Feature [17 ]May Doni

So you might have wondered who his the girl in the P of my banner, well her name is May Doni and she a very talented singer with an interesting story to share.

BIO: May Doni was born in the United States and she was discovered by a JYP talent project in 2001. She was later sign with YG Entertainment in 2005, she left YG in 2007 and signed with Nega Network. She left YG because her sister Yenny was deemed not good enough to debut, May Doni wanted to debut with her sister and therefore when her sister was kicked out she decided to leave as well. May Doni went on to make an unofficial debut with Cho PD. In 2009 she made her official debut as a solo singer. After that she seemed to drop off the radar only occasionally posting videos of herself covering various songs online. In 2010 she recorded a duet with Hwanhee. She then made her acting debut with a fairly large role in the horror film "White." In 2012 she signed with J2Star Entertainment. She is now making her comeback in February of 2013 so support this talented girl! 

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: Official Website: 

                                           (I think this is a fan channel)Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HDPmegainu/videos?view=0 

                                           Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/kimmaydoni

        

                                         

MUSIC VIDEOS:

메이다니(May Doni) - 교실에 오면 [TEASER]

[Here's a link to the full audio] http://pann.nate.com/video/221257372

조 (PDIS) - 끌려 (Feat. 메이다니 May Doni) 

Strangers(남남)-Hwanhee(환희) & May Doni(메이다니) 

May Doni - Molla Ing (feat. 2AM) 

[a live performance] 처음처럼[Like the First Time] (feat. July)

[cover]Jessie J-Domino (This is one of my fav covers by her)

[cover]David Guetta-Titanium 

[cover]Adam Lambert-Whataya Want From Me (the video and audio are a little out of sync but she still sounds amazing)

(showing off her rapping skills)

(dance practice) 

I really like her because she is a triple threat (she can sing, dance, and rap, oh and act as well) and she has stage presence and knows how to connect with the audience.

Feature [16] Kai

To start off my first feature of 2013 I thought I would pick a solo artist. The guy I am about review has an amazing voice and proves that kpop is diverse. Unfornately if you were to google his name you might end up finding a page on another famous kpop star. So today I will tell you about Kai (and i'm not talking about the one from EXO).

BIO: Kai debut in 2009. He graduated at the top of his class from Seoul Arts High School, he went onto Seoul National University from which he earned a masters and then a doctorate in musicology. Kai is noted for his deep rich voice and classic style of singing. 

Fun Facts: Though his name is often mixed up with EXO's Kai, he is noted for having similar facial features as Big Bang's TOP.

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: 

                                                                                                                        

MUSIC VIDEOS: (he hasn't released that many MV's but he's amazing live)

눈을 감으면 (브람스를 들으며)

이별이 먼저 와 있다

사랑이란 이름

울게하소서

The Prayer (featuring Sohyang)

I would link to his itunes store but he doesn't have one. 

Feature [15] SPICA

Today's feature is on a group that has amazing vocal talent, though these girls are technically rookies, they have been working behind the scenes of the music industry for years, time to talk about Spica.

MEMBERS:

Boa (Leader, Lead Vocalist)

Jiwon (Vocalist, Visual)

Juhyun (Main Rapper, Vocalist)

Narae (Lead Vocalist)

Bohyung (Main Vocalist, Maknae)

BIO: Spica is a five member girl group who debut  under B2M Entertainment in 2012. Many of the member had pre-debut experience in the music industry in one way or another. Jiwon was originally going to debut as a member of Five Girls along with Uee, Hyosung, Yubin, and G.NA however the company fell on hard times and they never debut. She was also supposed to be a member of T-ARA but left before the group debut. Boa was the vocal trainer for Kara, Rainbow and Infinite. Bohyung was supposed to debut with 2NE1 but never did. Narae was a contestant on Superstar K season 1. Juhyun was in Heo Young Saeng's music video.

Fun fact: Spica is the name of a star in the constellation Virgo. 

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: Official Website: http://www.b2m-spica.com/
                                           Official Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/spicaofficial

                                           Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/B2M_SPICA

        

                                         

MUSIC VIDEOS:
Doggedly (Hyori was the main actress in the MV, the girls do not appear in the video.)

Russian Roulette

Painkiller

I'll Be There

Lonely (a lot of people said this video was coping Sistar's Alone, however I disagree. The outfits do look similar, but the pace of the song sounds nothing like alone, and the dance really does not look all that much alike.)

Up N Down (for those wanting a more dance like beat check out this song.)

You can help support these girls by purchasing their music on itunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/seupika-spica/id495860373

K-Movie Review [2] I Saw The Devil

Hey guys, so I just watched a movie that after I finished watching it I asked myself "What the hell did I just watch?" I'll admit that I mainly decided to watch this movie because Lee Byung Hun was in it and the trailer made it look interesting. But boy was I not prepared for what happened in this movie. I'm not even sure where to begin to review this but i'll give it a try, here's my review of "I Saw The Devil."

