SM Town

This is what lots of tourists~ whose interest in K-pop~are visiting when they are in Seoul. A trip to Seoul would be incomplete if they skip this spot.

SM TOWN ....Coex Mall.

I myself couldn't fancy myself being drawn into it. But...surely it's tempting enough to take a peek of what it offers from within.^^

K.Will: officially becomes my favorite Korean soloist^-^

I thought that 케이윌 ?K.Will will never be able to top my fave song (이러지마 제발...'Please Don't), but...I was downright wrong, K.Will's spring-friendly song 'Love Blossom'(러브 블러썸) indeed captures my need of another good-easy-listening Korean song.

last year's 이러지마 제발 (can't get enough of the twist ending of the MV)

His crisp-struck voice is what makes this song even more electrifying-ly cool.

나란히 앉은 자동차 속에선 음악도 흐르지 않아

늘 잡고 있던 니 왼손으로 너 입술만 뜯고 있어

니가 할 말 알아 그 말만은 말아 

Don’t know why Don’t know why

1분 1초 더 끌고 싶은데 텅빈 길 나를 재촉해

빙빙 돌아온 너의 집 앞이 나 익숙해 눈물이 나와 

하루가 멀게 찾아온 여기서 

길을 내가 잃은 것 같아

이러지마 제발 떠나지마 제발 

Don’t know why Don’t know why

비도 안 오는 유리창 넘어 뿌옇게 멀어지는 너

말처럼 쉽진 않은 널 보내야 한다는 일 

돌아서서 날 버리고 가는

널 보지 못하고 떨구고 마는 

눈물도 이젠 닦아야겠지 주머니 속

니가 줬던 손수건을 써야할지 이젠 버려야 할지

왜 떨림이 멈추질 않지

미친척하고 널 잡아 볼래도

내 몸이 내 말을 잘 듣지를 않아 

차안에 남은 니 향기에 취해

영영 깨고 싶지 않은걸

이러지마 제발 (제발) 떠나지마 제발 (제발) 

돌아와 (돌아와) 돌아와

니가 떠나간 빈자리 위엔 차가운 향기만 남아 

이러지마 제발 떠나지마 제발 

돌아와 (돌아와) 돌아와 (돌아와)

남은 향기만 안고 있을게 돌아와 니 자리로

Then..there is the Spring-struck song..that easily hooks on many people.

Love Blossom (A warmly-created MV)

Both songs and Music Videos are worth-repeating. Oh, finally he showed up in his own MV.^^

Thank you for 'envisaging and visualizing' the songs like what I had imagined.

K Will...you rocks!!!!

Korea's Indie Band

I thought that K-Pop rules. But, I was wrong. Well, to some extent .....it does.
This how I see it.
Lots of people get crazy head over heel over the ever-burgeoning prowess of K-Pop--not only in Korea, but as most people acknowledge--almost in every corner of the world.
Sadly though....there are more than just K-Pop.
I think --personally-- the world needs to know also...that Korea has also more varied genre of music than just K-Pop.
The one that that I hope people all across the world should know....other than K-Pop...is the mere existence of Korea's indie bands--which truly set forth another genre and nuance of Korean music.
I wish more and more people know more about this indie bands, for they present a completely different feeling of music. Unlike K-Pop, Korea's indie bands offer something that would palatable to more people, not only youngsters or teenagers that cover most of K-Pop fans.
( My American-Korean (Korean-American) friend, Jennely, a classmate with whom I get acquainted with in class, has shown me more than just what meets the eyes. She has a knack for Indie band that in fact she is now working in an enterprise of this indie world).
That's how I came up to get in touch with the Korea's indie bands world.
There are some groups worth mentioning here: 10cm, 요조, Vodka Rain, Donawhale, The Knoxx, Auquabird, 메이트, 스웨트, 페퍼톤스, Small Acacia Band, 타루, Belle Epoque, 가을 방학, Vanilla Acoustic, Humming Urban Stereo, Naru, 토마스 쿡, 루시아, 오지은, MOT (못), 커피 소년, Fanny Ink, ......endless list goes on.
Amazingly....not many people know this. Well, some Koreans do. For instance, 10 cm has popularly gained its strength and fame lately amongst Korean audience as well. But, for outsiders or International market (mostlyt those who only know K-Pop), those are nothing or unheard of.^^
I just wish that these amazing talents as shown in Korean Indie band would be more and more be famous or at least get recognizable....
Check this out:

HUFS's Got Talent 2011

November 25, 2011 was the day that some of our friends had been waiting for. They were those who were participating in the campus-style Got Talent show.
I got to tape some of the shows since I thought it was fun.


Since three of our classmates participated in the competition, I did not want to miss the chance of seeing them perform.












Apart from enjoying the hilarious performances from 11 contestants and 3 guest performers, I did also enjoy the Minerva complex auditorium--which is located underground of the main building. It was huge.

I never expected it to be that huge considering the vast amount of space being used.
The sophisticated-looking auditorium and its peripheral functions just looked so cool.
OK, back to the competition.
Singing Korean songs, English songs, K-Pop cover dance, taekwondo, free style dance, cheer leading were mashed up in the contest.


