Mobile brand Sony Ericsson had gotten themselves a new Digital Brand Ambassador, Wonder Girls, & these girls specially flown into Singapore for a Regional Media Launch. At the appreciation dinner, the Wonder Girls even flaunt their dance moves, teaching the audience how to dance the “Nobody” dance. The 5 of them showed their charisma; the atmosphere at the dinner were also lightened up.

After performing 3 songs, Wonder Girls were then arranged for a local media interview. What concerned them (the media) the most is about the newest member to the group, HaeRim (Lim). Originally, Wonder Girls consisted members of Sunye, Ye Eun, Sohee, Sunmi, Yubin. However, with a sudden announcement from member Sunmi, deciding to leave the group to further her studies, untill completing her college. New member, HaeRim, recently first appeared in a commercial film ads to the audience, however, her first performance with the group was back in China, also for a Sony Ericsson event while Singapore being the 2nd stop.

HaeLim revealed that:”I have so much more to learn, & catch up with the other members. Sometimes, I felt nervous, but really excited to be part of this.”

As for working with a new member, Ye Eun said:”It definitely takes time to build our chemistry together. We’re really happy that she could join us, she’s really talented. We’ll be working hard even more.”

“Song is even more popular than the Wonder Girls itself is definitely a good thing”

Wonder Girls’ representative song “Nobody” has succeeded in capturing much attention & popularity over many different countries. When someone asked “Do you think that the song “Nobody” are even more popular than the Wonder Girls?”, the girls firmly replied:”It is a good thing, being a singer/musican, we should be expressing our thoughts & feelings through our music. & “Nobody” has did it, it means we’ve achieved it.”

“The reason why “Nobody” is so popular?”

Yubin laughed & said:”I don’t really know… perhaps its the catchy tune, furthermore, it has those 60s retro kind of unqiue “taste” in it.” Sunye added:”This song is suitable for the young & old, it is easy for everyone to sing & dance along. We really am thankful for all the people liking that song.”

{source: lianhe zaobao}

After picking up much success with their hit single “Nobody”, Wonder Girls welcomed a new member to the group just last month. The girls showcased their charms by performing here in Singapore last night, but however they are lacking of unison: “Needing more time to develop a better relationship”.

After visting Singapore for the very first time back in 2008 and performing at the Korean Pop Night, the Wonder Girls are back in town. This time around, the girls are the newest Digital Embassadors for the mobile brand, Sony Ericsson. The difference between last visit is, the member that visited Singapore back in 2008, Sunmi, withdrew from the group last month to further her studies. Replacing  it with a trainee whom trained with JYP Academy for 3 years, HaeRim (Hye Lim).

Last night, it was the 2nd overseas appearance & performance ever since the re-grouping of the members. The girls performed their hit singles like “So Hot”, “Tell Me” & “Nobody”. However, the time spent performing & getting along together with the other member wasn’t long enough, member Lim seems to be having much trouble, at point of time, it seems that she wasn’t able to catch up with the beats. At the media interview, a representative said that even though Lim just joined the group, they believe that there is still room for improvement for getting along.

When a reporter asked, Lim said, “Sometimes, I will still be nervous, but I’m excited to be able to join the group, having a new start.”  Member Yubin added:”It needs more time to get to know each other well, but with her joining the group, I felt thankful, she’s really talented.”

Sweeping various music charts, dominating the whole world for the past year with just one hit song “Nobody”, gained much popularity and recognition. “Nobody” is the one song which many artiste which wants to imitate. Leader Sunye laughed and said:”Perhaps it could be the tune that is easy to remember, no matter what age group you are, they will pick up the “Nobody” dance easily.”

When asked about any worries that their song might be even more popular than the artiste, Lim said:”I think this way it could be better, since we’re singers, we hope that we’ll be able to express our thoughts & feelings through music. At this point, we indeed had definitely done a great job, haha!”

