SBS’s “K-pop Star” has had four seasons so far, and each season produces fresh new talent for the ever expanding Kpop industry. The winners of said competition normally achieve commercial success when they make their debut (think Akdong Musician and Bernard Park) but what happens to the rest of the contestants who do not make the final cut? Throughout the show these contestants grow a lot as artists, and they show plenty of promise and talent. Sadly, they normally do not become as popular as the winners, and Yoon Hyun Sang is one such example.
Two years after the competition, he made his debut under Loen Entertainment with his debut album, “Pianoforte”. He also made his comeback earlier this year, but still remains relatively unknown in the industry.
During his audition on “K-pop Star,” Yoon played the piano as he sang and impressed the judges (JYP, Yang Hyun Suk, and BoA) with his soulful compositions. Right from the start Yoon Hyun Sang showed great control of his smooth voice and a lot of potential as both a singer and a composer. He continued to perform impressively throughout the season, eventually finishing in seventh place.
When he debuted in 2014, Yoon Hyun Sang had the privilege to collaborate with labelmate IU for his debut track, “When Would It Be”. IU is known primarily for her outstanding vocals, but she did not outshine Yoon Hyun Sang at all. The way that they flawlessly complemented each other just highlighted his vocal abilities, a rare feat for a rookie artist. The duet was simply breathtaking, and it sent chills all the way down my spine. His soothing voice was sincere and sounded effortless, despite the difficult vocal techniques required for this song. The entire song was very calm, yet every note he sang was nuanced and evoked a lot of emotion in listeners.
It is probably harder for ballad singers to become popular because they don’t dance or rap, but with his most recent release, Yoon Hyun Sang showed that he isn’t your typical ballad singer. He had the courage to experiment with different genres of songs and even pulled them off with much success. In his latest mini album, “Wave”, Yoon showcased a different side of himself through every track. I really appreciate the fact that he had the boldness to try the blues in this album, in a way that still allowed him to stick with his ballad roots. “20 Blues” is the perfect example of such a fusion, and it just made me respect him as an artist even more.
Yoon Hyun Sang is also extremely talented musically. It is rare to see Korean artists composing their own songs, let alone rookie artists writing their own lyrics and doing their own arranging.He showed off his composing skills during his time in “K-pop Star” and in his albums. Even his latest work, “Embrace” (for the OST of SBS drama “Hyde, Jekyll, Me”) also showcases this.
Yoon Hyun Sang understands his voice and knows how to use it as a musical instrument, hence he is able to apply that knowledge to his composing and come up with songs in which his voice can shine the most. He is also able to sing with so much emotion because he is able to relate to the songs and lyrics that he writes, showing his growth and maturity as an artist. His love and passion for music is very evident and it definitely shows in the wonderful pieces he creates.
As a singer, Yoon Hyun Sang is still a very underappreciated artist in the K-pop industry, but hopefully he will have more opportunities in the future to showcase more of his talent and potential. It warms my heart to know that there are passionate musicians like Yoon Hyun Sang, who do music because they love it. I’m definitely looking forward to his next album. In the meantime, check out the touching and emotional music video for his latest title track “Time Forgets”.
Have you ever heard of Yoon Hyun Sang? What do you think about the quality of artists in the Kpop industry nowadays? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/yoon-hyun-sang.jpg400500Anna Cheanghttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngAnna Cheang2015-08-08 04:41:572015-08-08 22:32:03Artist Spotlight: Yoon Hyun Sang
There is no such thing as too many books, especially when they relate to K-pop and falling in love with K-pop idols. Katie M. Stout, the author of the young adult romance novel “Hello, I Love You” spoke to KultScene about her book.
1. Congratulations on publishing “Hello, I Love You”! How did it feel when you got to the end of the long writing-editing process?
Thank you! Honestly, it felt a little surreal. I wrote and edited the book for about nine months before I queried, then that took almost a year. My agent and I were on submission for about six months with it, and all-in-all, it was about three years from finishing a first draft to seeing it on shelves. So publication day was definitely a victory day.
2. The book is all about K-pop, and there’s a lot of mentions of Korean dramas. How did you get into that scene?
I’d never even heard of a Korean drama until I was in college. I was teaching English in China and went into a video store, where they had some K-dramas featured. I picked up one on a whim (it was “49 Days”), and once I’d started, I couldn’t stop. That led me to other dramas, like “Heartstrings” and “Dream High,” which ended up being two inspirations for my book.
3. What made you decide to write a book about South Korea? Have you ever spent time there?
Because I was writing about K-pop, it seemed like a natural progression for the book to be about South Korea. It didn’t make sense to me for a book about a K-pop singer to be set in New York, for example.
I had never been to Korea when I was writing the book, but I actually got to visit the same week I signed with my agent. I had finished up an internship in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and made a stopover in Seoul before going back home. It was so fun to visit the places I’d written about!
4. I read somewhere that the book was supposed to be set in China. Why the change?
Yes, originally, the book was set in China. I wrote it that way because I was inspired by my own time in China. I also liked the idea that both of my main characters would be foreigners living in another country and they would bond over that. However, when my book was acquired by St. Martin’s, the team there felt like it was too confusing to have that many cultures represented in one book. So I shifted the setting of the entire book to South Korea, which I’ll admit, was no easy feat.
Fun fact: the book was originally called “From China, With Love,” referring to the letters that my main character writes her brother back home. My editor at St. Martin’s came up with the idea to name it after the Doors’s song that features so prominently in the book. It was such an extraordinary idea that I don’t think I could have come up with this myself, and I’m so glad I had the guidance of my editor. That’s why I think it is important for any aspiring authors to look into “freelance editors near me” to join them on this journey to publishing a successful book. Even if you think you don’t need them, they could present you with interesting ideas about how to move the story forward and what to incorporate to make it work better. I’m glad I took this advice, as the title sounds much better now.
5. “Hello, I Love You” is about music. What songs were you listening to when writing, other than the title song?
I listened to a lot of music while writing, mostly K-pop. I joke that, like some actors are “method actors,” I consider myself an “immersive writer,” meaning that whatever I’m working on at the time, I consume only media that matches my current work in progress. So while drafting and editing HILY, I listened to a ton of Girls’ Generation, BIGBANG, CNBlue, Shinee, Teen Top, and other K-pop bands. I also watched a lot of K-dramas; some of my favorites at the time were “Big,” “Monstar,” “Rooftop Prince,” and more recently, “My Love from Another Star.”
