K-Pop contestants in Turkey flaunt skills
Maria Genc, above, won 2013 K-POP World Festival in Turkey division on June 29.
In “2013 K-POP World Festival in Turkey,” which was held by the Korea Culture Service Turkey and the South Korean Consulate General in Istanbul at CRR Concert Hall in Istanbul on June 29, 13 Turkish finalists competed against each other for the honor of victory.
Contestants, however, sang not just Korean young blood idol groups’ upbeat songs that originally made known the word “K-Pop,” but also some popular selections that go back to as early as the ‘90s in S. Korea, including “At 30” by Kim Gwang-seok, “Ra-gu-yo” by Kang San-ae and “Dream of a goose” by Cannibal.
The scene manifested that Korean songs in a broad range of ages and styles have interested Turkish people’s eyes and ears.
The contest’s preliminary rounds progressed via selection of qualifying candidates who uploaded their performance videos on YouTube, total participants being 102 teams. A winner of the contest was Maria Genc (21) who sang “After love” by FT Island. “I practiced on Korean pronunciation for nine months” said Genc. “I am still numb even after winning the contest.”
Genc, who now majors in Greek Literature in Istanbul University, expressed her special thanks to FT Island’s lead vocal Lee Hong-gi for “tweeting on her preliminary-round video on YouTube” and wish to meet him once he visited Istanbul.
At the same location of the contest was held “K-Pop Festival in Gangwon 2013” where 11 teams participated to show off their regimental dance harmony.
Most of the 850 seats of the contest hall, fully packed with audiences, shouted out K-Pop songs played as background music during the contestants’ performance.
Members of “Korea-Fans.Com”, the largest hallyu fan club in Turkey with 62,000 registered members, became volunteers for both occasions.
“Many people scoffed at me when I made a website about Korea’s hallyu as they doubted its future success. With today’s contests being concluded successfully, I am so elated” said Hilmi Kesenek, who runs the fan club website.
“I wish the bond between the two countries become stronger as more young Turkish people pay attentions to S. Korea’s culture, deepening their interests onto the country’s traditional culture.”