{source: lianhe wanbao}

*Note: There is an article from SG newspaper in which the sentence apparently said by Yubin was said by Yenny (Ye Eun) and the last sentence in this article spoken by Lim was also Yenny’s. Might want to take this into consideration when reading this post. If there are any mix up on the names of who said what, it’s not our fault.

Two new products from the WG by Wonder Girls cosmetics line have been released.

At the beginning of the week we gave you a preview of  the Creaming Nude Lipstick which has now been released together with the Petit Pang Pang Blusher.

These two new products together with the already released So Easy Super Eyeliner, Shiny Shiny Lip Gloss, Milky Mineralized Two Way Cake & Long Lash Dramatic Super Volume Mascara, add up to a total of 6 products from the cosmetics line collection already on sale at online shopping malls, but there are still more to come.

It was announce that WG by Wonder Girls would officially be launched by mid March and since the end of February new products are being released in pairs to achieve that purpose.

I was also said that there were plans to market the cosmetics line into China, South East Asia & US.

It is so difficult for Asian singers to break into the American market that success in the U.S. is a feat often compared to “the first human landing on the moon,” according to American pop columnist Joseph Young.

Singers that are ultrafamous in Asia, such as BoA, Rain and Se7en, each of whom earn more than a medium-sized Korean company, have proven that upon entering the U.S. market, their appeal just does not translate.

So when the Korean girl group the Wonder Girls made it onto Billboard’s Hot 100 chart in October, it was a significant moment for Korean pop music. The song “Nobody,” which entered the iconic music chart at No. 76, has a simple but addictive melody, and the five-member girl band, with their spangle-studded dresses and wholesome appeal, captured U.S. fans in a way no other Asian act has.

But it certainly hasn’t been easy for the band, and their success has come at a price.

Last month, band member Sun-mi, who goes by Mimi in the U.S., announced she was leaving the band to focus on her studies, a move that shed light on the difficulties Korean singers face when they burst into the American market.

In October, after the song Nobody had entered the Billboard chart, the band had a press conference in Seoul at which some of the band members, including Sun-mi, who was 18 then, cried as they shared their struggle to make it in the U.S. market.

“I cry every night before I fall asleep because I’m a slow learner and I need a lot of time to adapt to new circumstances,” Sun-mi said.

Band members said cultural and language barriers were the most difficult aspects of their U.S. life.

So it was no surprise that when the band’s managers were looking for someone to replace Sun-mi, they chose Hye-rim, a singer who is not only talented but fluent in four languages including Korean and English.

Their choice of Hye-rim, experts say, probably has something to do with the band’s success in the U.S.

“If you can’t speak the language, you can’t make it in the states, no matter how well you sing,” said pop columnist Park Eun-seok. “We have to remember that the most successful Korean actress in Hollywood is Kim Yun-jin because she is a native speaker.”

Kim, who was educated in the U.S., plays Sun Kwon on the TV series “Lost.”

Another problem Korean musicians encounter when they try to enter the U.S. market is the difference between the two countries in the way musicians gain recognition for their work.

In Korea, a star is born through a formal relationship between an entertainment agency, a producer and a composer. Talented musicians are carefully selected and then trained by an entertainment agency. In the U.S., however, musicians play local clubs for years waiting for recognition, after which they may be lucky enough to sign with a record label. Korean acts that try to make it in the U.S. often say they find it difficult to adapt to the U.S. system.

Music critic Lim Jin-mo advises bands to remember that “the Beatles sang for about six years at a small club before they became famous.”

Name recognition does not, however, guarantee financial success. JYP Entertainment, the Wonder Girls’ agent, says it spent a lot to promote the group and hasn’t yet broken even.

“It’s everyone’s dream to be successful in the U.S. because once you make it, you can sell your albums throughout the world,” said Park the music critic. “But it takes a lot of patience.”

By Lee Dong-hyun [so@joongang.co.kr]

[Source: JoongAng Daily]

Due to Wonder Girls member Sunmi’s decision to put her music career on hold, Sunmi’s virtual character for the online video game Freestyle Basketball will be dropped.

