Fandom and MUSIC

I must admit that I love Korean music, films and dramas. Not very long ago I used to scold my sister for watching every episode of Pops & Seoul (all about K-pop music) and Showbiz Extra (Korean entertainment show) in Arirang TV. Actually she was exclusively watching all programs aired in that channel. I bet she would give her arm and her leg to be in Korea any day and catch her favorite artists performing on stage. So in the process I also stumbled upon some of their movies and dramas, and got carried away like millions of Asians like me who have fallen under the spell of the "Korean Wave" spreading across the world. Slowly I also started liking their music, knowing some of the famous Idol groups and solo singers, appreciating the talents, and so on and so forth.

As a big music fan myself it wasn't long before I started listening to K-pop. Anything that is melodious and catchy gets me hooked. Initially I started getting requests from my sister to download particular songs for her. In the process I used to listen to the downloads and liked a few of them. Before long I started 'googling' for "top k-pop songs" or "top songs by top k-pop artists". The rest is history. Haha. :-)
Elsewhere in the world, particularly in the US and the UK, pop bands are the thing of the past. Spice Girls, NSync, Boyzone, Blue, Westlife were very popular once. They are popular now as well but only by name, they are no longer active as a band. Either the members have taken a different career within the entertainment business or some of them have turned solo. Powerful solo singers garner much attention and recognition in the music industry nowadays as has been the case since time immemorial. Perhaps that's why the music industry no longer take the trouble to form a new Backstreet Boys kind of pop act.
In South Korea though, the pop-band trend is still a huge hit. In a year, on an average, five or six new girl bands or boy bands are formed and introduced. They don't even release a full album to begin with. The trend is to release a single, promote the single, attract fans and then only they follow up with mini albums (3-4 songs) or full albums. Those bands who have a huge fan following are known as Idol-groups. As the term "idol" suggests, these groups have thousands of loyal fans, with their very own official "fan-clubs" and fan-club websites. The "netizens" (yes they are the citizens of the net...lol) are hawk-eyed and follow both the professional career and personal life of their idols. Seriously the fans are too crazy for my liking. Waiting for hours in the air port terminal to catch a glimpse of their idol celebrities, screaming and crying seeing them, sending gifts and letters by the dozens to them, donating to charities in their name (of course the donation part is good), publishing "birthday wishes" in the advertisement pages of newspapers, the list is endless. Attention is good but too much of it is poisonous. I can imagine the burden on their young shoulders, there is no personal time. If I didn't hear it wrong, they cannot even date. Idols seldom date for real but of course those who are dating must be successful in doing so behind closed doors.
Plastic surgeries, I believe, is cheap and affordable in Korea. The fact that men and women are obsessed over good looks and bodies, have made it a "normal" thing to pursue if and when required. The same is true for celebrities. It is not strange to see a few celebrities becoming prettier or handsome or weirder sometimes. Netizens are famous at comparing pictures of their past and present, making sure to point out the differences in their features, if they exist. I believe that most of them naturally possess beautiful genes. :)
As with any talent group formation, the members are selected through auditions or strangely so, some are scouted in the streets (on what basis? that I am not sure of). To reach a bigger audience, the trend has been to include members who are multi-lingual. You won't be shocked to find Chinese, Thai, Japanese or naturalized American-Koreans in idol groups. Since the training period is at least two to three years long, it is not hard for members to learn the language in the time of their training in singing, dancing, and others. Only after vigorous training, and only if they are deemed fit, then members are selected and then groups are formed. Groups debut with a particular image and try to maintain that image throughout their career, albeit some changes in their music and outfits (obviously). If they are successful they hold fan meetings and concerts, not only in their home country, but also in other parts of the world. Also they try their luck by trying to make their debut in Japanese (Japan is said to be a bigger market for music) and Chinese markets, re-recording their hit songs in those languages and recording new songs. Few have gone international like the Wonder Girls who recently released their English EP album, releasing their title song in three languages (English, Chinese and Korean) with three music videos, that's some feat. It is still to be seen whether they can equal or surpass their success they have in their home country with this new venture to get a shot at International Stardom.
Not all groups make it to the top. Despite some acts not scaling the heights as expected, they manage to have a good number of followers to sustain their career. Their job is not limited to singing and dancing, they are required to create opportunities for themselves in other areas (commercials, acting stints, musicals, etc.) and fans can see them for what they are (true , normal avatar ) when they participate in variety or reality shows. That's where the fans get to know their Real idols.
Idol groups are bigger in popularity than actors and actresses. Beats me! Some of the biggest names right now are TVXQ (DBSK), Wonder Girls, SNSD (Girl's Generation), Super Junior, Shinee, Big Bang, 2 PM, to name a few. All rely on catchy tunes and attractive choreography to stay on top. I love few songs here and there from these groups, love their dance choreography and secretly wish that I could master their groovy moves. Their popularity have been spreading across Asia like wildfire. What they term the phenomenon as "Hallyu Wave" aka Korean Wave. Why do you think I am a fan? I got hit by it too. Haha. I am just a decent fan, not a crazy one. I am more of a fan of their songs and their talent. Appreciate their beauty but not obsessed by it, appreciate their talent but not blinded by it. If I meet them in the streets I will never scream and cry, I will guarantee that.

