Girl group f(x) equals 5+α

f(x) members Krystal and Sulli were born in 1994. Entries of diaries they wrote during class in elementary school float around on the Internet and when Sulli goes to school, her classmates ask her for autographs. But when the bell rings, signaling the end of school, the girls transform into singers of a promising five-member girl group discovered by one of Korea's top talent houses SM Entertainment.

The members of f(x) are all between the ages of 15 to 17, excluding leader Victoria. But Krystal was discovered by SM when she was seven, after which she studied her books at school and dancing and singing at her agency's studio. Victoria had learned various types of dances, from ballet to acrobatics, while attending the Beijing Dancing Academy since she was six and Luna, whose entire family does music, was raised in the atmosphere to learn to sing and dance. Sulli had garnered attention as a 'pretty' child actress in SBS TV series "Seo Dong Yo" even ahead of signing with SM, and 'tomboy' Amber from the United States, who likes Linkin Park, taekwondo and basketball, also joined the group. SM announced upon the group's debut that their activities would be carried out throughout all of Asia, which is a decision the agency most probably made based on their confidence in the girls' talents and appeal.

Being the young ladies they are, Sulli and Victoria enjoy incorporating 'rocks, paper, scissors' into their choreography and the girls say their biggest dream is to perform in front of children in Africa rather than yearn for any other worldly desires. Yet they are professionals who performed each 10 of their songs at their showcase without making a single mistake and was still all smiles while singing and dancing in pouring rain for a music show on broadcaster KBS. They sing songs with lyrics speaking of a teenager's heart but match it with powerful and precise dance moves. And as young as they look, they pulled off putting on the most mature and sophisticated looks in their commercial for a mobile phone and photoshoots of "Cosmopolitan".

That is why f(x) provides fans and viewers with an unexperienced, new form of joy. They are like the Disney animation characters for low-teens who have popped out into the real world. It is too early to tell what the product 'y' of f(x) will be, but they are undoubtedly the first generation which shows us the dream every teenager today has -- of becoming the star of the world.

Senior Reporter : Kang Myoung-Seok two@10asia.co.kr
Photographer : Lee Jin-hyuk eleven@10asia.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr, Lee Ji-Hye seven@10asia.co.kr