Hi! I'm back from oblivion. Hahaha.
Today's 31st December 2010. The very last day of 2010. Everything's gotta have its end. It's been a good year. Yeah, of course there were really sad times but everything's like that right? Honestly, I think, by far, the saddest experience I've had in life happened this year. It was the passing of my grandfather. Haven't told anyone so much about this and only a few knew because they asked me the right questions. Happened in March and the whole thing was almost like a drama. I'm serious. Really shocked us. Especially my grandma. My grandpa & grandma had gone on a vacation trip to Malaysia. Two days after their return to Brunei, grandpa passed away. Another tearful thing is that now, my grandma has to deal with her diseases alone without her husband. I'll just leave the story at that. I've tweeted on my Twitter that I'm gonna do something uncommon today so I guess this is it, telling you what's been constantly bothering me this year.
Hearbreaking story aside, I've read this book by Kathy Reichs called 'Devil Bones'. It was a great book. I actually bought two books by Kathy Reichs, 'Devil Bones' and '206 Bones'. Maybe you knew already that Kathy Reichs's books inspired the TV series 'Bones'. So I thought her books would be like the TV series but hell, I was wrong. No Booth, no Angela, no Hodgins, no Jeffersonian Forensic team except for Dr.Temperance Brennan. Like 'Bones' the TV series, Dr.Brennan is the main character of the book but she's not the daughter of some criminal or a thirty-something forensic anthropologist. Brennan, in the book, is a forty-something divorced forensic anthropologist working at two places : Charlotte and Quebec. Okay, back to me. When I just bought the two books, I actually read '206 Bones' first but somehow the disappointment washing over me at that time when finding out that it's so not the TV 'Bones' totally made me disinterested so I was thinking "Maybe I should try reading Devil Bones first?" because the title was more intriguing, "plus, now I know that this isn't Bones anymore so what have I got to lose?" And I was hooked. I'm suddenly looking forward to '206 Bones' now. Haha. An interesting fact, '206 Bones' was the book released after 'Devil Bones' so I'm actually reading the books in order! How about that?
Alright, that's it for my blog entry. Enjoy your last day of 2010. Do something crazy or whatever.
![Byul. [g:9.81]](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_x-dlFjP76vM/S3VHFVyJAkI/AAAAAAAAAY0/lJminAOuPMs/S1600-R/Byul.PNG)
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
My Fany is 21 yo!
HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY STEPHANIE HWANG MI YOUNG!!!!!!!
Hello blog! It's been centuries since I last updated this blog huh? Haha. I've been busy... and lazy. But I'm back today because it's Tiffany's birthday!!!!! It's August 1st 2010 !!! I was planning to put up recent pictures of her on top of this post but blogger was so bimbo when I tried uploading them so no pictures. Boooo blogger.com!!!
Yesterday was YulTi's last day as MuCore MCs and they had a special stage singing 4MEN's 'Baby Baby'. Fany cried at the last line of the song, then the other seven girls of SNSD came giving Yuri and Tiffany each a bouquet of flowers. Awwwww.... that's so sweet. I'm happy all the girls were there. I remember the first day Tiffany and Yuri became MuCore MCs - Natsun introduced them, 'That's not my name' played and YulTi walked on the runway, after that they sang to Natsun's 'Come To Play' and when the song ended YulTi officially introduced themselves as MCs. It's been more than a year since that day.
Here's the link to the video of YulTi's MC goodbye stage : Click Me!
People have been tweeting this around: Get to know the REAL Tiffany
It contains some basic background of Tiffany, quotes from her and comments on her coming from those who have met her in person. If you read it, you'll know that Tiff is a really sweet and kind girl.
In case you don't want to click on the link and read the comments, here's some of my picks:
a) “It was really brave of her, really. I had my whole family supporting me. They’re here with me right now, but she still doesn’t have her family here and now she’s so big, she’s so huge, here in Korea. And, I think her family would really be happy.” - Jessica
b)During the Variety show Champagne, SNSD’s manager picked Tiffany as the girl who would have succeeded academically because she puts the most effort in whatever she does.
c)“She really studies hard. She became the MC for a music show and she felt proud and studied even harder. Everyday she would study the script and write down things she didn’t know, and ask about words she doesn’t understand and would write down the definitions.” - Yoona on Strong heart talking about Tiffany’s improvement in Korean.
d)“Everything will be good as long as you do your best. Because if you do, there will be no regrets.” - Tiffany.
Her dedication.e) "All of my unnies take care of me very well, but Tiffany takes care of me a lot.” - SeoHyun.
“Tiffany seems to look after the members the most.” - Maybee. “It’s because we’re a family.” - Tiffany.
f)During a volunteering activity with fans, Tiffany encouraged the group she was in to work hard and they ended up finishing first. Afterwards she suggested that they help the other group since they had done all of their work.
g)Sulli from f(x) said in an interview that Tiffany told her if she ever wanted to buy things she could use her credit card instead of using her own money.
h)“The way Tiffany unnie thinks… She is very mature. Her sense of responsibility is strong as well. There are many things to learn from her.” - SeoHyun.
i)“When Tiffany laughs, she laughs so innocently and like a child. But she’s really mature and adult-like. She’s really thoughtful and I think there are lots of things we can learn from her.” - Sooyoung.
j)“She is seriously one of the most self-less and truly loving friends I’ve ever known or met. She cares so much about every one of you, and she really does pray for all her fans, I think sometimes more than herself. She is a walking angel.” - Jaeson Ma.
