Happy Lunar Year everyone/da jia/yeorobun! It’s goodbye to the year of the snake and hello to the year of the horse. This is going to be a great year, I can feel it. Let’s all start by being optimistic and who knows if that’ll be a self-fulfilling prophesy. Last night was Lunar New Year eve and in China that meant billions of people spending the night at home eating and then watching TV. The most watched show was of course the CCTV Lunar New Year Gala and it was a long night of performances of all types not limited to just singing. Lee Min Ho became the first Korean entertainer to perform on the show and he actually sang in Korean as well. I’m impressed CCTV did not force him to sing the entire song in Chinese, though at the very end he did harmonize the chorus in Chinese with his co-performer Harlem Yu. They sang the Chinese-language theme song to Meteor Garden, the Taiwanese adaptation of the Japanese manga Hana Yori Dango which ties in with Lee Min Ho since he rocketed to stardom playing the male lead in Boys Before Flowers, the Korean adaptation of HanaDan. The song is called 情非得已 which is one of those Chinese idioms that is so hard to translate into English because there isn’t a corresponding phrase. The literal meaning is someone doing something against their will, not like torture or pain, but more like “I’m sorry I did something, it was not my intention but it couldn’t be helped”. I’ve seen the song title get translated into Can’t Help Falling in Love with You which is an incorrect use of the phrase but in the context of the song is actually correct. Harlem Yu is one of Taiwan’s top music composers and singers but this song is one that he actually only sang but did not write either the lyrics or the melody. For this particular performance, Harlem personally reworked the ballad into an uptempo Chinese New Year tone crossed with cowboy twanged oddity. It was quite enjoyable to watch but the ear does take a few seconds to get used to it. Lee Min Ho and Harlem alternating verses in Korean and Chinese and then finished off with a Chinese version rousing duet chorus. Harlem was definitely having lots of fun but Lee Min Ho was clearly ready to do his best and not make any mistakes. The result is a mixed bag but I walked away kinda bopping the new melody for this song in my head. Check out below and a fair warning that it’s a pretty love it or hate it trippy performance
Harlem Yu and Lee Min Ho “情非得已” (Can’t Help Falling In Love with You):
h=445
So I suggest keeping expectations low for this drama, despite the fan love for the…
So this is the drama trolly producer Yu Zheng recently praised as better than Goblin…
So the most recent casting for this drama is now confirmed as the final selection…
So there is a popularity award in both the film and the television sections of…
I have such a soft spot for C-actress Yang Mi and it just makes me…
So Queen of Tears was filmed in 2023 and wrapped awhile ago so it's not…
This website uses cookies.
View Comments
I seriously seemed like a school girl because I would not have thought I would have watched this one of American's basic Chinese TV channel. Seriously, what are the odds? I was in my room and my dad was watching some Chinese Channel with the Lunar Year performances and I heard the familiar melody of Meteor Garden and my ears totally perked up and ran to watch it. And so I saw Lee Min Ho sing in Korean and Harlem Yu singing in Mandarin with such a cowboy twang. It was so fun to watch it! What a lovely unexpected surprise.
Harlem was having fun and IN on the joke.
The performance was a hoot. The "English" names crack me up - Harlem Yu & Alien Huang being two examples. Points for creativity.
LMH needs to change his stylist, stat! seen wearing too many ugly outfits lately....
I think he is his own stylist......
I guess since I don't know the song I don't get much from them singing it, but this was a little boring and a lot cheesy. They worked it a bit at the end, but otherwise mostly forgettable. Lee Minho can't sing, but he's not offensively bad so it's hard to hate on him for his attempt. He shouldn't quit his day job though.
Cheesy is the very pinnacle of a Chinese variety program performance, ergo this one fits the bill of what is considered perfect.
Holy moly Ms Koala. I came to this article half asleep and now my brain is fried.
I kept expecting Oklahoma with the " yee har " then I kept switching from Mandarin to Korean.
Upbeat tempo alright but what a hot mess. Plus the dancers in them boots. And the yodeling?
Eep. This is one song when it's better you only understand one language.
It was odd as my brain kept switching languages but then got distracted by the back up dancers.
Hm.............interesting mix. Not loving it. I miss the original song.
It was painful for me to watch. I don't like the cowboy thing going on and LMH looks uncomfortable. Plus, they should of left out the back up dancers.
You will not see a singing performance on CCTV without back up dancers.
I don't see LMH uncomfortable, not more than usual. He even did go for a hug instead of a handshake at the end.
His voice is okay but he better should stay with acting :P.
Of course I like the original version better but it was fun to see and hear.
Lee Min Ho channeling Hugh Hefner in that coat, so painful in the eyes >_<"
At least he's not channeling present day Hugh and show up in silk pajamas. XD
That is it, I couldn't place it until you said so. LOL
Uh...interesting folk/rock version of the song. Not gonna say it's my favorite but LHM wasn't bad at all.
Conceptually I liked it, very Harlem to have fun with his own song and then realize the uptempo version was needed for this celebratory event performance. The folksy parts were almost like he was hip to be square and enjoying the audience comprised of very serious folks expecting a certain type of cheesy performing. Lee Min Ho did as well as can be, I agree.
We enjoyed the performance for the entertainment... Guess Harlem needed to add extra inches to his hair to catch-up with LMH's height (^^)... Is LMH the longest legged oppa/ajussi in K/J/TW entertainment???? The inquiring mind wants to know...
Isn't Kim Woo Bin a liiiittle taller than LMH? I checked their respective heights on their page, and I believe KWB is (taller).
Longest leg is different from who is taller though.