Singer Jeong Seung-hwan, who comforted the listeners with his mournful yet warm voice, will enlist on the 17th. In the meantime, Jeong Seung-hwan participated in various drama OSTs and became a fuse for the emotions of the characters in the play. From 'If It Was You' in the tvN drama 'Oh Hae-Young Again' to 'Breath' in JTBC's 'Dr. JTBC's 'King the Land' OST 'I'll Reach You', which will be released on the 2nd, will be Jung Seung-hwan's last OST before enlisting. How about listening to the OST sung by Jung Seung-hwan as a way to remember him?
'If It Was You' (2016.05.31), the OST Part 5 of 'Oh Hae-Young Again' (2016) starring Eric and Seo Hyun-jin, is the song that made Jung Seung-hwan a rising star in OST. 'Oh Hae-Young Again' is a romance drama about misunderstandings between two women with the same names, Oh Hae-young (Seo Hyun-jin and Jeon Hye-bin) and Park Do-kyung (Eric). At the time, Oh Hae-young, played by Seo Hyun-jin, captivated viewers with her candid charm that did not show pride in front of love. He is about to get married and is broken off without knowing the reason. Park Do-gyeong, the man he likes, has dated a woman with the same name as himself.
However, Oh Hae-young is honest and confident in front of love. In the play, Oh Hae-young confesses her unrequited love, "Think of me and go to work early. I don't even want love. I'm bored. Really." It is one of the lines that are still talked about while gaining sympathy from the public. Jung Seung-hwan's 'If It Was You' enhances viewers' immersion in Oh Hae-young's complex emotions. 'How would you feel if it were you? When these crazy days become your day', the lyrics are impressive as if talking to the target of unrequited love called 'you' or the target of listening to my story. The OST is also famous as a song that many people have sung at karaoke even after the drama ended.
If Seong Si-kyung and Baek Ji-young were holding onto OSTs from the mid-2000s to the early 2010s, Jung Seung-hwan opened the door in the mid-2010s. Jung Seung-hwan, who debuted on November 29, 2016 with 'This Fool', is a singer who continues the lineage of ballads such as Yoo Jae-ha, Lee Mun-se, Byeon Jin-seop, Shin Seung-hun, Jo Seong-mo, and Seong Si-kyung. Even after the era when ballads were strong, Jeong Seung-hwan's voice, which continues the genealogy steadily, shines in the OST. In the drama 'Moon Lovers - Scarlet Heart Ryeo' (2016), Jung Seung-hwan sang the OST Part 11 Wind (2016.10.05) to express the sad feelings of unrequited love between 4th Prince So (Lee Joon-gi) and Hae-soo (Lee Ji-eun). maximized 'Moon Lovers - Scarlet Heart Ryeo' is a drama about the story of Hae-soo, who lives in Korea in the 21st century, which has fallen into the Goryeo era.
The OST 'Wind' features lyrics that delicately capture the relationship between the 4th prince, So and Hae-su, and a resigned voice. It is a song that says, "It's like a scattered wind, it's like a road that I can't find even if I try to find it." The love of two people with different eras and interests is like a 'scattering wind' that cannot be held in the palm of your hands. Jeong Seung-hwan expressed the narrative of the play three-dimensionally by controlling the dynamics of the song in an attitude of trying to forget in the beginning and gradually refusing to break up towards the middle. It is the same song as the highlight of 'Moon Lovers - Scarlet Heart Ryeo' that made many viewers cry.
In addition to heartbreaking love, Jeong Seung-hwan also portrayed a portrait of lonely youth through music. Singing 'An Ordinary Day' (released on April 5, 2018) of the OST Part 3 of the drama 'My Mister' (2018) starring Lee Ji-eun and Lee Sun-kyun, he gives words of comfort to those living in the present age.
'My Mister' is a drama about the journey of Lee Ji-an (Lee Ji-eun), who lives with a sick grandmother, and Park Dong-hun (Lee Sun-gyun), who endures the weight of another life. It is a song with touching lyrics that reveal their inner feelings like a diary written by ordinary people living a tough life. The ordinary and familiar words of 'I'm fine' are combined with Jeong Seung-hwan's calm voice to portray a really normal day. At the time of airing, 'My Mister' warmly colored the hearts of many people with the gaze facing reality, the weight of an anxious 20-year-old youth, and the solidarity of the uncle. Jung Seung-hwan's voice is like a letter written by pressing hard, giving strength to each letter to make it a solid song.
Even in the drama 'Yumi's Cells Season 2' (2022), which depicts realistic love in their 30s, Jeong Seung-hwan's voice becomes one of the elements that make the drama empathize. Based on a webtoon, 'Yumi's Cells' is a drama about Yumi (played by Kim Go-eun) growing step by step between her love and dreams. The OST Part 7 'Belief' (released on October 9, 2021), sung by Jung Seung-hwan, is mainly composed of lyrics about longing for each other after a breakup. Already in Season 1, Woong-i (Ahn Bo-hyun) and Yu-mi (Kim Go-eun) said goodbye to each other due to a crack due to a trivial reason. A longing heart settles in, but accepts the breakup without courage.
'Belief' is impressive with lyrics that capture the reality of two people hesitating and not approaching, and the feelings of honest lovers who are opposite to the situation in the drama. Rather, it is a song that makes you feel more lonely with Jeong Seung-hwan's calmly sung voice. The point of this song is that he tries to hide his trembling voice while reminiscing about the past, saying, "If the song playing on the radio brings me back when it shines the most beautifully, I want to hide and turn around even after laughing."
Jung Seung-hwan also sang the OST Part 3 Breath (released on April 29, 2023) in the drama 'Doctor Cha Jeong-suk', which ended on June 4. 'Doctor Cha Jeong-sook' is a drama about the love and dreams of Cha Jeong-suk (played by Uhm Jung-hwa) who gave up her dream of becoming a doctor to take care of her family. 'Breath' sung by Jeong Seung-hwan is characterized by a powerful voice that asserts itself differently from the previous ones. Although he is still immature in the harsh reality, Jung Seung-hwan's voice that stretches out with the lyrics saying that he will move forward fits perfectly with the situation of 'Doctor Cha Jeong-sook'. It's a good song to listen to when you're out of breath and your eyes are blurry, or you want to wake up again.
Jeong Seung-hwan, who has melted his voice into many dramas, left OSTs that people are looking for even after the dramas ended. An OST, which means 'Original Sound Track', is an insert song that enriches a drama or movie. However, Jeong Seung-hwan's voice comforts and sympathizes with the possibility beyond that. Although he will leave the public for a while due to his enlistment, how about listening to the OST he sang as a way to reminisce? In addition to the OST, Jung Seung-hwan recently released a new single, 'Epilogue', in which he directly participated in composing and writing lyrics for all songs. It would be nice to find and listen to Jeong Seung-hwan's songs and fill his void.
Reporter Lee Ha-neul, Ten Asia greenworld@tenasia.co.kr