6. What Korean music and television shows are you a fan of? Have you ever gone to a K-pop concert?
Other than the ones mentioned above, my favorite K-drama is probably “City Hunter,” which is mentioned in my book but not by name. Two of my characters have a conversation about a specific drama, and I think people who’ve watched “City Hunter” should recognize it based on the description. [We did!]
I haven’t been to a K-pop concert, sadly. I’m from the Atlanta area, which never really has K-pop bands come through, and while I was living in England, I was in a region that had no concerts at all, so it just hasn’t been convenient. I thought about going to one when I was in Seoul, but I ended up not doing it. I still regret that.
7. What difficulties did you face while writing?
I had the usual difficulties, including the big one, which is namely trying to ensure that your book doesn’t suck. That means I agonized over words and character development and pacing of the book, etc.
But more than that, I had a lot of researching to do. I’d never been to the places I was describing, which meant I needed to know what they looked like. I also had to look up old Korean rock bands, because I didn’t know any but my characters needed to. And there was the typical research about food and language and other parts of the culture that I didn’t know previously.
And lastly, I really struggled with my main character. She’s going through a very specific personal struggle, and I wanted to portray that genuinely. While some people have felt that my portrayal isn’t sensitive, I’ve been encouraged by readers who have moved to other countries and lived as expats who’ve told me that Grace’s experience reminded them of their own. It’s certainly similar to the one I had when I moved to England, and I felt it was important to portray a character going through culture shock if she moves to another country – that’s real, and it’s not realistic to not talk about that at all.
8. Which character do you think you want to be friends with?
Oh, Sophie for sure. I loved her from the first page she showed up. Both of my main characters have a little too much angst, so I wouldn’t want to be with them all the time, but Sophie is just kind and fun and funny. I also really like Yoon Jae, and if I were in Grace’s shoes, I think I might have been interested in him instead of a certain brooding leading singer.
9. What was it like creating an imaginary K-pop band? What were you influenced by?
My biggest inspiration for the band in my book was CNBlue, one of the few K-pop bands with members who play instruments. I knew I wanted them all to do more than just sing and dance, so I needed a real band to model them after. I imagine their sound to be similar to older CNBlue music, as well – songs like “Love Girl” or “Sweet Holiday.”
10. What’s one thing you want readers to know about the book?
I think it’s helpful for them to know that the book isn’t just about K-pop. It has K-pop in it, but it’s more about two people who have broken pasts that have to learn to recognize their faults before they can come together. It’s also told from the perspective of a Westerner with zero knowledge of Korean pop culture, who holds some distinct prejudices she never knew she had – and that she has to learn to recognize before she can move past them. It’s about culture shock, family, love, and forgiveness. And it has kissing, too.
11. To my knowledge, this is the first English-language novel about K-pop. How do you feel about that? Do you think we may see more in the future?
There may be other YA novels out there about K-pop, but I don’t know of any. In many ways, my book is the first of its kind, and that was actually both exciting and difficult. I came up against a lot of closed doors. I had numerous literary agents while I was querying tell me that they liked the book but had no idea how to sell it. I was told over and over again that the market wasn’t ready for a book about K-pop, and it was disheartening. I’m still thankful for both my agent and publisher who disagreed with everyone else and thought the YA market was ready.
It’s encouraging, as well, that my book did something new. I’d love to see more books about K-pop in the future! I’ve gotten some criticism that my book isn’t as informative as many people wanted it to be, but I like to think that I helped open the door for more K-pop-focused books in the Western YA industry – so we can have those books that are more informative and about Korean protagonists and are more in-depth studies of culture and everything my book is not. I think that would be amazing! And if my little book accomplishes anything, I hope it’s that.
Do you want to own a copy of “Hello, I Love You”? We’re here to help! Katie M. Stout gave KultScene the chance to raffle off one copy of the book, so enter now for your chance to win! (Unfortunately, this is only open to residents of the United States, but you can buy the book from Amazon and many other bookstores.)
What K-pop star would you like to fall in love with? Let us know in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/hello-i-love-you.jpg15111000Tamar Hermanhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngTamar Herman2015-08-07 11:45:352016-05-27 11:18:28‘Hello, I Love You’ Is (Probably) The First Novel About Romancing A K-Pop Star [INTERVIEW+GIVEAWAY]
Sunday’s come and gone, and an avid KultScene reader may have realized that we didn’t publish our usual Playlist Sunday list. Don’t worry, we didn’t forget! We were just busy making sure that we covered every single moment at KCON LA 2015 to make sure we let you in on all the details. Instead, the three KultScene writers who covered the event picked our favorite songs of each night’s M! Countdown concert.
On the first night of the show, Super Junior performed a variety of songs from throughout their decade-long career. As a longtime ELF, or Super Junior’s Everlasting Friend, I couldn’t handle myself the minute I realized they were performing “Shake It Up.” The pump up party song is one of Super Junior’s most fun songs (in my opinion) and it seemed like everyone in the Staples Center on August 1 was stomping their feet and clapping along to the members’ antics.
During the second night, the final song of the first set was my particular favorite (barring Shinhwa, because let’s be honest, Shinhwa is a legend). When the opening chords of Red Velvet’s “Happiness” began, it seemed like everyone immediately began singing and dancing along. The song’s popularity and the relatively easy dance moves reminded me of a lot of circa 2009 K-pop songs, which thrived on their iconic dances, like Girls’ Generation’s “Gee,” Super Junior’s “Sorry Sorry,” and Wonder Girls’ “Tell Me.” As the opening act for the second night of “M! COUNTDOWN Feelz In LA,” Red Velvet got everyone moving and that’s nothing more than I could ask for.
— Tamar
As mentioned in our KCON 2015 in Los Angeles recap, on the first night of the concert, sapphire blue lights illuminated the Staples Center to welcome K-pop kings Super Junior. And since L.A., and overall America, craves the Super Show, Suju treated attendees to a medley of some of their most fun songs. But one of the most random if not mind boggling track choices was Donghae and Eunhyuk’s latest release “Can You Feel It.” Even if it was a quick snippet, the song was completely unexpected but completely appreciated, given that we got to see ALL of the guys derping around doing the choreography. Seeing this performance, along with the rest on the medley, only made us crave a Super Show even more and proved that audiences receive even their less known songs well.