Ok, i think i've given you enough quotes. Click on the link and read all of them!
I'd like to add on with this statement tweeted by 'SujuMembersFact' on twitter (since this wasn't on the site i linked you to) :
Fany's personality : "Well, she's really, really bubbly and bright in person. Very candid and clearly just says whatever is on her mind. A huge ball of energy and cheerfulness and not in that fake, overly cutesy way that a lot of Korean females use. Meeting her was great." -ginger @ soompi
I've said this on my Twitter and I'm adding a bit more to it. To me, Tiffany deserves the love the fans give her and she should be loved.She has flaws but her sweetness, kindness and thoughtfulness make up for them. Happy Birthday my sweet angel. :)
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Vlahs
Hello again people!
Ok, we had CCA yesterday and you guys know that I'm in the Journalism club right? Well, at first i was thinking of quitting the club after the CCA session the week before but I've decided to stay after yesterday. Never knew interviewing people could be fun. I think the reason why I wanted to quit at the beginning was because I was scared that there would be a lot of work to do, you know, I felt like I've already got a mountain of h/wk and here comes another subject (Journalism) to just make everything harder. Yeah, that was how I felt. But the feeling's three-quarter gone now. (Three-quarter is good enough ok?!) LOL. And I think we need a photographer.
It's been a month since school started and guess what? For History, we've done THREE essays! Three doesn't sound like a big number, unless you have experienced giving birth to triplets, but it is a big number when there are so many things to write and when the deadline is coming your way in a fast pace. Haha. I'm not saying that it's bad though. Since the day I chose History as my A'Level subject, I knew I'm gonna go through this anyway.
I haven't logged on to SSF for days now or has it been a week? And Youtube too, but i went on Youtube just half an hour ago. I was watching this fancam of SNSD's The M recording and this fangirl was shouting "Fany!!!" and Fany turned around audibly saying "waaaeee...?".(Video Link) Ugh, I'm such a hopeless sucka when it comes to Tiffany that I just went "Ahhhhh, Fany you're so cute!!!!!!!" with my legs continuosly shaking giddily in an almost abnormal fast speed. That was the only video I've watched so far today, maybe I'll watch more afterwards. Do you know that I fail so much as a SONE that I haven't watched any of their 'Oh!' comeback stages?
I found this article on Soompi:
In Defense of Girls' Generation
By: ginger
In the world of Kpop, there will always be favorites. These select soloists and groups enjoy success that is almost completely clean from scandal and boycotts. They are defended by the masses no matter what the situation. Handsome or pretty enough to be admired but not blindingly attractive enough to spark jealousy, they are constantly seen as down to earth and humble. For a while, this title belonged to The Wonder Girls but has since been passed to 2NE1. These groups inspired fans from both genders. The boys thought they were cute, the girls wanted to emulate them.
Then, there are groups that--no matter what single, no matter what style of dress, no matter what level of performance--will always shoulder a mound of catty comments, anger, jealousy, and scandal. They're prettier than the girl next door. They're flashier, too. Their skirts are always too short, their pants are always a little too tight, their singing is always bad-mouthed as sub-par, and their songs are always the subject of plagiarism issues.
Girls' Generation came out my first year in Korea. Their single, "Into the New World" was the epitome of what I viewed Korean pop to be at the time--overly cheerful, overly cheesy, and over produced. I couldn't tell one girl from the other. Their sheer numbers freaked me out. I couldn't stand the cutesy mannerisms, no matter how catchy the songs were.
But, over time, I've definitely come to be a defender--maybe even fan--of GG. Maybe it happened just because I was bored and wanted to push buttons on the Soompi forums. The hatred that amassed for this group on the internet happened quickly and never really let up. The girls were scolded (occasionally with good reason) by the netizens (both Korea and internationally) for flippant comments made on radio and TV shows. But as time went on, these "scandals" became less severe in content but remained irrationally harsh in their reception.
I remember reading a particularly scathing thread on Soompi where Tiffany talked about how difficult it was to adapt to the culture, the loss of her mother, etc. Some of the comments were along the lines of, "boohoo, she wants sympathy? Who cares? We all have problems" and "She is KOREAN. Why can't she just understand Korean culture and just respect it?" It was disgusting to read, and it just conjured images of immature, insecure bullies picking on a classmate. It's like...when there is a target, a lot of people will just get caught up in pointing fingers just for the sake of doing it. It's a herd mentality--going with the flow, convincing yourself about a person you don't even know, and...for what? To feel better about yourself?
I guess I liked them because they were the obvious choice to dislike--they were the seemingly perfect but incredibly disdained darlings of the Kpop world. No matter how well-known they are, their strong anti-fan shadow follows them. I was at the Dream Concert of 2008, where I saw thousands and thousands of teenage girls sit down, turn off their little flashy light toys, and boo. And again...for what? I'm sure they were proud of themselves. I am guessing they all laughed about it later, chatting with their friends, "And then, we ALL SAT DOWN and ignored them. It was GREAT. I bet they feel like crap now. Hahahaha maybe they're, like, crying!! I hope so."
But even as I felt sorry for them, I did think they were a slight cut above the rest in terms of many of the Kpop girl groups. Maybe it's just due to their high number of members, but they have pretty consistent performances. I was classically trained in singing for five years, so I'm a picky person in terms of vocals, but Girls' Generation isn't nearly as bad as most people in the Kpop fandoms are quick to point out.