In the winter of 2008, the Wonder Girlsgained a lot of attention for agreeing to participate in JC Entertainment’s online game Freestyle Basketball. The company made virtual players based on each member so that players could control and use them in the game.

JC Entertainment said:

“We are aware of Sunmi’s decision to leave the Wonder Girls. We have discussed with JYP and Sunmi’s character will no longer be available for use.”

Regarding new member Lim (Hae Lim), the company said:

“We have not put Hae Lim in the game to replace Sunmi. We are currently still in the midst of discussions.”

Due to the increasing popularity of the game after adding the Wonder Girls, JC Entertainment is currently working on getting girl group KARA to join in as well.

[Source: AllKpop]

Girl group Wonder Girls members SunYe, YooBin, YeEun and SoHee talks about their feelings on SunMi leaving the group.

The 4 WonderGirls members had a meeting with their Wonder Girls fan union on 8th February and the fan union released the details throught their fancafe at about 11pm.

According to the representative of the fan union, SunMi’s training was shorter as compared to the other members since her debut she had missed out a much of her schooling life. And the members constantly felt SunMi’s regrets about it after they had their American debut.

They told the fans, “But our responses were the same as fans when it was revealed that SunMi will be stopping her promotions as Wonder Girls for the time being. At first we panicked, and said that she will regret this, but after awhile we calmed down and gave our support for her decision.”

They also said, “And we know that SunMi is not one to make such decisions lightly, she has been thinking about this for a while, and discussed it with the members and company.”

And the Wonder Girls member explained that rumours of the company pushing SunMi to leave the group is groundless. They said, “Debuting in the States was a dream which all the members have dreamt of. Even though we were afraid with all the saying that it is too early for our American debut, we really wanted to go to the States.”

They added, “The company also do not wish for its singers to be like puppet singers who just listens to whatever the company tells them to do.”

The members also talked about their feelings on SunMi temporarily stopping promotions as part of the Wonder Girls. Especially for SoHee, who is of the same age as SunMi and stopped her high school education for her singer career together with SunMi, said, “It is true that it is hard to be away from the family as still a young student, so I understand how SunMi feels. With that said, I believed that she has thought things out since it is her choice after all.”

The Wonder Girls also emphasized, “Even though ‘Wonder Girls SunMi’ is important, individual ‘SunMi’ is also very important. Since this is her decision on her own life, if us members are to hold on to her, later on when she regrets, we don’t know how we are going to be responsible for that.”

Also, “There are people who are criticising like ‘This is the decision you made in the beginning, why are you calling it ends now?’. We hope people don’t look at it this way since hardship means differently to every individual and they deal with them differently.”

The 4 members of the Wonder Girls had the meeting with 5 fan union representative from about 2pm in the afternoon that day.

Meanwhile, on 23rd January it was announced that SunMi will leave Wonder Girls for the time being. With that, SunMi will be with the Wonder Girls till the end of the month. And from March, she will return to Korea to start preparations for her college life.

And JYP trainee HyeRim (Lim) will be taking over the empty position in the group. Already on 4th February, she had her first official performance as part of the Wonder Girls in China for an event.

[Source: StarNews & K Bites]

Five member Wonder Girls will meet fans and talk about their future plans openly.

According to JYP Entertainment on 8th February, this afternoon, the 5 original member together with newly joined member HyeRim (Lim) will be personally meeting about 10 fans at JYP Entertainment company building.

Coming back on 6th February from their 5 days 4 nights promotions in China, the Wonder Girls members will talk truthfully about SunMi’s leaving of the group and their future plans. There are also plans for them to express their gratitude and apology for fans who have been showing them love and support for the past 3 years since their debut.

According to the JYP Ent rep, the meeting will be done with the Wonder Girls fans representatives and will not be open for news media.
And regarding the requests from the fan unions submitted on 28th January, it is said that like the fans, the Wonder Girls wish to meet fans openly.
It is revealed that discussions are in the process for SunMi to return from the States so that the girls can give fans an official greeting on 10th February which is their 3rd year anniversary.