As an ELF, Saturday completely drained me of everything inside of me. Sunday was going to be a night for me to sit back, chill, and watch performances by groups I wasn’t heavily invested in. Sure, I liked some Block B songs, but I didn’t consider myself a big fan… that is until their sub-unit BASTARZ came out and performed “Zero for Conduct.” P.O, B-Bomb, and U-Kwon, literally, gave me life and got me lit as soon as the opening siren came out the speakers. I was dancing and completely vibing throughout the whole performance even though I didn’t know the lyrics of the song. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is by definition how you put on a great show.
— Alexis
Although the lively Jackson wasn’t in attendance at KCON LA with his group, GOT7 made sure to still put on a dynamic show for the crowd! The anticipation was already high since all the iGOT7’s (GOT7’s fan club name) knew the guys were going to sing “Just Right,” their newest single. But GOT7 took it to another level when they performed “Bounce,” which was the debut track for members JB and JR when they were JJ Project. “Bounce” is always such an enjoyable performance to watch, with all the crazy head bobbing, infectious frolicking as they run wild around the stage, and, of course, the cute “shake it shake it for me” butt shakes. What started as a two-person song and performance has now evolved into a song that the entire group can genuinely enjoy performing together!
Going into Sunday’s night’s concert, I already knew I would’ve been content with whatever setlist SHINHWA played. A part of me expected 80 percent of their set to be songs off of “The Return,” “The Classic,” and “WE,” considering these albums were all released within the last three years, with of course an addition of the song that brought them to their stardom, “T.O.P”. My predictions for their set was rather on par, but what blew my Changjo (SHINHWA’s fan club name) mind was when “Hey, Come On!” started playing. The crowd was already hyped and the energy was already through the roof, so can you imagine what it was like when the beat dropped for this song? The choreography for the songs they performed prior to this were all relatively mellow and synchronized versus the constant jumping and arm waving choreography for “Hey, Come On!” These legendary idols couldn’t have put together a better set list! Let’s just say the Changjo in me sobbed happy tears that night.
— Tam
I have never been a devoted fan to BLOCK B but I have always liked them due to their aesthetics and their funny, big personalities. After seeing them perform live at KCON LA 2015, I become a hardcore fan of the group. As soon as they began to perform “Very Good,” I went crazy. I started dancing and singing like crazy along with BLOCK B. Seeing them do all of their funny gimmicks and the unforgettable choreography of the song while commanding the huge stage at the Staples Center was a blast to my eyes and ears. The energy of the night got pumped up by BLOCK B making it a night and performance that I will never forget.
— Alejandro
What song would you enjoy seeing performed live? Let us know your picks in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/DSC_0567.jpg448900KultScenehttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngKultScene2015-08-06 07:23:582015-08-06 11:46:43The Best Songs At KCON LA 2015
In its fourth year, KCON LA expanded to add an extra day from last year, and headed to a larger venue at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Between July 31 and August 2, fans and purveyors of Korean culture in the United States kept busy with a variety of different activities.
Expo
This year, KCON LA’s booths became a full-on expo. Previously, KCON had featured only a handful of vendors, websites, and fa clubs. But this year, there were many more booths, plus an added business conference on the first day. The expo area was divided into different sections, including CJ Street featuring a variety of CJ E&M booths, the Marketplace where attendees could free up their dollars, the K-ICT Dream Zone featuring technology, and the K-Goods Zone, selling an array of Korean products.
Some of the most prominent booths included Verizon, Asiana, MBC America, Nongshim, and Toyota, sponsors of the event, but Korean beauty and technology brands, like Iope, K3I, The Face Shop, and Kakao, also were spotted throughout the event. People walking around could sing karaoke, try out virtual reality goggles, purchase Korean oriented clothing or ridiculously cute t-shirts, check out booths hosted by Korean channels like Mnet and TvN, buy K-pop posters and albums (and, of course, official KCON souvenirs!), and practically anything Korean wave related. Websites like Soompi and Glow Recipe also hosted their own booths.
Fanclubs played a big role in this year’s expo, with many K-pop fanclubs organizing fans in a variety of special events planned for artists during the concert. One Super Junior fanclub planned a banner event with the members of the group, while another handed out blue headbands that led to the first night of KCON 2015 appearing like a sapphire blue ocean. Fans of the show “Running Man” set up a Running Fan corner of the expo, where KCON-goers could try to reenact their favorite games of the variety show. Red Velvet fans sold jewelry featuring the members, and even fanclubs of artists who weren’t appearing at the show made themselves known. Fanclubs of groups like EXO and MYNAME were also there, gathering in North American fans.
Along with the expo panels themselves, there was a central stage that featured performances throughout the three-day event, including Roy Kim, Buzzfeed’s The Try Guys (!), performance group Double The Fire, and violinist and dancer Jun Sung Ahn. GOT7 even surprised the convention on the second day by putting on a fashion show in collaboration with the Korean fashion brand Beyond Closet. Designer Ko Tae Young also appeared at the event, and GOT7 wore the clothes for multiple events throughout the day.
Panels
With a whole three days to fill, there were a lot more panels at this year’s KCON, and a lot of interest. Many panels were cram-packed with people who wanted to hear what was going on, with multiple lines wrapping around the corner of the convention center as fans tried to get seats close to their favorite panelists.
Korean drama producers, fashion icons, actors, YouTube stars, writers, and other sort of industry insiders made their rounds, giving their thoughts and opinions on a variety of subjects. Panels addressed the meaning of K-pop, Korean indie music, cultural clashes, behind the scenes of websites and dramas, K-Pop’s LGBT fandom, and a lot lot more.
KCON attendees were also able to learn the dances of their favorite songs, cook food, learn tips about applying Korean beauty products, and a lot more. For more culturally inclined people, KCON-ers could try on traditional Korean clothes, watch a Korean wedding ceremony, and learn about traditional Korean tea.
Several Korean dramas and films also were aired during the convention, including “Twenty,” “Emergency Couple,” and the premiere of “Mr. Baek The Homemade Food Master,” featuring KCON guest So Ho Jun. One event that gained a lot of attention on the Internet post-KCON was an 18+ fan fiction open mic, hosted by KCON’s Hoon Bae.
Fan Engagements
One of the highlights this year for many fans at KCON was the success of the fan engagements. In previous years, there were issues with meet and greets being too limited so that many fans couldn’t attend, poorly timed events, cancelled events, or not enough interaction between fans and their favorite idols. But this time around, KCON LA got everything very right.
