INTO ASIA COMES KOREA'S PRINCE OF BALLADS - TIM HWANG (Kuala Lumpur, December 2, 2012)

INTO ASIA COMES KOREA'S PRINCE OF BALLADS - TIM HWANG

Korean ballad sensation Tim Hwang tours S.E. Asia to meet his fans for the first time.

Tim Hwang, Korea’s legendary “Prince of Ballads”, will be coming to Singapore and Malaysia for a promotional tour from November 28 to December 3, 2012.

A household name in his native Korea, Tim’s first ever promotional visit to Southeast Asia, ‘INTO ASIA COMES TIM’S WORLD’, will have the fresh-faced Korean-American finally meeting his scores of beloved regional fans face to face.

Represented by Sony Music Entertainment Korea, Tim arrives riding on the success of his recent mini album release (‘A Long Day’) in November last year. This follows the remarkable sales of his previous five albums, the debut being ‘First TIM’ in 2003, which sold over 100,000 copies, garnered numerous awards including ‘Rookie of the Year’ at the Korean Music Awards and launched him into international fame.

Tim is a rare commodity in the Korean music world as he is comfortably bi-lingual in English and Korean and able to sing in both languages due to his American origins. He grew up in Philadelphia as the son of the pastor of a local church. His childhood was a time of great musical exploration as Tim spent it honing his vocal skills in the choir and mastered the saxaphone, drums, piano and guitar.

After he settled in his motherland, Tim has landed plum hosting roles such as MTV Korea’s ‘Tim’s World’, which followed the lives and struggles of musicians striving for their big break.

He has lent his voice to the original sound tracks of hit Korean dramas, including ‘Secret Garden’, ‘49 Days’, ‘A Thousand Kisses’, ‘Queen of Reversal’, and ‘How to Meet a Perfect Neighbour’ and has appeared in a number of popular Korean variety shows like ‘Strong Heart’, ‘Immortal Song 2’ (which features only the best singers in Korea), ‘Star King’, ‘Love Letter’, ‘Idol Olympics’, ‘Homme Triple X’, ‘X-Man’, ‘Star Golden Bell’, and ‘Heroine 6’.

Besides singing, Tim is also a modelling talent. He started modelling in the United States and continues to catwalk as a guest model for brands like Koshin Satoh from Japan and Andre Kim, famed Korean couture wedding gown master.

Most recently, Tim has been making waves in Indonesia, as he plays the lead in the Korean-Indonesian co-production, ‘Saranghae, I Love You’. This is his debut attempt as an actor in a drama series. The plot involves a love story between couples from different cultural backgrounds. Tim has further become a household name in the nation due to his duet with top Indonesian singer, Astrid, for the show’s theme song, ‘Saranghamnida’, which exploded across the country’s radio charts as a number one hit in April this year.

‘Saranghae, I Love You’ aired in Indonesia from July 16 to Aug 24 and earned the impressive average high rating of 7.5% (the highest being 10%).

Due to his popularity in Indonesia, Tim has recorded a track in Bahasa, entitled ‘Pahitnya Asmara’ (Love is Bad), making him possibly the first Korean singer to have done so in Indonesian language.

On Sept 29, Tim held his first solo concert in Indonesia before an audience of 8,000 at Lapangan D Senayan (where the last concert was held by American singer Jason Mraz in June 2012). His tickets commanded as high as SGD 450 per person.

In addition to pop music, Tim has recorded Christian music due to his religious upbringing. He is also recognized as an outstanding musical actor, having received raved reviews for playing the lead in ‘Organ in My Heart’ in 2011, which had all 40 shows sold out. Prior to that, Tim played the lead in other musicals such as ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ and ‘Jesus, Jesus’.

Come November, Tim will play opposite Jessica from Girls’ Generation in Broadway musical, ‘Legally Blonde’, in Seoul before embarking on his first S.E.A. fan-meeting showcase tour.
 

Finally, his passion for humanitarian causes has led him to take time off work to do volunteer work in Africa, Cambodia and Indonesia.

MORE ABOUT TIM

Hwang Young-Min, better known by his stage name, Tim, was born in Philadelphia, USA. His father was the pastor of a local church and Tim spent his childhood involved in numerous musical activities, such as honing his vocal skills in the choir and playing the alto saxophone in a jazz band.

In high school, his clean cut good looks enabled him to gain modelling and acting jobs. The idea of becoming a professional singer however, was never in his mind, until he was 19, when a Korean pop music producer listened to a tape of his. In 2000, Tim was presented with the opportunity to fly to Korea for an audition that could make his debut as a full-fledged pop singer.

Taking a huge leap of faith, Tim decided to give up his dream of becoming a pharmacist and fly to Seoul alone to pursue a singing career.

He spent his first two years in his motherland learning the Korean language and training hard for his debut. While in training, he made the fortunate acquaintance of top Korean song writer Yoon Sang. They forged a musical connection and Yoon Sang penned a soft ballad for Tim that perfectly showcased his expressive and emotional vocal quality, ‘Saranghamnida’ (I Love You.) The song appeared on his debut album, ‘First TIM’, which was released in April 2003 to great acclaim. Tim’s subsequent albums - ‘Second Breath’ (2004), ‘TIM’ (2006), ‘Love Is…’ (2007), ‘New Beginnings’ (2010) - have gained similar success and attained praise from K-pop industry veterans like Shin Seung Hun as well as legions of fans. Tim’s debut hit has been covered by many top Korean singers, including Jang Geun Suk, Shinhwa, TVXQ, Super Junior, Shinee, Se7en and Yoon Sang Hyun.

“INTO ASIA COMES TIM’S WORLD” fan-meeting showcase:
Singapore: Thursday, Nov 29, 8pm, Hard Rock Café Singapore (50 Cascaden Road)
SG ticketing agent: Event Clique. https://tickets.eventclique.com/leapims & Hard Rock Café
Kuala Lumpur: Sunday, Dec 2. Venue to be announced soon.
 

For more details on Tim Hwang’s upcoming tour:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/Timhwangasiatour
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TimAsiaFM