Meanwhile, SunMi will be leaving the group officially at the end of this month to pursue her college studies.

[Source: StarNews & K Bites]

SunMi-less WONDERGIRLS secretly returned home

January 29, 2010 15:22

The American-based WONDERGIRLS have secretly returned to South Korea. The short homecoming is facilitate China promotions during early February. But because of the related problem of SunMi’s departure, whether the fans can meet with WONDERGIRLS has become a focus of attention.

WONDERGIRLS’s return is receiving media interest because this China activity is the beginning of newest member HaeLim taking over from SunMi. To this end, group leader SunYe was the first to return home this January 25, in order to meet with HaeLim. 3 other members YeEun, Yoobin & Sohee followed her back on January 27. Excluded from the China activity is SunMi, who remained behind in New York for the purpose of WONDERGIRLS’s [additional] American activities through end-February.

Originally, JYP Entertainment allowed SunMi to remain an active member of WONDERGIRLS for February, before letting HaeLim take over in March. With regards to the speedier personnel change, JYP explained, “Because this China visit is for expeditiously shooting a CF, the CF will be broadcast [only] after SunMi has stopped her activities. As far as WONDERFULS’s overseas pacts, such activities were signed for as a 5-member combination. Hence, the earlier switch to HaeLim.”

They disclosed that SunYe returning 2 days earlier than the other group members was also to meet with HaeLim. Purportedly after meeting her, SunYe painstakingly instructed HaeLim on the complete WONDERGIRLS activities.

Whether WONDERGIRLS & their fans can meet during their domestic stay is also a focus of attention. The “Keep SunMi” activists among the fan clubs proposed to JYP to “let us see the WONDERGIRLS.” Their stated wish is to hear the truth of SunMi’s withdrawal from the team members’ mouths instead of via a formal company announcement.

In reply, a high-level JYP cohort plainly stated, “The issue of meeting the fans will be entirely settled by staff members.”

The WONDERGIRLS fan clubs have jointly submitted to JYP a public chargesheet concerning the mutual arrangements of SunMi’s withdrawal & HaeLim’s inclusion. They also hope a heart-to-heart meeting can be convened. In reply, JYP communicated in written form to the fan clubs on January 28 the reasons for SunMi’s withdrawal & why WONDERGIRLS should validly remain a 5-member group.

[Source: JoongAng Ilbo Chinese Web]
[Translated by: qoxie@wgspectacle]

Wonder Girls return to Korea as 4 members without SunMi.

Wonder Girls members SunYe, YeEun, YooBin and SoHee is back in Korea to prepare for their Chinese promotions to start in February. SunYe returned on 25th January, and the rest returned on 27th January, while SunMi remains in America to carry out their planned schedules.

Their China promotions has been gaining much interests especially since they are getting a new member HyeRim (Lim) on the team. It will also be the time when SunMi will leave the group.

[Source: Osen & K Bites]

Only JYP Entertainment’s responses have been included. The questions have already been translated, you can find them HERE.

Hello this is JYP Entertainment. First, for all the fans who have expressed love for the Wonder Girls in a mature way, we just want to say thank you.

1. Sorry if our response made the fans feel awful.
Because we were trying to organize a way to communicate with the fans, we could not meet the requests. For now on, in order to prevent any misunderstandings we will be releasing written responses, please understand.

2. I did not translate this part because it was talking about why kwonderfuls were not informed before international fans and they used too many big words for my korean skills. Sorry

3. There are two reasons for adding a new member.

First, because Sunmi’s decision to be put on hold was not planned, all the past works of a five member group, needed to be approved by contract parties, these parties expressed disapproval of a four member group. The Wonder Girls overseas agent and managers felt that the girls are just about to rise in popularity and to suddenly lose a member and stand on stage would have a negative impact.

