As stated in the title, this song is none other than Dynamic Duo‘s Father (ft. Ra.D). As was hinted last week, I heard this song from a collaborative KPOPSTAR performance consisting of the talents of three contestants who are primarily dancers: Lee Seunghoon, Park Jungeun, and Choi Raesung. As a song, Father blends vocals and rap nicely, and tells of one’s heartwarming affection for their father. As a performance, Lee Seunghoon, Park Jungeun, and Choi Raesung’s blew me away with the interpretive (yet not excessive) choreography and rapping talent (singing still remains a struggle).

I probably would’ve liked the song Father even without seeing the performance, that is, if I had wandered upon it from a source, but the performance complemented the song in such a way that it isn’t merely cream on the cake, but something more — maybe fresh mangoes on a fruit tart or with sago (as they are too often raw)? Making something good, great — not just topping off an experience.

But anyway, hopefully I will be able to get around to translating the lyrics with my meager knowledge of Korean and help of Daum English Dictionary. The song is below, along with an ‘unedited version’ of the performance. For the full performance/reactions, you can click the link above.

Song:

Performance:

As I may or may not have shared, when I originally heard of Dream High, I was a bit skeptical about watching. All (practically all) idols? Meh. Idols are many times, wannabe triple-threats. We’ll see mediocre singing, rapping, dancing, and acting all thrown in together with little true skill. But I decided to give it a chance. Because of Suzy and Wooyoung and IU (actually listed in order of importance). The storyline itself was pretty interesting too.

And it didn’t disappoint. In both ways of failure and success — Suzy’s acting in the first few episodes was honestly, hilarious. It was so bad…and it got (kinda) better…but still worse than a ‘rookie actor,’ as in someone who trained to be an actor, not a singer or the likes, just a plain actor. In terms of success, the drama produced appealing performances and collaborations that I thoroughly enjoyed. I might even call it one of the best dramas of 2011, seeing how many flopped, but still in a sense that Dream High was of the higher-average sort of drama (not yet a ‘good standout’ drama personally like the ranks of My Girl and Giant, but getting there).

But on to the main point I was trying to get across with this article.

Although I protested the idea of a Dream High 2, I have once again succumbed and am planning on watching it. But first, I should speak of what made me not want to watch.

1. Repetition

Dramas are not like experiments. They are not supposed to be repeated over and over again. And if they are, they should most certainly not produce the same results. One drama should not follow another’s procedures and storyline. Also, Dream High‘s storyline seems a bit on the rigid side and creating a ‘direct’ spinoff (with the same base and entertainment companies/people involved) won’t seem to be have too much open-ended-ness.

Of ‘spinoff’-type dramas that followed another drama’s main storyline, whether directly or not, some failed and some succeeded. Athena: Goddess of War, IRIS‘s successor, was unfortunately a flop. Although it had a stellar cast, it failed to live up to the action and hype of IRIS, that was carefully exhibited with many action-filled shoot-off scenes, a moving plot, and great suspense. Meanwhile, the High Kick (Unstoppable High Kick, High Kick Through the Roof, High Kick 3: Revenge of the Short Legged) trio has excelled. The whole foundation of the spinoffs was very flexible to begin with; the only things they really had to keep (so I’ve observed from watching the latter two) was the family-centered sitcom idea, the interactions of two families, and some sort of small hint at kicking/legs. And they have succeeded in continuing to bring funny, charming, and heartwarming anecdotal episodes every night for the most part (*cough* if it weren’t for the last few episodes of High Kick Through the Roof). And finally, the last spinoff-esque drama I’m going to mention, Giant (of East of Eden). Both are period dramas and are revenge/love/melodrama stories and although I don’t believe any of the people involved in East of Eden were part of the production of Giant, the two share many similarities at a glance. But while East of Eden failed in its repetitiveness and plot that traveled in circles, Giant cleaned up this ‘mess,’ proving to be an ‘East of Eden gone right’ sort of series.

