Singer Park Ki-young and KCM challenge collaborations with overseas artists.
Ahead of its first broadcast in spring 2026, KBS 2TV's "Duet across the sea" follows Park Ki-young and KCM as they travel to different cultural regions and, within a set time, form duets with local musicians in a "cross-border music journey between overseas stars and K-pop stars." Each will team up with a well-known local musician, working together from creating duet songs to holding guerrilla concerts as protagonists of a global music project seeking musical harmony.
As K-pop's stature has risen, collaborations with overseas artists — from Rosé and Bruno Mars, BTS and Coldplay, Chungha and Christopher, to Hwasa and Dua Lipa — have become familiar scenes. Rosé's "APT" and the Netflix film "K-pop Demon Hunters" OST "Golden" not only dominated the Billboard charts but also landed on the nominees list for the Grammy Awards, the United States' most prestigious popular music ceremony held early next year, demonstrating K-pop's changed stature and expanded influence.
In this trend, 'Korea's representative diva' Park Ki-young and 'emotive power vocalist' KCM are stepping directly onto the global stage. Park Ki-young, now in her 28th year since debut, is a fully realized artist with a wide vocal range and delicate emotional lines, drawing attention to what new musical stimuli he will discover as he pursues perfection in unfamiliar overseas environments.
KCM, loved for his distinctive persuasive tone and high-note ability, also raises expectations about which overseas artist he will complete a new harmony with and whether it will give listeners goosebumps. Especially after marrying someone nine years younger in 2022 and earlier this year revealing the existence of his two daughters for the first time in 13 years, there is heightened interest in his appearance.
With a combined 49 years since their debuts, the musicality of these two skilled vocalists combined with KBS's new attempt makes "Duet across the sea" poised to be a meaningful challenge that expands K-pop's scope and brings its diversity and authenticity to the world.
"Duet across the sea" will meet viewers in spring 2026 on KBS 2TV, KBS World and overseas broadcaster channels.
[Photo] Provided by each agency.
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