I mean, I love After School but their lives are usually terrible (3 of the members have yet to prove that they can even sing their single lines without quivering, cracking, of going off pitch), Kara induces cringes half of the time, 2NE1 (a fan favorite, I know) has Park Bom as their LEAD SINGER and she is almost consistently flat and strained (I don't care how many people will disagree with me and say that she is this OMG AMAZING SINGER--she's flat. She's FLAT), and the list goes on. So Girls' Generation may not have tons of competition in the pop idol sense (excluding groups like Davichi, As One, etc as they are more known for their vocals and not their idol status) but, uh, they're usually not bad. Not at all.
And finally, I met Jessica and Tiffany for the Soompi interview earlier this winter. I was a little...I won't say skeptical because that's so strong, but I was curious about what they'd be like in person. Meeting them was a huge relief. Tiffany couldn't have been sweeter or friendlier. I've met a lot of girls who are fake friendly in my life, and this girl was genuine. She's one of those girls that you think, "I bet she's a good friend." Jessica was a litle more quiet, but she didn't have an "ice princess" vibe that I had expected. Polite, attentive, and nice, just not as openly enthusiastic as Tiffany.
I don't even know where I was going with this entry. I guess, with their new single, "Oh!", a lot of backlash has already started and will continue to grow. For Girls' Generation, it's just a given. If they do something cute, they are doing "the same thing AGAIN." If they go for a more mature concept, they're "trying too hard."
For a group whose very name portrays the power of women, this group of ladies somehow brings out the worst in their gender. Their female peers will continue to sneer and sharpen their carefully laquered claws. They'll tap out the newest scandal and it will spread like a fire from Korea to the rest of the internet. They'll sit in silence during their performances, pretend to ignore them, and quietly hope that they are horribly embarrassed and upset. And they'll do all this because, I guess, they believe Girls' Generation actually deserves it. They won't pause to remember that--stripped of their heels, hair extensions, and record deals--these girls are just like them.
But c'est la vie, Girls' Generation. You'll get the last laugh. Keep kickin' up those legs, keep smiling.
Ok, we had CCA yesterday and you guys know that I'm in the Journalism club right? Well, at first i was thinking of quitting the club after the CCA session the week before but I've decided to stay after yesterday. Never knew interviewing people could be fun. I think the reason why I wanted to quit at the beginning was because I was scared that there would be a lot of work to do, you know, I felt like I've already got a mountain of h/wk and here comes another subject (Journalism) to just make everything harder. Yeah, that was how I felt. But the feeling's three-quarter gone now. (Three-quarter is good enough ok?!) LOL. And I think we need a photographer.
It's been a month since school started and guess what? For History, we've done THREE essays! Three doesn't sound like a big number, unless you have experienced giving birth to triplets, but it is a big number when there are so many things to write and when the deadline is coming your way in a fast pace. Haha. I'm not saying that it's bad though. Since the day I chose History as my A'Level subject, I knew I'm gonna go through this anyway.
I haven't logged on to SSF for days now or has it been a week? And Youtube too, but i went on Youtube just half an hour ago. I was watching this fancam of SNSD's The M recording and this fangirl was shouting "Fany!!!" and Fany turned around audibly saying "waaaeee...?".(Video Link) Ugh, I'm such a hopeless sucka when it comes to Tiffany that I just went "Ahhhhh, Fany you're so cute!!!!!!!" with my legs continuosly shaking giddily in an almost abnormal fast speed. That was the only video I've watched so far today, maybe I'll watch more afterwards. Do you know that I fail so much as a SONE that I haven't watched any of their 'Oh!' comeback stages?
I found this article on Soompi:
In Defense of Girls' Generation
By: ginger
In the world of Kpop, there will always be favorites. These select soloists and groups enjoy success that is almost completely clean from scandal and boycotts. They are defended by the masses no matter what the situation. Handsome or pretty enough to be admired but not blindingly attractive enough to spark jealousy, they are constantly seen as down to earth and humble. For a while, this title belonged to The Wonder Girls but has since been passed to 2NE1. These groups inspired fans from both genders. The boys thought they were cute, the girls wanted to emulate them.
Then, there are groups that--no matter what single, no matter what style of dress, no matter what level of performance--will always shoulder a mound of catty comments, anger, jealousy, and scandal. They're prettier than the girl next door. They're flashier, too. Their skirts are always too short, their pants are always a little too tight, their singing is always bad-mouthed as sub-par, and their songs are always the subject of plagiarism issues.
Girls' Generation came out my first year in Korea. Their single, "Into the New World" was the epitome of what I viewed Korean pop to be at the time--overly cheerful, overly cheesy, and over produced. I couldn't tell one girl from the other. Their sheer numbers freaked me out. I couldn't stand the cutesy mannerisms, no matter how catchy the songs were.
But, over time, I've definitely come to be a defender--maybe even fan--of GG. Maybe it happened just because I was bored and wanted to push buttons on the Soompi forums. The hatred that amassed for this group on the internet happened quickly and never really let up. The girls were scolded (occasionally with good reason) by the netizens (both Korea and internationally) for flippant comments made on radio and TV shows. But as time went on, these "scandals" became less severe in content but remained irrationally harsh in their reception.
I remember reading a particularly scathing thread on Soompi where Tiffany talked about how difficult it was to adapt to the culture, the loss of her mother, etc. Some of the comments were along the lines of, "boohoo, she wants sympathy? Who cares? We all have problems" and "She is KOREAN. Why can't she just understand Korean culture and just respect it?" It was disgusting to read, and it just conjured images of immature, insecure bullies picking on a classmate. It's like...when there is a target, a lot of people will just get caught up in pointing fingers just for the sake of doing it. It's a herd mentality--going with the flow, convincing yourself about a person you don't even know, and...for what? To feel better about yourself?
