by RUTH KIM
There’s no stopping the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, the latest viral trend to flood social media platforms. Just last week, the campaign crossed overseas to South Korea, whose celebrities are now joining in the cause and dousing themselves with a bucket of ice cold water to spread awareness for the disease.
The most recent Ice Bucket Challenge video making its way around South Korea comes from Korean singer and actor Rain, who shares his personal connection to ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
“My father-like mentor, Hong Seung-sung, who led me to debut as a singer, has been suffering from the Lou Gehrig’s Disease for three years,” said Rain about Hong, the co-founder and CEO of Rain’s agency, Cube Entertainment. “I’ve always thought about how to return his love to express my gratitude.”
The Ice Bucket Challenge was a fitting way for Rain to pay tribute to his beloved mentor, and on top of enduring not just one, but two large buckets filled with ice water, the singer also donated 100 million won, nearly $100,000, to a university hospital.
Then, in true Rain fashion, the Korean superstar remained calm and collected despite the chill, and he lightheartedly nominated his fellow superstar, PSY, actor Lee Byung-hun, and, giving a nod to his biggest fangirl, Megan Fox, who has repeatedly admitted her admiration for the Korean singer.
Singer Tim Hwang was reportedly the first person to bring the challenge to South Korea, according to Korea Realtime of The Wall Street Journal. “This is an awesome cause and I’m privileged to be a part of it,” Hwang said in his video. “But I think it won’t do it justice to just keep it in America, so with that said, what I want to do, is I want to send this challenge to all of my friends here in Korea. And through this, we can give to the organization that also helps this cause here in Korea, as well.”
Other notable South Korean celebrities who have taken up the challenge include Park Yong-man (the chairman of the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry), comedian Yoo Jae-suk, actor Won Bin, SNSD Girl’s Generation’s Yoona and Sunny, and Big Bang’s G-Dragon (who actually endured a mini waterfall of ice water). Former basketball player Park Seung-il, who was diagnosed with ALS at the age of 31, also shared a truly heartwarming Ice Bucket Challenge video.
