Yoo Se-yoon, Min-ho, and Jang Do-yeon, confidence in becoming a ‘webtoon singer’

TVING presents ‘Webtoon Singer’, a unique music show that combines K-webtoon and K-pop. The production team and MCs, who realized the emotion of the webtoon on a real stage, were confident that it would be fun and touching. Yoo Se-yoon said he already had a feeling it would be a ‘big hit’.

On the 14th, an online production presentation for TVING's new original entertainment show 'Webtoon Singer' was held. Producer Hwang Seong-ho, who directed the production, and MCs SHINee's Minho, Yoo Se-yoon, and Jang Do-yeon attended.

‘Webtoon Singer’ is a music show where scalable K-webtoons and talented K-pop artists come together to present a storytelling stage.

PD Hwang introduced, "'Webtoon Singer' is a content that shows the synergy that occurs when music and webtoons meet. The structure is to introduce webtoons, have singers find songs that fit the webtoons, arrange them, and then perform them on stage." Regarding the intention of the plan, “K-pop and K-webtoons are trending around the world. Content creators are also paying a lot of attention to webtoons. There are many successful cases of dramas based on webtoons.” K, which is popular around the world, “I thought it would be popular if I combined it with K-pop culture,” he explained. When asked if he had read a lot of K-webtoons, he said, "Before I started working, I consumed a lot of webtoons. When I was in school, there were no webtoons, so I consumed comics. After that, I consumed a lot of webtoons. After work, when I had time, I would watch webtoons. “Generation,” he answered.

Jang Do-yeon, Yoo Se-yoon, and Minho revealed the reason why they took on the role of MCs for 'Webtoon Singer'. Jang Do-yeon said, "I thought it was refreshing. I come from the comics generation rather than webtoons, but there are many people who love webtoons. I think this program came out at the right time." He then revealed the reason for accepting the MC role, saying, "I have a relationship with the PD, having worked on a program with him before. There was no reason to turn him down because he was a great production team that had everything."

Yoo Se-yoon said, "There are programs that I can feel as soon as I see the plan. I'm not the type of person who has a good sense, but the programs that I can definitely feel are big hits. When I saw 'Webtoon Singer', I understood it just by looking at the title. Coincidentally, in that season ( “There weren’t many programs that I was in charge of,” he confessed. He continued, "There are times when I think, 'I wish season 2 didn't go into the program that doesn't show any angles.' It's painful for us as well. It's hard to pour water into a bottomless pit when there is no exit in sight. But 'Webtoon Singer' is a 'season' even when waiting. “I said, ‘I have to go. It’s a worthwhile program,’” he said, confident that it would be fun.

Minho said, "When I first received the offer, the combination of K-webtoon and K-pop was refreshing. I stand on stage as a team and also act individually. There are many works through webtoons, and I thought it would be a program that would be of great help to me. “I thought I wanted to do it, but when I heard that Se-yoon and Do-yeon had been selected as MCs, I thought I had to do it no matter what.”

Producer Hwang said, "I thought it would be good for all three to have images from webtoons. Do-yeon felt like the main character of a romance comic, and Se-yoon had a connection to webtoons when I was watching them at the peak of my career. She also hosted 'I Hear Your Voice'. He said, “His hosting skills are outstanding. Minho is like the protagonist of a boy’s cartoon.”

Minho explained the contest method. Minho said, "We are divided into Team Se-yoon and Team Do-yeon. The author of two webtoons appears in each episode. We ask the audience that day which stage they liked better. We choose the webtoon of the day."

The webtoons produced on stage are 'Our School Now', 'Guide to Proper Love', 'Doctor Frost', 'Windbreaker', 'Love Revolution', 'Tomorrow', 'Whale Star', 'Corner Knitting Room', ' There are 16 episodes, including ‘God of High School’, ‘Byul-i-sam Shop’, ‘Jeongnyeon’, ‘Nine Numbers of Us’, ‘White Blood’, ‘Iduna!’, ‘Hive’, and ‘Lunchtime Dad’.

Regarding the criteria for selecting works, PD Hwang said, "We knew that webtoons were popular and that works based on webtoons were gaining popularity. A work that can be introduced to people who are unfamiliar with webtoons and can be enjoyed together. “It’s a work that is good when expressed through song and has a variety of stories,” he explained.

The first stage of 'Webtoon Singer' will be performed by four teams of artists: Soran, AB6IX, Hyorin, and Hyojung (Oh My Girl). Through K-webtoons, they present sounds, performances, and behind-the-scenes talks that will target the tastes of K-pop fandom.

After watching the highlight preview video together, PD Hwang said, "I watched it several times during recording and editing, but I thought Hyorin and Hyojung did a great job on stage." Jang Do-yeon recalled that time, saying, “I can feel the emotion I felt during the live performance again.” Yoo Se-yoon said, "It was my first time seeing it on screen after seeing it on-site. I was curious about what the stage would look like on the screen. We also saw it on-screen at the site. It was directed as if a webtoon had come through the screen, and it seems like that in reality. The singers are 'Webtoon Singers'. “I thought I could film a music video with a ball if I did that,” he said, making everyone laugh. Minho said, "There are many other amazing stages in the remaining stages. The singers made excellent song selections. I felt that stages that fit the purpose of 'Webtoon Singer' were created."