I guess I liked them because they were the obvious choice to dislike--they were the seemingly perfect but incredibly disdained darlings of the Kpop world. No matter how well-known they are, their strong anti-fan shadow follows them. I was at the Dream Concert of 2008, where I saw thousands and thousands of teenage girls sit down, turn off their little flashy light toys, and boo. And again...for what? I'm sure they were proud of themselves. I am guessing they all laughed about it later, chatting with their friends, "And then, we ALL SAT DOWN and ignored them. It was GREAT. I bet they feel like crap now. Hahahaha maybe they're, like, crying!! I hope so."
But even as I felt sorry for them, I did think they were a slight cut above the rest in terms of many of the Kpop girl groups. Maybe it's just due to their high number of members, but they have pretty consistent performances. I was classically trained in singing for five years, so I'm a picky person in terms of vocals, but Girls' Generation isn't nearly as bad as most people in the Kpop fandoms are quick to point out.
I mean, I love After School but their lives are usually terrible (3 of the members have yet to prove that they can even sing their single lines without quivering, cracking, of going off pitch), Kara induces cringes half of the time, 2NE1 (a fan favorite, I know) has Park Bom as their LEAD SINGER and she is almost consistently flat and strained (I don't care how many people will disagree with me and say that she is this OMG AMAZING SINGER--she's flat. She's FLAT), and the list goes on. So Girls' Generation may not have tons of competition in the pop idol sense (excluding groups like Davichi, As One, etc as they are more known for their vocals and not their idol status) but, uh, they're usually not bad. Not at all.
And finally, I met Jessica and Tiffany for the Soompi interview earlier this winter. I was a little...I won't say skeptical because that's so strong, but I was curious about what they'd be like in person. Meeting them was a huge relief. Tiffany couldn't have been sweeter or friendlier. I've met a lot of girls who are fake friendly in my life, and this girl was genuine. She's one of those girls that you think, "I bet she's a good friend." Jessica was a litle more quiet, but she didn't have an "ice princess" vibe that I had expected. Polite, attentive, and nice, just not as openly enthusiastic as Tiffany.
I don't even know where I was going with this entry. I guess, with their new single, "Oh!", a lot of backlash has already started and will continue to grow. For Girls' Generation, it's just a given. If they do something cute, they are doing "the same thing AGAIN." If they go for a more mature concept, they're "trying too hard."
For a group whose very name portrays the power of women, this group of ladies somehow brings out the worst in their gender. Their female peers will continue to sneer and sharpen their carefully laquered claws. They'll tap out the newest scandal and it will spread like a fire from Korea to the rest of the internet. They'll sit in silence during their performances, pretend to ignore them, and quietly hope that they are horribly embarrassed and upset. And they'll do all this because, I guess, they believe Girls' Generation actually deserves it. They won't pause to remember that--stripped of their heels, hair extensions, and record deals--these girls are just like them.
But c'est la vie, Girls' Generation. You'll get the last laugh. Keep kickin' up those legs, keep smiling.
Credits :ginger@soompi.com
What if Tiffany was one of my besties? Me want that preeetyyyy puhlease? She sounds like a kind person in a majority of the Tiffany encounter accounts I've read. I LOVE YOU TIFFANY!!! Oh yeah, I have a new nickname to call Fany :Byul. 'Byul' means star. I decided to call her that after listening to SNSD's ballad from the Oh! album, 'Star Star Star'.
Aigoo! I finally remember! I was supposed to post up Tiffany's 'Thank You' message from the Oh! album.
There we go! Click on this LINK if you wanna read the message.
And some extras:
Sorry, the pictures have been reduced to a smaller size. Blame blogger.com.
---------------------------------
This is random but yesterday, my 'long lost twin' finally knows me! Last words, I love my Byul and goodbye!
Friday, January 15, 2010
Her 'sky'.
Could this be Fany's sister, Michelle? The one Fany looks up to the most? She mentions her sister a lot so it's obvious that her sister is her role model. If you've read my previous post, Michelle is currently studying anthropology at Berkeley for her PhD. Cool~
I've seen this picture in a website somewhere before actually. Compared to the picture below, this one makes her look more like she's Fany's sister.Noticed the way she smiles? It's so like Fany!
Here, her eyes resembles Fany's don't cha think? It has the same innocent look in those eyes. A product of similar genes, I guess. Haha.
I'm curious of how Fany's brother, Leo looks like. Tiffany doesn't mention her brother a lot though. It's always her sister. Michelle is probably Tiffany's 'sky'.
Bye!
I've seen this picture in a website somewhere before actually. Compared to the picture below, this one makes her look more like she's Fany's sister.Noticed the way she smiles? It's so like Fany!
Here, her eyes resembles Fany's don't cha think? It has the same innocent look in those eyes. A product of similar genes, I guess. Haha.
I'm curious of how Fany's brother, Leo looks like. Tiffany doesn't mention her brother a lot though. It's always her sister. Michelle is probably Tiffany's 'sky'.
Bye!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Tiffany likes HISTORY??? It's fate. lol
SOOMPI, an international KPop website, managed to interview Tiffany and Jessica!