Second the other four members agreed. If the members wanted to remain as four members, revising the contracts, even through all the hardships mentioned, the company would have to allow it. However, because the members were not did not know when Sunmi would return and how long they would have to stay as four, the members thought it would be troublesome, they agreed to add a new member. Thus the company suggested Hyelim and the four members agreed.

Including the new member, the girls are planning on starting their first schedule next week in China. We cannot disclose any information regarding this schedule because it is a commercial promotion. Although Sunmi will be on hold until the end of Febuary, because this is the start of the commercial with five member Wonder Girls, at this event it will include Lim instead. The press have already knew the girls have returned but we wanted the fans to know this news first so we told the press to hold on the news. The news is planned to be released tomorrow afternoon.

4. Sunmi putting her career on hold and decreasing the number of members would cause a lot of problems but if Sunmi returns and joins the Wonder Girls, increasing the number is not a problem. When the time comes when Sunmi wishes to return, the company will discuss with Sunmi her thoughts and the other members thoughts and follow their decision.

Right now, except Sunmi, the other members are in Korea. Just like the fans have asked to meet the girls, we are planning on meeting the fans. Representing the group, the four members are planning on a way to meet the fans and on Febuary 10, Sunmi will also join the members to celebrate their 3rd anniversary and have a time for a last farewell meeting with the fans. This may take some time because we must take into account Sunmi’s thoughts and because she is still a minor, her family’s thoughts must also be heard. However, because the members want to meet the fans, we will try hard for the members to have the opportunity to be together with the fans.

Once again we thank the fans who have expressed their love in a mature manner. We will try hard to listen closely to the fans and we will try to have the artists with their fans be close to JYP Entertainment. Thank you.

Original Message:

안녕하세요, JYP엔터테인먼트입니다. 먼저 원더걸스를 사랑해 주시는 마음을 성숙된 방법으로 표현해 주신 팬 여러분들께 감사의 말씀을 전합니다.

1. 우선 저희의 태도가 무성의하게 느껴지셨다면 죄송합니다.

회사에서 팬들과의 커뮤니케이션 원칙에 대해 의견을 정리하고 있던 중이라, 요청하신 간담회에 응할 수 없었습니다. 그리고 앞으로도 서로 오해의 소지가 없는 서면을 통한 의사 소통을 주로 활용할 계획이니 양해해 주시기 바랍니다.

2. 우선 이 부분은 팬 여러분들의 오해가 있으셨던 것 같습니다.

일반적으로 보도자료를 통해 외부에 회사의 공식 입장을 알릴 때에는 홈페이지에 그 내용을 함께 공지 하지 않는 것이 관례였습니다. 이번 사안의 경우, 국내에서는 자세한 내용이 담긴 보도자료가 배포되었지만, 미국에서는 아직 저희 회사도 원더걸스도 모든 언론에 일시에 보도자료를 배포할 만큼 인지도를 가지고 있지 못하여 국내 언론에 배포한 보도자료와 똑같은 내용을 번역하여 국내에 보도자료를 배포와 동시에 홈페이지에 게재하였습니다. 따라서 국내 팬들을 차별하고자 하는 의도는 없었습니다. 하지만 향후에는 이러한 주요한 사안에 대해서는 언론에 배포하는 보도자료와 큰 시간차이 없이 팬 여러분들께도 홈페이지를 통해 함께 알려드릴 수 있도록 최선을 다하겠습니다.

3. 이 부분은 두 가지 이유가 복합적으로 작용하였습니다.

첫 번째는, 선미양의 활동 중단 요청이 사전에 예상치 못한 갑작스런 일이라, 그 동안 5인 멤버를 기준으로 쳬결 되어 있던 모든 계약 당사자들에게 양해를 구해야 했고, 협의한 결과, 모든 계약 당사자들은 일제히 4인조 활동에 대하여 난색을 표명하였습니다. 해외에서 원더걸스의 활동을 담당하고 있는 에이전트와 매니저들 역시 이제 막 인지도를 쌓아가고 있는 그룹의 멤버가 갑작스레 한 명이 줄어 무대에 선다는 것은 안 좋은 영향을 줄 수 있다고 의견 개진을 해 왔습니다.

