae is in her Britney Spears "Darkchild" era, according to her renowned choreographer Sean Bankhead.
On Friday, Sept. 12, the 21-year-old pop artist released her latest music video "it's ok i'm ok" featuring moves choreographed by Bankhead. Following its release, he tells PEOPLE in an exclusive interview why the Calgary, Canada, native's current dance movement is reminiscent to that of the pop veteran in the early 2000s.
"I think the 'Darkchild' era, when she was doing 'Boys "Co-Ed (Remix),' " Bankhead says, when asked about McRae's current Spears era. "I think that's [it] for me, movement-wise, the sass and the badassery is where I feel like I was channeling some of the choreography."
Spears worked with producer Rodney 'Darkchild' Jerkins following the release of her 2001 self-titled album, Britney. One of the most notable remixes that the two joined forces on was "Overprotected." The 2002 visual showcased Spears stripping away any codependency and performing intense, ferocious dance moves.
Tate McRae in August 2024.Theo Wargo/Getty
Speaking more about "it's ok i'm ok" choreography, Bankhead said he knew it would be an instant success after hearing the different accents in the song and the infectious beat. He made it a point to highlight McRae's strengths, including her pristine dance technique and undeniable hair-ography.
When Bankhead first heard the single, he immediately thought the track was "a banger."
"It felt good to dance to," he recalled. "I knew I wanted to have a lot of hair-ography and just feel really sexy and confident and strong. Bankhead came up with the choreography before she performed it at Madison Square Garden. "I was like, 'There's going to be a lot of cameras, they're going to post this, it's going to go viral,'" he said.
On Aug. 22, the "You Broke Me First" singer performed at the New York City venue and teased her latest single, alongside the moves that were featured in the music video. As intricate as the routine is, it didn't take long for McRae and her team to learn it from Bankhead. In fact, they learned it within two hours.
Before McRae blossomed into the pop star that she is today, she was a prodigy in the dance world, having won several awards including the prestigious Junior Female Best Dancer title at the New York Dance Awards in 2015. The next year, she was a finalist on So You Think You Can Dance.
"It does make it challenging because I really have to push and step outside the box and be creative," Bankhead says of choreographing for McRae's dance level.
He continues, "But also, sometimes, it's a challenge because I still like artists to look like artists. I don't want them to look like dancers all the time. So there's a fine line between giving [McRae] too much and not giving her enough. I like for my artists to still look like artists. I'll let the dancers do all the extensive stuff."
"But Tate sings live and she wants to be known as a full, all-around artist, not just a dancer. So it is an interesting fine line between, 'Do I give a lot, do I give less?' And I'm always like, 'Let's cut it in half. Let's take two moves out, Tate, so that you still stand out and you look like the artist instead of just blending in with the dancers,'" said Bankhead.
Sean Bankhead in September 2024.Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty
In December 2023, McRae revealed in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE that Spears inspired her song "Exes," which was written in only 30 minutes. Since her debut, the rising pop star has received several comparisons to Spears, which McRae sees as an absolute honor.
"I mean, Britney's the queen," McRae said at the time. "People are going to compare newer artists to things that have happened in the past, so obviously it's very cool to hear comments like that."
Bankhead, on the other hand, has mixed feelings about the comparisons.
"I love it and I hate it," Bankhead says of McRae's comparisons to Spears. "Unfortunately the internet is using it as something to drag her with now and it's a sad part of stan and Twitter culture. However, Britney Spears was — and still is — a huge inspiration to me as far as artistry, choreography and all the amazing choreographers that have worked with Britney. But we're making Tate McRae, Tate McRae."
In addition to "it's ok i'm ok," Bankhead has also choreographed McRae's "Exes" and the visual to "Greedy," which received a nomination for best choreography at the 2024 MTV VMAs. He is also the mastermind behind Cardi B's "Up," Victoria Monét's "On My Mama," Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow's "Industry Baby" and more.
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