Here it is:
We were able to catch up with Tiffany and Jessica, the lovely Korean American ladies of SNSD, while we were in Korea for a quick trip. After spending some time getting to know them and talking to them about their experiences as Korean pop stars, we were amazed at how down to earth and friendly they both were – and yes, they are as cute and pretty in person as they are in photos and videos! We asked them a few questions from you, the Soompi members, and a few questions of our own. The entire interview was conducted in English. Read on and make sure to check out the video shout-out at the end!
Soompi: One of the questions our members are really curious about is: Do you know Soompi?
Tiffany: I definitely know it and I'm amazed at how much it's grown. My sister's a frequent user. I knew it when I was back home.
Soompi: Right, it's been around for a long time.
Tiffany: But it wasn't like, this major.
Soompi: K-Pop is really making it grow and it's actually your guys' work that is making it grow a lot more. So have you been to the site yourself, then?
Tiffany: Oh, I've been to the site myself, of course!
Soompi: And were you a member back in the day? Or were just a lurker?
Tiffany: [laughs] Ah, I was just a lurker. I was just getting into the site.
Soompi: When all this happened?
Tiffany: Yeah. Yeah.
Soompi: How much Korean music did you know about before you came to Korea?
Jessica: Actually, when I came to Korea I was in 5th grade and I didn't know anything about Korean music. I kind of knew H.O.T. [laugh] but like, I really had no idea about Korean music. Or well, I was really interested in this field. Well, but Tiffany had a different story.
Tiffany: Yeah, I was the opposite. I wasn't really familiar with it but I just got really into K-Pop the year I was cast. And that would be... 2003? 2004?
I immediately fell in love with it because it was just as cool as American pop, you know? Yeah, so I was um, really, really into that.
Jessica: [cutting in] When she first came to Korea –
Tiffany: I was like, obsessed. [everyone laughs]
Jessica: She was called "Little BoA" because she had yellow hair.
Tiffany: I had the long hair and round cheeks and I really admired her look. I mean, that's what made me start. Yeah, she's definitely my icon.
Soompi: Well, since you've been here, you've obviously met a lot of people in the entertainment industry since you go to a lot of performances and events. Who have you met that has blown your expectations out of the water? Like, you had a lot of respect for them before but when you met them, you were amazed.
Tiffany: [pause, thinking] Definitely BoA. And I mean, she still tends to amaze the world.
Jessica: [thinking] Um... for me... Dong Bang Shin Gi.
Tiffany: [cuts in] Yeah, I have to say that, too. They're so professional.
Jessica: Yeah, they're like different people.
Tiffany: That's why we admire both of them. BoA unnie, she's tiny and little and cute and completely lovable. And she goes onstage and she's completely different.
Soompi: She's got a lot of power onstage.
Tiffany: With both of them, that's something that we definitely admire. When it comes to music, their passion is so intense that they're like different people, and that's what we admire.
Soompi: So SM has their training program, and right now, a lot of our members are getting ready for the auditions. I'd say a good number of our members want to join the entertainment industry either as entertainers like you guys or as A&R, producers, directors, or like writers of drama. They all have these dreams and they take these auditions really seriously. So one of the things we want to know about is like, what is the day-to-day life of a trainee like?
Jessica: Actually, for us, um...
Tiffany: For us, we were pretty... pretty normal.
Jessica: Like, the whole is: we go to school and after school, we come have lunch, and then we have vocal lessons, dance lessons, and um, we practice on our own. Time flies.
Tiffany: Since I went to high school in America, I was really, really social. I loved extracurricular activities and so this was basically like extracurricular activities. It was just as fun, but the pressure was – I have to say – higher because you know, when you're in school, they cut you slack. It's part of school, you know? But this wasn't part of school so you have to be like... perfect in both. So it's not extracurricular, it's like two schools. It's like two jobs, right? [laughs]
Soompi: Okay, so since you guys are Korean Americans in the Korean entertainment industry...
Tiffany: [cheerfully] Proud to be!
Soompi: Do you feel like you have given something special to your group in particular or to even Korean music culture? Being from overseas?
Tiffany: [thinking] Um, yeah, yeah. [then with more certainty] There's always something different, once you set us girls together.
Tiffany and Jessica: [laughing, in unison] There's always something different about us!
Tiffany: So they'll be like, "okay, the two Americans, come over here!" [Jessica laughs] Because we'd like, be always talking in English and it's good that we have each other because the culture difference... it's pretty different. It's cool. And it's cool definitely when we look at the bigger picture – when we go outside of Korea and all over Asia. And we're definitely interested in pursuing careers back home, as well. I think it's cool because you can only do the whole teen pop stuff once and because it's sooo highly [searching for a word]... valued here, it's very exciting and it's an honor.
Soompi (via hirachan): What has been the most difficult thing about being a Korean American in Korea?
Jessica and Tiffany: Culture.
Tiffany: [openly] I was the wild child. [laughs] I definitely was.
Jessica: [to Tiffany] For example, for her: maybe... food. At first.
Tiffany: [remembering] Ohhh, yeah...
Jessica: She came to Korea and she was like, "I want pizza, Jessica!" and so we had to go eat pizza. And she wasn't like a Korean girl. But now, she eats dwenjangjigae!
Tiffany: I'm full Korean now! But um, yeah. I was wild. I was used to being really outgoing and making friends every moment, but then – it's the culture different in Korea – it's so calm and... ladylike... but... [honestly] I'm wild. [laugh]
Jessica: [whispers loudly] YEAH.
Soompi: Do the other members support your Korean-Americanness?