2. Cast

So the acting in Dream High was bearable because I was watching for some of the cast…but we don’t know about Dream High 2‘s yet. All we know so far is that it’s mainly one actress, three idols, and two trainees who trained to become [undefined/all-around] idols.

Thank goodness SM Entertainment isn’t taking part in this. I know that it has a few actors/idols-turned-actors and all, but still…just the idea of having SM Entertainment ‘infiltrate’ Dream High makes me shudder.

–

Woah. That was quite a mouthful. How did I get so far on a tangent just talking about spinoffs? Somehow I put that all out. But anyways, as I was saying. The main reasons why I succumbed and decided that I’m going to watch Dream High 2.

1. Kang Sora

No, no, no. Not because of We Got Married. I’ve long since stopped watching that show (after the Alshin couple left and before idols truly infiltrated [just out of curiosity, how many of you have even followed We Got Married since the true beginning of the show?]). So I first heard of her through Huh Gak’s Hello music video where everyone was like ‘Kang Sora! I know her from WGM!’ But her main, true claim-to-fame in my eyes is the film Sunny. It sold 5 million tickets in Korea and is personally one of my favorite Korean movies. And after learning that Kang Sora was that girl in the movie, I decided that seeing her in Dream High 2 might be cool.

2. Display of Originality

So far, Dream High 2‘s various releases have proved that Dream High 2 isn’t really Dream High 2. It features ‘rival groups,’ not just in-school competition, and has people with various talents — a guitarist (Jung Jinwoon), a saxophone player (?). It also seems to have completely new personae, and is thus far displayed as something that can stand on its own two feet — without needing to use any part of Dream High as a crutch or as backup. If it is truly like this, I wouldn’t mind seeing a Dream High 3 either (although I know that that would be quite excessive).

—

The only thing that I am worried about for Dream High 2 is the large cast that was displayed on their poster. Are all of them supposed to have some sort of significance and their own story, because if they are, I’m afraid things will be crammed and unable to really highlight any individuals as individuals.

But still, Dream High 2, come on. Show us that you have what it takes to stand up to Dream High. And maybe even trump it. And outdo it.

Even just when Sunmi left, WonderFuls knew that there was always a looming possibility that she wouldn’t return. And as days and weeks and months and years go on since that day that her departure was announced, we know that the probability of her returning has gotten lower and lower and lower. And it continues to decrease with every passing day. But that doesn’t mean we have lost hope. We continue to hope and hope that she will come back. Even if she ends up returning as a soloist or doesn’t return to the entertainment industry, we will continue to hope to see her perform as a Wonder Girl, with the Wonder Girls.

And we will continue to hope. And hope. And hope. And believe in the Wonder Girls.

One contestant that I noticed through this process is Choi Raesung, who I found through his cover of SHINee’s Replay; although quite a horrible cover, Choi Raesung, 12, proved himself to be the best dancer among the contestants on the show, thus keeping him on the show for a few weeks, even after an equally horrible cover of Justin Bieber’s Baby (Engrish included).

For the group audition/round, Choi Raesung was partnered with other so-called ‘dancing gods’ Lee Seunghoon and Park Jungeun, who were likewise very lacking in terms of singing. Check out the video below to see what came of their group audition.

The leader (and eldest) of the group put his choreographing skills to work, blowing the judges away. YG’s Yang Hyunsuk said that the group was originally going to be ‘the easiest to eliminate,’ and JYP’s Park Jinyoung proclaimed Lee Seunghoon the only artist of the contestants — despite being one of the worse singers. He went on to praise him, saying that they showed that they could produce good results despite being ve~ry bad at singing, and that they were able to express themselves through the dance (something not very common in K-Pop *cough*). The judges added that Park Jungeun and Choi Raesung were able to advance thanks to their leader, and abundantly praised the group for their great improvement and expression.

On a side note, I  love the family image the group exhibits, and how it relates to the song they chose, Dynamic Duo’s ‘Father.’ The fact that BoA chose to cast them as a group also makes their symbolized family all the more stronger, and I hope to see them continue to progress and advance through the show.

