Most Kpop fans know Siwon as the Super Junior hottie, the gorgeous Lim as a Wonder Girl and Brian Joo as the super talented singer and former member of the R&B duo Fly to the Sky. However, it appears there is much more to these artists than what meets the eye. The thing that draws these Kpop stars together? Their faith in Jesus Christ.
Siwon, Lim, Brian and other artists such as Alexander (of U-Kiss) and Van Ness Wu are all involved in 3rd Wave Music, a Christian group which has traveled around the world singing and performing at charity concerts and other events. They have been to Japan, Malaysia and Taiwan and are currently planning their next set of concert dates. They even hope to include some new countries on their upcoming tour, including Indonesia and Thailand.
3rd Wave Music was founded by Pastor Johnny Lee, who was inspired to have Kpop stars singing Christian music in order to encourage and help the people around South East Asia.
The group is releasing a new CD available for pre-sale on August 27th. Wonder Girls’ Lim will be making her debut with 3rd Wave Music with a song called Cry of Love, a song which expresses the simple desire to change the world for the better. Brian will be singing Where You Are, which shares the message of finding hope in the midst of suffering. Siwon will also be featured on the album, recording a song in English with Pastor Johnny called “I Stand.” There is also a Korean version of the song featuring Siwon and Brian, which may be included on the CD as well. This would mark their first time singing together on a recording.
The CD will be entitled “Soldiers of Light.” The name S.O.L. was chosen after Siwon and a few other artists began using it on their twitter accounts. Pastor Johnny explains, “I thought that slogan is exactly what is needed for young people. They need better role models and examples to guide them through dark times and circumstances.”
When I asked about the difficulty these Kpop stars face on the road and in the spotlight, Pastor Johnny assured me that it wasn’t easy to maintain their personal standards amidst such challenges. He stated, “They do find it hard and challenging. When you are on the road or surrounded with people and a busy schedule, it gets tiring. Often time this is the challenge that the artists have to overcome… The key thing is to keep God in the picture and to really push the artist to be close to God.”
People have their own methods of keeping grounded despite the fame. Last year, Siwon invited Pastor Johnny on the Super Junior tour to lead him in times of prayer, personal Bible studies and Sunday worship times in order to help keep him focused on his relationship with God.
The CD will feature 10-12 songs which Pastor Johnny says are meant to be new songs that will reach out to this generation. He wanted to challenge the band, musicians, artists and people around him to make new music and influence people around the world. This is the 3rd full album which 3rd Wave Music will be releasing.
The CD will be available for pre-sale on the 3rd Wave Music website on August 27th and will be released world-wide on October 10th via iTunes and official distributors in countries such as South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore.
In today’s uncertain times, it is great to see others who work to make the world a better place by bringing Hope and Light into the lives of others. We wish 3rd Wave Music great success with their new album.
To see Siwon and Pastor Johnny singing together at the Super Show 4 in Osaka, check out the video below.
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