2023년 8월 1일 화요일

World Scout Jamboree kicks off in Saemangeum

 

World Scout Jamboree kicks off in Saemangeum

Over 43,000 participants gather on reclaimed land for 1st post-pandemic event

Scouts take picture with the 25th World Scout Jamboree mascot Saebeomi at Incheon Airport, Monday. (Jamboree Committee)
Scouts take picture with the 25th World Scout Jamboree mascot Saebeomi at Incheon Airport, Monday. (Jamboree Committee)

World Scout Jamboree, the world's largest youth camping festival hosted by South Korea this year, on Tuesday brought together young adventurers from 159 countries to the reclaimed Saemangeum in North Jeolla Province.

The World Scout Jamboree runs until Aug. 12 on the reclaimed area, which is three times the area of Yeouido, at 8.84 square kilometers. The event is attended by more than 30,000 teens aged 14 to 17, 3,496 adult leaders and 9,709 staffers. This is the first global scouting event taking place after the COVID-19 outbreak.

Held every four years by the World Organization of the Scout Movement, the festival is being held again in Korea after its first in Goseong, Gangwon Province, in 1991. Korea is the sixth country in the world to hold the jamboree at least twice.

Scouts stay in 22,000 tents for nearly two weeks and participate in various physical training and cultural exchange programs. A total of 174 activities will take place, including traditional scouting programs such as lighting fires, making rafts and rock climbing. Programs that introduce the host country Korea, such as K-pop dance lessons, taekwondo and traditional Korean craft experiences, will also be on offer.

Also called the "Youth Culture Olympics," there will be exhibitions and experience programs to promote better understanding of other countries. A Food House where participants can experience dietary cultures of 20 countries and nine religion halls have been set up.

A drone show in which 500 drones create a portrait of Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the worldwide scout movement, was one of the highlights for the opening ceremony Wednesday. British adventurer Bear Grylls, the UK Scout Association's chief scout, and Polish President Andrzej Duda were also expected to visit Saemangeum on the day. Poland is the next host country of the World Scout Jamboree.

On Sunday, dubbed "Cultural Exchange Day," a K-pop concert featuring 11 K-pop groups, including Ive and StayC, will be held. At the closing ceremony on Aug. 11, the scout flag will be delivered to Poland representatives, marking the end of the two-week international event.

With tens of thousands expected to descend on the site, the Jamboree Committee is running a monitoring room to manage patients and prevent crowded accidents. A temporary fire station and police station have also been set up. To cope with any adverse weather events and flooding, 100,000 plastic panels had been prepared underneath the tents.

To keep participants cool in the sweltering heat, a total of 1,720 shelters, 7.2-kilometer-long vine tunnels and 57 fog spraying facilities have been set up throughout the Jamboree territory. In case of typhoons or heavy rain, the Jamboree Committee is prepared to evacuate participants to 342 places, including nearby schools and gymnasiums.

Due to the heat wave, some participants have already reported symptoms of heatstroke and other heat-related diseases. According to the Jeonbuk Fire Department, 11 participants -- six women and five men -- from Sweden and England showed symptoms of heatstroke, high fever and dehydration as of 6 a.m. on Tuesday and were taken to the Jamboree Hospital. The 11 have all been discharged.

"As it is the first large-scale youth international event to be held after the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to deliver a message of overcoming frustration and pain and developing resilience to draw dreams of hope. We will operate the event without a hitch so that all teenage participants can enjoy and learn as much as they want," said Choi Chang-haeng, secretary-general of the Jamboree Committee.



By Lee Jung-youn (jy@heraldcorp.com)

2023년 4월 6일 목요일

BTS Jimin becomes first K-pop soloist to top Billboard Hot 100

 BTS Jimin becomes first K-pop soloist to top Billboard Hot 100

Posted : 2023-04-04 06:17
Updated : 2023-04-05 13:13
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BTS' member Jimin / Courtesy of Big Hit Music
BTS' member Jimin / Courtesy of Big Hit Music

Jimin, a member of the K-pop superstar BTS, has made history with his single "Like Crazy" reaching the summit of the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, becoming the first South Korean solo artist to top the list.

"Jimin's "Like Crazy" blasts in at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, marking his first leader ― and the first for a member of superstar South Korean pop group BTS. He is also the first South Korean solo artist to lead the list," Billboard said Monday (U.S. local time) on social media.

Previously, BTS was the only K-pop act to top the chart.

The group has six top-charting songs, from "Dynamite" (2020) to "My Universe" (2021), a collaboration single with British rock band Coldplay.

He also became the first K-pop artist to have sat atop the chart both as a soloist and with a group.

Among K-pop soloists, Psy was the highest-charting artist before Jimin, with his global hit "Gangnam Style" staying at No. 2 for seven consecutive weeks in 2012.

BTS' member Jimin / Courtesy of Big Hit Music
Jimin of K-pop supergroup BTS/ Courtesy of Big Hit Music

"Like Crazy" sold 254,000 song downloads and CD singles combined, and drew 10 million streams and 64,000 radio airplay audience impressions in the first week of its release, according to Billboard.