I love how one little comment opened up into a can of worms. However, Korean news probably will blow this out of proportion, and the fun of this video/’scandal’ will be ruined. I apologize for any mistakes in the conversation, as I do not fully understand Korean. The advantages of having an MC were really shown in this clip as Shin Dongyup made a little comment more fun for the audience (and hopefully the contestants) and opened something up into a can of worms.

Translation:

MC Shin Dongyup: So what did you think of Lee Haeri and Yoo Yeol’s performance?

Brian Joo: Just watching [from the TV] in the room, Lee Haeri became more lovely. You know, the song has __(?) feeling.

-video of Lee Haeri/Brian Joo; lyrics: The one and only love that came [looking] for me-

Brian: So in the future, if I have a girlfriend or wife, I would like to marry someone who can sing so well like Lee Haeri.

-crowd cheers-

Shin Dongyup: Wait a minute. Because my brain is kind of bad, I can’t really understand this.

Brian: Excuse me?

Shin Dongyup: So your point is…(Brian: Yes,…)…I would like to get a girlfriend or wife that sings so well like this, or I wish that later Lee Haeri could be at my side and sing like this to me?

Brian: First of all, Lee Haer– Lee Haer– Lee Haer– Haeri-ssi (crowd laughs over his nervousness/stuttering) Haeri’s feelings would also have a part. I alone like this (gasp)…just because I like her doesn’t mean we’d start dating (gasp). Her feelings…(crowd cheers; caption: if Haeri was OK with it, I’d like to date her?) Wait..that isn’t it (crowd chants ‘Date! Date!’ as Brian continues to talk)…it’s..that isn’t it…there’d also be Haeri’s feelings…(caption: through one heart’s desire(?))

Shin Dongyup: Wait a minute…the people in the audience are thinking very simplistically. If Brian is speaking so bravely and insistently(?), I think the two are already dating. (more cheer) Oh so it doesn’t matter which side wins, because they’re both happy either way? (caption: Because they hug no matter who wins!) Anyway, after the result, you can just go and crush her bones (embrace her very tightly).

So which performance did the audience judges pick?

-Brian and Kim Wansun win; Brian and Lee Haeri step off their platforms and awkwardly walk towards each other as they do after a duel and hug (caption: Quite a comfortable result!)-

[I didn't translate the end with Lee Haeri and Yoo Yeol.]

And at last, time for the uncategorized top performances that come from miscellaneous shows!

At first, I planned to put all my favorite miscellaneous performances in this post; however, I realized that would be extremely biased, as all my favorite miscellaneous performances are of songs (and artists) I like, not to mention the fact that at least half of Davichi’s performances this year would end up on this post. So for the sake of succinctness, here is my very short list of top miscellaneous performances.

Wonder Girls’ Yeeun and Sunye – Do Go Do Go

I honestly didn’t see what the fuss was about this song, with Park Jinyoung saying that he specially held off this song so that only some of the best vocals could touch it. But after watching this performance, I fell in love with the melt-in-your-ear vocals and understood Park Jinyoung’s thoughts.

Wonder Girls’ Yeeun and Sunye – When You Believe (performance above)

I know that SISTAR’s Hyorin and SNSD’s Taeyeon are wonderful vocalists, perhaps the best female idol vocalists, but I can’t help but shower Wonder Girls’ Yeeun and Sunye with praise. The vocals and emotions in this song are just heartwarming and extremely difficult to dislike. Just as Yeeun said that this song gave her strength during her audition to become Wonder Girls’ fifth member, their rendition of this song is one that has given me strength and is worthy of being downloaded onto my harddrive (one of five videos).

Infinite – Be Mine (Remix)

Of all the performances I saw of Be Mine, this performance was the most outstanding. Just the opening dancing solo, camera angles, the outfits, the live string orchestra (yay for strings!), and the vocals in this performances seemed to rise above the others.

8eight – Pizza Hut Order

So this isn’t really a performance, but it isn’t really a song either. If this was a song, I’d totally buy it. Even though the lyrics are all about ordering a pizza. This is the reason why I love listening to singing – it requires no external instruments or sounds, just an individual and their voice.

