KpOp & JpOp 2013/01/28
yoimachi: 日南響子
- Shin Se Kyung Tweets Cute Selcas
- Actress Shin Se Kyung is such a cutie-pie in her latest selcas!
On January 24, the actress posted her selca on Me2day along with a short caption,"Hehe~ Shy victory sign!"
In the picture, Shin Se Kyung is all smiles while flashing victory signs with her hands. Even though it is not a professional photo shoot, she shows off her flawless beauty in her pink dress.
On the same day, Shin Se Kyung also tweeted another selca looking beautiful in her spring outfit.
In the revealed image, the actress is seen wearing another pink dress and a huge straw hat.
Netizens who saw the newly updated selcas commented, "Spring is already here?" "Sin Se Kyung looks really cute," "Did she lost weight?" and "I hope spring is coming soon."
- APink's Jung Eun Ji Criticized for Her Dangerous and Childish Behavior APink's Jung Eun Ji is in hot water for violating traffic laws.
Several days ago, the singer-actress posted a photo on her personal me2day that led netizens to criticize her inappropriate and dangerous behavior. On January 17, she had posted, "I want to eat tangerines. But they're warm because they were on top of the engine. I guess I'll give my tangerines a breathe of fresh air. Don't worry. They're tightly sealed," and attached her photos. In one of the photos, the tangerines were in a plastic bag, which were dangerously dangling outside the window of a moving car.
The post belatedly attracted attention from netizens after they were circulated through various online communities. Many netizens commented that her behavior was childish and violated the Road Traffic Act article 68, paragraph 3, which states that all drivers must take steps to ensure that all freights from vehicles are securely stored away to prevent accidents.
On January 27, a representative of A Cube Entertainment apologized, "We saw the photos that she had posted on her me2day. We realize that it is entirely our fault. It was a thoughtless act stemmed from carelessness. We are deeply sorry."
Some netizens' comments to the issue included, "What was she thinking? Good thing nothing happened," "Had those tangerines gotten loose, someone could have lost his/her life," "She probably thought she was being cute," "Please think before you post," "I'm really disappointed in her. She should have known better," and more.
- PSY Wins 3 Different Awards at the NRJ Music Awards in France PSY has been decorated with three awards at the NRJ Music Awards in France.
The NRJ Music Awards were held on January 26 and PSY has won International Song of the Year, Music Video of the Year and NRJ Award of Honor with his worldwide hit, "Gangnam Style."
PSY also opened the awards ceremony with "Gangnam Style," which set the festive mood. As soon as the song started, fans started to dance along to the music and a huge PSY balloon emerged.
After the ceremony, PSY tweeted, "I'm speechless… I won 3 #NRJMusicAwards!!! Merci FRANCE!"
Meanwhile, PSY has also won an award at the 2012 MTV European Music Awards (EMAs) and the 40th American Music Awards as well. PSY is expected to release his second US single in the near future.
Congratulations PSY!
「桐谷美玲」
- Seohyun's Small Face Size Draws Attention Girls' Generation's Seohyun is again in the spotlight, but not for driving her members crazy or being blacklisted at U.S airports, but rather for her very small head. And you know Korean media's obsession with small heads, which they associate with the person's attractiveness.
Recently, an online community forum posted a picture under the title "Seohyun and Kang Ho Dong's Head Size Difference." Kang Ho Dong is well known by the public for his "bigger" face, so it's not a surprise that any person standing next to him will have a smaller face.
Many netizens gave similar reactions. They stated that it's obvious her face is smaller than Kang Ho Dong's and a handful commented that her face is bigger compared to actress Park Bo Young. Surprisingly, one netizen in particular commented, "She was pretty before. She had her face done many times while preparing for this album. It's obvious that she got a lot of shots on her face. I preferred her older image."
Soompiers, do you think head size correlates with one's attractiveness?
- TVXQ's Changmin, EXO, Girls' Generation Members Show Support for BoA's First Live Concert in Korea BoA's fellow label mates in SM Entertainment came to show their support for her first exclusive solo concert in 13 years since her debut in Korea.
Fellow label mates of TVXQ's Changmin, Super Junior's Kangin, Girls' Generation member Tiffany, Yoona, Jessica, and Sunny, Go Ara as well as EXO, Kim Min Jong, Kim Ian and Lina, came to show their support.
