Actors Song Joong-ki and Park Hae-jin and singers Hwang Chi-yeol and YoonA… Are they drawing a new picture of Hallyu stars?
Song Joong-ki, the star from “Descendants of the Sun,” and Park Hae-jin, who marks the 10th anniversary of his debut, are about to build a fire of Hallyu, beginning with local fan meetings this month. Hwang Chi-yeol, who jumped to stardom after consecutively winning the singing match in Hunan TV’s “I Am a Singer 4,” and YoonA, who has been starring in her first Chinese drama “God of War, Zhao Yun,” are also fascinating local fans in China.

Actor Song Joong-ki, who had become a household name through his recently concluded drama series “Descendants of the Sun” by playing the character of Army captain Yoo Si-jin, drew about 4,000 fans in the event named “Song Joong-ki’s 5th Fan Meeting—The Day We Meet Again” on the 17th, at the concert hall inside Kyunghee University in Seoul.

Park Hae-jin will be opening a free fan meeting on the 23rd for his 10th year anniversary, followed by his winning of the Actor of the Year award at a Chinese entertainment awarding ceremony. Park was named “Actor of the Year” at the 2016 LeTV Entertainment Awards in China on the 13th for his role in the popular Chinese drama “Far Away Love,” for the first time as a Korean actor. Followed by a series of successful career moves in the Chinese market, he also received much love and attention from his role in tvN’s recently concluded drama “Cheese in the Trap.”

Singer Hwang Chi-yeol ranked 2nd by popularity vote in the final round of “I am a Singer 4” on Hunan TV in China on the 15th. Hwang, who was the only foreign and Korean singer among the other competitors of the program, attracted lots of attention with his striking performance and impressive stage manners, becoming a major syndrome just three months after he entered the Chinese market.

Girls’ Generation member YoonA is quickly rising as a goddess of the ratings in China with her first Chinese drama “God of War, Zhao Yun.” She is allegedly showered with more than 30 love calls from Chinese film and drama producers. She has been gaining popularity by playing the character of the beautiful and cheerful lead female in the drama, which had its first broadcast on Hunan TV on the 3rd. It had more than 2.35 billon views just 12 days after its first broadcast and has achieved the No. 1 spot in ratings in its time slot, showing YoonA’s high popularity and great influence in China.