Birth of a Great Star

Ahn Ari and Park Wonmi – Refusal (Big Mama)

By far, my overall favorite performances of the whole show were the two-person final round  stages. The synergy created by two people on the same stage can be amazing, and as they say, two is better  than one. I love it when songs start slow and then transition into becoming fast. They’re so climatic and exciting to listen to/watch. And the harmonization. This performance is almost perfect.

Hwang Jihwan – Romeo and Juliet (Shin Seunghun)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtgzXzcSfH

Boy, does this boy have a great sense of rhythm. This might be my favorite pre-program (as in before the 10-contestant show Birth of a Great Star) solo performance. I love the arrangement and beat.

Birth of a Great Star 2

Eric Nam – Ugly (2NE1)

I honestly don’t like Ugly that much as a song, partly because it has such a negative undertone, but I have to admit that Eric Nam’s performance was very charismatic and entrancing. I hope to see him advance to a top standing on the program.

Immortal Song 2

The main differences between I Am A Singer and Immortal Song 2 are the motives and contestants. The motive of I Am A Singer is to bring attention to the great and talented veteran singers of Korea, while the motive of Immortal Song 2 is to show how hits can be immortalized by being changed to fit the times. The contestants of I Am A Singer are veteran singers with 10+ years of experience, while the contestants of Immortal Song 2 are relatively new to the music scene (usually less than ten years of experience). Aside from these differences, the programs are almost (not really) the same.

Seo Inyoung – Like the Feeling of the First Time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siAYDNq-eD0

I think many of us did not expect Seo Inyoung to win, because she generally isn’t known for having an extraordinary vocal capacity. I honestly expected someone like Lyn, Lim Jeonghee, or Lee Haeri to win, but I was really wowed with this performance.

Lee Haeri – You Are Just At a Place Higher Than Me

Okay, so I biasedly (that isn’t a word, but…) thought this should’ve won after viewing the performance a couple times again and understanding the lyrics. Now that I’ve thought about it some more, Seo Inyoung’s performance was enjoyable and exciting because it was upbeat, while Lee Haeri’s performance conveyed more feeling, as sad songs usually do (not to say that it doesn’t take any effort to convey the feeling of a sad song).  It’s hard to decide because one is sad, the other is happy.

Kang Minkyung – With the Heart to Forget You

I think the reason why sad songs remain so popular over the years is because they’re easy to relate to for many people. They are able to strike a chord in many people’s hearts, and when sung well, can move people to tears when they think about how the lyrics relate to themselves. The sincerity singers put into singing songs and expressing the feeling of the lyrics can really mean a lot.

Lee Haeri – Walking In the Rain

I love how Lee Haeri says ‘bass’ and ‘drum’ in the middle of this song’s transition. The transition itself is nice in that it adds a jazzy feel to the song and changes things up.

Kang Minkyung – Love Love Love

What a transformation. Just the visuals alone — the outfit, the chair, the position — set the tone of the performance. In this performance, Kang Minkyung exhibits her rapping skills and overflowing charisma.

If my series of “Top Songs of 2011″ weren’t [noticeably] biased enough, this series of posts is. I can’t — and don’t — watch every group/singer’s performance out there, but when I do like a group/singer, I tend to watch almost all of their performances of the song I like or all of their appearances on a show. This time, because my biases are so evident *cough*, I will organize my favorite performances by show, then possibly artist.

I Am A Singer

I Am A Singer brought many veteran singers to fame in a world where idols fill in nearly every possible corner of Korean music. It allowed for ballad singers to be recognized, as well as for the public to take on a new perspective of ballads.

Kim Bumsoo – Please 

This performance/track was perhaps the most popular of all the remakes the contestants on I Am A Singer made/sang, as it guarded the #1 spot on various music charts for weeks (maybe even a month or so?) and was found on various year-end music charts, such as Melon’s most downloaded. It propelled Kim Bumsoo’s singing career to new heights and was one of the most notable performances of the whole show’s run.

