Written by Aprilstar for http://hyunniespexers.wordpress.com
Seattle,Washington
Kim Hyun Joong sshi, ‘don’t be afraid to be amazing’
Singers past, present, potential and wannabees all have dreamt one time or the other to sing solo. Kim Hyun Joong is no exception to this dream. He knows singing solo is to claim the stage alone, to have the spotlight all to him. The main order of the moment to do for singers like him is to grab the audience’s attention. It must have been nerve wracking for any singer the very first time .Others say, it is nerve wracking all the time to aspire to sing the perfect song , to aspire to leave a lasting impression with the audience .
Kim Hyun Joong has been interviewed many times while still in the dressing room before a performance. Besides being made up and getting dressed, he continues to practice his dancing while humming to himself (actually he does that even in between shootings of commercials and dramas). To someone who is familiar with the concept of multiple intelligence, a person like Hyun Joong will receive high marks for musicality .His music had become second nature and has expressed he cannot choose between singing and acting. He wants to continue doing both, but music will always stay with him. His co-workers say his eyes sparkle when he talks about his music. He tries releasing tension backstage before performance by joking and in case you are wondering why he has or must have a water bottle all the time, singers must drink to prevent dehydration and fainting on the stage. The stage is not an ordinary terrain .You and I, the audience, who sit at the other end watching can only see the overall effect of the performance .The singers and performers in general must endure all the practice sessions, the punishing lights, all the last minute preparation to be able give the perfect show of their lives. Anything can happen while performing. Some experts say it is also alright to make mistakes that showed the performer’s vulnerability as the audiences love them as well. But some happenings bring apprehension to the audience. You must have seen Hyun Joong’s video where he fell twice while performing because of a leg injury. And yet it only distracted him for a few seconds, he came up on his own two feet and continued. Did you also see the video where Hyun Joong was shocked but for a split second when a stage fireworks exploded beside him? Occupational hazard you say, for Hyun Joong, the show just must simply go on.
Effective singers they say must connect to their audience, emotionally. This is why experts advice singers to sing not only with their voice but with their face, in fact, sing with their entire body. It is the total expression of a commanding stage presence. If you were in the 2007 Japan SS501 concert where Hyun Joong performed “Never Again” or at least watched the video footages (if you haven’t seen it, Hyunniespexers blog’s playlist included that number) you would have seen him the totally involved singer, singing the song he loved, emoting, dancing with the appropriate feelings, in control of the voice range he is comfortable with, you know what I’m trying to say. A sad desperate love song must be sung with sorrows .Kim Hyun Joong sang with his disappointment in love in “Never Again”. In an early MV “Black Glasses” he sung in a duet another emotional love song and went on to perform it before a live audience.
Happy songs are for singers to lift you with joy; they are playful and are enthusiastic. They may add a gimmick or two like an outrageous costume or even bring stage props. They may rearrange the songs with adlibs to take you in, or pause to let you participate in community singing of a favorite and well known song. Hyun joong is no stranger to that scenario as he and the other members of SS501 in their Asian concerts of late typically ended each one with playful water splashing, prancing around the stage, enjoying relaxed moment with their audience-fans. It was the time to let go of the stage persona, to show the real person.
There are multitasking singers –they accompany themselves using the piano, guitar or other musical instrument, dance while singing, talk, some even do acrobatics. You know that Hyun Joong dances very well, plays the guitar and the piano. He showed that skill in the reality show “We Got Married” and in earlier shows. He has not only developed fondness for it but mastered the dance music genre itself. There were many videos showing him practice with gusto and later do it so well on the stage. Of course he was not alone; the audience was always there to applaud him, entertained by him and had a good time together.
There are singers, but some better than others and recognized for their extraordinary talent. Have you ever watched auditions and talent search shows and listened to what the juror say they were looking for? They always look for the singer’s affinity with the song, so that the song and the singer becomes one –as if the song was created for the singer .Or could it be the song waited for the singer to interpret it? Hyun Joong‘s solo songs while he was actively performing with his boy band fit his image, his voice of breathy and mid –high vocals, even his disposition. His latest solo song, if you haven’t heard yet the acoustic version of “One More Time “then listen to it now. The barely audible musical accompaniment allows you to enjoy very clearly his beautiful and warm singing voice matched to that slow-beat ballad. Whoever gave him that song or other solo song he had sung must know his caliber very well, or Hyun Joong might have chosen those songs for himself.
Singing means interpreting the song. We have many interpretations of a song . Singers who understand their uniqueness in approaching songs are well loved and remembered. You don’t even have to see their faces, their voices and their rendition will tell you who they are. That is why we have the word version in our vocabulary. People acclaim the version of the singer. Many who have listened to Hyun Joong’s version of “Creep” agree his version is very good . I say his is the best version .As reader of this article I grant you entitlement to my opinion.