Many of acts who would appear at the M! Countdown concerts, including SHINHWA, AOA, Monsta X, Red Velvet, Got7, and Block B, held fan engagements with their fans. All of the meet and greets featured question and answer sessions, and most featured hi-touch events. After initial confusion on the first day, when two fan meets had to swap their times due to scheduling issues, all of the rest ran orderly and the majority of fans possible were able to enjoy. Morover, attendees also got involved in the KCON meet and greet black market, where you could trade tickets and, maybe, make a bit of cash. It was hard to walk through the convention without hearing “Looking for GOT7 hi-touch tickets!” or “Who wants a Roy Kim audience ticket?”
Food
Let’s talk about the grub. Along with the standard convention center fare of hot dogs, pizza, and coffee, there were free McDonalds samples being given out throughout the majority of the weekend and Korean cooking lessons from brands like Bibigo, where KCON-ers learned how to make bibimbap, a Korean meal in a bowl. There were also food trucks and stands from several Korean-oriented companies, like Tous les Jours and Shin Ramyun.
Klub KCON
While there were three days of KCON LA 2015, there were only two nights of concerts, so for the first day KCON introduced something brand new. Klub KCON opened up in the convention center after the expo ended for the day on July 31, giving attendees a place to party. SISTAR and Monsta X performed at the event, surprising KCON-ers in the intimate atmosphere with tastes of what they were going to perform the next night at the Staples Center.
KCON App
One of the most innovative things at KCON LA 2015 was an app that people could download to their phones, which would alert KCON attendees about events going on and schedule changes. People could look up the location and time of events and even make planned out, personal schedules for themselves.
Red Carpet
The Red Carpet was the highlight for many fans, since artists like Super Junior and Kim Soo Hyun had not held fan engagements, meaning this was the event to get close to them before the actual concert. But let’s not bore you and go straight to the pictures from that day of all of Korea’s top celebrities.
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Did you go to KCON or wish you had gone? Share your experience and thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter,Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/DSC_0738.jpg481800Tamar Hermanhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngTamar Herman2015-08-05 14:30:012015-08-05 16:59:09Inside KCON LA 2015 [PHOTOS]
Sometimes I think I’m not harsh enough on K-pop releases. Nearly every one of my reviews has been overwhelmingly positive. Those were all genuinely great releases, though, and I don’t think any differently now. Maybe K-pop is not as perfect as I thought it was, and I was adjusting my opinions to fit that. Then this week happened. Three titans of K-pop SHINee, Wonder Girls, and T-ara released equally exceptional new songs. As the kids would say, what a time to be alive.
These vanguards of K-pop are also a good example of a few different sides of the genre. Wonder Girls and SHINee deliver perfect 80/70s throwbacks in different ways and T-ara pull off the best generic Brave Brothers track since AOA’s “Miniskirt”.
SHINee “Married to the Music”
SHINee already showed us that they had the 90s sound and look down to a tee, and this time they take on the music of the 70s. Michael Jackson’s style in particular can be heard, which isn’t a surprise given his clear influence on Taemin’s solo and SHINee’s concept in general.
The first thing you’ll notice about “Married to the Music” is how wacky and fun the video is. It takes most of its inspiration from the 1975 cult classic, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” It shows the boys from SHINee drinking some weird drinks that change their disposition (alcohol! gasp!) and having a wild time in a creepy house. Heads are chopped off, eyeballs popped out as events get stranger by the second. It is by far the most fun video of the year so far. It’s great to see SM actually trying with their videos as well. When they actually put effort in, and take SM artists outside of boxes, SM Entertainment makes the best video they have ever done.
It’s disappointing then that the lyrics don’t match up with the video at all then. They’re pretty standard, about loving a girl. Even the music metaphor isn’t interesting as it’s always about the girl and not actual music, which could have been cool and unsurprising given SHINee’s seeming love of music, especially Jonghyun.
This disappointment doesn’t last long though as the song more than makes up for it. “Married to the Music” continues the retro theme with funky aplomb. The thing I really like about this song is the wide use of actual instruments over electronics. Apart from the drums it sounds like an actual band could have played this. The wandering bass that carries the song is particularly satisfying and reminiscent of Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust”. The slick guitars provide the funk like no synths can. That’s not to say it’s devoid of electronics though, they are used sparingly to good effect at louder parts of the song like Minho’s rap. The song is a blast and has no trouble keeping up with the outrageous video.
Wonder Girls “I Feel You”
The throwbacks continue with the return of the legendary Wonder Girls. I got into K-pop in late 2011 so missed most of the Wonder Girls mania. So, they never really meant a lot to me apart from having some good songs. However, when the teaser came out for “I Feel You”, the single for their new rebooted band lineup, I fell in love. The MTV inspired video and 80s synth-pop sound appeared so perfectly realised. With the release of the video, this love turned out to be complete.
Like SHINee, it’s the dedication to being retro that really sets Wonder Girls apart. So often recently we have seen groups tack on the most obvious elements of 80s or 90s pop to make their song a retro throwback. The general sound and look of these songs are usually still quite modern, though, so it tends not to work. What Wonder Girls have done is transport the 80s to today and given it modern production values and edgy sexiness. Even with that, “I Feel You,” still sounds like it could have been from the actual 80s.
This is clearly evident in the synth hook that introduces the song. It’s an intoxicating riff that doesn’t outstay its welcome and eventually becomes the hook of the song. This is why the actual chorus comes across as quite flat at first. Sunmi’s softer, kind of talk singing over the chorus doesn’t inspire you to sing along but allows the synth riff to shine once she’s finished. It also works to carry over the sensual feeling of the verse which features similar sexy, whispered vocals. The addition of rapping that can sometimes make a retro K-pop track quite jarring doesn’t even stop “I Feel You” for a moment. Yubin’s deep, sensual voice fits perfectly with the rest of the vocals making her rap more a slightly faster verse than a whole new part.
The music video also completely nails the 80s retro feel. The attention to detail in some of the images is brilliant and quite funny at times. If you ever thought the video was kind of cheesy at times, don’t worry: That’s the point. The opening is probably my favourite where Sunmi turns to the camera, smiles then zips down her shorts to reveal the group on stage. For whatever reason the turn before she smiles makes it for me; it seems unnecessary but works so well. I also love the shots of the girls as they rap the post-chorus part. They have two of the girls in each shot and pull focus as they rap. It’s the type of shot that would never be seen today and is the kind of detail that makes this song and video one of the best of the year so far.
