Shim Su-bong’s 11th Album Out

Shim Su-bong was loved by the audience, and she needed them. It was impossible for her to soak up her popularity like a plant, her passion did not allow such passiveness. Twenty-six years after her debut, we met with her manager who stayed with her through it all. Her recent album was recorded during more stable times, and she says, “It feels like I’ve gotten everything out in the open when I couldn’t before.”

This is Shim’s 11th album and the first in three years. As the producer of her own album, she tried out many new things in Korean genre “trot.” Throughout the album, Shim’s melodic voice has matured, and the lyrics have mellowed out to soothe the pain.

“I’ve realized that those people I’ve met and said farewell to over the years were all important to me. People are all precious. They may hurt you and you may hurt them, but it is my mission in life to heal those wounds with music.”

The song, “The Last Bolero Dance,” was created especially for her by Yoon Myeong-seon, composer of other titles such as “Oh My” and “Black Glasses.” It is geared towards the popular melodies, familiar and catchy. “Gypsy” is a remake of the same song composed by Puerto Rican guitarist Jose Feliciano, with new lyrics, and it comes after the song, “100 Roses.”

The song that stands out the most, however, is “I Laugh Because I’m a Woman,” composed and written by Tablo with a rap sequence by Mithrajin. It’s the female version of the song, “I Laugh Because I’m a Man,” by Kim Jang-hoon in his 10th album. Shim said that she listened to this song in her car one day, and it struck her that this was exactly the style she wanted. On her way, she directly asked Tablo for the song.

When asked which song would she have as a single, Shim answered in a heartbeat, “Fatherland.” She went on, “My mother was a displaced person, and I grew up listening to her stories of the Gyeongui Rail Line. After the railroad was opened to the public, I saw the empty returning cars, and I was so lonely and empty.” Her mother listened to her gift of a song, and cried for three days straight.

“I didn’t always say to myself that I wanted a hit song. I’m satisfied if I’m happy. If I want to sing, I console myself by singing. To that, the public responded. Everything I sang I shouldn’t have in those circumstances, and the past hit songs I recorded are all in the past. I’m always future-oriented.”

Now Shim is preparing for her musical. Comprised of her hit songs, she’s planning to sing those that came to her during times of trouble, whether personal or societal. Right now there’s only a blueprint of the musical, but with a stage (70 audience seats) at her home, she is even ready to jump into monodramas. Shim said, “I’m thinking about getting up on the stage even to play a minor role.”

Before this, however, Shim will hold a commemorative concert for her 11th album at the Grand Theater in the Sejong Center at 7:00 p.m. on November 24. Fans can see her perform the bolero dance and her new “future-oriented” songs. For more information, please call 1544-1555.