‘I Am a Singer’ gets new talent

Popular singing competition show “I Am a Singer” announced on Dec. 29 that Tei and Shin Hyo-bum will be joining the show stating January.

Thus Tei, 28, became the youngest participant of the show so far. He began his career in 2004 and has a couple of hit songs, including “Love Leaves a Scent.” He recently won the Korean version of “Popstar to Operastar,” where pop stars compete in opera singing.

Shin, another addition to the show, is an established singer who started singing professionally in 1989.

Meanwhile, “I Am a Singer” is a hit TV show where seven professional singers compete with one another each week in the presence of selected viewers. The audience casts votes to eliminate one of the seven singers. If one is eliminated, the show brings on a new participant.

Although famed signers often say that they feel pressure of being eliminated, the survival show has brought fame and money to many of the show’s previous participants, including Yim Jae-bum, Park Jung-hyun and Kim Bum-soo. These singers were underestimated before the show, but they gained wide fan bases and endorsed many brands, and their concert tickets have sold out.

By Sung So-young