Tiffany: YES, they do. I'm glad they've become a part of it because when they go back to America with us, they're like "So this is why you're like that!" [both laugh] They like it, too! The reactions, the food, or just everything. So it's really nice, actually.
Soompi: You guys know you have big fan followings in many countries, so do you have a message for those people? Mostly the non-Koreans or Korean Americans that want to come here and debut one day?
Tiffany: I'd definitely say that dreaming is the main point because I, myself, was back home – like every other member of this site – kind of just dreaming, "What if? What if?" And then I... went wild, came here, followed my dreams, and I'm here now. So I definitely think that it's not a far away dream as long as they have that much passion and the passion... gives you responsibility. I came here at such a young age and my dad was like, "What are you going to do going at such a young age?"
Jessica: It was really so brave of her, really.
Tiffany: [continuing] All of a sudden – I don't know what I was thinking.
Jessica: I had my whole family supporting me. They're here with me, right now. But she [Tiffany] still doesn't have her family here and now she's so big – she's so huge – here in Korea. And, I think, her family would really be happy.
Tiffany: [searching for words] It's... it's... it's as much passion as you have, just follow it, and you can be where you want to be. I mean, I am.
Jessica: And speaking English kind of a... plus.
Tiffany: Yeah, a plus.
Jessica: Because if you can speak Korean, that's great. But if you can also speak English, it's a plus.
Soompi: But how good does someone's Korean have to be?
Tiffany: [loudly] My Korean was terrible, don't worry.
Jessica: But you can catch up!
Tiffany: Yeah, I totally studied. And we're not stupid back home, you know? But you come here and you don't know what you're saying so it makes you want to study.
Soompi (via maharu.): This next question is actually from one of our members: How long, on average, does it take you to learn a dance routine? And what techniques do you use to help you memorize them?
Jessica: As a group, maybe three full days.
Tiffany: For maybe four or five hours a day. But... but this is bad! We usually take longer – we take our time – but now that we don't have that much time, our bodies are kind of programmed to work faster. But um, yeah. About five days? A few hours a day... it will be solid. Um, kind of solid.
Soompi: Do you have any techniques that you use? Or is it just the whole group, coming together?
Tiffany: You know, we realized it's not technique, it's just practice, practice, practice. You just have to repeat it over and over.
Jessica: And before you go to sleep, you just think about it. And then you go to sleep and you dream about it...
Soompi: Now we have a question for each of you. Tiffany, so you mentioned in a 2009 interview with Arirang that you felt like you came to Korea too soon, so what is it that you miss about your American teenage years? And if you'd stayed, would you have gone to college and what would you have wanted to study?
Tiffany: [quiet for a moment] I think this is known, but... I thought I was Elle Woods. [laughs] So I wanted to go to law school. Why I thought I came to soon was because I came without even thinking. Like, I came within three weeks. I packed up my whole life in three weeks without even thinking! I was just like, "Yay!" And then now, as I'm here alone, and I have so much time to think, I think, "I could have gone to prom, I could have gone to Sadie Hawkins." But I definitely wanted to do law and I'm a big fan of literature and history, so I like writing and reading. It's kind of nerdy, but... [laughs]
Soompi: Well, what you're doing is definitely more fun than law school. I promise you.
Tiffany: [laughing] Well, maybe I'll go back. But yeah, definitely, I'd still be at school. And I wanted to go to USC so much! My sister was like, "Berkeley!" Berkeley law is always nice. My sister is at Berkeley right now for her Ph.D. For anthropology.
Soompi (via Glenn): So then, for you, Jessica, your younger sister [Krystal of f(x)] is obviously a star also at SM. Did you try to give her as much advice as possible? Or did you let her kind of learn the ropes by herself?
Jessica: Um...I tried to let her learn by herself but because I'm her sister and I'm older, she tends to ask me a lot of questions and she worries about her future. We have a lot of conversations, and actually, our members are really supportive, too.
Tiffany: It's super cute. You can totally tell... she's exactly like Jessica! It's sooo cute! I was listening to their song in the car and I was like, "Dude, did Jessica sing a song without us?" Um, I mean you can totally tell she's picked up a lot of things from Jessica. Like, her sister picked up... only her good attributes. [joking]
Jessica: That's what I'm really happy about because she can learn from my mistakes.
Soompi: And did it surprise you when she decided to get into your industry?
Tiffany: It blew us away, she was so good.
Jessica: Yeah, but it wasn't actually all of a sudden. So it wasn't really surprising.
Tiffany: [joking sentimental voice] But... it's so cute! She's growing up...
Jessica: Just seeing her on TV and onstage is really exciting.
Credits: TeamSOOMPI
Video Link : CLICK!
Tiffany likes History. I chose History for my O Level & A Level subject because I like the subject.It's fate, it's destiny. LOL. She likes writing & reading. I joined Journalism club because I wanna write and I love reading fanfics (does that count? Haha). I feel so jumpy(?) after reading this. It's like we have so much in common!
Haha, Tiffany thought she was Elle Woods! Well, I never thought of myself as Elle Woods but a few years back, after watching Legally Blonde, I actually decided that I'm going to be a lawyer and was like "I wanna go to Harvard". Harvard, that was too big of a dream wasn't it? But right now, I don't really know what I want to be in the future. Ok, back to the story. You know, when Tiff said that she was the "wild child", I was really happy. To me, wild is cool and I would like her to stay like that because it means you're so open, so free which she kinda is.
