The five member male idol group SS501 has scored successes in both music and drama.
The title song of the group’s mini album released by only three of the members–Heo Young-seang, Kim Hyeong-jun, Kim Gyu-jong–and entitled “U R Man” has ranked as the top “Mutizen Song” in a SBS TV music program, while ranking number one for two weeks on the cable Mnet channel program “M! Countdown.”
Member Kim Hyun Joong, who is currently not a member of the band due to his acting career, is also climbing in popularity as the sensational hit KBS 2TV drama “Boys over Flower” has topped 20% in viewer ratings.
SS501 is particularly happy about the music-drama synergy effect.
The group appeared as themselves singing U R Man in a dance club scene in the drama’s 4th episode. A featured song in the drama they sang is also soaring in portal rankings (2nd on Cyworld Music and 3rd on Mnet.com).
Kim Hyun Joong says the three members were worried going alone without the other two (Park Jeong-min currently appears in the musical “Grease”) but that he’s pleased with the rave response. He also noted that the trio is the first “unit group” to top the rankings in a Korean TV music program.
Kim Hyun Joong said that he’s sparing time to watch the drama. He said the character “Jihoo” is similar to Hyeon-jung’s real personality so that he is very proud of his performance.
SS501, in its current three-member format, will release a new album next month including new songs and remixes of songs from the mini album.
Source: KBS Global
Picture Credit: IB Times
Credit: seoulfull.wordpress.com
Four 22 Year-old Star Actors Up and Coming
From left to right, top to bottom: Lee Min-ho, Jeong Il-woo, Moon Geun-young, Jang Geun-seok.
Lee, of the hit new drama series “Boys over Flower,” has shot up to stardom. Jeong is also getting significant attention, and his drama “The Return of Iljimae” has yet to start.
Moon, who won the Grand Prix at the SBS TV awards late last year, was the heroine of the historical drama “Kingdom of the Winds” while Jang cemented his popularity for his role in the hit music drama “Beethoven Virus.”
All four were born in 1987. The talented foursome of 22 year olds is set to rule 2009.
◇ Tall, handsome, born stars
The four all have handsome looks and long, slender legs. Lee is 186cm, tall, Jeong 184cm tall, and Jang 182cm tall. Moon appears small but she is in fact 165cm tall.
Lee is well built. In the drama, his character sports curly hair so his head looks bigger on screen but strong facial looks match his masculine figure.
In contrast, Jeong and Jang have more of a feminine flair. They have smooth, small faces while Moon is close to a real-life fairy tale character.
◇ Big career break
Moon first gained attention playing the childhood character of actress Song Hye-gyo in the hit 2000 series “Autumn Tale.” The Moon syndrome began with her 2004 film “Young Bride.” In the latest “Kingdom of the Winds,” she was comparable to her co-star, veteran actor Park Sin-yang. Her role of a woman disguised as a man was also well played.
Jang played the rebellious younger brother of actress Jeon Do-yeon in the 2005 “Lovers in Prague.” He continued to appear in “Hwangjini” in 2005, “Hong Gil Dong” last year and in the latest “Beethoven Virus” in which he played a genius musician.
Jeong was another case of overnight stardom through the hit sitcom “Unstoppable High Kick,” which ended in 2007. In the lead role of the new drama “Return of Iljimae,” he is anticipated to play a character compared to Lee Jun-gi’s performance in the 2008 “Iljimae.”
Lee Min-ho is the latest heartthrob and teen superstar thanks to “Boys over Flower.” He debuted in the EBS drama “Secret Campus” in 2006 and appeared in a number of movies including “Public Enemy 3″ and “Our School ET” but didn”t gain much attention. His role of the wealthy and cocky “Gu Jun-pyo” in “Boys” has earned him explosive popularity.
◇ Only 22, ready to soar
Receiving the grand prize at last year”s TV awards, Moon said she feels more sorry than grateful. She said “I want to continue acting but I’m greatly burdened by this award.”
Lee has confessed to difficult times in the past 3 to 4 years when he was unknown and things didn”t work out as well as he thought they would.
Source: KBS Global
Picture Credit: Yonhap News
Credit: seoulfull.wordpress.com
On the same day as his castmate Kim Hyun-joong’s small traffic collision, actor Kim Joon (”Woo-bin” of Boys Before Flowers) was also in a minor car accident.
Kim Joon’s incident actually occurred first but was reported later; it took place in Seoul on the morning of January 22. The other vehicle was a taxi, but the collision was so minor that the involved parties managed to settle things on the spot, according to Kim’s management. Nobody was injured.
Thankfully it’s not something worth getting excited about.