The idol groups give me songs with nice beats and addictive hooks, but my real love lies in Korean ballads sung by talented singers with powerful voices. Like Hindi songs, they are full of emotion backed by expressive lyrics and melodies. SG Wannabe, Eru, Sung Si Kyung, Baek Ji Young, Lyn, K Will, are some of the respected talents in K-pop ( K-soul ? ) industry.

What about the movies and dramas? Hmm, I am very selective. I have watched few that have been highly recommended by friends or people online. Firstly I like it that most of them are women oriented. Women characters (lead) are usually the strong-hold of the story. The Korean culture can be experienced through Korean cinema, and they are high on the "comedy" element as well. The recurrent theme is the Love triangle between the characters and the confusions related to it, loads of funny side-kicks and an occasional tear-jerking moments. Their movies and dramas makes for great entertainment so it is good to immerse in their worlds once in a while when one has the time to do so. [Rom-com Dramas that I recommend are Coffee Prince and My Name is Kim Sam Soon]

















Music is universal, it is a universal language that unites all people. Language should not be a barrier. If you love music then it will not be difficult to like and appreciate music/songs from different parts of the world. The world is not short of talents and it is a good thing to come across different melodies, songs by different artists, from different countries. Thank god for the internet and television, if not for them, I would have missed out on this opportunity to listen to all great Music. After exploring English, Hindi, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Spanish music, I am hungry for more. Our very own Bhutanese songs have blossomed over the past few years to my liking, that I have finally come to embrace and like them.
Now I must proudly proclaim that Music is a part of my life. ^-^

Uncertainity called Death, lifelong wish, teachings

When does one really think about death? For me it's almost always when I witness death or when someone I know have died. There are two sides to my realization of death. In the first one, I realize how precious life is. That time runs out every second and every second is precious as it passes on and before you know it, you are 27 years old. That's when I think that I must live my life to the fullest. Fulfill my wishes and enjoy every moment of life. On the other hand, the second realization must be a reflection of my beliefs from my Buddhism roots.

Essentially when I see someone lifeless, everything goes out the window. My purpose in life, my wishes, everything that's important to me just becomes lame and lifeless like the corpse in front of me. Nothing matters at that moment. The feeling can be likened to a vacation where one forgets the everyday struggles and everyday life, and momentarily gets carried away by the merry and stress-less holiday. In that case, I become mindful of the insignificance of life that the event so big as death make me feel so. What's there to it in the end? A spent life! That's the only consolation for those lucky few who die at a ripe age, and unfortunate for those who die at a very young age. So it makes me mindful that whatever I am doing right now, or have been doing till this moment does not matter in the end. But it also brings me to ask myself this "Then what matters?". Well, that is when I really come to think of Buddha and his teachings. He realized that we human beings dwell in the Samsara of suffering, inflicted by the suffering of birth, sickness, old age and ultimately, death. As an enlightened being, with hardship and after accumulating lifetimes of karmic virtues, Lord Buddha came to realize the ways to escape the suffering of life.

When I stand near the funeral corpse, watching the fire slowly burn down the very proof of life that was. Helplessness is all I feel. Life seems not so worth it. The bag that I wanted to buy just a few days ago, I no longer want it. I am no longer bitter about the bad feelings I had against some individuals. I complain less. My mind is more open and accepting. I don't even care about my dreams and wishes. If I may realize them, well and good, otherwise I don't think I will mind if I am not able to fulfill them. That is how I feel at that moment and for a few weeks after. And then as always, I begin to live my life as if it is never going to end. All the wise thoughts I had had in the past stand as a distant memory only to be retrieved from my clouded mind, if at all, during the event of death around me. But what happens when the same happens to me. What will I think and how will I change? Then it will be too late.

That is why I must realize the importance of time and practice mindfulness. Practice compassion and meditate on things that matters. Pick up the steps and practice what Buddha realized and taught some 2000 years ago. What Buddha taught were simple. He taught a way of life which will help us escape rebirth in the 'Samsara of Suffering'. Every human being, is said to have a pure or the mind of the Bodhichitta, waiting to be used/embraced. We must work to clear the dark clouds clouding that pure mind caused by negative forces of ignorance, jealousy, anger and other negative actions. In my case it is a working progress. I might not prostrate continuously in front of god or pray regularly in his name, but I have started to consciously try and control my mind. In the sense I am improving in terms of thinking positive thoughts, feeling of compassion for people, controlling my anger, blocking the feeling of jealousy, etc. My only hope is that someday I might not act out the negative actions/have negative thoughts and think with my pure mind without the negative obscuration. It might take lifetimes to achieve that. So be it. Even if that takes me eons of rebirths, I pray that I gain enough virtues through proper practice and good deeds in those lifetimes to ultimately achieve it!

I am thankful to the wisdom imparted by many Buddhist masters and individuals alike, in the form of speeches, talks, books, etc. By virtue of their continuous and compassionate effort to relieve the suffering of human beings and all that dwell in Samsara, we are fortunate to have their blessing to be able to take the positive road to absolute freedom. May all sentient beings be blessed to be able to escape the karmic suffering of Samsara. Chab-sum-chhe!