It’s hard to write updates on Jang Geun Seok‘s career when he isn’t active in Korea and isn’t active as an actor. The combination of both was what got me to become a fan, and in the ensuing years he’s chosen to concentrate his career in Japan, where he’s wildly popular, and also to focus on his singing. His lone attempt this year to go back to K-ent was an unmitigated disaster, with him joining the variety show Three Meals a Day: Fishing Village, only to be forced to quit when his tax scandal flared up again.
That was a major bummer all around, and made me think his next acting project in Korea won’t be any time soon what with the public reaction to him doing just a variety show. It’s been months since the Fishing Village brouhaha but those fans in Korea who have been waiting for his return need look no further than this weekend – on September 5th Jang Geun Seok will hold a one night live concert in Seoul as part of his Cri Show III tour. Since I haven’t been following his singing, I do wonder if he’s gotten better technically over the years as he used to be pitchy but definitely that voice of his was pretty darn easy on the ears even back then.
Above are news pictures from his various concerts this summer around Asia, giving K-fans a glimpse of what to expect at his upcoming Seoul concert. He looks like he’s having a great time, maybe singing really is his true calling, except for his major talent as an actor laying dormant.
I’ve always had a soft spot for him, as one of my first kdrama crushes back when I was still a highschool dweeb squealing at Your Beautiful. It’s sad how he can’t focus in being active in Korea due to the publics stigma against him. Yet I’ve always found him humble and hardworking. I wonder if he’s the most successful actor turn musician in the Korean acting industry?
Hopefully he’ll sell out the concert and enjoy himself.
Him and his mop head are still alive I see. When he was in Mary stayed out all night, that thing drove me nuts despite him looking pretty good in it. I guess I’ve come to accept it slowly since he seems to love this style alot.
His a proper star and came in a time were stars were more appreciated.. He was a big hugely popular and competiting with Kim hyun jung and Lee min ho.. these 3 guys used to be the 3 kings of the hallyu wave but these were the days but sadly him and KHJ ran into scandals.. which actully goes to show that LMH is an old-timer and have been around the top and face of hallyu for a long time.. As an international fan I have good memories of this guy and KHJ except his scandal which pretty much left him ruined.. who didn’t loved KHJ’s R&B songs
I forgot to add the ”Prince of Asia” hard to forgot
I really feel sad when I think about him….about what could have been if he remained a serious actor *sigh*
I remember he used to compete with LMH back then in popularity debates. Now KSH have replaced him in those debates.( Gotta admire LMH’s never-ending popularity here though )
I just don’t understand korean netizens’ problem with him. It can’t be just because of tax scandal. He has such a lively personality and good acting talents.
I don’t get either…that tax scandal was supposedly because of his agency , not him particularly..and it was taken care of too.Is there anything else that went wrong there.He’s really good at acting all kind of roles..as far as I’ve seen..there was this movie where he’s a convict and I thought he delivered really well.Korean industry probably does not take time to bring someone at the top overnight or throw them out without a stretch.
I personally got a bit turned off when he started wearing all those ridiculous outfits and wearing his hair too long. He was looking prettier than his leading ladies most of the time!! But I still look out for news about him coz I really adored him before!
ms. koala, are there no news of him coming back to dramaland anytime at all? i miss seeing him in a drama.
I always have a soft spot for him. He used to be running in the popularity contest with Lee Min Ho but now there are so many rising actors overshadowing with the likes of Lee Jong Seok, Kim Woo Bin and Kim So Hyun.
He could have been a serious actor but his career in Korea has been greatly sabotaged as well. You know, when you don’t act out like the typical guy that the Koreans drool over, they can just find the reason to shun him. Too bad and the blame is also on him for cashing on unnecessary projects which further hurt his image in Korea.
I still like him though. He is flamboyant but underneath it all, there’s a hidden talent and he is a very talented actor indeed, just in need of some really good quality projects.
At least I’m happy that he does not don those over the top flamboyant costumes anymore. The rocker style suits him much better. Still, all the best, JGS.
auw i just love his pretty face 🙂 hopefully he can make a drama comeback soon, even Kdramaland wud not accept him, let him go to China.
Oh JGS…do something. Go do a movie or a drama again. You cant let the newbies overshadow your talent. Come on!!!
He’s a good actor. I always feel bad that he’s not as popular in KR as he should be.
Even Kang Ho Dong recovered from his tax scandal. 🙁
Now with news of other questionable men having a comeback, I just feel more the unfairness for this kid.
i think, he needs to find another company which can help him find a good script. his works after YAB were totally mess. sorry to say but he lost his popularity to other new actors cuz i found him playing as ‘the same character’ again and again.
i like him back then, he was popular, yups.. just as much as lee minho with his BBF. i dont mind if he comes back as the 2nd lead, c’mon.. park hae jin did it in Alien, but then he got his 1st lead again in another drama.. so.. just comeback, find good script with good partner!
But JGS owns Tree J(his company) as well as the building its situated in. Guess he just loves singing. Even in this area he is so talented. He composes his own music and is very hands on with the production. Although I find his vocals not that great but his music is catchy and made for easy listening. But neglecting his acting career is such a waste.
this guy make too many money off of his fan in japan. that why he dont do drama. he should just do jdrama cuz kfan dont like his drama.