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Here are the photos shared on BoA's official Facebook page.
- Interview with JYJ's Kim Jaejoong: "I Listened to My Debut Album Last Night Before I Went to Sleep" JYJ's Kim Jae Joong recently released his first solo mini album "Mine" on January 17 to the joy of his many loyal fans. He had a chance to hold a short interview with SBS E! Lets see what he has to say about his experiences in the music industry so far!
# This album is full of rock flavor. It's surprising to think that an idol group member would go with a rock album for the first solo album.
Jaejoong: "Ever since I was young, I enjoyed listening to and singing along with rock songs. I wouldn't say I was deeply immersed in it, but I did listen to it often as I grew up. Even when I was promoting as a group or at concerts, or even during project albums, I would sing a rock song. However, even I was surprised that I would release a rock album. (Laugh)"
# What were the members reactions to your pursuit of rock?
Jaejoong: "Yoochun said that he drank alcohol when he heard 'One Kiss.' He said, 'I have to drink some today' and mentioned that the song calls one to have a drink.. Isn't that good? There are songs one would listen to to be comforted when one is sad, but there are also times when one wants to listen to sadder songs. To think that this song calls one to have a drink… I'm really happy. Junsu says that he really likes 'Mine.'"
# It's already been 10 years since you've been in the industry. How do you feel?
Jaejoong: "To be honest, I don't really feel it. Before, I would think that I would have achieved a lot after 10 years, but now I think whether 10 years is really a long time for a celebrity. To be honest, I listened to my debut album last night before I went to sleep. There really has been a lot of changes. Also, I didn't know exactly how many Korean and Japanese albums I had, but it's much more than I thought. I realize then that 10 years did pass by."
# Yoochun's the only member who hasn't released a solo album.
Jaejoong: "If Yoochun releases an album, I will definitely try to help. But, he composes better than me. He's a genius- a genius. I think that he writes the best songs out of the group. It's just that he doesn't write much, but he has a lot of talent. He composes for a hobby, but when he writes one song, it turns out to be a really good song. And just like with language where one starts to forget after practice, even if we all don't practice with the same intensity, he retains a lot of the language. He's the type that doesn't forget easily, but also picks things up easily.
# Are you happy right now?
Jaejoong: "I'm half-half. I have times when I'm really happy, but there are also times when things are unbelievably terrible. That's life. I have a life that not everyone can have, so I also have experiences that no one have experienced. But still… I'm happy." - BoA Shared Her Plans to Engage in Drama and Movie in 2013 Singer BoA shared about her upcoming plans for this year during the press conference ahead of her very first solo exclusive concert "BoA Special Live 2013~ Here I Am" in Seoul.
In the press conference BoA shared, "This is my first concert in Korea since my debut. Yesterday's concert concluded on a good note so I am excited today will be the same."
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BoA continuously shared, "This year will be different as I plan to engage in drama and movie appearances. I am preparing diligently and continuously challenge myself in 2013 as well."
BoA successfully concluded her highly anticipated solo concert over two days at the Olympic Hall in Seoul on January 26 and 27, local time. - Photo
- Weekly K-Pop Music Chart 2013 – January Week 4 The top three songs remain the same as of last week.Girls' Generation's "I Got A Boy" repeats as No. 1 for the second straight week. It had a slight drop in points, but is still well ahead of Baek Ji Young's second place song "Hate." "I Got A Boy" won the triple crown on both M!Countdown and Music Bank, so it should get at least another week on top.
Rounding out the top three is Sunny Hill's "Goodbye To Romance", still holding strong at No. 3 as this song has been in the top three all of January.
There are four new songs in the top 10 this week, and three of those are right below the top three. At No. 4, Infinite H moves up 17 spots with "Special Girl." Infinite H is a duo consists of Infinite members Dongwoo and Hoya. They are the second Infinite members to come out with their own music, following leader Kim Sunggyu's solo mini-album last month. Unlike Infinite's dance oriented music, Infinite H has a hip-hop approach. Their title track "Special Girl" was written by famous hip-hop producer Primary. It is a pop style hip-hop number that showcases both vocals and rap. The song also features R&B vocalist, Bumkey.