The Hot 100 ranks the most popular songs of the week in the United States, measured by all-genre streaming, radio airplay and sales data.

"The sales sum for "Like Crazy" is the highest in a single week since Taylor Swift's "Anti-Hero" sold 328,000 (Nov. 19, 2022), sparked by seven remixes released that tracking week," it said.

"Like Crazy" also debuted at No. 1 on the digital single sales chart, where it is Jimin's third song to achieve the feat.

The song was released March 24 on his debut solo album "Face," which grabbed the No. 2 spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

It is a synth-pop song combining intense synth and drum sounds with his mournful timbre.

Jimin has said the song was inspired by a film of the same name that he likes.

It features the emotions of the moment when he wants to turn a blind eye to reality and stay in his dreams forever to forget hurtful memories.

On Saturday, the piece debuted at No. 8 on the British Official Singles Chart Top 100. The British Official Chart is considered one of the world's two largest charts, along with the U.S. Billboard.

BTS' member Jimin / Courtesy of Big Hit Music
BTS' member Jimin / Courtesy of Big Hit Music

Jimin said he feels both "unreal" and "proud and happy" after winning his first Billboard No. 1 as a solo artist, attributing the success to the group.

"It feels so unreal that I don't know what to say," he said on Weverse, a K-pop fan community platform. "It's all thanks to BTS and ARMY (the group's fandom) that this was possible. I'm never unaware of this. I've come to realize more about how much you ARMYs have waited for BTS. I'm grateful and thank you," he said humbly. "I'm so proud to be a part of the team."

His bandmates called him or took to the platform to leave messages of congratulations.

"I'm proud of you," team leader RM was quoted as saying in his phone conversation with Jimin.

"You're so cool and I'm proud of you. I'm welling up," J-Hope wrote on Weverse.

Suga also left a message, saying, "It's great that Park Jimin is an artist sitting atop the Billboard Hot 100."

BigHit Music, the band's agency, said on the band's official Twitter page that the feat is "unbelievable" and thanked ARMYs around the world for supporting the song. (Yonhap)

BTS' Jimin tops Billboard Hot 100 as first K-pop soloist

 

BTS' Jimin tops Billboard Hot 100 as first K-pop soloist

A concept image from BTS member Jimin's first solo album
A concept image from BTS member Jimin's first solo album "Face." (Big Hit Music)

BTS member Jimin landed atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart with his song "Like Crazy," becoming the first K-pop solo artist to top the singles chart in history.

Jimin, the latest BTS member to debut solo, placed his song "Like Crazy" on top of the Billboard Hot 100 Main Singles chart dated April 8. "Like Crazy" is the lead track of Jimin's first solo album "Face" which was released on March 24.

This makes Jimin the first Korean soloist to grab the coveted top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Like Crazy" is the 66th song in Billboard's history, which shot to No. 1 with its chart debut.

Jimin also made history with his solo debut EP, "Face," which entered the Billboard 200 Main Albums chart at No. 2 this week, marking the highest rank reached by any K-pop solo artist.

On March 24, Jimin officially debuted solo with the six-track package "Face." Through the album, the 27-year-old singer tells his own story as he embarks on a new journey as a solo musician.

Jimin previously made his solo debut on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Set Me Free Pt. 2," another song from "Face," which had placed at No. 30 on the Billboard Singles chart last week. "Set Me Free Pt. 2" was pre-released ahead of the album on March 17.

BTS member Jimin's solo song "Like Crazy" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 main singles chart (dated April 8). (Billboard's Twitter)

Jimin's group BTS holds the most No. 1s on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Marking the group's historic first No. 1 on the chart was its mega-hit "Dynamite" in 2020. It then went on to place first with three more songs, "Life Goes On," "Butter" and "Permission to Dance." It also placed first with two songs in collaboration with other artists, "Savage Love (Laxed - Siren Beat) (BTS Remix)" and "My Universe."

Jimin is the only artist from Korea to land atop the Billboard Hot 100 both as a soloist and as part of a group.

Upon his solo debut with "Face," Jimin has been making history in global music charts. "Like Crazy" arrived on the UK's Official Singles Chart Top 100 at No. 8, reaching the highest spot by any Korean soloist in history.

In Japan, "Face" swept the top spots on Oricon's three weekly charts -- the Weekly Digital Album Ranking, the Weekly Album Ranking and the Weekly Total Album Ranking -- making Jimin the first solo artist to accomplish such a feat this year.

Locally, "Face" became the first album from a solo artist to win the million-seller title on its first day. According to domestic music sales tracker Hanteo Chart's data, the EP racked up 1.02 million copies on its first day, and went onto sell a record-breaking 1.45 million copies in the first week of release.

Jimin is the fourth member from the seven-piece group to make a solo debut.



By Choi Ji-won (jwc@heraldcorp.com)