Everythings going to be OK, Super Junior are wearing shorts and looking cute.My comment on Jess's previous post spiraled out of control so I thought it best to take a moment to voice my thoughts, out here in the open.
I shall firstly state that I do not like sports. Except for pro wrestling. Pro Wrestling is my favourite sport, seriously that should tell you all you need to know, but I shall continue slightly and say that the only other sports I enjoy watching, occasionally, are: gymnastics, figure skating and I am always fascinated by the pole vault. That's about it. I'm going to open up here and tell you that there was a brief period in my youth when I followed football (I am from a family of football fans who all avidly support Aston Villa), I chose to support Leeds United, and spent moments of the first years of my teens, wearing a Leeds United scarf, crushing on footballers, and even having a fantasy football team. So I think the 1998 world cup was probably the only world cup I would have ever shown interest in (and had knowledge about). By 2002 I would have been long gone into my "alternative lifestyle" to even notice the world cup was happening ...
I'm sure at times I have felt enraged by boisterous sports fans and their seemingly pointless pastimes, at other times I felt indifference, these days it just makes me feel a lot better about my dedication to my own pastimes... each to their own....
Back in my youth I sort of understood why countries had a world cup song, just one each, to represent the country (kind of like eurovision... ha!) so people could get into it, and sing it instead of lame national anthems or whatever, but then I never understood why there would be more than one song in the same country,,, like a comedy one, a super patriotic one, a "cool" one, I couldnt make sense of it. Well I couldn't make sense of the charts or marketing or anything, it was just confusing, like there'd be an "official" Fifa one and this was usually way less popular than the cool / comedy one, the kids in school only sang that one.
Anyway there are like 5+ GO KOREA type songs already (I say already and just looked it up and theres like 23 days to go, I guess this is normal...). Jess I'm with you, I don't want sports in my K-pop (unless the idols are playing them, a la "idol united" or "dream team"or something) but, its inevitable i'm afraid.
According to this slightly confusingly translated article, SuJu's EeeTuk, 4Minute Hyun Ah and JinSwoon are actually going to South Africa!? JinSwoon looks happy about it, so I guess we should be happy for him...These are the facts:
Koreans are really really proud of their country / patriotic
Koreans are really really into football (like how the Japanese are crazy for Baseball..)
Koreans are really really really super proud and into their national football team
Koreans love k-pop idols, they are seemingly a huge majority of the entertainment world, they dominate the music scene and their faces are plastered everywhere.
Which all adds up to GO KOREA WORLD CUP K-POP MANIA 2010!
This current BOOM in idol popularity has been accelerating for the last few years and only really started getting so intense from about 2007 onwards so the 2006 World Cup didn't have quites so many potential "hitmakers" This time around, every K-popper in their right mind will try and cash in on this (or at least every evil mastermind behind all the big idol agencies will force their gals and boys to sing and dance about football whether they like it or not, and they will obediently oblige). I have a suspicion that even if an idol had zero interest in sports or football it highly unlikely they would ever say that out loud, I get the feeling it would be akin to hiding from your military service and you would basically shame the whole nation with your disinterest. So really our plight to ignore this is impossible, i'm not saying to embrace it, but y'know, we'll just have to ride it out, so we'd better start looking for the plus points of whats on offer.
After Jess noticing the underlying excitingly violent lyrics of the Shout of the Reds Big Bang X Kim Yuna X Transfiction monstrosity, it seems there is some joy to be found. The more I see it, the more I think i'm going to have to put up, shut up and learn this confounded dance already:
I say there must be joy to be found, and yet, everyway I turn is more pain. 2AM have the "official" song on the FIFA album and from watching this teaser I'm not sure I ever want to hear it, or see them like that, ever, ever again.
Kwonnie, you can't fool me, I don't think you're that into football, and why the heck are they wearing orange? are they supporting the Netherlands? I thought it was RED, killer REDS??!Then theres the girls, T-ara's song is especially world cup feeling with lots of global unity, OLE OLE and "go Korea" styling, I applaud their effort, I really do, but pretty much never want to hear that song again, for fear it sticks in my head and creates its own nightmare master mix along with Fat Les - Vindaloo....
More girls who are slightly more unconvincing, Kara's "we're with you" in which they keep saying "bounce bounce" a lot ?! This one really misses the goal by a mile...
I thought I could take no more but now even my recent biases Super Junior are in on 'the game' or at least 5 of them, I'm guessing another SuJu sub group in creation. I'm going to probably regretted ever typing this, but I'm saying maybe its the best of the bunch, for the simple fact that it sounds like a Super Junior song (with just a little bit of extra chanting), although the MV teaser has that football soft drink / beer / feel good beverage sort of vibe :
Also, really what has Sungmin done to piss off the stylists recently, firstly it was the short straw of stage clothes for Bonamana (mesh shirt followed by a sleeveless cropped leg onesie tied at the waist..) and now this:
DON'T PART HIS HAIR LIKE ITS THE FLIPPING 1998 WORLD CUPI'm getting flashbacks to school trips.
You know what?
I just want to end this post already, i'm depressing myself. I started off trying to turn it around and tell you not to fear, make the most of this sports infested time, it'll be fun! Look for the joy I said!! WHO AM I KIDDING?!