Debuting at No. 5 is the long awaited comeback song "I'm Sorry" from CNBlue. This is the title song from the group's fourth mini-album "RE:Blue." It is their first Korean release in ten months. The band composed all the songs themselves. "I'm Sorry" is a CNBlue style modern rock number that will capture fans' attentions for sure. This song has a chance to challenge for the top spot next week.
Moving up six spots to No. 6 is hip-hop artist Verbal Jint's new song "Good Start," featuring the vocals of Kang Min Hee from Miss $, who also stars in the music video. This is an R&B track in which Verbal Jint's rap blends well Kang Min Hee's vocal. Last year, Verbal Jint had his first top 10 hit "You Deserved Better," and reached No. 5 on our chart. Let see if "Good Start" can do better.
Another brand new debut song is at No. 9. Hip-hop group Bae Chi Gi is back in the top 10 with their latest hit "Shower Of Tears," coming from Part 2 of their fourth album. This song features the vocals of last year's top rookie, Ailee. Bae Chi Gi is known for their unique sound. "Shower Of Tears" is about It is an emotional breakup story which is told by the vocal of Ailee and rapping of Bae Chi Gi.
Singles Music Chart - January 2013, Week 4- 1 (–) I Got A BoyAlbum: Girls' Generation I Got a Boy Vol. 4Artist/Band: Girls' GenerationGenres: Pop/Dance
- Chart Info
- 1 Previous rank
- 3 Number of week on chart
- 1 Peak on chart
- 2 (–) Hate (feat. Yiruma)Album: Baek Ji Young Digital Single "Hate"Artist/Band: Baek Ji Young
- Music: 2Face, Yiruma
- Lyrics: 2Face, Yiruma
Genres: Pop Ballad- Chart Info
- 2 Previous rank
- 3 Number of week on chart
- 2 Peak on chart
- Watch Watch the music video
- 3 (–) Goodbye To RomanceAlbum: Sunny Hill 2nd Mini-AlbumArtist/Band: Sunny HillGenres: Pop Ballad
- Chart Info
- 3 Previous rank
- 5 Number of week on chart
- 2 Peak on chart
- 4 (+17) Special Girl (Feat.Bumkey)Album: Infinite H Mini-Album "Fly High"Artist/Band: Infinite H
- Music: Primary
- Lyrics: Beenzino, Bumkey
Genres: Hip-Hop- Chart Info
- 21 Previous rank
- 2 Number of week on chart
- 4 Peak on chart
- 5 (new) I'm SorryAlbum: CNBlue 4th Mini-AlbumArtist/Band: CN BlueGenres: Pop Rock
- Chart Info
- 0 Previous rank
- 1 Number of week on chart
- 5 Peak on chart
- 6 (+6) Good Start (feat. Kang Min Hee of Miss $)Album: Verbal Jint Digital Single "Good Start"Artist/Band: Verbal Jint
- Music: Verbal Jint
- Lyrics: Verbal Jint
Genres: Hip-Hop- Chart Info
- 12 Previous rank
- 2 Number of week on chart
- 6 Peak on chart
- Watch Watch the music video
- 7 (-3) Caffeine (feat. Yong Jun Hyung)Album: Yang Yoseob mini-album Vol. 1Artist/Band: Yang Yoseob
- Music: Kim Tae Joo, Yong Jun Hyung
- Lyrics: Kim Tae Joo, Yong Jun Hyung
Genres: Pop Ballad- Chart Info
- 4 Previous rank
- 7 Number of week on chart
- 1 Peak on chart
- Watch Watch the music video
- 8 (-2) ReturnAlbum: Lee Seung Gi Mini-Album Vol. 5.5Artist/Band: Lee Seung Gi
- Music: Epitone Project
- Lyrics: Epitone Project
Genres: Pop Ballad- Chart Info
- 6 Previous rank
- 7 Number of week on chart
- 2 Peak on chart
- Watch Watch the music video
- 9 (new) Shower Of Tears (feat. Ailee)Album: BaeChiGi Vol. 4 Part 2Artist/Band: BaeChiGiGenres: Hip-Hop
- Chart Info
- 0 Previous rank
- 1 Number of week on chart
- 9 Peak on chart
- Watch Watch the music video
- 10 (-3) Bad PersonAlbum: Juniel Mini-Album Vol. 2Artist/Band: JunielGenres: Pop Rock
- Chart Info
- 7 Previous rank
- 7 Number of week on chart
- 1 Peak on chart