BE WARNED THIS POST WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS

SYNOPSIS: After secret service agent Soo Hyun's fiance is grotesquely murdered. He sets out to find the murder and inflict the same amount of pain on murder as the murder had on Soo Hyun's fiance. Soo Hyun soon finds himself up against Kyung Chul, a man who finds enjoyment in raping his victims and then cutting them into pieces. Soo Hyun finds Kyung Chul and inflicts numerous injuries to him before stopping short of killing him only to release him and then do the same thing all over again.

MAIN CHARACTERS:

Lee Byung Hun as Soo Hyun [He is a secret service agent who is often away because of work. He feels responsible for not being there to prevent his fiances death and is determined to find the man responsible and make him pay.]

Choi Min Sik as Kyung Chul [He is a serial killer who rapes his victims and then chops up their body parts. He normally targets younger females who are alone at very sparsely populated areas. At first he does not understand who could be after him, however after he discovers that Soo Hyun is the lover of one of his victims he is intent on causing Soo Hyun more pain.]

SUPPORTING CHARACTERS:

Jeon Kuk Hwan as Squad Chief Jang [He is a police chief and father of Soo Hyun's fiance. He is the one who gives Soo Hyun a lead as to who the cops think the murder is.]

ACTING: The acting was great, I really felt like  Kyung Chul was a monster who felt no remorse for killing people. Soo Hyun as character was interesting because he never really made you pity him, but he made you hope that harm would not come to him or that the bad guy would never best him. 

PLOT OVERVIEW: Oh geez where to begin. If I had to sum this movie up in one word it would be "blunt." This movie does not hold back, when a character kills someone, there is no cut away scene you see them kill that person. There is quite a bit of nudity, also scenes involving sexual themes as well.  Oh and blood is definitely there in abundance as well as gore. You will see people getting bet over the head with different objects and stabbed with various things. 

    I suppose you could say there was a plot, however there were also a lot of plot holes. A number of times a character is beat, and while I know the human body can withstand a crazy amount of injuries, there's just no way that character should still be alive after a beating like that. As for the plot holes, the whole movie centers on the the fact that Soo Hyun made Kyung Chul swallow a tracking device that allows him to track his movements and listen to what he says. Now i'm not a tech export but I find it hard to believe he would be able to hear what he said if the deceive what in his stomach. I know, I know, i'm being nit-picky but that really seemed to bother me. One last thing, why did he give him money, that really confused me. 

    Now moving on to that actual plot, overall not bad, it is the basic man seeks revenge for fallen loved one. However this case is unique because he doesn't want to kill him right away, he wants to make him suffer. Also the fact that Kyung Chul seems unfazed by Soo Hyun's attempts to scare him is interesting because most villains beg for their life from the hero, whereas Kyung Chul really doesn't seem to care.  

ENDING: If you are hoping for a happy ending then you really should not watch this show. Besides the fact that Kyung Chul gets another chance to inflict more pain on Soo Hyun by killing more of his loved ones. When Kyung Chul finally gets what he deserves there is no satisfaction to be had since Soo Hyun's life is now completely screwed up.

SOUNDTRACK: Soundtrack was pretty good.

RATING: Ok so on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being the worst movie I have ever seen and 10 being a movie I could watch every day I give it an 6. I'm trying to no give it too low of a score simply because it's not my kind of movie. Now I like action movies, I like horror and suspense movies. But I think this movie was simply too raw for me, too realistic. With a hero who really seems to end up right back where he started not really gaining anything from getting even with his fiances murder. I think that this is what you call a "guy movie." For some reason have a feeling that guys wouldn't mind all the gore, sex, and violence.

Here's the trailer:

As always I encourage everyone to form their own opinion about a show or movie, these are simply my   views and reflections of what I felt about this movie.  

Ask Me Kpop Questions

I have a new segment I want to try out. I was wondering if you guys would like me to start a segment where you ask me kpop/kdrama related questions and I'll answer to the best of my ability.

Now I'm not the most knowledgeable person out there when it comes to kpop. However I do know quite a bit, I'm also becoming very well versed in the history of kpop and I'm learning of new groups every day. For instances, maybe you are looking for a good Korean ballad singer, or maybe you want to know what Trot is, those are questions I can help you with.

Since I try to keep my Features mainly the facts about the group/artist and maybe a little bit of personal reasons why I like them. I avoid going into detail about my personal reasons for liking a group/artist or perhaps who my favorite member of a group is. So you could ask me who my favorite old school kpop duo is, or who my favorite member of a certain group is.