Here it is:
We were able to catch up with Tiffany and Jessica, the lovely Korean American ladies of SNSD, while we were in Korea for a quick trip. After spending some time getting to know them and talking to them about their experiences as Korean pop stars, we were amazed at how down to earth and friendly they both were – and yes, they are as cute and pretty in person as they are in photos and videos! We asked them a few questions from you, the Soompi members, and a few questions of our own. The entire interview was conducted in English. Read on and make sure to check out the video shout-out at the end!
Soompi: One of the questions our members are really curious about is: Do you know Soompi?
Tiffany: I definitely know it and I'm amazed at how much it's grown. My sister's a frequent user. I knew it when I was back home.
Soompi: Right, it's been around for a long time.
Tiffany: But it wasn't like, this major.
Soompi: K-Pop is really making it grow and it's actually your guys' work that is making it grow a lot more. So have you been to the site yourself, then?
Tiffany: Oh, I've been to the site myself, of course!
Soompi: And were you a member back in the day? Or were just a lurker?
Tiffany: [laughs] Ah, I was just a lurker. I was just getting into the site.
Soompi: When all this happened?
Tiffany: Yeah. Yeah.
Soompi: How much Korean music did you know about before you came to Korea?
Jessica: Actually, when I came to Korea I was in 5th grade and I didn't know anything about Korean music. I kind of knew H.O.T. [laugh] but like, I really had no idea about Korean music. Or well, I was really interested in this field. Well, but Tiffany had a different story.
Tiffany: Yeah, I was the opposite. I wasn't really familiar with it but I just got really into K-Pop the year I was cast. And that would be... 2003? 2004?
I immediately fell in love with it because it was just as cool as American pop, you know? Yeah, so I was um, really, really into that.
Jessica: [cutting in] When she first came to Korea –
Tiffany: I was like, obsessed. [everyone laughs]
Jessica: She was called "Little BoA" because she had yellow hair.
Tiffany: I had the long hair and round cheeks and I really admired her look. I mean, that's what made me start. Yeah, she's definitely my icon.
Soompi: Well, since you've been here, you've obviously met a lot of people in the entertainment industry since you go to a lot of performances and events. Who have you met that has blown your expectations out of the water? Like, you had a lot of respect for them before but when you met them, you were amazed.
Tiffany: [pause, thinking] Definitely BoA. And I mean, she still tends to amaze the world.
Jessica: [thinking] Um... for me... Dong Bang Shin Gi.
Tiffany: [cuts in] Yeah, I have to say that, too. They're so professional.
Jessica: Yeah, they're like different people.
Tiffany: That's why we admire both of them. BoA unnie, she's tiny and little and cute and completely lovable. And she goes onstage and she's completely different.
Soompi: She's got a lot of power onstage.
Tiffany: With both of them, that's something that we definitely admire. When it comes to music, their passion is so intense that they're like different people, and that's what we admire.
Soompi: So SM has their training program, and right now, a lot of our members are getting ready for the auditions. I'd say a good number of our members want to join the entertainment industry either as entertainers like you guys or as A&R, producers, directors, or like writers of drama. They all have these dreams and they take these auditions really seriously. So one of the things we want to know about is like, what is the day-to-day life of a trainee like?
Jessica: Actually, for us, um...
Tiffany: For us, we were pretty... pretty normal.
Jessica: Like, the whole is: we go to school and after school, we come have lunch, and then we have vocal lessons, dance lessons, and um, we practice on our own. Time flies.
Tiffany: Since I went to high school in America, I was really, really social. I loved extracurricular activities and so this was basically like extracurricular activities. It was just as fun, but the pressure was – I have to say – higher because you know, when you're in school, they cut you slack. It's part of school, you know? But this wasn't part of school so you have to be like... perfect in both. So it's not extracurricular, it's like two schools. It's like two jobs, right? [laughs]
Soompi: Okay, so since you guys are Korean Americans in the Korean entertainment industry...
Tiffany: [cheerfully] Proud to be!
Soompi: Do you feel like you have given something special to your group in particular or to even Korean music culture? Being from overseas?
Tiffany: [thinking] Um, yeah, yeah. [then with more certainty] There's always something different, once you set us girls together.
Tiffany and Jessica: [laughing, in unison] There's always something different about us!
Tiffany: So they'll be like, "okay, the two Americans, come over here!" [Jessica laughs] Because we'd like, be always talking in English and it's good that we have each other because the culture difference... it's pretty different. It's cool. And it's cool definitely when we look at the bigger picture – when we go outside of Korea and all over Asia. And we're definitely interested in pursuing careers back home, as well. I think it's cool because you can only do the whole teen pop stuff once and because it's sooo highly [searching for a word]... valued here, it's very exciting and it's an honor.
Soompi (via hirachan): What has been the most difficult thing about being a Korean American in Korea?
Jessica and Tiffany: Culture.
Tiffany: [openly] I was the wild child. [laughs] I definitely was.
Jessica: [to Tiffany] For example, for her: maybe... food. At first.
Tiffany: [remembering] Ohhh, yeah...
Jessica: She came to Korea and she was like, "I want pizza, Jessica!" and so we had to go eat pizza. And she wasn't like a Korean girl. But now, she eats dwenjangjigae!
Tiffany: I'm full Korean now! But um, yeah. I was wild. I was used to being really outgoing and making friends every moment, but then – it's the culture different in Korea – it's so calm and... ladylike... but... [honestly] I'm wild. [laugh]
Jessica: [whispers loudly] YEAH.