두 번째는 나머지 멤버 4명의 의견입니다. 저희는 회사의 방침과 또 새로 개정된 연예인 표준 계약서에 의해 4명이 4인 체제로 활동을 하고 싶다고 하면, 위에서 언급한 수 많은 어려움에도 불구하고 그 의견을 받아들일 수 밖에 없습니다. 하지만, 멤버 4명이 위에서 언급한 모든 어려움을 고려하여 선미양이 언제 복귀할 지 전혀 모르는 상태에서 4인체제로 활동하는 것은 무리가 있다고 의견을 모았습니다. 이에 회사는 혜림양을 추천하였고 멤버 4명은 모두 혜림양의 영입에 동의하였습니다.

새로운 멤버를 포함한 다섯 명의 멤버는 다음주에 중국에서 처음으로 공식 스케줄을 진행할 예정입니다. 이 일정은 광고 프로모션 일정이라 제품이나 회사는 밝힐 수 없음을 양해 바랍니다. 선미양의 활동이 2월까지로 예정이 되어 있는 상황이지만, 이번 일정의 경우는 이제부터 시작되는 광고이고 다섯 멤버의 원더걸스로 예정이 된 광고이기에 이 자리에는 활동을 중단한 선미양이 아닌 새 멤버 Lim이 함께 할 예정입니다.
이미 몇몇 언론에서 멤버들이 입국한 사실이나 해외 프로모션 일정을 알고 있고, 보도를 하고자 하는 상황이지만, 팬 여러분들께 먼저 이 사실을 알려드리기 위해 일단 보도자제를 부탁 드렸습니다. 그러나 내일 오전 즈음에는 보도가 될 것으로 보여집니다.

4. 선미양이 원더걸스 활동을 중단함으로써 멤버 수가 줄어드는 것은 많은 문제를 야기시켰지만 만일, 후에 선미양이 원더걸스로 복귀하여 멤버 수가 한 명이 늘어나는 것은 상대적으로 큰 문제를 야기시키지 않습니다. 따라서, 선미양이 복귀를 원하는 시점에서 회사는 본인의 의사와 멤버들의 의사를 존중하여 따를 계획입니다.

지금 현재 선미를 제외한 멤버들은 한국에 들어와 있는 상황입니다. 팬 여러분들과 마찬가지로 멤버들은 허심탄회 하게 팬 여러분을 뵙고자 합니다. 팬 여러분들을 뵙는 방법으로는 현재 들어와 있는 멤버들이 팬 여러분들의 대표를 만나는 것과 2월 10일 원더걸스 데뷔 3주년 전후에 미국에 머물고 있는 선미양까지 귀국하여 여러분들에게 마지막 인사를 하는 자리를 가지게 될지 상의 중입니다. 후자의 경우에는 선미양 본인의 의견과 선미양이 아직 미성년인 관계로 가족 분들의 의견도 들어보아야 하기 때문에 결정에는 약간의 시간이 걸릴 수 도 있습니다. 하지만 멤버들은 팬 여러분들을 어떠한 형태로든 직접 뵙고 싶어 하고 있기 때문에, 어떤 형태가 되었든 원더걸스와 팬 여러분들이 함께 이야기를 나눌 수 있는 자리를 만들 수 있도록 추진하겠습니다.

다시 한 번 원더걸스를 사랑하는 마음을 성숙한 방법으로 표현해 주신 점 깊이 감사드립니다. 앞으로도 팬 여러분들의 소리에 더욱 귀를 기울이고 아티스트와 팬 여러분들과 늘 함께 하는 JYP엔터테인먼트가 되도록 최선을 다 하겠습니다. 감사합니다.

DO NOT CHANGE/DELETE/ADD TO THE CREDITS OR TRANSLATIONS

[Source: Wonderholic]
[Translated by Sunmikiwangjang@wgspectacle]