KARA's Kang Ji-young grants an update on her whereabouts after 12 years on Radio Star.
Tonight (15th) MBC entertainment show Radio Star will feature the "blockbuster lupin" special with Kang Ha-neul, Kim Young-kwang, Kang Young-seok and Kang Ji-young.
Kang Ji-young candidly shares the behind-the-scenes story that made her cry, saying, "When I appeared on Radio Star during my KARA days, I couldn't do aegyo and cried." She added, "Aegyo isn't about looking cute; it's a technique to sweetly bend emotions," and her impromptu aegyo demonstration had the four MCs roaring with laughter.
She also reveals behind-the-scenes stories from KARA's 15th anniversary comeback. She recalled, "It was the first time I stood on stage with the members in a long time, and it was my first meeting with Heo Young-ji. Being the maknae line, we used honorifics with each other," which drew laughter.
She also discloses the behind-the-scenes story of her "Japanese teacher–student chemistry" with Kang Ha-neul. She said, "Kang Ha-neul contacted me saying he wanted to learn Japanese, and we had private lessons by exchanging texts," and revealed the reason she had to stop being a Japanese teacher, which had everyone in stitches.
Kang Ji-young recalls her 12 years working as an actor in Japan. She said, "My debut work was Jikokusei Nube. The first broadcast rating was 13% and the average was in the 10% range." She added, "Later the film Assassination Classroom opened at No. 1 at the box office, and I received the audience award at the Okinawa Film Festival for the film Leon."
She also reveals anecdotes about using her real name while active in Japan. Her real name is read in Japanese kanji as "Chie," and she said many inquiries came to her agency because people thought she was a rookie actor, which surprised people.
Asked about her language skills, she said, "I realized when I went to Japan that I have an aptitude for languages," and explained, "Japanese intonation sounded musical, so it was fun. Every day was practice." She then revealed a Japanese drama script she brought herself. "I mark every pitch and memorize it. You have to express intonation accurately like a Korean dialect," she said, and when she performed a line, MC Kim Gu-ra laughed, "I'm sorry we made someone like that do aegyo before."
Kang Ji-young also mentions differences between Japanese and Korean variety shows and makes an endearing verbal slip, then tries to recover, which elicits laughter.
She also reported that she recently launched a sake brand in Japan, and near the end of the recording she reminisced about her KARA days and spontaneously performed the "KARA dance," filling the studio with applause and cheers. It airs tonight at 10:30 p.m.
[Photo] Provided by MBC.
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