Kpop fans gathered at the Cube corner with Beast, 4Minute and G.Na at AIA K-POP Concert 2013 in Malaysia

AIA Bhd. proudly celebrated their 65th anniversary in Malaysia with an extraordinary Kpop concert at Stadium Putra Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur. BEAST, 4Minute and G.Na made their way to Malaysia to meet their passionate fans despite haze. This was the 2nd time for BEAST, 4Minute and G.Na to perform together in Malaysia after DiGi Kpop Live concert few years back. The last time BEAST set their foot in Malaysia was for The 27th Golden Disk Award happening at Sepang circuit. They were thrilled and excited to be back again with their new comeback songs.

G.Na was the first performer that night. She hyped fans up with her powerful vocal, singing "Supa Solo", a powerful and strong song from her hot debut album. G.Na greeted fans with a happy smile on her face, wearing a sexy black outfit and high heels. G.Na is a Canadian born Korean therefore communication wasn't a problem for her in Malaysia.

G.Na kept the hotness going on by singing "2HOT". G.Na gave fans a surprise when she sang her famous debut song "I'll back off so you can live better" English version and she sounded amazing! "Banana" was a song she co-composed can she delivered it perfectly. The roars from the crowd proved how groovy the song was. Other than singing her own songs, G.Na treated her fans with Rihanna's songs "Take A Bow + Rude Boy". It sounded totally different with G.Na's sweet vocal and fans liked it a lot. G.Na was really happy to see such a big crowd in Malaysia, gathering up to watch her perform. She took a walk down to the sub stage to take a closer look of her fans.

Before leaving the stage, G.Na sang 3 more songs "First Kiss", "Top Girl" and "Black & White". She then kissed her fans goodbye. A total of 8 songs definitely proved how great a singer G.Na is.

Who's next? It is definitely 4Minute! 5 charming girls entered the stage with a loud cheer from the floor members. 4Minute made their entrance with their recent comeback hit song "What's Your Name?". Fans were singing along to their catchy song.

4Minute were seen wearing funky and colourful stage outfits, bringing fresh and young vibe to the scene. 4Minute continued on with a sexy title song, "Mirror Mirror". Jiyoon showed off her vocal skills by hitting the jaw dropping high notes.

Jiyoon

Gayoon

Jihyun

HyunA

Sohyun

4Minute get closer to fans with "I'm OK", a slow song asking "Baby, are you okay?". 4Nias were once again on their feet jumping when 4Minute performed "HUH" and "Muzik".

The 5 young pretty girls charmed fans with one of their popular sentimental song which they have performed at The 27th Golden Disk Awards few months back in Malaysia, "모르는 척 (Pretend)". 4Minute says their goodbye by performing their last 3 songs, "Ment", "Heart to Heart" and "Hot Issue". With a total of 9 songs, 4Minute took a walk down the memory lane with 4Nias in Malaysia.

As the last performer, BEAST made fans weak in their knees by singing "Beautiful Night" on a beautiful night. The boys stood on stage with their handsome comfortable stage outfit. HyunSeung caught fans off guard by presenting himself with blond hair.

Dongwoon

Gikwang

Dujun

BEAST swept fans off their feet by dancing to "Bad Girl", their well-known debut song. Catchy songs like "Shock" and "Special" made the crowd gone wild. Fans were amazingly doing fan chant to the song "Shock" and it was magnificent. "Fiction" was one of BEAST's hit songs and have received numerous NO. 1 spot on music charts when it was released, they nailed it perfectly!   To cool down the heat in the stadium, BEAST presented fans a slow song, "I Knew It". BEAST proved their vocal skills by singing live. BEAST waved goodbye after delivering "Freeze" and "Beautiful".

Junhyung

Passionate fans demanded for encore and refuses to leave. As charming as they are, BEAST took the stage once again with one last encore song "V.I.U". Yoseob was worried about the haze and he asked fans to take good care of their health, twice. BEAST hoped they can be back soon for a concert, fans are definitely waiting.

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Posted at 9:28 PM |  by Colene Hyori

AIA K-POP 2013 Media Conference Q&A with Beast, 4Minute and G.Na!

Question 1 (G.NA):
What have you been up to following the promotion of the single ‘Oops,’ from your latest mini album?

G.NA:
At the moment I am getting my next album ready. I’ll be practising, and I’ll be going overseas to visit places like Malaysia, and hopefully I’ll be able to visit other places as well to promote myself. My album will be in the making, and hopefully that will be out soon.