Singers are awarded for their singing whether for the theater, movies, television series –all “legitimate” venues .Has anybody been awarded for busking? Maybe not, but some known singing stars started there. Do you remember Hyun joong as Jihoo who went busking to earn money in Macao? Even if it was not shooting for Boys Over flowers, with a handsome, well dressed singer (he wore a pink blazer there), in a voice so full of confidence singing “Because I am Stupid” would you not stop , listen and give money, too ? If I was there in the crowd, I would definitely even ask for his autograph.
Kim Hyun Joong, has declared in several interviews his intent to sing solo as part of his to-do list for 2011. Yes, its Kim Hyun Joong, the singer, wants to sing solo, to do his dance music and release an album no less. Historically, being a member of the SS501 boy band, he opens up the song and his voice dominates in the chorus. Who would not recognize his voice when it is like the honey that binds all of their five voices together? It cannot be denied he had also been given solo songs to perform as part of the group’s repertoire.
Besides performing his solo numbers in concerts and fan meetings his songs became part of the Original Sound Track of Boys Over Flowers in the 2008 drama where he was Yoon Jihoo the second lead character. In 2010 in his latest drama ,Playful Kiss ,the Korean version of anime and manga turned drama ,he starred in as leading man Seung Jo and sang “One More Time “as part of its Original Sound Track . His latest solo, Hohoemi was done for the Smile Charity Show in Japan last December .He sang it with children in that show.
Those of us who followed his career path know his first love was playing the bass. But it was a career in bass playing nipped in the bud so to speak by his talent management company then. Instead, he was told to sing and dance. The SS501 dance instructor even noted in an interview, that Hyun Joong had 3 months training just to master the basic steps as trainee. But whatever he lacked in dancing skills at first was compensated by his stage presence .But when he finally acquired the necessary skills his teacher considered him the best dancer .Hyun Joong ‘s singing and dancing had become inseparable from that time on .
Five years and several months since debut time with his band SS501 in 2005 Hyun Joong had claimed many stages. But the solo to top all his singing solo was his “Please Be Nice To Me “complete with crotch grabbing steps and fantastic attires . That song had become more famous with his jitjoong and reinforced the hotness image for him. SS501 concert goers always look forward to Hyun Joong ‘s jitjoong where he bares his upper torso.
I cannot blame them when they get disappointed when he does not do it. Fancams uploaded in Youtube of that number will let you see how the audience reacted, wildly screaming at the top of their lungs, while waving their green lights.
In December of 2009, he did a song dance number, Rainism for DK, a soft drink being sold in South Korea. A relatively difficult number to do with his dancers, Rainism without Hyun Joong baring a single patch of skin has received enthusiastic and approving response in internet blogs. Just like “Never Again” solo number, there seemed to be no repeat performance for Rainism .
Hyun Joong had also done rapping by himself, and sang Korean and Western songs in several radio and television shows .MC’s of variety shows who had become fond of him always ask him to sing impromptu.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yH78CjHDrZc&feature=player_embedded[/media]
Looking back, it appears that Hyun Joong has had enough exposure, immersion and experience as a multitasking performer in the singing –dancing field and certainly not a newcomer .In spite of his track record there are others not thoroughly convinced of his capabilities citing that among the members of the band he has the weakest voice. That claim lacks validity. As the singers have different range in their singing voice not all songs are created the same way either. Singing coaches say a singer to be successful must find his voice range and the song that fit that range. And then the rest of other attributes of a successful singer follows. Singing is more than talent and skills: it is the singer’s mastery of what he is presenting and establishing rapport with the audience. Successful singers are known to project that elusive stage presence.
Kim Hyun Joong has the audience figuratively in his palms when he performs. He has commandeered the stage from the very first day he stood up there. His stage presence is extraordinary and has made the stage his natural playground. From his already recorded solo songs it is very apparent that his voice range had matched what he sang. The invitation he received to sing the theme song for the Asian Sports Meet held at Guangzhou, China last year is an international recognition and affirmation of his singing talent and drawing power. The acknowledgement was repeated when he sang the theme song, “Hohoemi” for the Japan Charity Event.
Kim Hyun Joong has revealed he has chosen five songs from about a hundred songs given him for a solo album to be released this year. He has further intimated that he had started practicing for that as well. I think Hyun Joong has received all the good signs from heaven. He has nowhere else to go but use his gifts and share it with us. As Kim Hyun Joong pursues his solo dance singing career path there is only one thing to say to him, If I may quote Andy Irwin, ‘DON’T BE AFRAID TO BE AMAZING.’
(This article does not claim to be an exhaustive discussion of the singing career of Kim Hyun Joong but just a representative sampling of his musicality. Thanks to Andy Irwin for his famous quotation. I think he had Hyun Joong in mind. -Aprilstar)
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