MANILA, Philippines - Where will you be tomorrow? Perhaps, for the very first time, Korean pop fanatics and Korean wannabes will rampage the Kapuso Network’s home studio in Kamuning for the much-talked-about, much-anticipated, much-boosted Sunday variety show Party Pilipinas. If you are a certified K-pop fan, then you probably know by now that U-Kiss, South Korea’s most happening boy band, will perform on GMA-7’s new musical extravaganza tomorrow. It sounds like another hybrid in the making. Imagine this: K-pop meets Pinoy showbiz. The usually “off-beat” Asian pop fans serve as colorful ornaments inside the circus we call Sunday noontime entertainment.
“It’s K-Pop season!” as organizing group Premiere Entertainment Philippines (PEP) puts it. And to continue the group’s “vision of strengthening cultural and artistic interaction between Korea and the Philippines,” they are bringing Korean pop acts to the Philippine stage. In fact, this U-Kiss treat is more than just a performance on Party Pilipinas. The seven-member group — composed of teen heartthrobs Soohyun, Kevin, Kibeom, Sandeo, Eli, Dongho and Ki Sub — started a series of soul-shaking mall shows, which started yesterday at SM Megamall. And there’s this Kapuso connection. It was GMA Artist Center honcho Ida Henares who arranged the tour with F&D Co. Limited head Kris Jung.
If you’re wondering where they got their name, U-Kiss stands for Ubiquitous Korean International Super Star, which reminds us of that unusual acronym that pop singer Prince used in the ’90s. Does The Artist Formerly Known As Prince ring a bell? The boy band even has the same rebellious spirit. You would hear the guys hollering in their international smash hit Not Young: “Stop treatin’ us like kids/ Cuz we’re not anymore you know what I’m saying? / We’ all grown up.” Asian pop isn’t all bubblegum anymore. The song debuted in 2008 when U-Kiss released its first album “New Generation.” Less than a year after, the group released its sophomore record “Bring It Back 2 Old School.” And with the release of U-Kiss’s latest offering Only One and its debut hit Bingeul, Bingeul, released in the Philippines by Universal Records, the boys are on their way to K-pop fandom. We’re not surprised that Pinoy fangirls (and boys) bombard several U-Kiss fan pages on social networking sites. In fact, if you log on to www.friendster.com/ukiss, the Korean sensation has a whopping fanbase of 52 million U-Kiss addicts to date! We have a feeling this U-Kiss action is far from over.
Catch U-Kiss tonight, 6 p.m. at SM Clark, and tomorrow, 5 p.m. at SM North EDSA Annex.