This three-part story continues from our Monday post here.
While Lee Soo Man may be residing in Westwood, CA, raising a teenage son, attending church regularly, and finding new business ventures in the states, his music label still functions productively–like the well-oiled machine churning young children in and out like robots– without him. And with so much success with Super Junior, who sold the most record in 2009, girl group, Girls’ Generation setting a national “Gee” craze, and the precious trend-setting teen group, SHINee, making old women swoon, to say the past year has been a success is an understatement. But how well exactly did they fare? The numbers don’t lie–below:
In 2009:
–Super Junior is hardly “Sorry, Sorry” for forcing citizens young and old to tap their left foot in, tap their right hand down, put their right foot in, do a few jaunty snaps, a couple of spins, and shake it all about. Okay, the Korean version of the hokey pokey it is. +9
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6QA3m58DQw[/youtube]
–Super Junior has the highest record sales of 2009, but realize there’s no monetary gain when there are 13 people to share the wealth with. +5
-“Gee” officially makes Girls’ Generation the new Korean girl group darlings. Wonder Girls who? +8
–Something both fantastic and elastic? Doesn’t sound too appropriate, but neither does SHINee’s Ring Ding Dong… -2
–But the song instantly propels the group into supergroup status “Kolak kolak kolak kolak kolak kolak...” So fantastic? +8
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roughtzsCDI[/youtube]
-TVXQ threatens to disband after they accuse their record label of failing to pay them for all their slave driving nonsense. A shady move by SM? You don’t say! -10
–Former Chinese member, Han Geng, sues SM for being unfair in their contract with him and he proceeds to part ways with the company. -8
–Apparently, the American public did not want some foreign boa to eat them up. Accordingly, the little boa proceeds to slither away back to where they came from never to return again. -9
–Whatever happened to this guy??
…2010?
–Super Junior continues without their useless members and tours throughout Asia and gets one year older, which is K-Pop age means retirement! -2
–Girls’ Generation’s newest single, “Oh,” debuts underwhelmingly. -4
–A source close to SM’s camp tells me exclusively that BoA is an overwhelming diva who refuses to work as hard as she did in her younger years. Finally, the girl starts being human and less robotic. +2
-SM continues to pimp out that one girl-boy, er boy-girl(?) f(x) member who’s as sexually ambiguous as that one girl from UP, as a ruse to appeal to more of Korea’s female fans. Completely awesome. +2
Total score: +4
The notorious label–known for chewing up and spitting out talent–goes on to slobber all over the Korean competition by pimping out their young’uns, but is unsuccessful in keeping their bigger ventures like BoA, and TVXQ content in the limelight.
Check back tomorrow for the last part in this series!