Soompi: Do the other members support your Korean-Americanness?
Tiffany: YES, they do. I'm glad they've become a part of it because when they go back to America with us, they're like "So this is why you're like that!" [both laugh] They like it, too! The reactions, the food, or just everything. So it's really nice, actually.
Soompi: You guys know you have big fan followings in many countries, so do you have a message for those people? Mostly the non-Koreans or Korean Americans that want to come here and debut one day?
Tiffany: I'd definitely say that dreaming is the main point because I, myself, was back home – like every other member of this site – kind of just dreaming, "What if? What if?" And then I... went wild, came here, followed my dreams, and I'm here now. So I definitely think that it's not a far away dream as long as they have that much passion and the passion... gives you responsibility. I came here at such a young age and my dad was like, "What are you going to do going at such a young age?"
Jessica: It was really so brave of her, really.
Tiffany: [continuing] All of a sudden – I don't know what I was thinking.
Jessica: I had my whole family supporting me. They're here with me, right now. But she [Tiffany] still doesn't have her family here and now she's so big – she's so huge – here in Korea. And, I think, her family would really be happy.
Tiffany: [searching for words] It's... it's... it's as much passion as you have, just follow it, and you can be where you want to be. I mean, I am.
Jessica: And speaking English kind of a... plus.
Tiffany: Yeah, a plus.
Jessica: Because if you can speak Korean, that's great. But if you can also speak English, it's a plus.
Soompi: But how good does someone's Korean have to be?
Tiffany: [loudly] My Korean was terrible, don't worry.
Jessica: But you can catch up!
Tiffany: Yeah, I totally studied. And we're not stupid back home, you know? But you come here and you don't know what you're saying so it makes you want to study.
Soompi (via maharu.): This next question is actually from one of our members: How long, on average, does it take you to learn a dance routine? And what techniques do you use to help you memorize them?
Jessica: As a group, maybe three full days.
Tiffany: For maybe four or five hours a day. But... but this is bad! We usually take longer – we take our time – but now that we don't have that much time, our bodies are kind of programmed to work faster. But um, yeah. About five days? A few hours a day... it will be solid. Um, kind of solid.
Soompi: Do you have any techniques that you use? Or is it just the whole group, coming together?
Tiffany: You know, we realized it's not technique, it's just practice, practice, practice. You just have to repeat it over and over.
Jessica: And before you go to sleep, you just think about it. And then you go to sleep and you dream about it...
Soompi: Now we have a question for each of you. Tiffany, so you mentioned in a 2009 interview with Arirang that you felt like you came to Korea too soon, so what is it that you miss about your American teenage years? And if you'd stayed, would you have gone to college and what would you have wanted to study?
Tiffany: [quiet for a moment] I think this is known, but... I thought I was Elle Woods. [laughs] So I wanted to go to law school. Why I thought I came to soon was because I came without even thinking. Like, I came within three weeks. I packed up my whole life in three weeks without even thinking! I was just like, "Yay!" And then now, as I'm here alone, and I have so much time to think, I think, "I could have gone to prom, I could have gone to Sadie Hawkins." But I definitely wanted to do law and I'm a big fan of literature and history, so I like writing and reading. It's kind of nerdy, but... [laughs]
Soompi: Well, what you're doing is definitely more fun than law school. I promise you.
Tiffany: [laughing] Well, maybe I'll go back. But yeah, definitely, I'd still be at school. And I wanted to go to USC so much! My sister was like, "Berkeley!" Berkeley law is always nice. My sister is at Berkeley right now for her Ph.D. For anthropology.
Soompi (via Glenn): So then, for you, Jessica, your younger sister [Krystal of f(x)] is obviously a star also at SM. Did you try to give her as much advice as possible? Or did you let her kind of learn the ropes by herself?
Jessica: Um...I tried to let her learn by herself but because I'm her sister and I'm older, she tends to ask me a lot of questions and she worries about her future. We have a lot of conversations, and actually, our members are really supportive, too.
Tiffany: It's super cute. You can totally tell... she's exactly like Jessica! It's sooo cute! I was listening to their song in the car and I was like, "Dude, did Jessica sing a song without us?" Um, I mean you can totally tell she's picked up a lot of things from Jessica. Like, her sister picked up... only her good attributes. [joking]
Jessica: That's what I'm really happy about because she can learn from my mistakes.
Soompi: And did it surprise you when she decided to get into your industry?
Tiffany: It blew us away, she was so good.
Jessica: Yeah, but it wasn't actually all of a sudden. So it wasn't really surprising.
Tiffany: [joking sentimental voice] But... it's so cute! She's growing up...
Jessica: Just seeing her on TV and onstage is really exciting.
Credits: TeamSOOMPI
Video Link : CLICK!
Tiffany likes History. I chose History for my O Level & A Level subject because I like the subject.It's fate, it's destiny. LOL. She likes writing & reading. I joined Journalism club because I wanna write and I love reading fanfics (does that count? Haha). I feel so jumpy(?) after reading this. It's like we have so much in common!
Haha, Tiffany thought she was Elle Woods! Well, I never thought of myself as Elle Woods but a few years back, after watching Legally Blonde, I actually decided that I'm going to be a lawyer and was like "I wanna go to Harvard". Harvard, that was too big of a dream wasn't it? But right now, I don't really know what I want to be in the future. Ok, back to the story. You know, when Tiff said that she was the "wild child", I was really happy. To me, wild is cool and I would like her to stay like that because it means you're so open, so free which she kinda is.
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