I could be an influencer...
- Judy T
- May 9
- 2 min read
So the big hit for Kdramas so far in 2025 is When Life Gives you Tangerines starring big time stars Park Bo-gum and IU. Of course the Gmamas can give opinions about the show and what they liked versus didn't like... but the big news is that Judy is so with-it it's shocking.
Yep, towards the end of the show it focuses on the lead couple in their later years. Specificially the dad is trying to learn guitar becuase of his interest in the music of Kim Kwang-seok; the mom enjoys trot music by Lim Young-woong.
Well.... just so you know, both of those musical artists are in Judy's ever popular, Korean playlist. Kim Kwang-seok is a folk musician from the 80's and 90's who committed suicide at the age of 31. Lim Young-woong is alive and well in Seoul and sells out huge concert venues routinely. (In fact the show kind of gets the chronology a bit wrong because Lim Young-woong isn't on the scene during the time frame depicted in the show; but let's not nitpick.)
The fact that a grandma in Tucson, Arizona, recognized both of these musicians is pretty darn amazing... and it's all due to Kdramas and how they've expanded our lives.
Take a listen to:
Lovely Touch by Lim Young-woong
Unhappy Child (불행아) by Kim Kwang-seok
(I'm not smart enough to know how to add a link here...)
Pat here: I’m just starting to watch When Life Gives You Tangerines, and I love how authentic the scenes seem to be from the early years. Seeing Jeju Island is extra special since I was there a year ago.
I loved Tangerines. My sister watched it at the same time as I was watching it. She texted me when it was over and we both admitted to crying in the last few episodes.
It was so touching and the 50 year love story really hit home with me. It will be our 50th wedding anniversary this summer. And my husband and I married young like in Tangerines . When the wife was struggling with thinking about how she was going to give birth and then raise her baby, that was me! And her young husband by her side supporting and helping her and being such a good dad and provider. That was our life. Then watching the years pa…
OH my Guest..... it's the same song.... the title apparently translates differently sometimes. (Isn't it lovely???) They seem to have more of the 'unusual' Korean songs than Spotify does.
Thanks for the info Barbara.... I'll have to read the article!
I copied and pasted the two songs you recommended. Instead of Unhappy Child, YouTube populated Unfortunate Guy. Lovely feeling and guitar playing.
김광석 (Kim Kwang Seok) - 불행아 (Unfortunate Guy) (Official ...
YouTube·김광석·Jan 9, 2023
You might be interested in this Forbes article that Google pushed to me. It tells how Tangerines depicts the various eras in South Korea and includes lots of videos of music used in the series that reflect those eras. I have yet to watch these videos, but I'm eager to!
https://www.forbes.com/sites/reginakim/2025/04/23/how-when-life-gives-you-tangerines-explores-korean-history-and-culture/
As you say, Judy, Korean dramas have indeed expanded our lives... in ways we wouldn't have imagined!