KOREAN pop. A genre in music that originated in South Korea and has been very famous here in the Philippines.
As Cebu celebrates its friendship and culture with South Korea, the Cebu Korean Association Inc. (Cebu Hanin Hue Inc.) organized the 6th Cebu City Korean Day hosted by CKA Inc., Cebu City Government and SM City Cebu on September 29 to October 2.
Among the series of events, the most awaited part is the Cebu Kpop Star.
Cebu Kpop Star (CKS) is a talent competition that has been annually participated by different aspiring fans in Cebu. Participants need to sing, dance, or do both. The competition has two stages before the CKS grand finals.
The first stage is the online audition, wherein interested participants are required to submit an application form and audition video. They will be determined here if they are qualified enough for the competition.
The second stage is preliminary round. This is where the cover groups will perform and compete in front of the judges and the public for a chance to grab a spot in the finals.
Last year, Angel Fire bagged the crown as the Cebu Kpop Star of 2015. Angel Fire is a four-member group covering the most popular girl group in Korea, which is 2ne1.
Aside from the visuals and costumes that awed the audiences during the finals in 2015, Angel Fire gave an all-out and powerful sing and dance performance that lead them to their being named the Kpop Star.
“Honestly, we really did not expect that we would grab the title. You see, we were just first timers at that time,” said Evita Villarino, a member of Angel Fire.
She said their group will be a guest performer in CKS grand finals, and she is expecting a more intense competition from the contestants in this year’s competition since the Kpop community in Cebu is becoming bigger and better than ever.
As of September 3, the Cebu Korean Association Inc. announced on its Facebook page 50 pre-finalists.
The 50 contestants are composed of seven soloists and 43 groups who have been given a chance to showcase their talent in the upcoming preliminary rounds.
The preliminary round will be held on September 9, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., at The Event Center SM City Cebu. (Patricia Ranili, UP Cebu student)