True talent reigns in "Immortal Song 2"...

Immortal Song 2 from KBS

There's a reason that I don't really write about each and every Korean album that comes out. For one thing, I don't really think it's nice to say (or write) bad things about artists. Like I said in my other post, artists are meant to be loved.

My other reason --- well, I go for vocal talent and musicality than hype. A lot of the idols that come out of the woodwork are either a product of tweaking (music editing and auto-tuning galore), and lots of hype. Unfortunately, the bad apples tend to spoil the lot, and even the artists who actually have talent are unfairly judged as well.

This is the reason why I love watching the show "Immortal Song 2" from KBS. It showcases live performances from some of the top idol vocalists in the industry. They're there to prove that idols are artists too, and that they got the stuff to make people believe that true talent does exist in the industry.


The show comes in a contest format where the vocalists perform according to a theme (usually the theme would be songs coming from the songs of an established artist), then they would be judged by a 200-member audience according to how well they delivered their performance. There isn't any actual elimination --- the winner mostly has bragging rights. It's all good though since all the cast members are good friends, plus it's nice to see their reactions to each others performances.

The original cast of Immortal Song 2 (L to R): Changmin, Yoseob, Hyorin, IU, Yesung and JongHyun

A controversy that has gripped the show though is the constantly changing roster of the cast. When the show began a few months ago, their original cast included some of the most popular recording artists of this generation - Changmin of 2AM, Yang Yoseob of BEAST, Hyorin of SISTAR, IU, Yesung of Super Junior, and Jong Hyun of SHINee. There was a problem though with most of these artists being popular --- their schedules would normally conflict and they would have to decide which commitments they would have to let go of. Due to priorities, Yoseob, IU, Jong Hyun and Yesung had to let go of their spots in the show.

The show had to go on, so the producers of the shows filled in the open spots with new artists --- G.O. of MBLAQ, Junsu of 2PM, Lee Hong Ki of FT ISland, and Jiyoon of 4Minute. The show has grown even more in popularity and has pulled in lots celebrity guests. What even more interesting are the performances, where they reinterpret classic songs with a fresh modern, 21st century flavor.

Here are some of my favorite performances from the show.

NOTE: If you're wondering where I catch all of this --- well, nobody's really gotten to subbing the entire show, but allkpop.com posts updates when the episodes air Saturdays in Korea; you should be able to watch cut-scenes of the performances and the results from there.

Hyorin of Sistar

G.O. of MBLAQ

Junsu of 2PM

Lee Hong Ki of FT Island

Changmin of 2AM