play.ground

BTS:

She was born under the California sun to a pair of struggling restaurateurs; the autumn air wrapping her in hues of soft gold, blaze red, and mustard yellow. From the moment she took her first breaths, mother and father knew that she was going to be something remarkable, so they immediately rushed over to the store to pick-up a camcorder before making it home from the hospital—the excitement over their first daughter making them feel like new parents all over again. Up until this point, the couple had only birthed sons (four, the be exact) and had always hoped for a change of pace, but now with their little girl—who they affectionately named Cindy—they knew they didn’t have to try anymore; their undivided attention now set on their final child.

As she grew up, she knew nothing but adoration, cameras, and a perfect wardrobe—her mother almost treating her like a doll as opposed to a human-being. From her first small breaths, she was made to look immaculate no matter where the family went, and more often than not, her dad was wielding a camcorder that captured her every move. In their eyes, she was their precious princess, their soon-to-be star, and they did all they could to make sure that she knew how special she was. While their intentions were nothing but good, they later found out that their obsessive coddling created a monster; one who would begin to fully reveal itself upon the entrance of school.

Throughout most of her academic career, she was able to get by due to her charm and wit; her precociousness often impressing educators. Amongst her peers, though, she learned that she could use the same skills to win them over, too. All it took was a little bit of sweet-talking to make people swoon, and in middle school, when she began to grow a little more into her personality, she would often use her beauty to get her way. Boys loved her, so Cindy found it simple to flirt her way into their hearts; coercing the smarter, “nerdier” ones to complete her homework for her in exchange for a little attention. It was how she was able to remain a cheerleader for as long as she did. Honestly, it was a pretty good system, but all the while, her home life wasn’t great.

Having always fostered a gambling addiction, her father later succumbed to it fully—his once “innocent” goal of trying to turn his family into millionaires turning into something a lot more sinister. With so many mouths to feed at home, he couldn’t really handle the stress anymore, so he walked out on them; leaving the restaurant to his wife. He would make appearances intermittently as Cindy worked her way to high school, but after awhile, he disappeared forever. She filled the void he left behind with boys, recreational marijuana, and the leftover wine her mother didn’t drink; her mom’s way of coping being clutching onto the bottle in hopes it’ll make her feel alive again. Once their family business went under, they made the decision to move back to South Korea.

Culture shock was far more vicious than she anticipated. Did she speak the language? Yes, but her life had revolved around speaking English back home, so it took her awhile to find her footing with it. Not to mention she was miserable for having to leave all of her friends behind in California. Her life had become so dull in Korea, and it was clear that she was going to find some way to head back to the USA when she could afford it. For now, she had social media in order to keep close to her loved ones; her world slowly starting to revolve around apps like Instagram. She had a strong presence, that much was obvious, and it read stunningly in photographs. No wonder her family used to follow her around with a camcorder way back when. This magnetic appeal later attracted the sights of a talent scout for KN Entertainment. Later, she agreed to become a trainee.

It seemed as though no time had passed from the moment she was signed to the time she stood on-stage for her début. A mere six months had been eaten up by extensive training measures; her schedule no longer allowing the high school classes she had to drop out of eventually. Luckily her background in cheer gave her a experience in the art of performance, and well, she wasn’t the worst singer in Korea by any means; she was just very ill-prepared and undertrained. There wasn’t one single time that she didn’t rely on a backing track to handle her vocals and she came under fire for that a lot. As she was named TINKER’s “visual,” Cindy seemed to also work as the group’s punching bag. The general public was really harsh on her, but mostly because they thought she was too Westernized to be considered a classically Korean beauty.

She was further placed underneath a microscope due to her collective’s rapid rise to popularity, and she was often rumored to be classless and rude off-stage. Many were quick to blame her lack of respect for Korean culture on being poorly raised by her family; others said that she was just plain stupid. It never really seemed to end. It was hard for her to stop reading those hateful comments at first, but after awhile, she decided that other people’s opinions weren’t important for her growth. It just sucked that she had to learn that in such a rough way. All of this stress affected her in a variety of fashions initially, but overall, it made her crave excitement and pleasure in order to counteract it. What fun would work be without a little bit of playtime?

Even though it was completely against the rules to fall into romantic relationships, Cindy couldn’t help but indulge in a quite a few of them. She has an aura that’s been doused in Venus’ essence; her pheromones and femininity make her a valuable target for men looking for a girl to claim as their own. It’s fun to be pursued, after all. She’s always had an easy time winning over the hearts of boys—especially the gullible, traditional ones. It isn’t easy being desired all of the time, though. Because she’s had (and still has, to a degree) so many suitors, it’s always difficult for her to settle on just one. Being unfaithful is something her father left behind for her… and it’s too bad that she took to it so kindly.

After a few years with her group-mates, she’s been able to warm up to them more. She had to create a new family in them after being so distant from her friends back in Valley Glen. People still criticize her, but instead of focusing on her appearance now, it’s more-so due to her overall lack of talent. Her fanbase is quick to comeback with their positive opinions, too, but in truth, Cindy knows that she’s not really ever going to be a good idol. She relies heavily on her appearance and her stage presence, but in KN Entertainment’s eyes, for the most part, that’s good enough. Just like with most of her life, all she has to do is get dolled up and smile for the camera. Hopefully that’ll be her saving grace for the long haul.

Set List

Opening Performance: Rock Medley

Queen, I Want to Break Free

AC/DC, Highway to Hell

Bon Jovi, Livin’ on a Prayer

Performed by Bae (GOZIP), Taeho, Over Out, and DJ (MY*MYND)

GOZIP, 3 songs

Final performance, Escape, transitions directly into CROSS_OVER’s first performance

CROSS_OVER, 3 songs

First performance, Peek-A-Boo, transitions directly from GOZIP’s final performance

Taeho, 2 songs

Over Out, 3 songs

Vi’Va, 3 songs

Only One, featuring Song Hakjin (MY*MYND)

Special 15th Anniversary Performance (Fan song)

TINKER, 3 songs

MY*MYND, 3 songs

Wish Day, 3 songs

Closing Performance: Ballad

Shin Hyobum, I knew that I loved you

Performed by Gowon (CROSS_OVER), [TK.01], and [WD.07]

Special Notes

Though Empire is technically a product of Mnet, SBS decided to jump on the opportunity to bring CROSS_OVER and GOZIP together to boost ticket sales and amp up their own revenue.

Over Out will be performing their new comeback single, Days Gone By (released earlier the same week, October 12).

Vi’Va’s participation in the Incheon Super Concert is an extension of her 15th anniversary festivities, and includes a special fan song as well as a collaborative performance with MY*MYND member Song Hakjin.