Rank Song Artist/Band 11 (-6) Talk That Secret 12 (-4) Don't Go December 13 (+29) 아이야 (I Yah) Boyfriend 14 (-5) 일년전에 (One Year Ago) Jang Hyun Seung, Jung Eun Ji, Kim Nam Joo 15 (+1) 혼자라고 생각말기 (Don't Think You Are Alone) Kim Bo Kyung 16 (-6) 그대가 잠든 사이 (While You're Sleeping) Jea 17 (-6) 반창꼬 (Bandage) Noel 18 (+18) 친구 아닌 남자로 (As A Man, Not A Friend) Lee Suk Hoon 19 (-6) Officially Missing You, Too (ft. Soyu) Geeks 20 (-3) 보여줄게 (I Will Show You) Ailee 21 (+22) 이기적이야 (Selfish) Ali 22 (new) 빗소리 (Rain Sound) B.A.P 23 (+2) ? (feat. Choija, Zion.T) Primary 24 (-6) 사랑은 이렇게 (Love Is Like This) K.will 25 (+1) 오늘 뭐해? (What Are You Doing Today?) Hello Venus 26 (-11) I Like That GLAM 27 (new) 24/7 2yoon 28 (-9) 다 예뻐 (Everything Is Pretty) Han Sun Hwa (Secret) & Young Jae (B.A.P) 29 (-2) That's My Fault (feat. Davichi) Speed 30 (-16) 다 잊었니 (Did You Forget Everything?) 2BiC 31 (-2) 키다리 아저씨 (Daddy Long Legs) Baek Ah Yeon 32 (new) Mine Kim Jae Joong 33 (-2) 멀어질까봐 (Far Away…Young Love) C-Clown 34 (-10) 일 년째 (For A Year) Zia 35 (new) You & I Monday Kiz 36 (new) 다칠 준비가 돼 있어 (On And On) VIXX 37 (new) 이별재회 (Farewell) FreeStyle 38 (-3) 강남스타일 (Gangnam Style) Psy 39 (-19) Have Don't Have Dal Shabet 40 (-18) 서랍정리 (Cleaning Drawers) Big Mama 41 (-9) 똑같은 사랑 똑같은 이별 (All The Same) Urban Zakapa 42 (new) 밤하늘의 별을 4 (The Stars Of The Night 4) Kiroy Y 43 (-5) Dual Life Kim Sori 44 (new) Sorry (feat. Yazoh) Lee Seung Hwan 45 (-11) 바람기억 (Memory Of The Wind) Naul 46 (new) 지혈 (Hemostasis) Ock Joo Hyun 47 (new) Beautiful Love Kim So Jung 48 (new) 예쁘다 (So Pretty) Airplane 49 (-16) 니 얼굴 떠올라 (Reminds Of You) Byul 50 (new) 조용필처럼 (Like Cho Yong Pil) Phantom About the Soompi Music Chart:
Soompi Music Chart is unlike any other music charts or television rankings. It takes into account rankings by various major music charts in Korea and airplays of each song, making it an unbiased and objective tally of what's going on in the world of K-pop. Our chart is composed of the following sources:
Air Monitor Chart - 15%
GAON Music Chart – 20%
Various Internet charts (Olleh, Bugs, Melon, Soribada) – 15%
Billboard Korea – 20%
Music Show Appearances – 10%
KBS Music Bank K-Chart - 10%
MNet M!Countdown Chart – 10% -
- [Outside Seoul] Plastic: Korea, America, and Cosmetic Surgery Anyone who's been following Korean Entertainment for any amount of time knows that plastic surgery is just a part of the industry, to the point where it's "newsworthy" when a celebrity hasn't gone under the knife. Our guest blogger from Outside Seoul talks about the potentially touchy subject from the perspective of an American who absolutely loves Korean dramas, but is concerned about the societal implications of its growing acceptance, not just in Korea, but around the world.
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As an American who has spent the past year using television to be a peeping tom into Korean culture, one of the things I just don't understand is the prevalence of plastic surgery in Korea.
A radio program called This American Life recently aired an episode about self improvement. The show was anchored by a brief interview with a woman who had moved to South Korea to teach English at an all-girls high school. When she got there, she was stunned to realize that people in other parts of the world don't necessarily think the way Americans do: There were full-length mirrors and scales on every floor of the school she taught at. Her students used both regularly, and dreamed of the day they would be rewarded with plastic surgery for having passed their college entrance exams. This interview has gotten a lot of attention online, especially after the blog Jezebel posted an article about it.
