Next...
Lee Hyori was in a soju ad that's been playing on loop at subway stations around Seoul for a while now.
Now sure, it's Hyori bringing her special brand of hypnotic, "You. . . will. . . buy. . . this. . . product" CF queenieness and all. . . but what the heaven is up with the song choice?
Of all the songs to choose for a Hyori ad, why choose a schlock novelty from the early nineties, from a one-hit-wonder Dr. Demento crossover poster-boy -- and then running an ad with THAT song, fifteen years after it came out???
(PS: it creeps me out that there are kids who can rap that entire "baby got back" song, who were not even BORN when it came out...though the video is wildly hilarious)
adding to the weirdness of that song showing up in an ad, sorry, but the song fits Hyori like a baggy sweater. Ass lovely as it is, I'm still looking for the "big ol'" part. Unless she forgot the other cheek at home on the day she went in for this photo shoot:
Sorry. While the word shapely is certainly apt, bootylicious just isn't the one for dear Lee Hyori. She's lovely, in that "dear god what a perfect stomach" sort of way,
and a big part of her appeal is the old "of all the K-pop stars, she actually seems like she's having fun instead of just pacing through her choreographer's routines" kind of charisma. . . but she doesn't have enough junk in the trunk to sell records on her big ol'juicy buh-tawcks (thanks, Forrest Gump) alone.
adding to the weirdness of that song showing up in an ad, sorry, but the song fits Hyori like a baggy sweater. Ass lovely as it is, I'm still looking for the "big ol'" part. Unless she forgot the other cheek at home on the day she went in for this photo shoot:
Sorry. While the word shapely is certainly apt, bootylicious just isn't the one for dear Lee Hyori. She's lovely, in that "dear god what a perfect stomach" sort of way,
and a big part of her appeal is the old "of all the K-pop stars, she actually seems like she's having fun instead of just pacing through her choreographer's routines" kind of charisma. . . but she doesn't have enough junk in the trunk to sell records on her big ol'juicy buh-tawcks (thanks, Forrest Gump) alone.allow me to illustrate:
Big ass:
(courtesy of Nike; text here)
(lovely nonetheless, but) NOT big ass:
UNhappy Sir Mix-A-Lot: (his othabrothas and he can't deny: they AIN'T got sprung.)
Though with a little help, she might yet hold her own against J-Lo and the bootylicious gang. . . Sir Mix-a-Lot and his fellas might like this augmented bitty-bit:
Big ass:
(courtesy of Nike; text here)Happy Sir Mix-a-lot (he and his othabrothas can't deny they got sprung):
(lovely nonetheless, but) NOT big ass:
UNhappy Sir Mix-A-Lot: (his othabrothas and he can't deny: they AIN'T got sprung.)Though with a little help, she might yet hold her own against J-Lo and the bootylicious gang. . . Sir Mix-a-Lot and his fellas might like this augmented bitty-bit:
But I shall stick with admiring the assets Hyori pops best:
fun charisma, and a really great tummy.
To the choeum chorom music choosey-people who picked THAT song for their ad:
work harder.
6 comments:
It took me a while to figure out what may have been behind the strange choice of song and ad, and I probably wouldn't have if I was writing about the same subject myself at the same time that I read your post! I think that the reason is that sales of soju to middle-aged ajosshis are probably stagnant, and so soju companies are looking at ways to make their product more appealing to Koreans in their twenties. That's a tough call, and although it has led to some genuine creativity and innovate marketing with JInro's new "J" brand like I just wrote about...sometimes it leads to disasters, like this case. Still, kudos to them for trying.
Sir Mix-A-Lot is Awesome with a capital A. He was the first rapper to come out of Seattle and make it to the big time. I met him once randomly on the and he was a cool dude. That being said, I will buy anything he is involved with. :)
The choice of song mystifies me, too, because its main appeal is to people who were in their teens or early 20s in north america in the early '90s. . . it would make sense in North America... unless the song was as popular here as it was over in Canada and such. . . anybody able to attest to that?
Meanwhile, I'm guessing the Koreans who know this song best are the ones who go dancing in clubs also frequented by westerners (who would enjoy this song being played as a cheesy throw-back nostalgia song -- kind of like YMCA) -- where else would this song have gained popularity in Korea, and how? The funny thing about it is the lyrics, which makes it ill-suited to translate across language barriers.
Or am I wrong?
I'm not sure they're really relying on any pre-existant popularity. More likely somebody in the advertising firm heard it, liked the sound, and stuck it in because it felt like it fit the "mood". Korean advertising and TV have a history of just lifting songs without paying much attention to lyrics or meaning.
Roboseyo,
Have you checked out the other soju ad with Hyori in it? She's got a (I think) faux afro and dances to none other than "Hippy Hippy Shake" (the Georgia Satellites version of '88 not the Chan Romero version of '59). I kinda chalk it up to the Korean infatuation with western pop. I know you've probably meet Korean friends who can sing obscure one-hit wonders or songs your father or grand father liked.
Another thing about the Sir Mix-A-Lot choice just might be tongue in cheek, as last spring the korean netizens criticized her latest "Hey Girl" video, saying she had a big butt...but maybe I'm over analyzing a "CF."
Charlie,
The KimcheeGI
she looks very american tomboy
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