The hilarious French Girl with its medley of K-Pop ..plus Beyonce's "Put A Ring On It" topped the first prize...


...while my classmate--Yeryeong from Taiwan--secured her second place with her 'Baby, Baby Good Bye' from Miss A's song.

Well, it was a truly worth-watching event.
But, unfortunately I could not see it until the program over since I got to attend the 8p.m. class. ^^
Anyhow, it has been a refreshing and nice night.

Thoughts or Ideas to Ponder

- I can see the burgeoning prowess of technology in disseminating the K-Pop explosion. I saw that some groups from Jogja and other cities in Indonesia deliberately uploaded their gathering activities into YouTube. If there is one thing, I presume, logical enough to explain why they do this is that.....they want to show their existence, and I also presume that they may have wishes that other groups or people from Indonesia or from other countries...or better yet...the artists they idolize themselves.....see what they've been doing in YouTube come up and say "Hi" or even support them....that would make what they do seem/become invaluable. I just cannot believe how (out of respect to the presence of their idols) they spend their own money to celebrate, say, one's idol birthday! This is so unbelievable or unimaginable to those who cannot understand the K-Pop phenomenon.  (From this thought: I think I can write something like:  The relation among K-Pop Idols, YouTube, and K-Pop Lovers: Bridging the Two Seemingly Improbable Worlds

- I saw an article in Korea Herald on September 24, 2011 about the ever-growing influence of K-Pop in Asia. The thing was that...the news focused its report on the social impact of K-Pop in the Philippines (covering 95% of the whole news) and in Thailand (the remaining 5%). Hmmm, I just wonder that Indonesia's K-Pop explosion has yet to be recognized, though. I am sure there have been lots of news covering this phenomenon for the last decade. Still, I think, the idea that craziness towards this K-Pop also occur in Indonesia needs to be brushed up to the Korean world:). (From this thought: I think I can write deeper about the phenomenon in Indonesia for the last decade). I think I did it already but in smaller scope, covering only that of Jogjakarta)

- After being in Korea for the last three weeks, I came across some notions about how this K-Pop artists are really really 'products' of rigorous training and 'captivity' to make them what they look and sound today. They have undergone excruciating experiences to shape how they look and how they behave in front of the camera. This would be ( I think) a good start to write something about this. I am sure that there must be lots of articles or papers written about this, but by looking at those ones, I guess I can start something that may be overlooked in its core. 

- I also came to realize the relation between K-Pop stars and the applicable laws in Korea that allows teenagers to work full time. It is interesting to see how the under pressurizing it would be to come with terms of being idols and being teenagers at the same time. I presume they must've prepared themselves for this. They (all of them??? that's the question) must have chosen this path as their life, though. So, from this thought: I can write something about whether they are aware that as teenagers they have their rights of not having to work overload. I also kind of questioning whether Korean law in regards to teen/child labor do apply on  these kids (a.k.a. K-Pop idols who are mostly still in their high schools when they start their stardom). I am sure a lot of scholars must have written something about this notions). Let's see what I can do with this.

- I also came to see the exploit of K-Pop in Korean television shows. Well, what I mean by exploiting is that...the artist should or must do something to meet the palatable eyes of the viewers...or the eyes of the TV producers. ^.^. Well, I mean...it may not be an exploitation....I do not know yet...what it is....but....the female stars (more often than their male counterparts) tend to dress up in minimum outfit, especially mini shorts. Well, I guess the artist themselves like to dress up this way. But, I just wonder how this would impact the younger generations who are still in kindergarten and elementary schools. They must be aware of this. Now, the question that come to my mind is how fast Korean society changes itself in term of what is being appropriate and what is not. I am not the one who can judge actually, because it is subjective in nature: simply speaking because I come from Indonesia--a predominantly Muslim country; in that I come to Korea with a perspective that wearing short pants or tight pants in public is regarded as being insensitive to the religious or social norms. So, going back to what I wrote earlier, the female artists of most K-Pop idols do like wearing short pants in their music videos and in their live performances. And.....interestingly...that is one of the marketable notions of what K-Pop is all about, in terms of female artists, of course; though in terms of male K-Pop stars...the relatively similar issue may arise: i.e. having to show off their six-pack body and well-built hunk-like features. Now, once again, sometimes it would be sooooooooo interestingly challenging to do a questionnaire to the ajumma or the ommonies, the mothers of young children in Korea on how this so-called K-Pop artists have shaped or changed the way they see the changing society in Korea; in precise: to see as to whether the seemingly acceptable notion of short-pants in front of their eyes being thrown upon their young children.

Actually, I can somewhat predict what they would mostly say....but it would not be an interesting part. I was just glued or intrigued by the fact that......Korean girls / young girls love to show off their long legs..and that is the simple reason as to why.......short pants combined with high heels are a trending fashion during summer. Now, it is Autumn already.....but I can see some of the girls do wear short pants although ( I am sure) they know that it is so indisputably cold.^^. Gosh, there are so many things to think and write about. ^.^

- More ideas to come soon.