Yoo Se-yoon said, "Each webtoon has a different genre and personality. It is difficult to distinguish between winners and losers in 'Webtoon Singer'. There are differences in taste. But our program has winners and losers. I also had a stage that suited my taste. I said, 'Duna Lee!' “I liked the work and I liked the stage,” he said. Regarding the reason, he laughed and said, "It's about having a fling with my older sister. I also had a fling with my older sister and ended up starting a family, so it brought back memories." He then announced, “The person who set up the stage did it so wonderfully and beautifully.”

Minho, whose main profession is a singer, said he also wanted to perform on stage as a contestant. Minho said, "What I've talked about a lot is that artists are the ones who make me want to perform on stage. The director also did a great job setting up the stage. I really wanted to do it." He then confessed, “This time, I feel regretful about participating as an MC, so I think it would be a good idea to give it a try if the PD gives me the opportunity.” When asked if he wanted to participate as SHINee or solo, he replied, "I want to participate as a team, but each member may have their own schedule, so we'll have to discuss it."

In response, Jang Do-yeon said that she wanted to decorate the stage with a webtoon in the 'horror' genre. He laughed, saying, "I want to use autotune from start to finish to give viewers goosebumps. If it's a horror film, I think it might be worth a try." Yoo Se-yoon, who has released music, said, "I like to feel a sense of heterogeneity when planning content. If I do it, I think I will have to do a comedy, but I want to do a romance that gives a sense of heterogeneity." When I said that he seemed like a person with a lot of love, Yoo Se-yoon joked, "It seems like there are a lot of things I haven't solved yet."

When asked if there were any difficulties in creating the webtoon OST, PD Hwang said there were few. Producer Hwang said, "I didn't think that performing on stage would be more difficult than other performances or other stages. That's because there was a basic storyline called a webtoon and I was worried about how well I could implement it. I didn't have any major concerns about stage production, and the MCs and audience wanted to know what we were doing. “I’m sorry there was a lot of waiting time because the stage setting took a long time,” he said, showing confidence with an unexpected answer.

‘Webtoon Singer’ boasted that it was the ‘next level music show’. PD Hwang said, "Many existing music shows were able to be viewed and enjoyed by on-site audiences. When introducing and expressing webtoons, there are limits to what can be produced musically and performatively, whether through XR, AR like Hyorin's stage, or a stage where a band comes out and plays. “I tried not to leave it alone,” he said, emphasizing technological differentiation. He went on to say, "Dancers came out and expressed themselves through dance and joined in when the singer sang. We also tried to express the main media and materials from the webtoon through stage settings," adding that the directing and stage settings were also differentiated.

Jang Do-yeon said, "Before we see the stage, we invite the author to talk about the webtoon. After hearing the behind-the-scenes footage and seeing the stage, I think I can enjoy it more than if I just saw a great stage." He continued, “This is a program that webtoon fans will also remember a lot from.”

MCs revealed their favorite webtoons. SHINee Minho said, "I don't tend to read a lot of webtoons, but this time, I learned a lot about new webtoons, and we also explain the webtoons through summary videos in the middle. So, you won't have much trouble watching them." He continued, "I like 'The God of High School'. Although it is not in the 16 works, I like 'Tower of God'. If there is a season 2, I hope the writer of 'Tower of God' appears. It is a masterpiece." Yoo Se-yoon said, "I received a recommendation, and there is a webtoon called 'Helper.' It's not available this time, but I hope I can meet it in season 2. There are a lot of good webtoons, so I think I should continue the season." Jang Do-yeon said, "I don't read a lot of webtoons, but I enjoyed the webtoon called 'Lighting Store'. This time, I sympathized with and comforted a lot with 'Nine Number of Us'."

Minho said, "Isn't it a program where we introduce our work and set the stage? There are many people who have been serializing for more than 10 years. There are works that have ended, works that are about to end, and works that are still being serialized. I felt a lot of sincerity from the writers. I felt a lot of sincerity in the story. As we decorated the stage to fit the scene, people became immersed in the performance, shared their emotions, and shared their impressions. There were many people who shed tears. Watching that scene, I think of the work with the mindset of a parent looking at their child. “It was the same. I felt how hard the writers worked,” he said.

PD Hwang asked people to watch, saying, “If you watch, you will be able to feel the charm of the webtoon and the singer.” Minho said, "I remember the first recording because it was my birthday. I thought it was a gift-like program to me. I hope it can be a gift to you too, and I want you to visit it like a gift." Jang Do-yeon was confident, “It’s a program that can capture fun and emotion without taking up your time.” Yoo Se-yoon said, "I have hosted quite a few music programs. The 'Webtoon Singer' stage was the most impressive so far. I think you will be amazed too."

‘Webtoon Singer’ will be released for the first time on the 17th.

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