T-ara “So Crazy”
For better or worse, Brave Brothers has become a mainstay of the K-pop environment. His safe but effective music has been increasingly popular in the last few years making him the go to guy for a hit. So his pairing with the once loved T-ara is an appropriate one. Ever since their scandal in 2012, T-ara have had a hard time regaining their popularity in Korea. Instead they have mainly focused on promoting in China where they have had unprecedented success. They, of course, have not given up on their home country though and are teaming up with Brave Brothers for “So Crazy” their new single.
While “So Crazy” stays true to the Brave Brothers form in structure and use of sounds, it is still an incredibly exciting track. It moves at intense speeds. The song doesn’t quite explode until the first chorus but the opening verse is deceptively quick and full to the brim with different sounds. Bouncing horns and layered vocals build anticipation before the song takes off. Its a sound that fits T-ara like few other groups. Their vocals lend to the high-pitched layers especially using the slightly weaker Jiyeon with a stronger vocal like Hyomin’s or Soyeon’s.
“So Crazy” is Brave Brothers at his absolute best. Of the three songs I’ve talked about so far, it is probably the least interesting and yet it remains the most exciting and listenable. His ‘oh oh oh’ hook once again works its magic. The song has an unhinged quality that is usually absent in Brave Brothers songs. It hits all the same beats as any recent AOA song yet there is always so much going that it never bores and feels like it could lift off into the stratosphere at any time.
What do you think of these three songs and of the current state of K-pop? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter,Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
They may not know it, but most K-pop fans owe their soul to Marcan Entertainment.
If you’ve ever heard SHINee’s “Lucifer,” U-KISS’s “Neverland,” or EXO’s “Love Me Right,” then you’ve heard a song that Marcan Entertainment had its hands behind. As a music production company that brings foreign producers and music writers together with South Korean musicians, Marcan Entertainment works closely with many Korean entertainment agencies. In particular, the company has a long-lasting relationship with SM Entertainment, and many of K-pop’s most popular groups have sung songs put together by Marcan Entertainment.
Marcan’s managing director Mark Yom spoke with me to discuss what the company is doing within the K-pop world.
So what is it that Marcan Entertainment does exactly?
“We facilitate music,” Yom said, as we sat in a cafe in the heart of Seoul, less than 100 feet from K-pop powerhouses SM Entertainment and FNC Entertainment.
“We have tons of writers and producers consistently sending us music, and we filter them and we see what will be good for SM or any other label,” he explained, describing the first way that Marcan Entertainment connects K-pop with songwriters. Marcan also works with Warner Chapell, which helps the company access thousands of musicians.
Foreign producers send their demos to Marcan, and Marcan decides where to pitch it. “We pitch songs that they [the agencies] don’t even ask for,” said Yom. “They’re always looking for something that is different.”
Marcan Entertainment began in 2009, with Ryan S. Jhun as the creative producer and Yom as the managing director. Almost before things were underway, Jhun had already closed a deal with SM Entertainment, and the two have honored their loyalty to the Korean agency ever since.
“A mutual friend happened to know one of the staff from SM, and that person introduced Ryan [Jhun] to the A&R team leader,” explained Yom. “Lucky for us, he was able to close a deal and when he came back to New York, that’s when he asked me to work together with him, to partner up and I said ‘sure, why not?’”
Since then, the “sure, why not?” attitude has gotten Yom and Jhun working with a variety of K-pop agencies. Marcan Entertainment has produced songs for JYP Entertainment (15&’s “Somebody”,) B2M Entertainment (SPICA,) NH Media (U-KISS,) and more. According to Yom, YG Entertainment and FNC Entertainment have their own sounds and in-house producer that Marcan Entertainment doesn’t usually tailor to.
Regardless of the other agencies, though, Marcan works closely with SM to the degree that they provide music writers for multiple songwriting camps run by SM each year, the second way that Marcan generates K-pop songs.
“Every month, songwriters from all over the world come to write songs for them. We do anywhere from three to five song camps with SM per year. So the last one we did was March. This one [in July] is not as big, but normally we have 20 different songwriters and producers from all over the world for anywhere from 2-3 weeks.”
Marcan chooses producers and songwriters that they think will be able to tailor songs to SM Entertainment’s tastes and invites them to Korea.
“At the beginning of writing camps, SM A&R’s gives them leads, gives them reference,” Yom told me. “’Hey, these are the kind of songs that we’re looking for at this moment. These are the artists that we’re aiming for.’”
Those songwriting camps have resulted in some of SM Entertainment’s latest hits, including SHINee’s most recent single “View,” and EXO’s “Love Me Right.”
According to Yom, the songwriting process can take anywhere from a few hours to two weeks, but forcing the producers and songwriters to produce hundreds of songs during the songwriting camp isn’t what Marcan is there to do. “It doesn’t make sense for us to make 10-15 songs a week if they’re all – excuse my language – shitty songs. If it’s shitty, it’s shitty. … Sometimes they [the songwriters] can work on one song the whole day or a few hours, or a few weeks, cause that’s how long it takes to make a song.”
So what happens exactly when an agency like SM Entertainment hears a song at the songwriting camp that fits their image? “Love Me Right” is a good example, even though it took a bit longer than usual to create.
“As soon as they heard the hookline ‘love me right uh huh’ while we were having this songwriting camp, they were like, ‘we want to use this as a single so can you build more upon it?’” Yom recounts SM Entertainment’s interest in the song. “So we had iDR [the producer] working on just that song for two weeks, we had him do nothing else. We had other writers working on other songs, like Adrian [Mckinnon, who wrote SHINee’s “View] and other guys working on stuff for SHINee, with a lot of other stuff going on at the same time.”
For his part, Mark Yom is mostly involved with the business and legal side of things, but his relationship with Jhun is like to two hands attached to one body. One hand is better at doing one thing, while the other is good at another, but they still have to know what the other is doing and where they are at all times.
”I’ve learned that just because I’m on the business side of things doesn’t mean that I have to close my ears and can ignore what’s going on. Even though I’m not part of songwriting or producing, I’m there just to give them [the creative side] support.”
Working so closely with SM Entertainment, Yom has a good idea of what the company is angling for, and highlighted SHINee’s latest album, “Odd,” as SM’s ideal sound for the foreseeable future.
“They don’t want too much going on from the production side. They want something light and minimal, but with very catchy hook lines and melodies…For the last two or three years, trap and EDM style music was in but now they’re trying to phase that out. The recent single that we had with SHINee, the song called “View,” it’s very light and a mix of dance, R&B, and pop sounds. We did their song “Lucifer” too, and that was very electronic, EDM heavy, but that was almost four years ago.”
