Gateway for New Domestic Singers, the 18th 'Hyeonin Gayoje' to be Held... August 5-7 at Songdo Beach Special Stage

Hyun Memorial Concert, Celebration Performances by Seol Woon-do, Shim Hyung-rae, Jo Myung-seop, Kim Dong-hyun, Kim Sang-hee, Yoo Ji-na, Yoyomi, and Others

Poster of the Hyunin Song Festival.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] The 18th Hyun-in Song Festival, held to honor the late Hyun-in, a giant in the Korean popular music scene and a beloved national singer who illuminated Busan, and to discover outstanding new singers, will take place from August 5 to 7 at the special stage on Songdo Beach.

Hosted by the Korea Entertainment Artists Association and sponsored by Busan City and Seo-gu Office, the Hyun-in Song Festival has been held for 18 years since 2004 to discover talented new singers nationwide and contribute to the promotion of popular culture.

Held annually during the Busan Sea Festival at Songdo Beach, the event not only revitalizes the old downtown area but also serves as an attractive tourist resource that widely promotes the maritime city of Busan both domestically and internationally.

This year’s Hyun-in Song Festival consists of the final preliminary and main rounds. In addition, it features celebratory performances by famous singers such as Seol Woon-do, Shim Hyung-rae, Yoo Ji-na, Yoyomi, Jo Myung-seop, Kim Sang-hee, Seo Ji-o, and Kim Jong-hwan, as well as a pre-event. The hosts are announcers Kim Byung-chan and Jung Eun-hye.

A total of 15 teams are participating in this year’s Hyun-in Song Festival. From March to May, 82 teams applied nationwide, and after the first preliminary screening, 33 teams advanced to the second stage, where live performances were judged to select 15 teams.

The participating teams consist of talented individuals from across the country, including Busan, Seoul, Gyeonggi, Daejeon, Daegu, Yeosu, and Gunsan.

The teams will compete again on August 6 at 7 p.m. on the final preliminary stage of the Hyun-in Song Festival, and only the five teams that pass the final preliminary round will step onto the grand main stage of the 18th Hyun-in Song Festival on August 7 at 8 p.m.

The five teams performing on the main stage will be ranked through on-site judging by the panel of judges on the day of the final round, determining the grand prize, gold prize, silver prize, and so forth.

The total prize money of 25.5 million KRW will be awarded as follows: 10 million KRW for the grand prize (1 winner), 5 million KRW for the gold prize (1 winner), 4 million KRW for the silver prize (1 winner), 3.5 million KRW for the bronze prize (1 winner), and 3 million KRW for the encouragement prize (1 winner).

Kim Ki-hwan, Director of the Culture and Sports Bureau of Busan City, said, “The Hyun-in Song Festival is expected to showcase the charm of Busan to tourists visiting during the vacation season and provide them with joyful memories. We ask for the interest and participation of citizens and tourists alike.”

The late Hyun-in was born in Busan in 1919. He graduated from the vocal music department of Tokyo University of the Arts and fled to Shanghai, China, to avoid Japanese conscription, where he began his singing career. He returned to Korea shortly after liberation and gained much love with numerous representative songs such as “Night of Silla,” “Be Strong, Geum-soon,” which depicted the hardships of refugees, “Rainy Gomoryeong,” “Green Grape Love,” and “Frontline Ballad.” He passed away in April 2002 after suffering from diabetes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.