Okay, Okay, I admit – I am his fan. An eel, as he calls his fans. Sorry to everyone, but seems nobody have heard his new songs and nobody really has followed the updates about him.
Let me proudly say, mis Okoala, his singing has greatly improved. Actually now he is better than many “real” singers. He performes LIVE with a live band. Not very common in Korea. 🙂
Kis last album “Monochrome” is something really different from his previous music projects.
The scandal – no need to discuss it. A scam. A fabricated lie to stop him from the variety. And before saying that I am biased – why the media suddenly stopped to talk about it? A law suit maybe? (not telling more)
And about his return to the dramaland….. 🙂 🙂 Yesterday there was a video, posted by Lotte resorts. Go and see it. JKS says in it he is reading scripts. So DRAMA SOON!!!
Nobody here is hating on his tax scandal. 🙁 Actually, I thought it was unfortunate that the tax problem was brought up right when he was going to start Na PD’s show. Because based on koala’s translation in the past, the tax thing was already resolved before 3MAD:FV even started.
I was so excited to see JGS again in Fishing Village. I felt like JGS isn’t getting enough love in Korea and was hoping variety can fix that. Fishing Village would’ve been perfect because Na PD always has a way with focusing on an actor’s quirk and making it look endearing. Like Seunggi’s hopeless heodangness or Seojin’s grumpy expertise. Aigoo… now I feel bad for JGS again.
T____T Unfortunately, I don’t listen to a lot of music so I can’t follow his singing career. But I really miss JGS acting and want to see him in a project soon.
PS LOL didn’t know he called his fans eels!
Hi all… whoa it’s been a while not seeing a post on JKS hehe, so thanks Ms Koala. I’m myself a quite seasoned eel and have been following JKS for years by now… just wanna drop by some fan’s point of views here ;). It’s true that after the tax scandal brouhaha he seems to stay quiet and low profile in the K-Media, hence very little information or news about him circulating in the ‘mainstream’ Korean news sites. He has released his 3rd album early this year to celebrate his 5th anniversary of Japan Debut and completed a tour in 8 cities in Japan from March- June. FYI he’s also been undertaking his masters degree at Hanyang Uni, shortly after his undergrad study graduation last year so he’s been living a ‘normal’ person’s life this year. True that JKS isn’t a ‘material’ for K-Media except only blown-up, exaggerated scandals *somebody HAS to be the Nation’s Scapegoat, rite?*. Therefore his fans (eels) normally find information from Japanese media like Korepo or Koari, or from his OFC websites and his unofficial fanclub websites like the Eels Family and Jangkeunsukforever *which was, by the way, inspired by this koala blog by the initiators*. About his ‘singing’ career… not many know about this because it was initially targeted at the Japanese market as well. Even though I am an eel, I wasn’t firstly a fan of his singing. Like most of you here, I used to be sceptical and thought that he’d better focus on his acting career. However, as I experienced myself attending his solo concert this year in Japan, for which we eels had to ‘compete’ to get the sold-out tickets, I changed my mind. Jang Keun Suk might not be the best singer there is, skillwise. But he is indeed a true entertainer and stagemaker with a complete package. He has been famous for being pitchy- well he can’t be fully blamed for that as he hasn’t been trained to be a real singer in the first place. He has improved a lot, though, and his falsetto technique is at its best in the last Final Show at Budokan Arena Tokyo~ the show whose pics you have posted, Ms Koala. He could nail singing 20+ songs in Japanese, Korean and English~ some are really difficult (you can try searching for the song called ‘Wind (Kaze)’ on YT and listen for yourself how difficult it might be to sing it properly especially when you have this ‘pitchy’ problem ;). The show was originally scheduled for 2 hours but because we eels kept chanting for a prolonged encore, he ended up performing for about 2h45 mins :). He also danced and interacted fully in Japanese during the show. I can only say that I’m really proud of him, seeing how he has grown himself as an entertainer despite all the ‘behind-the-scene’ hardships that most of his non-fans do not know :).
By the way… he might have already a script he’d like to choose for his comeback drama. So please look forward to him 😉
Hello friends, i am a Bangladeshi eel of Jang Keun Suk… I am a die hard fan of his acting, as well as his singing…. From Cri show 3 in kobe, i’ve observed that his singing has improved dramatically…I’m sure he is gonna rock the concert on seoul and i hope people of Korea stop treating him so harshly regarding the tax issue, even after all the matters are solved.No man is perfect and everyone has the right to be be he or she is… Anyway, as an eel i’ll support my eel leader for the rest of my life….
Hi guys I have a question …in his live concert in Seul he said that will do a 50 episodes period drama and filming beginning in winter ….anybody know what project is it ….I suspect it is the daejoong the young king …but I am not sure …pls tell if you know anything
JKS has been so misunderstood by his own people. I dont know why… he is an amazing singer and actor at the same time. His new album Monochrome is something new to my ears compare to his previous albums… and his just finished Cri 3 show concert in 8 cities in Japan were all sold out. Korea’s loss is Japan’s gain! Go zikzin!!