Or with my kdrama reviews, you could ask me to go into more detail, or explain in simply terms, why I liked or didn't like a certain drama. Perhaps you are looking for a movie/tv that stars your favorite Korean actor, I can help you find a movie or tv featuring that person.

*I changed my comment status so that anyone with a google account can comment on my blog. You can also ask me question via twitter if you like. https://twitter.com/VastWorldOfKpop

The only thing I ask, is if you write a question please ask it in a respectful manner. I try to make this blog a positive place to promote underrated artist, as well as promote kdrama's. And while I do give my personal opinion I make it clear that, my readers should read the facts i've included about a kdrama in my review and decided for them self if it's a show they would like to watch.

So leave me a comment and once I get enough questions from I'll answer them in a blog post.

Feature [14] Verbal Jint

Hi guys, ever since I featured PHANTOM i've wanted to write a feature for someone who I believe, to be one of the most talented rapper in Korea. I would like to introduce you all to Verbal Jint. 

BIO: A man of many talents Verbal Jint is not only a graduate of SNU, but passed the bar exam to get into law school. He debut in 2000, since then he done CF's, worked as a voice actor, however music has always remained a constant in his life. He has done numerous collaborations with other artists. He has a style all his own, and is a well respected rapper in Korea.

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: Official Company Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/brandnewmusickorea

                                         Official Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vjpaper

                                         Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/freevj

MUSIC VIDEOS:

You Deserve Better (this video has a really cool twist at the end so I would suggest watching the whole thing) 

You Look Good (be warned that there is a slightly graphic scene in here involving a car, but it's only like 2 seconds long.)

Promise Promise (feat G.NA)

Thank You Thank You (I normally link the original video but you need to know the lyrics to this song to appreciate it. This whole song is Verbal Jint thanking the people in his life for supporting, now how often do you here a rapper thanking anyone like this.)

Classic (this is an MV he made in collab with Reebok)

Verbal Jint is an amazing rapper with a style all his own, even if you don't like rap I still believe you would like Verbal Jint's songs. Please support him by purchasing his song 

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/go-easy/id501894251

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/10nyeon-dong-ui-odog-10-years/id537544029

Feature [13] GP Basic

Hello everyone, this is a review that has been a long time coming. I'll be talking about a group that had an anti club even before they debut. A group that has constantly been under-appreciated simply because of one factor, age. I think you should have by now figured out who i'm talking about, yep it's GP BASIC.

MEMBERS:

Zion (Vocals)

Leah (Leader, Lead Vocals)

Trinity (Rapper, Main Vocals)

Amet (Sub-Vocals)

Mui (Sub-Vocals, Rap)

Janey (Maknae, Rapper)

Ex-member

Hannah (Leader, Main Vocal) 

BIO: GP Basic is a six member girl group who debut in 2010. They made noise in the music industry for having the average age of 15. Maknae Janey was just 12 (13 in Korea's age system) when they debut and was actually banned from performing on some of the music programs until she turned 13. Even though the girls have had doubters from the start they have worked hard and proven they do have talent. The girls have managed to gain fans, they have even managed to last longer in an industry that often sees a group fade out after just one year in the music industry.

INTERESTING FACTS: It really bothered me that a group that clearly has talent was receiving such hatred simply because of age. So I decided I would check and see if there was anyone else that debut at a young age without receiving hatred.

List of ages when they debut:

15&: Jimin and Yerin were 15.

Apink: Hayoung was 15.

Teen Top: Changjo and Ricky was 15.

Chocolat: Tia and Melanie were 14.

C-Clown: Maru was 15.

F(x): Krystal and Sulli were 15.

SHINee: Taemin was 15.

2NE1: Minzy was 15.

TVXQ: Changmin was 15

KARA: Jiyoung was 14

BoA was only 14.

4Minute: So Hyun was 11 when she first debut with Orange and was 15 when she debut with 4Mintue.

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: Un-official Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/gpbasicVids 

                                         Un-official Cafe: http://z15.invisionfree.com/GirlPower/index.php?

                                         Un-official Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/GP-Basic/124883190891513

                                         

MUSIC VIDEOS:     

Game

Jelly Pop

V

Christmas' Carol

Now I'm not saying that I think it's ok for the music industry to start pumping out young groups left and right. However I believe that people should not automatically assume that they will be bad simply because of their age. I mean seriously how is what GP Basic is doing, any different from what child actors do. Child actors are on sets for long periods of time, they have to go to events, they are also subject to public opinion, yet no one seems upset with that. Or what about kids who appear on shows like Star King. They are much younger then these girls and are applauded for appearing on a show at such a young age. GP Basic has a great deal of talent, I hope to hear more from them in the future so please support them.

You can help support these girls by purchasing their music on itunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/gp-basic/id459005470
https://itunes.apple.com/au/album/edge-ta-single/id502788713