Im Jaebeom – For You

This was Im Jaebeom’s first performance upon appearing on I Am A Singer, and boy, did he kill it. His years of experience came to light with this performance, and it might’ve even made him seem too good for I Am A Singer.

Kim Bumsoo, Lena Park, Jung Yeop – Crush (Kim Gunmo: instrumentals)

This was by far, my favorite performance/collaboration from I Am A Singer. The best thing about this adaptation was that the original tone was still recognizable, while the song was made more suitable for the modern music listener. Rather than making the song something new for the music lover to listen to, the song was changed to give the music lover a new side of the song to listen to and shed a new light on the original song.  And to think this was all improvised? Why, Kim Bumsoo, Lena Park, and Jung Yeop sure are musicians, not just singers.

Kim Bumsoo — I’m A Loner

As you can see, I’m quite a fan of Kim Bumsoo. Biased as I am, this was one of my favorite performances from I Am A Singer. The tap-dancing is ingenious. Truly. And I love the jazz Kim Bumsoo added to the song. He really knows how to enjoy himself on stage.

Lena Park — If Only Today Was Like Then

Wow. Wow. Wow. If anyone ever doubted Lena Park’s singing abilities, their argument was made invalid with this song.

And finally, here comes the best songs that 2011 had to offer at its end. 2011′s last quarter featured the long-awaited comebacks of Tablo, Noel, Wonder Girls, and more.

Wheesung – Words that Freeze My Heart (ft. Junhyung) (3.15)/They Are Coming (10.10) (music video above)

Wheesung had a great year in 2011, with Words that Freeze My Heart in the first half, and They Are Coming in the latter half. I just love the combination of rap and singing in his songs. And I can’t wait for Ailee to debut. And for him to come back out of the army. Soon.

Tablo – Airbag/Bad (ft. Jinshil) (10.21)

And to think that a kind of distant acquaintance attended Stanford with him. So close…but too far away. This guy is a genius. Master of Korean and English. I’m jealous.

Noel – Miss You (10.26)

Good music video. Good vocals. Good song. Good group. Good, good, good, good. This song reminded me of how much I love to escape from the world of chaos in idol land and relax with a soothing ballad. I can’t wait to see more of Noel now that they’re back and active.

Wonder Girls – Me, In/Do Go Do Go/Dear Boy (11.07)

Can I just put the whole album here? I (practically) love it in its entirety. Only for the sake of time and excessive overflowing bias will I pick out a few. First, Me, In — I didn’t really like the song after first listen, but it grew on me and I had been anticipating a performance of it for quite a while. Do Go Do Go — 2Ye at its very best. In this song, Yeeun and Sunye show their worthy-of-envy voices and harmony. And finally, Dear Boy, the track I declared my favorite after giving the album a first listen. I don’t know…I just like these kind of songs I guess.

T-ara – Cry Cry (11.11)

Again, I love Latin American-influenced K-Pop songs. It gives a song a fresh, foreign flair, while still seeming native because of the overall style and language it’s in. Also, never did I see so much of Soyeon. I guess it was time I knew who she was, with her becoming the leader and all. (Although I like the song, I actually didn’t watch the music video because it’s so long. Maybe later.)

Me Too, Flower – Dreaming (11.17)/Too Many Tears (11.23)

Dreaming is a song I could imagine being played in a coffee shop on a sunny day. Bright, lovely, soothing. A pick-you-up kind of song. The vocals and rap are melted so nicely together in Dreaming, just the song’s melody itself creates a dreamy kind of sensation.

Not bad, not bad, Suzy. This is the kind of OST track I’d buy, regardless of who the singer was. The lyrics tell of the main character’s inner thoughts and true feelings. Suzy has made her first step into  becoming a so-called ‘ballad queen.’

San E – I Wish You Were Unhappy (ft. Bee) (11.24)

This is the type of rap I like listening to. Rap with a nice underlying melody, topped with a complementing, but not overpowering, singing chorus. Can’t wait to see what San E has in store for 2012.