Super Junior

Yes, that’s right, the time has come.

Today I’m going to introduce you to my favorite kpop group – Super Junior! 
In my first post here, I wrote about D&E sub-unit, now you’re gonna meet the whole group. Are you ready?

Ok, let’s start with photos and their names.

 Henry and Zhoumi

There are a lot of them, right? But don’t feel too intimidated, I’ll clear things out for you!
Super Junior consist of 15 members, some of them left the group (Hangeng, Kibum), some are just part of particular sub-group (Zhoumi, Henry).
Now, that we’re talking about subgroups, there are many of them, depending on the market (where they sell their music) and the concept/style. So there are:

Super Junior H (happy), Super Junior T (trot), Super Junior-M (Chinese market), Super Junior KRY (consist of three lead vocalists: Kyuhyun, Ryeowook, Yesung), D&E (Donghae, Eunhyuk). 

So in short, they sing/rap in Korean, Japanese and Chinese. Their main target is Asia, though they are known worldwide. They’re one of the first kpop groups that came to Europe and US, and obviously they are legends in South Korea.

What’s more, on 6 November they had their 10th anniversary! Which by the way is not happening too often. Kpop music industry is a very specific one, each year lots of new boysbands and girlsbands appear on the market, and depending on their popularity (both for sales and among fans), either they stay or disband (after their contracts with agencies expires).

I could talk and write hours about how it works, but for now you should just know that you need to stand out and have a lot of luck to gain such a feedback as Super Junior. 

Interesting fact: Initially, Super Junior was just an experiment, their agency SMEntertainment planned on disbanding them after a couple of months, but due to the huge success of their debut, they’ve decided to give them a try. Which I highly approve…great decision!

What you should also need to know is that Super Junior is not just any other band that sells albums, performs on stage etc. These guys are multitalented, they actively appear on variety shows as guests or MC’s (hosts), many of them have their own radio broadcasts, they play in musicals, dramas (tv series), they’ve founded their own companies and restaurants… and much much more.

For me, they are so special and lovely, I want to talk more about them, let you see how wonderful they are, but sadly it’d take too long. I’ve been an ELF (Everlasting Friend – that’s the name of the fandom) since 2011, and ever since they stay very close to my heart. Being a part of the fandom was and still is a such fun journey, meeting new friends who share your passion, participating in different, international, charitable and Polish projects in relation to birthdays and anniversaries of our boys, organizing fanmeetings and just spreading the love for them all around. It’s such a great experience and I’m so glad to be part of it.  

If you have any questions and/or requests concerning SJ or kpop I’ll be happy to help and hear you out!

Now please enjoy the music. :D

Dawid Podsiadło

Taking the advantage of the fact that he released his second solo album just now, I’ll be glad to introduce you to this Polish artist!

Some people may have seen him before, he was one of the participants of the Polish version of the X Factor. He didn’t win the show, but after a few months he recorded his first solo album “Comfort and Happiness”, which won many prestigious awards.

Except his solo career, he also sings actively in a rock band called “Curly Heads”. 

It’s really bizarre, I still remember him singing in the X Factor, he was a scrawny boy and very endearing at that. And he didn’t change. I mean, he still has this unbelievable magnetism, and he’s so down to earth and honest, it really makes me impressed, considering his young age and the great success that he achieved so far. Everyone knows how media works and how fame change people, but he stayed as he were. He matured of course, and I think he’s more confident, especially on stage. He also improved his singing technique, and developed his talent in writing lyrics. We can all hear that on his second album “Annoyance and Disappointment”.

Interesting fact: The titles for his albums are both actually a quote from a japanese role-playing video game – Final Fantasy VIII. The whole sentence goes: “But now... Squall, you're the one who gives me the most comfort. Comfort and happiness... And annoyance and disappointment, too!”I had played this game long before he recorded the album, and I was a bit surprised when I heard about it. I just think it was a really cool idea to use this in such a way. Good choice (and taste)!

I absolutely love the fact that he sings in both Polish and English. More people can appreciate his music thanks to that.

I’m very happy to see him growing as an artist and observe his progress. I’m sure he has lots of surprises prepared for us in the future. So let’s just wait and see.