Question 2 (BEAST):
Do you plan to visit Malaysia as part of your 2013 ‘Beautiful’ show tour, which begins in Seoul this July?

BEAST:
On July 20th and 21st, we will be performing in Seoul for the ‘Beautiful’ tour, and we hope that we will have an opportunity to visit Malaysia in the future.

Question 3 (4Minute):
How do you feel about your success on the Gaon chart in May?

4Minute:
The new song ‘What’s Your Name?’ was our comeback after a year. We were very nervous, but we’re happy that it has reached No. 1. We have a new release next week, which we hope everyone will love too.



Question 4 (4Minute):
Tell us about the dance theme of your new single ‘It’s Popping’ which will be released on the 28th of June.

4Minute:
The song will debut on June 28th, and we request that our fans see for themselves when the song is released.  

Question 5 (4Minute & BEAST):
Are there any places in Malaysia that you wish to visit?

4Minute:
I heard that the beaches in Malaysia are very beautiful, so we hope we have enough time to visit one.

BEAST:
Malaysia is very stylish and fashionable, so hopefully we’ll find a chance to explore the city and do some shopping.



Question 6 (BEAST)
Doo-joon, Gikwang and Junhyung have tried their hand at acting for dramas. Hyunseung, Yoseob and Dongwoon, are you all also interested in acting?

BEAST:
If the opportunity arises, we would definitely be interested in acting. Having seen the other members do so well, the rest of us hope we may also achieve such success in acting.



Question 7 (G.NA):
Have you ever considered becoming more active in the acting scene?

G.NA:
Unfortunately my Korean language is not as good as I would like at the moment. So when my Korean language improves, I would love to get the chance to try acting. Trying is always good, and so I would like to try acting one day when my language has improved.



Question 8 (4Minute):
How do you think 4Minute differs from the other girl groups out there?

4 Minute:
Unlike other groups, all 5 of us have different personalities and characteristics, so we believe that this is our group’s unique factor.

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Posted at 7:16 PM |  by Colene Hyori

Hallyu Fever at AIA K-POP Concert 2013 with Beast, 4Minute and G.Na!

Kuala Lumpur, 28 June 2013 - K-POP enthusiasts was dazzled by three of the biggest Korean acts - BEAST, 4Minute and G.NA at the AIA K-POP 2013 concert held last night at Stadium Putra Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur. Themed “Be real. Love it. Live it.”, the event was the first ever concert sponsored by a life insurer in the country. The concert was attended by over 12,000 AIA Malaysia employees, agency members, customers, business partners, media as well as K-POP fans.

At a press conference held before the concert to introduce the star-studded line-up, Bill Lisle, CEO of AIA Bhd said, “AIA has been privileged to do business in Malaysia for 65 years and this is something we do not take for granted. To celebrate this important milestone with the people who help us make a difference – our customers, employees, agency members and partners – we’ve brought a taste of Korea’s famous pop acts to Malaysia. The concert also provides the perfect opportunity for AIA Bhd. to connect with the younger generation.”


Present at the press conference was BEAST, a six-member boy group which achieved commercial success when they debuted in 2009 with hit songs like “Bad Girl”, “Shock”, “Fiction” and “Soom”. After their successful “Beautiful Show” international tour last year, BEAST is planning a comeback this July with a new album. Prior to the launch, the band had released their digital single called “Will you be okay?” on May 29 which topped all major music charts in Korea.

The AIA K-POP concert also featured 4Minute, which derived their name from the belief that they could charm the audience with a four-minute-long performance. Comprising five-members, 4Minute made their debut with “Hot Issue” in June 2009. The group has two studio albums and five mini-albums to date. Their latest title track “What’s your Name?” from the mini-album “Name is 4Minute” reached the No. 1 spot on various charts, including Billboard K-POP Hot 100.

A solo act in Korea’s pop scene, G.NA has released two studio albums and four mini albums. The K-POP sensation has also acted in several Korean dramas as well as hosted and starred in various television programmes. Her latest single “Oops” from her “Beautiful Kisses” mini-album has clinched the top spot in one of the most popular Korean music shows called “K-Chart”.

“With Korean pop music now a phenomenon which is taking the world by storm, this concert will give us the opportunity to support some of the amazing talents Asia has to offer while capturing the interest, energy and real passion of today’s younger generation,” Lisle concluded.


The official AIA K-POP site www.aiakpop.com.my was launched in May to update K-POP fans on the latest concert news, photos and videos of their favorite K-POP artistes.

