VIDEO Korean rock legend receives PhD from Berklee
Shin Jung-hyun, center, receives his honorary PhD in music from Roger Brown, left, president of Berklee College of Music in Boston. Shin’s son, Dae-chul, posted this photo on Facebook. / Captured from Shin Dae-chul’s Facebook account
By Park Si-soo
Legendary South Korean rock star Shin Jung-hyun has received an honorary PhD from Berklee College of Music in Boston, his aides said Tuesday.
The musician, 79, often called the “godfather of South Korean rock” for pioneering the Western music genre here, was conferred an honorary doctorate of music from the college president Roger Brown during the school commencement on Saturday (local time). Four other well-known musicians -- Lionel Richie, Lucinda Williams, Todd Rundgren and Neil Portnow -- also received honorary doctorates.
Shin is the first South Korean artist to receive the honor, the college said on its website.
Brown called Shin “an absolute legend” and “an ever-evolving artist” whose “body of work spans 1960s psychedelic rock to ‘80s power pop, all done with a serious dose of guitar virtuosity.”
Born in Seoul in 1938, Shin led Korean psychedelic pop/rock culture during the 1960s and 1970s.
He became the first Asian musician and the sixth in the world to receive a Fender Custom Shop Tribute Series guitar, putting him on par with such rock legends as Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Eddie Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen and Stevie Ray Vaughan.