As an outsider looking in on Korean culture, I found both this interview and the article about it to be troublesome. For one thing, both were based on the assumption that America is somehow different from Korea, that it's a place where physical appearance doesn't matter. Anyone who truly believes that—as the interviewee obviously does—is both naive and uninformed.
While Korea may embrace plastic surgery in a way America doesn't (yet), the two nations aren't that different. I suspect you could easily find girls longing for plastic surgery in high schools from Maine to Alaska to California. And while we give a lot of lip service to equal opportunity and social mobility here, discrimination based on looks is not illegal, as the presenter of This American Life helpfully reminded listeners. Our resumes and college applications don't have spots for our photographs, unlike the ones prepared in Korea. But studies still show that in America taller people tend to be more professionally successful than shorter people; heavier people are less likely to be hired than their thinner counterparts; and men make more money than women. Discrimination based on race actually is illegal, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. So what's better? Pretending that looks don't matter in your society, or acknowledging that they do?
I suspect the author of the Jezebel article and I have similar reactions to plastic surgery being used for solely aesthetic purposes—a mixture of anger and sadness. What makes us believe that we're not good enough as we are? Why must everyone on the planet look exactly the same? What is it that drives us to remake ourselves from the bone up, just so we look like someone—or something—else?
Ultimately, though, I acknowledge that this is just a particularly tempting kind of hypocrisy. As someone who believes I should have full rights to my body—whether I want to eat a Twinkie, get thirty-five piercings in places that can be hidden by a bikini, or become a nudist—I also have to allow that plastic surgery is a personal choice, and that it's none of my business when someone else makes it. The Jezebel article is too busy gawking at the Tumblr devoted to Korean plastic surgery to make this connection. But when the first article in your latest news section is about the importance of Roe v. Wade, the American court case that legalized abortion, it seems somehow less than kosher to be critical of people who undergo surgery just because it isn't in line with your ideology.
It is true that South Korea has the highest per-capita rate of plastic surgery in the world. According to the Economist, one in five women in Seoul has gone under the knife for cosmetic reasons. It's hard to say just why plastic surgery is so widespread in Korea, but a recent CNN article about Seoul as a travel destination for surgery offered an interesting theory: "To Koreans, beauty is something that is attainable through hard work—just like anything else. 'It's not just about desire," says [plastic surgeon] Kwon. 'I prefer to use the word 'challenge'—Koreans see plastic surgery, and becoming prettier, as a challenge.'" These are people who have seen their homeland change from an agricultural backwater to an economic powerhouse in a few generations, all thanks to hard work. Why shouldn't a body be at least as malleable, as improvable, as a nation?
As a drama watcher, the commonness of plastic surgery in Korea isn't exactly news to me. Korean standards of beauty seem to be both extremely precise and largely unrealistic. An affinity for Kdrama has expanded my vocabulary by leaps and bounds, but no single category of words is as new to me as the ones describing beauty. S-line? V-line? Ant waist? Double lids? "Your face is so small!": None of it meant a thing to me before Kdrama came into my life.Any illusions I may have had about natural beauty on Korean television were shattered early on in my obsession, when purported before and after photos of actress Park Min Young became ubiquitous on the Internet. The first picture is from a school yearbook and therefore isn't particularly flattering (some things really are universal, aren't they?). Park Min Young is not quite smiling in this photo, and her head is tilted at the same inquisitive angle photographers demanded for my own school photographs. She's wearing a dark blue dress shirt buttoned to the very top button, and her hair is hanging in a smooth, low-maintenance bob. Her face is full but pleasant. Her eyelids are uncreased (or monolided, in Korean parlance), her nose is small and low-bridged, and her jawline is U-shaped. The second photo is so different that I'm genuinely unconvinced that it's really the same girl. Taken from a lower angle, it emphasizes the V of her pointy chin, a pair of impossibly huge doe eyes, and a nose that's both high-bridged and sharply defined. This version of Park Min Young is wearing a ton of makeup and has outgrown her baby fat, which can account for some of the changes.
