'Seagull Dance' Na Hoon-ah, 'Lightstick' Cho Yong-pil, 149-year-old legends cheered by MZ

《Kim Jiwon's Hidden Track》
Ten Asia reporter Kim Ji-won takes a closer look at the hidden stories of the music industry. We will vividly convey the facts and truth of the music industry issues.

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The name alone gives off a strong presence. This is the story of Na Hoon-ah, the 'Valentine', and Cho Yong-pil, the 'King of Singer'. Na Hoon-ah is 76 years old, Cho Yong-pil is 73 years old, a total of 149 years old. The two, who released new songs side by side this year, leave a deep meaning in the Korean music industry by themselves.

On the 10th, Na Hoon-a made a surprise announcement of her new album 'Dawn'. Everyone was surprised by the unexpected 'event'. This album contains six songs: 'Life', 'Love is love that freezes to death', 'Beautiful Farewell', 'Tattoo', 'Thorns', and 'Giljang Seagull'.

Na Hoon-a said through her agency, "When I saw the stars in the morning, I counted the stars and wrote a poem, and when it rained at dawn, I listened to the sound of rain and put the melody on a sheet of paper." "'Dawn' makes me hold the guitar and sit down at the piano," he said. "It makes me dream with my eyes open and have a drink by reminiscing about the pain. For such a long time, 'Dawn' has kept me asleep. I couldn't hear it," he said. He also said, "As always, as we release the new song with excitement and nervousness, I hope that this new song will be a small comfort in your life."

Unlike ordinary idols who release two or three music videos, such as a title song, a double title song, and at most a little title song, Na Hoon-a showed all six music videos. Na Hoon-ah appears directly in the music videos of 4 songs: 'Life', 'Beautiful Farewell', 'Tattoo', and 'Giljang Seagull'. In particular, in the music video for 'Gejang Seagull', he dances himself wearing a Hawaiian shirt with colorful patterns and ripped jeans.

Na Hoon-ah, who shows choreography with the motif of seagulls flying in the background of the village, is humorous and laughs. In the music video, which is like a comic movie, Na Hoon-a also digested the action scenes. The lyrics, which contain the meaning of enjoying a fleeting life like a seagull, and the music with an exciting rhythm are 'perfect rice cake'. It is made so that younger generations can enjoy it easily and fun without insisting on the weight of the Korean music industry's great seniors.

Cho Yong-pil also released a new song in April. It has been 10 years since 'Bounce' in 2013. The new song 'Feeling Of You' is a synth-pop genre with strong characteristics of electronic music. The animated music video contains the story of Cho Yong-pil appearing as an avatar wearing sunglasses and carrying a guitar and going on a trip with a tiger and a magpie. Another song, 'Ra', is music based on the progressive house genre, which Cho Yong-pil first tried after his debut. Cho Yong-pil's will to keep up with the music trend is evident.

As such, what Na Hoon-ah and Cho Yong-pil have in common is that they have shown 'young music' while adapting to the changing music market. To the MZ generation, there are no MZ generations who don't know the two of them, even though they are singers who are 'grandfather'. There are many people who got to know about it because their parents and grandparents liked it, and then fell in love with their music. Na Hoon-ah's 'Tess hyung!', released in 2020, gained ardent popularity among young people in the wake of the non-face-to-face concert 'Korea Again Na Hoon-a', which was broadcast during the Chuseok holiday of that year. It topped various music chart streaming and popular keywords, and memes were created through social media and YouTube.

When Cho Yong-pil released 'Bounce', he beat Psy to reach the top of the music charts. He said, "Let's break away from the me who was inside the borders" was the opportunity to introduce new music at the time. In addition, at the concert held at the time of the release of 'Feeling of You', a 'central control cheering stick', which is common among 'idols these days', was used. In the case of 'Idols these days' concerts, fans have to purchase light sticks for several tens of thousands of won, but Cho Yong-pil gave them out to all the audience for free, just like a 'King of Singer'. In response, praises such as "The ticket price includes a central control light rod for all seats" and "This is the king of singers" were poured out.

Abandoning egotism, acknowledging and accepting change and making it one's own. This is the background that allowed the music of singer Na Hoon-ah and singer Cho Yong-pil to settle down in the Korean music industry as 'classic' rather than 'old-fashioned'. The music, performance, and energy that tear the stage apart are the reasons that even 'kids these days' cheer.

Popular culture critic Kim Yeon-soo said, "In the past, there was a perception that pop culture could not be 'classic', but through the British Beatles, we saw that pop culture can transcend the times and become 'classic' recognized by everyone." . In addition, he said, "Cho Yong-pil and Na Hoon-a's music can be enjoyed by all generations, not just one generation. The fact that their activities continue is proof that our popular culture can also become a classic."

Reporter Kim Ji-won, Ten Asia bella@tenasia.co.kr