The deep house song became a huge hit in South Korea. If there’s more where that came from planned for SHINee, every music fan in the world should be excited.
So what exactly happens to all of those songs that they create that don’t get accepted by SM Entertainment or wherever they think they should go? They sometimes go unproduced, but Marcan Entertainment will re-pitch. “Just because it [a song] was rejected doesn’t mean it’s bad quality, but it’s not what they’re looking for or not in their musical direction,” explained Yom. “There were songs that were supposed to come out with SM but didn’t. For example, U-KISS’s ‘Neverland,’ was pitched for Super Junior but for some reason it didn’t get cut on time, and went to U-KISS.”
Even though that didn’t work out, Marcan Entertainment has worked with Super Junior on other projects, such as their single “No Other.” Marcan has worked with just about every top SM Entertainment artist in the past six years. Marcan Entertainment’s latest song for SM Entertainment was “Champagne,” a solo track by TVXQ’s Yunho prior to his enlistment in the Korean military.
Next up from Marcan are two of the biggest K-pop comebacks of the year.
“We have Girls’ Generation’s [comeback]. One of the songs, “You Think,” was produced by us and the songwriter, SAARA. She’s a Finnish artist. We brought her over, she’s working with Marcan, and she wanted to meet Girls’ Generation so she met Tiffany yesterday.”
“You Think” is one of the two follow up tracks to the hit single “Party” that Girls’ Generation will release later this summer. SHINee’s repackage album is also expected to be released soon, with a few Marcan Entertainment songs.
Marcan Entertainment is one of the only companies doing what it’s doing, and hard work has truly paid off.
Six years ago, when Yom and Jhun began their work, Yom admits that it was a bit more difficult to convince producers and songwriters to get on board the K-pop train. That’s not the case now. “We don’t even have to convince songwriters or producers to work with us because they’ve already heard about the K-pop market so we don’t have to sell them as much as we used to, because they didn’t know about the market.”
While Marcan Entertainment is a relatively small agency, Yom and Jhun have big dreams, and have around 30 songwriters signed to their company. “There’s a lot of other areas that we’re interested in getting into, for example having our own artist someday, and we’re going to continue producing music for K-pop. Clearly, we’re open to working with US writers. That’s eventually what we want to do and we’ll keep on pushing to reach that level. We want to not only be K-pop music producing team or company but we want to be able to produce all sorts of music, for anyone.”
What do you think of Marcan Entertainment’s work in the K-pop industry? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter,Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Marcan-Ent2.png7681024Tamar Hermanhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngTamar Herman2015-08-02 09:14:202015-08-02 09:14:20K-Pop Sound, American Style: Marcan Entertainment Is The K-Pop Production K-Pop Agencies Turn To [INTERVIEW]
When it comes to innovations in music, K-pop is one genre that does it best.
The Internet was sent into a frenzy recently when popular idol group INFINITE released an alternate version of their latest music video for “Bad.” Just what made this particular video so groundbreaking was its use of 360 degree virtual reality (VR) technology, and while it may not have been the first ever to try its hand at the cutting edge technology, it was definitely the first of its kind within the mainstream K-pop sphere. With this new version, viewers are put in control with the ability to manipulate the different camera angles in order to simulate the experience of being on set. Indeed, the music video is only one (great) step closer towards fan-idol interactions, and at the end of the day gimmicks like these are what sells.
K-pop powerhouses such as SM Entertainment know this all too well, leading them to capitalize on their consumers’ desires to become closer to the faces and personalities behind the music. Without having to force their top acts into display cases where fans can ogle at them all day (because c’mon, that’ll just be inhumane and borderline slavery, which is definitely not what SM is about), the company gave us the next best thing – their digital counterparts.
In what was probably SM’s attempt at gathering their bearings after a messy 2014, the agency launched SMTOWN@coexartium earlier this year. Simply put, the five-story complex, located in Samseong-dong, Seoul, is every SM stan’s (fan) dream come true. Not only can visitors lounge at the K-pop themed café or browse through official merchandise, the site also features a virtual studio where guests can experience stardom first-hand with their favorite SM artists, or at least their artificial doppelgangers. What’s more is that there is the hologram theatre where visitors can watch holographic concerts from big-names like EXO or Girls’ Generation, or enjoy the world’s first holographic musical “School Oz,” starring some of SM’s most capable vocalists.With technology like that of require travel expenses. “Why pay to travel all the way to Korea for housed lograms whecould be seeing the real deal?” one may argue. Although not exactly perfect, there is still no d holograms and 360 VR music videos are harbingers for what is to come in the future…
…Which got me thinking, what exactly is about to come? What’s next? At a time when the Hallyu wave – the phenomenon that describes the transnational flow of Korean culture – is crashing hardest on international fans, it would definitely be lucrative for entertainment companies to invest in technology that will rectify the physical barriers separating fans from their idols. A large part of the current music business is the concerts which draw crowds from around the world en masse, so looking into how they can join an experience good, such as that of a concert, with the realism that entails virtual reality could potentially be the answer to this. And as if the entertainment moguls do not have enough money going into their pockets already, it could even serve as a completely new revenue stream. If you have not figured it out by now, I am referring to the up-and-coming virtual reality concerts.
Virtual reality concerts are an immersive concert experience that aim to stream and bring the feelings and sensations of live music into the comforts of your room. Stay at home concert attendees would only have to strap on any one of the virtual reality headsets that are in development, while the fancy 360-degree audio and video rigs located at various points throughout the venue take care of the technical aspects. Thanks to the spherical video and spherical binaural audio of the advanced technology, developers and creative directors are able to finally recreate a convincing 3D soundscape. It sounds ludicrous to think that this will work, but ask Western artists like Coldplay or David Bowie who have successfully experimented with VR concerts and skeptics might think otherwise. K-pop groups and artists could certainly learn a thing or two from these rock legends.
While VR headsets are not available on the market yet, users can watch 360 VR videos and enjoy their favorite immersive experiences on their smartphones with affordable cardboard viewers in the meantime. This one is the ICT Spark from MOOOVR.
Regardless of how much of a game-changer virtual reality concerts could be though, some people are still going to refuse to buy into it, and honestly I used to fall into this camp. Again, it’s the whole notion of “why waste money on something you know is not there when you could be spending it on the real deal” taking into effect. Especially since virtual reality would give fans the power to relive the concert to their heart’s content, it defeats the purpose of a concert being a once in a lifetime experience. But sometimes, spending your savings on the real deal is not an option. More than convenience, virtual reality concerts are able to break spatial and bodily constraints, and this is where VR can find its place within the (Korean) entertainment business.
