Yoo Jae-suk judges singing? “Is this really right?”… Laughter at Yuri’s blunt remark, “That’s too harsh” (‘Happy Together’) [Full Story]

[TV Report = Reporter Nam Geum-joo] Girls’ Generation’s Yuri made people laugh by bluntly criticizing Yoo Jae-suk and Jang Hang-jun’s judging.

Yoo Jae-suk, Jang Hang-jun, Yoon Jong-shin, and Girls’ Generation’s Yuri as a special MC appeared on KBS2’s 'Happy Together—Glad Not to Be Alone' (hereafter 'Happy Together'), which aired on the 14th.

That day, Yoo Jae-suk, Jang Hang-jun, and Yoon Jong-shin were left deliberating after seeing the performances of the teams competing in Group C of the finals. Yoo Jae-suk said, “My head is already spinning,” while Yoon Jong-shin remarked, “The quality has risen dramatically this episode.” Yuri then made the studio erupt in laughter by saying, “Exactly. I still don’t understand it. With songs of this quality, is this really the right setup for the judges?”

Yoon Jong-shin asked, “Are we inferior to the singers?” Yoo Jae-suk bristled, saying, “That’s too harsh,” and added, “I’m also someone who once hosted an audition program alone,” making everyone laugh. However, Yoon Jong-shin pointed at Jang Hang-jun and Yoo Jae-suk and swaggered, “They don’t actually judge. What could they possibly do?” adding to the laughter.

Meanwhile, the fourth team, 'Famous Voices,' consisting of rising artists Shin Ye-young and Jeon Sang-geun, appeared. Jeon Sang-geun’s song had ranked sixth on the charts, while Shin Ye-young’s song had reached 26th place. When Shin Ye-young said, “It stayed on the charts consistently for more than a year,” Yoo Jae-suk said, “It’s difficult to enter the charts these days. It’s hard to get into the top 100.” Yoon Jong-shin also lamented, “I haven’t gotten back on them in eight years, since 'Like It.'”

The two confessed that they sometimes felt upset because people recognized their songs but not their faces. Jeon Sang-geun said, “People often don’t recognize our names or faces. We have hardly had any experience appearing on terrestrial television,” adding, “We want to make our faces as famous as our voices.”

The two are from the same agency and are seniors and juniors from Seoul Institute of the Arts. Shin Ye-young had a connection with Kim Bum-soo, a senior from the school’s class of 1999. Shin Ye-young revealed, “I greeted him very formally at first, and he was pleased, saying that people don’t greet others that way these days. Then, not long afterward, I reached a major turning point in my life.”

Kim Bum-soo reportedly reached out to her at that time. Shin Ye-young expressed her gratitude, saying, “I thought I might not be able to sing, but one day my senior Kim Bum-soo invited me to a Michelin-starred restaurant. He told me, ‘You absolutely have to do popular music. Don’t give up—let’s keep going,’ and allowed me to perform as a guest during his national tour.”

Jeon Sang-geun is a singer whom composer Kim Hyung-suk highly praised. Jeon Sang-geun, who appeared on 'The Suspicious Singer' in 2017, said, “He judged me at the time,” and added, “He told me, ‘I’ve produced Sung Si-kyung and Na Yoon-kwon up to now, but after seeing Jeon Sang-geun this time, I think he could become part of a trio of ballad singers.’”

Reporter Nam Geum-joo / Photos = KBS2’s 'Happy Together'