This is horrible. I hate the world cup already, I hate feel good global football unity bullshit, I hate what its doing to kpop, I hate that Big Bang are collaborating with an olympic figure skater, I hate Sungmin's hair in that video, I HATE IT ALL!!!! I think I might cry.
Heechul and Yesung are hating it too. Look at them.
All I can do is PRAY (when I say pray, I mean ask Taeyang to pray for me) that if 2PM get involved in anyway, its only to be featured in an advert where Taecyeon, Chansung and Junho, dressed ONLY in football shorts, shower themselves in ice cold bottles of Coca Cola...
We need a way to get through the next few months...
- BUNNY
This is horrible. I hate the world cup already, I hate feel good global football unity bullshit, I hate what its doing to kpop, I hate that Big Bang are collaborating with an olympic figure skater, I hate Sungmin's hair in that video, I HATE IT ALL!!!! I think I might cry.
Heechul and Yesung are hating it too. Look at them. All I can do is PRAY (when I say pray, I mean ask Taeyang to pray for me) that if 2PM get involved in anyway, its only to be featured in an advert where Taecyeon, Chansung and Junho, dressed ONLY in football shorts, shower themselves in ice cold bottles of Coca Cola...
We need a way to get through the next few months...
- BUNNY
4 comments:
Well done on getting it done and dusted Bunny.
Considering how worried i was about my potential reaction to this post, i was more than pleasantly surprised. Really, you made it so manageable. And with such wonderful anecdotes! I had not a incling that you were once a football fan - oh how separate our life interests once were!
I absolutely agree about your relief at hearing how others 'waste' their free time - it totally makes me feel better about my indulgences too. I love to be able to say I don't have a TV, but really, my K-pop addiction and the amount of Korean programmes I watch really deem me no beter than if I had a TV, surely. Or maybe just a fraction better?
As for JinSwoon - I had no idea that he would be off to South Africa. Wow. I thought he was all about the basketball! He shall be missed for sure.
The idea that the companies may push them all into doing these terrible songs warms my heart. I love having stylists and companies to blame all the time. I means that my precious idols can remain relatively perfective the entire time. I blame T.O.P's red and grey hair troubles on the stylist terrors 100%. Though it never fails to confuse me how they can get some things so right and others so wrong. Maybe in this case T.O.P won the clothing battle but not the hair one with his pushy stylist. Le's just say that this was the case.
I really admire your hunt for the positive sides of this issue, as it will really help me to deal i feel.
Fat Les - Vindaloo... Please never remind me of this horror ever, ever again. This is why i am sometimes embaressed to be English.
What I love most about this post is your quick turn around once you have exhausted the short list of positives. The only thing I would have added would be the hyundai Big Bang drama. I love to see my boys act - even if it is linked to this cause..
But yes, the quick turn around. I was worrying that you are just to positive, and I seem like a mean K-popped grump, but no, you still remain critical, and i like this. You've not gone dizzy over K quite yet.
The 2PM pray has my backing. I'm sure they will be involved - it's just a matter of time - and i really do feel that this is the best way for them. I hope they take your advice.
P.S.
"A powerhouse of the top celebrities showed their support by gathering together to sing “Once More Korea“. Apparently, “Once More Korea” is a remake of the classic song “Go West” by the Village People and produced by the famous Pet Shop Boys.
Netizens have been anticipating the song as Rain, Brown Eyed Girls, 4minute, Psy, Jang Dong-gun, and plenty of other heavyweights are participating."
R.A.I.N
I don't know what it is about this blog that makes me want to reveal this hidden moments from my past, but I cant stop myself.
If you had a TV, you probably would have fallen for Johnny's by now. What a pity...
That article is so confusing, maybe JinSwoon is just going over there to take a big flag or something, and then come straight back, surely he cant be gone for long?!
I would LOVE to know what goes on behind closed doors with the stylist Noonas, are there ever tantrums? I often imagine in the larger groups they play rock paper scissors to decide who has to wear the "comedy outfit", i wonder if there are many divas who refuse to wear things??? sadly for many of them, I fear they are all so beaten down and sleep deprived they dont even care anymore.
Ah yes the drama is a positive, you'd already covered Big Bang a little in your post so I held back.
If not gone dizzy yet, but sometimes I really am on the edge, you must keep an eye on me, the Johnny's fan in me just cant help seeing sunshine and rainbows everywhere sometimes. But the realist in me is a cynic.
2PM have let us down already with their awful yet valiant world cup song released. I couldn't understand why I didnt recognise their voices until i realised, no autotune! its fascinating. although, still terrible. still fingers crossed for that Coke commercial.
as for RAIN and his gang, even if its terrible this mass celebrity records are always exciting, lets just hope its more like Dio (R.I.P) 's "Hear N' Aid" charity metal album, and less "feed the world" Geldof crap.
I really do feel that my google reader was half full with this toot again today! Damnit.
As for not having a TV, it is probably best. I think I'm still happy and fully contented just on a staple of K, if it is all the same to you.
As for teenage years, I have once again let some nore cats out of the bag. Fully in context though, so I guess it's ok.
I pray for a Dio over Geldof take. Maybe with the recent look I have just covered there could be a chance of this tilt? I have my fingers crossed.
I never thought about the vulnerability of the idols due to their tiredness before. How promising! If you can get them into football, string vests and spikes, then I guess you can get them to do anything...
Finally, the 2PM song. I listened to it this morning. I barely heard the seconds half of the song through my chants of "Bring back autotune".
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