Take, for example, what happened with ticket sales for EXO’s first solo concert tour, EXO “From. EXOPLANET #1 – The Lost Planet.” There is no doubt that EXO is an influential group, and that was only proven when the boys broke the world record for the fastest sold out concert, with 42,000 tickets in a fleeting 1.42 seconds. As a result, the ticketing site crashed and still many others were unsuccessful at nabbing a spot at the highly anticipated concert.
That is where virtual reality concerts come in. Where accommodating the sea of concert-goers is an issue, VR can revise that by providing unlimited (and eco-friendly!) virtual tickets and seats. Want VIP seating? No problem. Or how about standing on stage alongside your oppas (older males) and unnies (older females)? VR concerts can make that happen, too. So long as it is within the six degrees of freedom of the special virtual reality display, anything is possible. Also, how about getting the new setlists of the concert in advance? THis way, viewers at home can also guarantee that idols will try to score some brownie points with the fans by showing some serious up close and personal fan service, all from a safe distance. Trendy groups with crazy passionate fans like EXO are sure to appreciate this, especially the last part about the “safe.”
If tickets for virtual reality concerts are reasonably priced – as in cheaper than that for in-person – then I see no problem with virtual reality finding a market within the K-pop concert business. No longer do international fans have to cross mountains and seas to reach their favorite groups. With VR, fans can even access the exclusive behind-the-scenes that they could not visit before. It’s not about taking fans to the best seats in the house, but taking them to places that were previously barred from the public. And if that is not enough incentive to switch over to VR, then I do not know what is. Arguably, virtual reality may even be better than, well, reality itself as the ability to watch the same concert from different vantage points (recall that the rigs are distributed throughout the venue) on the fly transforms an impossible human task into a possible one.
Of course, the potential debut of virtual reality concerts doesn’t mean that they will replace the traditional live concert business altogether. Because what else can make hearts thud as hard as the bass lines do? What else can unite complete strangers at a mosh pit? Mechanical music sales may go down, piracy may remain rampant, but concerts as we know it will never die.
How do you feel about virtual reality K-pop concerts? Is it feasible? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/[email protected]7681024Shelley Foohttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngShelley Foo2015-08-01 10:31:472015-08-01 19:47:33The Future of Virtual Reality in K-Pop
July was an extremely busy time for K-pop. Most of the biggest names came back in some form, creating a strong battle for song of the summer. Naturally, they overshadowed a whole bunch of smaller groups who were debuting or still trying to build a fanbase. Some of the more well known rookies like GFriend and Sonamoo made their first comebacks, managing to build on their past successes. I want to look at some of the other even smaller girl groups that released songs this month beneath the avalanche of their seniors’ material.
Also to be honest, I’m only looking at the girls because I took no notice of any rookie boys this month if there even were any. It’s a bias but I can’t help it, sorry boys.
WANNA.B “Attention”
WANNA.B are a group that only came to my attention recently. On further investigation, I learnt that they debuted in late 2014 with the underwhelming “My Type.” I gleaned little else from searching them online, but all you need to know is that their recent comeback song “Attention” is great.
Like a lot of rookie songs, “Attention” has a not-so-distant retro cheap feel to it that treads a thin line between endearing and excruciating. It works for WANNA.B, mostly because it fills a significantly large After School-sized gap in the current K-pop world. “Attention” offers an assured mix of After School-like sounds from their early career given a hip-hop revamp. The drum lines feel at times militaristic thanks to the “Bang” influenced chants and at other time more cheerleader like coming from the vocal influences of other After School songs like “Ah” and “Diva.” This all comes together really well with the drums leading the song just like fellow rookies’ Oh My Girl’s incredible “Cupid.”
The clear highlight is the joyous chorus. The sparse verse and pre-chorus, which feature only the pounding drums and the odd wobbly synth build to it well, allowing a surprise kick when the group vocals come in. It’s this group vocal which makes it so great. It’s a rare example of not favouring one voice as dominant over the group for a chorus and it works to great effect.
Some of you may know POTEN by their previous moniker 4ten. They were plastic and fantastic. For July, they decided to change things up though by dropping two members and recruiting three new ones with the new name. Luckily for us, this also corresponded with a big jump in quality.
The first thing that I noticed about “Go Easy” was just how slick it sounds. It sounds like a lot more money was pumped into this comeback. It also doesn’t tread on familiar rookie EDM or dance pop ground, going for a more funky production while still being danceable in a club setting. Guitars twang and strings flow over a simple structure. This gives time to the great new vocals on show for POTEN. This came at a price of having lesser rappers than previously, but it works for this song at least.
Also one of the new members is a Son Dambi look alike, which is always a good thing.
D.Holic “Chewy”
Whenever there’s a breakout success of any kind we can expect copycats of that success to pop up very soon after. This time it’s EXID who have provided the blueprint to D.Holic (I would have loved to been at the meeting where they decided that name) for their first comeback single “Chewy.” That’s them in the iconic photo at the top of this article.
Both the video and song come across as the cheaper versions of EXID’s “Up and Down.” That’s definitely not a bad thing though, as that song was one of the most interesting productions of 2014. Here it’s looser and more volatile. The synths bounce and wiggle, ready to explode at anytime. They even go at laser speeds in the second part of the verse. It lends to an unhinged feeling where “Up and Down” was more assured. Like WANNA.B though, the chorus comes as a surprise and goes in a lighter direction than expected. It’s what saves the song from going off the rails and becoming nothing more than a clone.
Crayon Pop’s little sisters Bob Girls were half resurrected in the recent debutants LoveUs. Their debut “Tickle” is a surprisingly good and sexy slice R’n’B. It’s synth lead, yet doesn’t sound too cheap and flourishes thanks to the good vocals off all the members. That’s what having only four members can get you.
Awesome Baby ‘‘Why Should I?’’
Now we come to that time of the rookie talk where we meet the group with the gimmick. This time it’s Awesome Baby who debuted with a ‘beatpella’ concept which, of course, is a mix of beat boxing and a capella. It’s immediately interesting since it’s a musical gimmick and not just a visual or conceptual one like we are used to. They do not stray too far from the trends, though, as they used this gimmick with a thoroughly 90s sounding track. The 90s are all the rage lately, if you hadn’t noticed.
