It took five years for Korean actor Jang Ki Yong to return to the Philippines for a fanmeet. In that time, he had enlisted in the Korean military and was discharged. There was also the pandemic, which put everything to a halt.
Jang Ki Yong, who starred in the dramas My Roommate Is a Gumiho and the Viu Original Now That We’re Breaking Up, met Filipino fans again last Saturday September 28 at Samsung Hall at SM Aura. It was the last stop of his Beautiful Day Asia fan meeting, which started in Seoul and brought him to Japan, Thailand, and Taiwan before the Philippines.
Jang Ki Yong surprised fans at Samsung Hall by emerging from the audience area before going up the stage and singing Thought of You.
In the segment Beautiful Diary, Jang Ki Yong said one of the things he regretted not doing before he enlisted in 2021 was devoting time to himself.
“If there’s one thing I kinda regret or feel sad about myself is that I wasn’t able to give myself time just for myself when it comes traveling or for self-development.”
For the first time in his life, the actor got to travel alone abroad, to Hawaii, where he finished the Hibiscus 15-km Marathon, successfully placing 37 out of 79 runners.
Sam Oh, who emceed the fanmeet, said jokingly that it wasn’t really a vacation if he ran a marathon. He replied that running a marathon, to him, was a form of rest and relaxation.
In the segment, Jang Ki Yong also talked about the drama Now, We Are Breaking Up, which was released when he was in the military, and his other projects.
“All the actors that I’ve worked with, seniors and juniors, are great actors. I think it’s all my personality. I really like others like brothers and sisters. I really try to take care of them. I really love joking around with people, meeting people.”
He said he wants to try to perform in plays and musicals. While enlisted, Jang Ki Yong starred in the musical, Blue Helmet: A Song of Meissa.
“I never had the experience of going up on stage. It was a great opportunity and experience for me. And representing the Army as well, I really wanted to show a great performance,” he said.
In the next segment, Beautiful Hero, Jang Ki Yong reenacted four scenes in the drama, The Atypical Family, with fans who were selected in a raffle draw.
This was followed by Beautiful Wish, where Jang Ki Yong did a morning call, saying, “Bebe, gising na (Baby, please wake up),” drawing “kilig” cheers from the audience. After that, he did five different heart poses for fans.
In the K-pop Challenge, Jang Ki Yong and a fan danced to NCT 127’s Walk. Before that, Jang Ki Yong said he wasn’t much of a dancer, but he nonetheless gave his best effort to the dance anyway. He also read messages from fans in the Beautiful Memories segment.
Then, Jang Ki Yong announced that he’d do a hi-touch with all members of the audience, instead of just a hi-bye. But first, the fans had to win three games in the Beautiful Zone segment. Two fans were selected to do games with him, like stacking miniature chairs, and playing sipa and group jumping rope. There was a bit of leniency involved with the game rules, and the promised hi-touch was granted.
After Beautiful Zone, fans presented Jang Ki Yong with a cake with the message “Beautiful Day in Manila.” They also surprised him with a video of messages of support for the actor.
During the fanmeet, Jang Ki Yong also sang Twenty Five, Twenty One, I Love You, and Paradise Tree.
The 2024 Jang Ki Yong Beautiful Day Asia Fanmeeting in Manila was presented by Viu Philippines through its Viu Scream Dates.