Since seeing these photos, I've spent much more time than I wanted to speculating about the surgical histories of drama stars. I think it's safe to say that many of the actors we see regularly in Korean drama have been altered in one way or another. Sometimes they've even had so much work that I can barely stand to watch them. (Then there's the issue of Korean pop idols. Plastic surgery is so common in their ranks that some groups actually sign agreements not to go under the knife—agreements which are then publicized by their management, no doubt in hopes of cashing in on the shock value.)
From the perspective of someone who watches a lot of Korean television, I'd be happy to see less plastic surgery. And from the perspective of a human being, I think the growing acceptance of plastic surgery around the world is worrying. Just what are you supposed to do when you need to have your jawbone shaved to get a job, but can't afford to have your jawbone shaved because you don't have a job? Will this create an underclass of people who don't have the means for plastic surgery?
And what will happen in ten years when styles change? Will future generations feel forced to upgrade to the hot new nose implant in the same way we upgrade to the latest computer hardware? My mother's high school best friend fell victim to a trend of the early 70s: she plucked her brows down to almost nothing and drew new ones on, mimicking Greta Garbo's arch. After a while of this her eyebrows just stopped growing back. Forty years later she's still stuck drawing them on, just as she did on the day her senior picture was taken. I bet she regrets the whole thing. And someday all these sharp-chinned Korean girls might regret their hands-on approach to skeleton ownership, too.
One of the arguments for plastic surgery that comes up in the Jezebel article is that it gives people confidence. Maybe that's true for a while, but every cosmetic procedure ever invented won't change the person you are on the inside. I have comparable experience on this front: when I was younger, I lost a ton of weight. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that on the outside I became another person. But on the inside? Nothing had really changed. I was still quiet and shy and preferred my own company, and it's hard to imagine that the results of plastic surgery would be any different.
The idea of changing our bodies in accordance with popular fads reminds me of the 1931 book Black No More by George Schyuler. In it, a doctor develops a treatment that makes black people become "white," utterly removing their ethnicity. For a while everything is fine—most black people receive the treatment and experience life without prejudice. But in the last chapter it's realized that they've become truly white, while people who are primarily caucasian are actually lots of shades other than white—"pale pink shading down to a sand color and a red." And, of course, a whole new system of racial oppression is invented, this time focused on people with skin that's too light.
The moral of that particular story, I think, is that we are who we are. It's how the world views us that we need to change to find happiness, not ourselves.
For more K-Drama commentaries and reviews, visit Outside Seoul. - Photo
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- [Exclusive] Interview with Eric Nam: The Unexpected K-Pop Artist Eric Nam, following his 5th place finish on MBC's "Star Audition: Birth of a Great Star" Season 2, is the newest member of the B2M Entertainment family, which includes popular artists such as Lee Hyori, SPICA, and SS501 members Kim Kyu Jong and Heo Young Sang. He is currently promoting his first mini-album "Cloud 9," which dropped on January 23rd, including the title track "Heaven's Door."
I was introduced to Eric through my friend Christine, an OG Soompier and the producer of Kollaboration, the nationwide talent competition that empowers Asian-Americans through entertainment. She got to know him when he directed the first-ever Kollaboration show in Boston. When I heard that Eric was also an old-school Soompier, I thought of presenting him as a fan, like the rest of us, who managed to bring his dreams of becoming a K-Pop artist to life. As we exchanged emails over the days leading up to his debut, I found that while this is all true, there was a surprising depth and breadth to his life experience that was both intriguing and refreshing.
With the constant flow of new idol groups and singers debuting each week, it could be easy to overlook him as just another pretty face. Take another look, and you'll find the most unexpected resume for a K-Pop artist. His extensive time abroad helping the underprivileged all over Latin America and India makes him seem more fit for the Peace Corps than the Music Bank stage. His education and work experience suits the job at the prestigious consulting firm he left behind. Instead, we meet him as the rookie singer who made his first stage appearance as a solo K-Pop artist just a few hours ago as I work on this interview.
Eric for Hazzy's
Right off the bat, I really liked the importance he put on connecting with fans outside of Korea in their own language, which luckily for us is English, as well as Spanish for our Soompi Spanish friends. In this in-depth interview, Eric opens up about his days as a Soompier, his path from uploading a YouTube video to getting signed at B2M, his feelings just days before his debut, and more.
Let's start with some basic information. Where are you from, and how old are you?
Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Went to school in Boston. I am 24 in the States (26 in Korea). Born in '88. I guess I'm considered older in this industry, especially to be debuting just now, but… I think age is just a number! Haha
What's your musical background? How did you get exposed to music?
I grew up singing… always, always singing. I would memorize cassette tapes of Korean folk songs from beginning to end and was always singing in church. So I kind of just grew up with it. I also started the piano when I was 4, switched to the cello when I was about 9, and just kept singing on the side. The one time I did organized singing was with the Atlanta Boy Choir, which was pretty cool because we went on tour in Italy and I got to sing for mass at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Otherwise, singing was always on my own. In my later years of high school I started uploading YouTube videos for constructive criticism and continued throughout college. It was also my only real outlet to perform.
When did you first get interested in K-Pop?
I first started listening to what's commonly known as K-Pop in middle school. I started off listening to some H.O.T., Fin.K.L., S.E.S. and then the following generation of musicians, Shinhwa, god, BoA, Fly to the Sky, etc. I would rent VHS (video cassettes… yeah remember those?) every week to watch shows like Music Bank, Inkigayo, Music Core, etc. I took a few years away from K-Pop and became re-interested in the genre around 2009/2010 while I was studying abroad in Beijing for a year. I started to see the impact that Hallyu was having in Chinese popular culture and started to follow groups like Girls' Generation, Wonder Girls, Big Bang, 2NE1, 2PM, 2AM, etc.
Throughout, I've always tried to listen to other genres of music, that's weren't always necessarily considered "K-Pop" – such as Brown Eyes, Brown Eyed Soul, Gummy, Wheesung, 4Men, etc.
Who were your first K-Pop crushes and idols?
I think my first ever kpop crushes were BoA and Lee Hyori (is it awkward that I'm in her company?) I remember seeing both of them and thinking WOW (hahaha). In terms of performance, my family and I used to watch Shinhwa a lot and my brothers and I would try to mimic their dance moves and songs!
Who are your favorite non-K-Pop artists?
Bruno Mars, Adele, John Legend, John Mayer, Maroon 5, Marc Broussard, Alicia Keys, guilty pleasure – Taylor Swift (though she should really do something about all her heartbreak).
In K-Pop, I'm a big fan of 2NE1 and Big Bang, my mentor Lee Seung Hwan, Urban Zakapa, Naul, Ra.D, Ailee, the list goes on and on and on.
You mentioned that you used to be an active Soompier. How old were you when you were a Soompier, and how serious were you at that point about trying to "make it" in Korea?
Eric with one of his American music idols, Brian McKnight.
I was probably 13 when I first started going on Soompi. For me, Soompi was very much about connecting to other Korean-Americans and people who were interested in Korean/Asian culture. When growing up in Atlanta, there weren't as many Korean-Americans as there are now. I also went to a predominantly white school, so for a while it was actually really difficult for me to relate to peers and I think Soompi played a role in filling that gap. [Soomp's sidenote: I've heard stories like this so many times, but it always feels good to know that the Soompi community actually makes a difference in people's lives *sniff*] At a certain point, after a lot of pumping myself up, I developed the courage to upload some of my own music. I still remember being so incredibly nervous, because it was the first time that I was presenting myself to people and just putting myself out there for people to respond to.
Honestly, for me, becoming a singer was always just a dream. I wanted to be a singer so bad and I wanted to audition for companies, but I never had the opportunity. YouTube and technology weren't the way they are today, and even K-Pop wasn't the huge cultural entity that it is now. In addition, my parents were also very much against me becoming a musician or a singer, so I always felt nervous and maybe even a bit guilty about trying to pursue music behind their backs.
I remember in high school, SM (Entertainment) had come to Atlanta for auditions, I hadn't known until an hour before the audition, so I went in unprepared and extremely nervous, and obviously didn't make it (hehehe). For me, I think my mentality was, I'll keep uploading YouTube videos and if people like what they see maybe there'll be a chance for me to audition or fate will take me somewhere, and in a way, that's kind of what happened. There were definitely some really cool things that came up through YouTube.
At college graduation, I remember thinking, "Well, I guess there's not much of a chance for me to be a singer anymore…" because I guess I had assumed college would be the last time I had enough "me time" and freedom to try to pursue it. But God always has other plans!
NEXT: Eric talks about how he ended up on MBC's Star Audition, and how it helped alter the course of his life.
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