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Posted at 7:19 PM |  by Colene Hyori

South Korean fingerstyle guitarist Sungha Jung wowed medias at press conference

The young and talented South Korean fingerstyle guitarist, SungHa Jung is back to Malaysia again for the third time for his solo concert. The press conference was held on 22^nd June 2013 at The Guitar Store, Subang Jaya.

SungHa stated that he is very excited to be back in Malaysia again even though he only arrived at Malaysia yesterday and did not have much time to explore around yet. He was looking forward to his solo concert which was held in DBKL Auditorium Hall and mentioned that fans should keep an eye on him as there will be surprises for those who are attending the concert.

During the press conference, SungHa mentioned that he had performed in Jason Mraz’s concert in South Korea recently. He admitted that his dream came true as he was given a chance to perform with Jason Mraz. SungHa also collaborated with singer Roy Kim, winner of a singing competition programme - Superstar K, whom he met during Jason Mraz’s concert. SungHa revealed that he would like to collaborate with Roy again in the future. When he was asked whether which American artiste he would like to collaborate with, SungHa picked the talented Bruno Mars who charmed audience all around the world. SungHa looked up to Australian guitarist, Tommy Emmanuel as his role model.

SungHa shared that “Nostalgia” is his favourite soundtrack from his latest album, Paint It Acoustic. It was a song that he composed himself during his guitar practice and there was no special story behind the song. Since he is still young, he shyly admitted that he does not have any love experience yet which he can put them into his compositions.

The guitar genius, SungHa will be starting his US tour on March next year. US fans should definitely anticipate this! Since he is currently busy with his tour, he shared that he had to home school to balance his studies and he regrets not spending much time with his friends.

As a solo finger guitarist, SungHa does not have any experience playing instruments with a band. He thought that it would be nice if he could have a band. He started playing electric guitar a year ago and was honoured to be the spokesperson for Gibson. Besides electric guitar, he also attended vocal lessons and it would take some time for him to sing his composed songs in his concert when he was asked whether he had any thought of singing his composed songs.

SungHa said that he didn’t expect that he will be this successful on Youtube. His father recorded his first video, a video of him playing guitar when he was 10 years old. He did not know what was Youtube at that age. SungHa mentioned that many things had changed by comparing his latest album and his first debut album, technical skills was one of them.

At the end of the press conference, SungHa showed off skills of his on his ukulele. It was a  jaw-dropping performance from him.

Written and photo by: Kar Yan Yong
Edited by: ColeneHyori's K-Blog

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Posted at 12:47 AM |  by Colene Hyori

Alpha Dream Stage Malaysia Talent Search 2013

(MALAYSIA , 18TH JUNE 2013) – For the very first time in Malaysia, Alpha Entertainment & Dream Station will be organizing the Alpha Dream Stage Malaysia Talent Search 2013 at The Stage Club Kuala Lumpur located at Avenue K on the 29th to 30th June 2013 from 9am till 6pm on both days.


Alpha Entertainment is the same company that launched the Korean – Singaporean K-pop Group , SKarf in August 2012. The objective of the Alpha Dream Stage Malaysia Talent Search 2013 is to provide a platform for aspiring K-pop wannabes to showcase their best talents before a panel of highly professional judges.

Shortlisted participants would be given a chance to be trained at Dream Station Singapore , the Academy and Events Management arm of Alpha Entertainment Group where it conducts vocal, dancing, acting and grooming courses for aspiring artistes-to-be. Having established its first Academy in Singapore, Dream Station aims to expand its Academy across Asia in the near future. In addition, Dream Station has an Events Management department where it provides an avenue for these aspiring artistes-to-be to perform, supports all Alpha-related events, as well as organizing exciting corporate events that facilitate the realization of individuals’ dreams.

The judging panel would consist of -
Mr Kang Junkoo , who has been in the K-pop industry for several years as a Talent Scout and also an Artist Manager. He has personally spotted, groomed and launched many K-pop groups in Korea and is considered a highly successful veteran in the Korean entertainment industry.

Mr Alan Chan , the CEO and founder of Alpha Entertainment Group, which started in the year 2010 with the objective of grooming talents within asia and beyond. Alpha Entertainment Group is also the brainchild of SKarf, the first ever K-pop group with 2 Singaporeans in there.

Mr Alvin Chan, the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Dream Station. Besides managing Dream Station, Alvin supports most of the operational matters in the Alpha Entertainment Group. His rich and valued experiences in the events scene play a valuable role towards the success of Alpha and Dream Station.



