The Wonder Girls, South Korea's pop sensation now active in the United States, made a successful appearance on a U.S. TV talk show on Monday with hit song ``Nobody.''
The five-member girl band sang the song in English on the daytime Wendy Williams Show in New York and drew a standing ovation. The members enthralled the spectators by wearing the same clothes as in South Korea. The producers also created a stage similar to that from the music video of the song.
The talk show Web site was plastered with postings invariably praising the Wonder Girls' performance. One of the postings said, `` I love the Wonder Girls! Thanks Wendy for having them on your show. I love you and the Wonder Girls. I love watching your show and I also hope everyone will support the Wonder Girls debut in America.''
Well, another posting said
Can you say Milli Vanilli y’all? Although those ‘chu’s are pretty convincing.
And another said
I think most of the comments here are left by their Korean fans who follow them everywhere they go. They only watch today’s show because they were appearing on it. I don’t think they can sing. They are pretty and the song is addicting…but that is about it.
My current column at the Joongang Ilbo notwithstanding, I think newspapers here tend to give too much weight to internet comments. Does what some 14-year-old says on YouTube often warrant repeating in a paper? Or what some 40-year-old takes fifteen seconds to type?
Anyway, the Wonder Girls should be given credit for doing what all the other overhyped Korean Wave, um, stars couldn't, and that's make a splash on American shores. (See what I did there?) But what's funny isn't just that Wendy Williams is a nobody to anyone who doesn't follow hip-hop, but that she's, well, not exactly wholesome entertainment, basically a shock jock who peddles in celebrity gossip. Wikipedia says:
A portion of Lil' Kim's track, "Shut Up Bitch" on her album The Naked Truth says:
"Don't come around here with that Wendy Williams shit/get your facts straight or shut up bitch!"
and
In an incident on her Hot 97 show in 1995, Wendy notoriously aired rumors that Tupac Shakur was raped in prison. Shakur was furious over the rumor, which New Jersey underground rapper Chino XL referenced in a song, "Riot". Shakur later addressed Wendy Williams on the song "Why U Wanna Turn On Me?", which remained unreleased until his death in 1996. In the song, Shakur insults Williams mainly in the last verse and the outro, stating that he prays she "chokes on the next dick down [her] throat" and refers to her as a "fat troll," and threatening a $20,000 Jenny Craig hit on her.
I don't think those'll be turning up in the reviews. She is mildly entertaining as a radio personality, and has of course been successful though I wonder how much edginess will carried over onto her TV show, which debuted on the 13th.
12 comments:
Re: internet comments.
I agree that the comments on websites are mostly worthless.
I used to hate blogs and all the moronic comments on them. I was then dismayed to see legitimate news sites open themselves up to netizen comments.
Now, I've developed a thicker skin and a greater ability to filter out the rubbish.
If you watch CNN or BBC News, you'll see them reading the website comments on air. At least they try to use them as representative of the various opinions on an issue. It's kind of an extension of the call in votes they used to have, which they would then use to create a poll - "54% of our viewers think the president is...".
I was sitting in a room with both a 14 year old girl and a 40 year old man when I read this. Here is what they had to say.
14 year old girl.
Well as as fourteen year old girl, I think you better shut the hell up about my wondergirls. Why do you having hate wonder girls much? You not liking them? Wondergirls is very glamour. You must liking wondergirls or I'm not happy.
40 year old man.
I couldn't gett into the studio audience because they thought that it was suspicious that a 40 year old man was wearing a trench coat in the summer.
Schplook, I hate that feature on CNN. It's an easily manipulable feature that distorts the news in an unhealthy way. The Korean media does it largely out of laziness (and fear).
3gyupsal, I read your comment but I still see two imaginary Koreans and one real foreigner thinking and talking about The Wonder Girls. ;)
WORD VERIFICATION: "dermis"
Score!
Kushibo, I kind of agree with you.
I think the TV news medium (like newspapers) is becoming less and less relevant. News companies should just give up and focus on their websites.
On news websites, I can see headline news, read the comments (if I have a lot of free time and feel that it's been too long since something stupid has annoyed me), search for something I actually care about, and watch various news and interview videos.
If, however, I choose the TV, I have to watch the same headlines (and mostly the same reports) three times an hour, endless promos, sports and other 'news' I'm not interested in, or deliberately belligerent interviewers hounding someone for 'the truth'.
Sometimes it's nice to have a rundown of the world news available whenever I switch on the box - like when I'm cooking or when booting up the computer and clicking my mouse a few times seems like too much bother - but I can't stand watching for more than an hour (usually 10minutes is enough).
Kushibo,
Actually the 40 year old man was an imaginary foreigner. So it was one imaginary Korean, one imaginary foreigner and a real foreigner thinking and thinking about the wondergirls. I think they need all of the fans they can get, weather real or imaginary.
In all seriousness, if JYP spends enough money and gets them enough exposure I think they can defiantly become a one hit wonder if they release a song with a catchy and stupid enough hook. I actually hope that Boa can find more success than they can because, Boa has some real talent where only about 50% of the wondergirls can sing.
Success with Boa would mean that there would be an artist who can produce more hit songs, where the WG's would be doomed to obscurity with only a billboard #35, and people would only think associate Korea and Korean pop artists with some stupid song by five cute teenagers, where Boa is a more serious artist.
I agree. BoA deserves it so much more.
Okay, I actually watched the clip now. 3 girls sang, and they lipsynced the chorus. One girl was obviously digitally assisted.
What they hell is JYP thinking? The guy produced a song for Outkast, he has an office in New York, you would think that someone like him would know that you can't perform live and lip sync. He is sabotaging their chances in America before they can get an honest shot at releasing a record. Nobody, nobody, but K-pop fans would buy their stuff.
and people would only think associate Korea and Korean pop artists with some stupid song by five cute teenagers, where Boa is a more serious artist.
They'd probably think BoA is Japanese, just like the Japanese do.
watch the wondergirls you say?
no thanks. they're not getting better anyway.
That was about as clear as I've ever heard them sing the English version of the song, and I still don't know what the hell they're saying for most of the song.
And if they need to digitally enhance So-hee's voice because she still can't sing worth a damn, then maybe it's time to put her on a diet of choruses only.
Question: when they say they got a standing ovation, do they mean by American standard (everyone stands) or Korean (a smattering of people standing)?
"They'd probably think BoA is Japanese, just like the Japanese do."
The Japanese think BoA is Japanese because she sings and speaks in their language fluently.
Indeed, some probably do. I've been to several music stores in Japan that had extensive sections for Korean movies and music, but BoA was placed in the regular "Japanese artists" section.
Most Japanese, though, are aware she's from Korea, but it's simply not a big deal. Some might simply believe (mistakenly) she's a zainichi. I'll ask some of my Japanese friends in Hawaii about that.
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