Vocally, it’s impressive. Each member adds their own distinct reason to be there and harmonically this works so well. The song itself though is derivative. It offers nothing that hasn’t been done by TLC et al before. Not even rapping can distinguish K-pop there.
What’s your favourite of these songs? Is there anything even better we missed out on? Let us know in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/maxresdefault.jpg7201280Joe Palmerhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngJoe Palmer2015-07-31 09:14:232015-07-31 12:19:48Best Rookie Girl Groups of July
Coming off of their First Fanmeeting in USA earlier this year, and with a recent overwhelmingly show of support for their recent comeback with “Just Right”, the boys of GOT7 are at the peak of their careers. Known as JYP Entertainment’s international group, with members from Hong Kong, Thailand and America’s very own, California, GOT7 garner’s love from every corner of the globe. Here at KultScene we’ve compiled a list of five things we want to see from GOT7 at KCON LA.
1. Bromancing At It’s Finest
GOT7 is the walking definition of “bromance”, which can be defined as a close, emotionally intense, non-sexual bond between two (or more) men (Wikipedia). Sure, there are other male groups that share mutual bromances with each other, but there’s usually some awkwardness that comes along with it. GOT7 is the polar opposite. A lot of it could be the fact that GOT7 has three foreign members who weren’t raised in a reserved Korean culture, therefore they act differently around guys than others would.
The members of GOT7 show major affection towards one another on and off the stage, even if it involves putting one another in harmless headlocks as they try to peck the other ones cheek or slapping each other’s butts, like they do in the NBA. Although it’s been confirmed that member Jackson, the mood maker and biggest bromancer of them all, will not be attending KCON LA due to his filming schedule for Laws of the Jungle, don’t you iGOT7’s fret. Even though the other half to MarkSon couple (Mark+Jackson) won’t be there, there will still be a lot of aegyo (cuteness) and bromances going on between the members.
2. Mark Tuan Speaking English
With one American member whose hometown is Los Angeles, a lot of KCON goers are hoping to see Mark speak in his native tongue. One would think, “well, of course he’s going to speak in English!” but Mark is rather timid and shy, so he tends to let other members do a lot of the talking, i.e Thai member BamBam spoke a lot of English when GOT7 held their fan meeting in Chicago. Seeing how KCON LA will be their 3rd US show this year, and the other English speaker Jackson will not be in attendance, hopefully Mark will have had the chance to prep and prepare himself to openly and confidently speak to the crowd in English. Better yet, what if Mark sang/rapped in English? Let that sink in for a bit and tell me that wouldn’t be anything less then awesome!
Throughout the second half of their careers, GOT7 has solidified their right of way into the covering girl group dances hall of fame. “But what male idol group hasn’t done a dance cover to a girl group?” you ask. Of course, it’s only a matter of time before a male group is seen doing girl group dances on a variety show or at a concert, but it’s pure gold when the members in a group are genuinely and eagerly doing so. GOT7 is known to voluntarily break out in girl group dances; there have been times where they’ve even had in-group wars between the other members to see who does the better covers. With their smaller body frame and flexibility, members BamBam and JR are usually the best with girl group covers, although GOT7’s maknae (youngest member) Yugyeom, even with his taller height and lanky arms, is able to do one mean body wave.
4. A Collaboration With A Senior Group
This might be stretching it a bit considering artist collaborations aren’t usually done at American Korean shows, but considering how a lot of the other groups that will be at KCON are indeed GOT7’s seniors i.e. SHINHWA and Super Junior, there is a small possibility looming somewhere. Whether it would a full song done together, maybe an English song since they’re in America, or even if it’s a mere 20 seconds done together somewhere during the day or at the end of one of the shows, it’d definitely be something worth witnessing. Not only will the audience be in for a treat but also GOT7 as a group would probably be over the moon if given this opportunity if it were indeed to happen.
If you didn’t already know, each and every member of GOT7 has a different level of derpiness, ranging anywhere from a “whoops I made a dumb face” to border line “if I keep this up, my face might end up like this.” I’ll wait while you go back and look up their past fan cams and fan taken photos. Not too impressed with them? Well, then have you see their latest music video for “Just Right”? A part of me wants to believe that they were directed to make the derpy faces that were made during the chorus but another part of me knows that even if they were given directions to do so, the members probably took it upon themselves to make the expressions to be extreme as possible. Considering the average age for GOT7 is 19, this is probably just a phase they they’re going through. Or maybe not. Regardless of all that, I hope that they continue to showcase their derpiness because it makes them unique and loveable.
As a KCON attendee, I’m not only grateful for being able to be at the convention and seeing GOT7 again, but it’ll be the icing on the cake if at least one of these five things listed actually happens!
What and who are you looking forward to seeing at KCON LA? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Got7.jpg10061500Tam Huynhhttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngTam Huynh2015-07-29 09:16:012015-07-29 09:16:015 Things We Want To See At KCON LA – GOT7 Edition
Competition reality show “Sixteen” aired its finale 2 weeks ago and amidst much controversy, JYP’s new girl group TWICE was formed. The group was designated from the start to have seven members, but at the end of the competition two previously eliminated members were added, resulting in the group to have a total of nine people. TWICE is slated to debut later this year, and in an effort to further promote the members, JYP Entertainment have given the group their own social media accounts and even created an online show titled “TWICE TV”, of which two episodes have already aired.
The members consist of Na Yeon(20 years old), Jungyeon (19 years old), Momo (19 years old), Sana (19 years old), Jihyo (18 years old), Mina(18 years old), Dahyun (17 years old), Chaeyoung (16 years old) and Tzuyu (16 years old). As per the norm of JYP groups having members with a mix of races, ⅓ of the members in the group are Japanese (Sana, Mina and Momo) while Tzuyu is from Taiwan.
The members are diverse not in their races and personalities but also because they each have their own specialities and talents, making their debut a highly anticipated one. Notable examples (from “Sixteen”) include:
If you didn’t watch “Sixteen” but want to know more about the TWICE members, Kultscene has a great solution for you! Find out which TWICE member you are the most similar to and discover their unique and fun personalities through our quiz now!
Which member did you get? Are you excited for TWICE’s upcoming debut? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
https://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Screen-Shot-2015-07-27-at-4.46.41-pm.png657656Anna Cheanghttps://kultscene.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/KULTSCENE-LOGO-2018-TRANSPARENT-RED.pngAnna Cheang2015-07-27 06:31:292016-04-07 11:16:16Which TWICE Member Are You? [Quiz]
