"Shine" by Kim Sung Kyu (updated repost), Wednesday, September 25, 2024
In high school, Kim Sung-kyu, the future leader of the boy band Infinite, had to hide his vocal practice from his parents. In high school, he sang with some of his friends in a rock band. When he graduated he left his hometown of Jeonju in hopes of having a career in music in Seoul. After failing an audition for SM Entertainment, he tried out for the label Woolim Entertainment. He hoped to be a rock singer like his future label mate, Nell. On the day of his audition, though, he was suffering from appendicitis. Determined to make it as a singer, he sang through the pain and went to the hospital after the audition finished. Rather than cultivating Kim's rock talents, the record label placed him as the leader of their first boy band, Infinite. Throughout the group's tenure, they would flirt with rock music; however, it wasn't until Sung-Kyu's debut EP, Another Me, that he would be able to make the kind of music he envisioned.
WHENEVER THIS TIME OF YEAR COMES, I ALWAYS THINK OF THE WORDS YOU USED TO SAY TO ME. Released at the end of 2012, Another Me is a K-pop album for listeners who don't really care for the genre and was an excellent introduction to Korean music. From the vocal intro/title track that is reminiscent of early '90s harmonies to the near-epic closing track "41 Days," which displays Sung-kyu's passionate vocals, this short album is a refreshing look at a soft-rock album when most Korean musicians, particularly ones with any association with K-pop, had long rejected the genre. Born in 1989, Sung-kyu's prominence in the music scene corresponded with a rejection of guitars, bass, and drums, in favor of synths and trap beats. And while the songs on Another Me are much calmer than some of the rock bands who charted on the pop charts in the ‘90s and ‘00s, the EP has an authenticity that the “other” Sung-kyu can sing to the music he believes in. His confidence will make it popular, rather than chasing trends. Another Me was not a very popular release. Apple Music didn't have it for a long time, and Sung-kyu's later releases seem to have received more recognition. But fans of the album seem to really love it. The guitar-driven "Shine," Like “Time Lapse,” was written by Nell’s vocalist Kim Jong-wan. Sung-kyu stated that he auditioned for Woolim Entertainment because of Nell, so the lead singer's input on the album brings Sung-kyu's career full circle. Speaking about the seasons of change, a break-up, a longing for the past lover and a longing for the past makes this late '90s-sounding guitar ballad feel relevant even ten years later.
YOUR VOICE, YOUR EYES, YOUR TOUCH THAT LINGERED ON ME. The '90s tones of "Shine" make it a nostalgic song, reminding me of the music I would listen to in the afternoon after school, albeit the music was in English. It’s the kind of music you would expect to see in a television drama on the WB, like Dawson’s Creek. Just when the emotional teen drama hits, a ‘90s song blares, disproportionally louder to the show’s dialogue. Maybe for modern audiences, this takes viewers out of the storyline, but for us millennials, the music solidifies the emotion. “Shine” is the Korean pop equivalent of that emotional song may have been 12 years too late and may not have appeared in an emotional K-drama about teenagers skipping out on 학원 (private after-school academies) to make out in the park, but the reflective nature of the song reminds us about the simpler times. It’s a song about love and loss. It’s a song about the time of the year when we get sentimental.
Live Acoustic Version:
Comments
Post a Comment