K-pop boy band SHINee surprise fans

K-pop boy band SHINee surprise fans

SINGAPORE - It was a dream come true for student Ng Yu Fang when she was chosen to receive a gift from the hands of her favourite K-pop idol Onew, of popular five-piece boy band SHINee on stage last night.

The 17-year-old was one of five fans who won the lucky draw in the "Dream Girl" contest at the Etude Pink Play Party at Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre, which saw a full house crowd of 3,500 attendees.

Each winner had the opportunity to receive a goodie bag with makeup items from a SHINee member .

This "prize-giving" ceremony took everyone by surprise as it was not made known to the audience beforehand.

An excited and emotional Yu Fang, who had queued up at the venue since 1pm to catch a glimpse of them, told The New Paper: "I was very shocked and I couldn't really react to it as it happened so fast.

"Onew is my favourite member in SHINee and I never thought I would ever have the chance to meet him up close."

She added: "I feel like I am in a daze right now as I have supported SHINee since they debuted in 2008."

Yu Fang had seen SHINee only once before, at the SMTown mega-concert here last November, as she couldn't afford to go for their previous solo concerts here.

Starstruck

This is the closest she has ever got to Onew, 23, which made it extra special for her.

She gushed: "I am really very lucky. Onew looks so good up close and he smiled at me, so I smiled back. He is very friendly."

The Etude Pink Play Party is an annual summer musical show which has been hosted by Korean beauty brand Etude House since 2010 and this is the first time it is held outside of Korea.

Tickets were not for sale and fans had to purchase $20 worth of Etude House products to get a character card of a SHINee member.

After collecting all five character cards, they had to try and win a pair of tickets in a lucky draw.

Doors to the four-hour event opened at 5pm and fans could go to different booths to play games or try out Etude House's products.

The gig, which started at 7pm, saw the appearance of Etude House ambassadors SHINee, Sulli from K-pop girl group f(x) and Taiwanese celebrity makeup artist Kevin Chou.

Chou, who is in his 30s and has worked with top Asian celebrities including Maggie Q and Zhang Ziyi, introduced some of Etude House's new products on stage together with Sulli, 19, and also demonstrated how to achieve a simple natural look with them in under 10 minutes.

Clad in bright stylish pink suits, SHINee performed four of their chart-topping hits, including Lucifer and Dream Girl, to deafening screams by a crowd made up of mostly female teenaged fans.

The quintet have been to Singapore numerous times in the past few years for their solo concerts as well as joint ones alongside other artistes.

They will be in town again in November for the Korean Music Wave alongside 12 other K-pop artistes.

Even though member Minho, 21, was not present because of his acting commitments in Korea, he made it up with a video recording in which he sent his love and regards to Singapore.

Dream girl

Crowd-pleaser Key, 21, continued to transform the venue into an absolute nuthouse when he said: "My dream girl is someone who is sweet, just like the Singapore princesses."

Student Cao Zhi Yun, 19, who received her present from Key, swooned over his good looks.

"I felt like dying. Key is extremely handsome and I love SHINee," she swooned.

"I am very emotional and agitated now after seeing them so close up."

Student Siow Lee Xian felt the same way after meeting her favourite member Taemin, 20, face-to-face.

The 15-year-old said: "I think I won't be able to sleep tonight.

"I still remember that moment when he was standing right in front of me. I looked up at him and he smiled at me. Hopefully, I will dream of him tonight."

Student Alyssa Wee, 16, who received her present from Jonghyun, added: "This is too good to be true. They all look smaller in real life. I am still reeling from shock."

Jonghyun, 23, had mentioned on stage that his dream girl is one who is confident.

He said: "I am just so glad to be back in Singapore to see all our fans. I have heard about how excited the fans are and I am happy to be interacting with you here."

Fans started forming a line as early as 8am yesterday to get a good spot in the free-standing area.

Student Felic Chow got her friends to queue up for her and joined them after her classes ended.

The shy yet excited 15-year-old said: "All I want is to see SHINee up close!"

Student Alison Chong, 16, who joined the queue at 1pm, felt that the wait was worth it.

"I really love SHINee and am very happy to see them perform even though it is just a short showcase," she said.

"They really made my week, and I hope they come here more often."


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