The Alpha Dream Stage Malaysia Talent Search is also proudly supported by IAH Games. Headquartered in Singapore, IAHGames is a leading publisher, operator and distributor of interactive entertainment. The company operates award-winning titles including Granado Espada, Counter-Strike™ Online, SuperStar Live, FairyLand 2, Dan Dan Tang, Sevencore, New PAL Online and New Gulong Online. One of the first online game companies in the world to receive ISO 9001:2000 certification for “Distribution and Operation of Online Games”, IAHGames executes a unique “One Market, One Asia” strategy that offers developers and publishers a one-stop distribution service for multiple countries.

For more information on IAHGames, please visit: http://www.IAHGames.com


For more information or clarifications, please feel free to contact :

Mr Eugene Siew
Head, Events & Special Projects
Dream Station Pte Ltd
Mobile : +65 91171078
Email : eugenesiew@mydreamstation.com
Website : http://www.mydreamstation.com

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Posted at 2:53 PM |  by Colene Hyori

Kim Jong-kook ended his First Malaysia Showcase with a promise to fans

Running Man's Sparta, Kim Jong-kook finally ran his way to Malaysia to meet his beloved fans. 14th June 2013 marked his first visit to Malaysia and it was a blast! Fans from all around the world such as Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Korea gathered at the HGH Convention Centre to catch the sweet singer, or the well-known Sparta from Running Man, Kim Jong-kook in action. Thanks to New Pro Star, PMP Entertainment and Running Into The Sun, fans were given exclusive chances to meet Kim Jong-kook at zero distance and taking group photo with the man.

Kim Jong-kook's First Malaysia Showcase started off at 8pm with opening guest, local artiste Virus Wu and Henley Hii. Both of them admitted they were fans of the variety show "Running Man" and was honoured to be the opening guest for Kim Jong-kook. The emcee of the night was Yoon from One FM, one of the official radio station for the event.

Virus Wu

Henley Hii

"Today More Than Yesterday" was the first song Kim Jong-kook sang for his fans. His appearance was greeted by the crowd with loud cheers. Kim Jong-kook was seen wearing a white tee, grey cotton vest with a dark cardigan and a striking orange short pants. He sang on stage, with 3 dancers in companion.
The showcase continued with a short and fun interview with Kim Jong-kook on stage. He first greeted fans in Malay, "Apa Khabar!" and expressed that he wasn't expecting that much of fans to be welcoming him in the airport and also attending his showcase.

Kim Jong-kook revealed that he ate Nasi Lemak in the morning and his stomach isn't feeling well because the sambal has a different and stronger taste of spice. It is totally different from Korea's spicy food. To spice up the crowd, Kim Jong-kook shared some behind-the-scene happenings of "Running Man" with fans. He said he gets angry at Kwang-soo easily as Kwang-soo always befriend him in the beginning and betray him afterwards. He even confessed that he doesn't want to be in the same group with fellow friend Suk-jin.

A tough man like Kim Jong-kook is hardly seen with teary eyes in front of rolling cameras or fans. To everyone's shock, Kim Jong-kook said that he have once cried in front of Cha Tae-hyun while he was drunk and Tae-hyun actually revealed it. Jong-kook said he mumbles a lot when he is drunk. Since this is the first time Kim Jong-kook ever set foot in Malaysia, he allowed fans to do whatever they want on stage to him with no barriers! His words drew a big roar from the crowd!

After the interview, fans were picked up on stage by lucky draw to play games with Kim Jong-kook. Many fans took the opportunity to give the singer a big hug and he embraced it happily. The punishments Kim Jong-kook received for losing in the games were one of the highlight of the night as he was given task to flash his muscles to the crowd and do Gwiyomi. Fans were charmed by his tough yet cute personality. Kim Jong-kook was then shown to a fan made clip compiled by the event managers, made by fans and specially dedicated to Kim Jong-kook.

After that, Kim Jong-kook returned on stage with his songs, "Men Are All Like That", " Don't Be Too Good To Me", "Star, Wind, Sun and Love", "Loveable" and "Twist King". Fans were cheering along with the song "Loveable" it was a fast and fun song. It definitely lifted the mood after so many sentimental songs by him. Kim Jong-kook was once a boy group member 10 years ago and he admitted that he was a great dancer back then just like Big Bang and Super Junior. He then performed "Twist King", a song from long time ago, with his cute choreography.

Lastly, he ended his showcase with one last encore song, "One Man". He promised to bring members of "Running Man" to Malaysia in the future.

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Posted at 2:12 PM |  by Colene Hyori