Subtitles by OnDemandKorea
(Parental guidance is advised.)
(This program includes virtual and indirect advertisements.)
I am MC You Hee-yeol.
I am MC Haha.
I am SNS maniac Lee Jae-Myung.
- This is so interesting. - His hand is trembling because it was a bad joke.
I was found out.
- I am the representative voice of JTBC, Kim Yuna. - She's beautiful.
She's sophisticated.
I am Sam Okyere, Yonsan District’s public relations ambassador.
What did he say?
Great.
The courageous have come out to talk.
- On Wednesday night, - Busking with words,
- this is As I Say! - this is As I Say!
(As I Say)
This line-up is really great.
The more episodes we have, the greater our line-ups are.
Year of the monkey, 2016, has passed.
Year of the rooster, 2017, has begun.
Today is the 1st episode of As I Say in 2017.
Let's greet each other.
- It's nice to meet you. - It's nice to meet you.
(They will open the new year's gate.)
Today, if you have anything to say, just raise your hand and ask comfortably.
I must tell you something before we begin.
The concept of our gathering...
is to be on equal ground through anonymity as if this is AA.
AA is Alcoholics Anonymous.
(Anonymous gathering to cure addiction)
You'd see this in movies.
Alcoholics, seeking for a cure of their addiction,
gather together and talk honestly, right?
- Hi, I'm Jack. - Because it's such a gathering,
- That's right. - Hi, I'm Jack.
- That's perfect. That looks like a movie scene. - It's nice to meet you all.
Hi, I'm Saera. It's nice to meet you.
You're Saera!
(It's as if they just came from the meeting.)
So, just for today,
titles and modifiers like mayor...
and every insignia will not be used.
We will just use Miss or Mister.
That's what we'll do. Is that okay?
- Yes. I'm fine with that. - He's okay with it.
- I'm fine with it, of course. - I see.
Thank goodness.
This is the 1st meeting of As I Say for 2017.
- I will officially introduce today's team. - It's nice to meet you.
First of all, she's a representative singer-songwriter of Korea.
She's unstoppable, being active as both a rock band member and a solo.
- She's singer Kim Yuna. - She's really...
incredible. She seems like such a city girl.
- She's so sophisticated. - She has a ton of fans.
I never dreamt I'd meet her at a place like this.
- I was surprised. - But I wasn't surprised by Yuna.
The mayor arrived and we shook hands.
He said, "It's nice to meet you." But he saw Yuna,
and he was so different. How could you be this way?
- It was way too different. - Of course it'd be different.
With you, I was forcing myself. With her, I was genuine.
I can sense his fan-love for her.
- Do you know what our occupations are? - Pardon?
Do you know what our occupations are?
I know a bit about him but not you.
I'm so sorry.
He’s our captain around here.
- He's the Sohn Suk-hee of variety shows. - Right.
Actually, before I came in, it took me forever to memorize Yoo Hee-yeol's name.
- I repeated "Yoo Hee-yeol." - As soon as he saw me,
he said, "Yoo Hee-yeol?"
(I'm so uncertain. Is it Yoo Hee-yeol?)
Yuna came in immediately after that.
He kept talking about JAURIM.
I feel terrible.
Here's the thing about Yuna.
- She's really great. - She is...
the representative voice of JTBC station.
- She sang JTBC's brand song. - Yes.
- Could we hear it from the original? - Should I?
By any chance, could you provide the chorus?
- When I sing JTBC, sing JTBC. - Yes.
- Of course. - You just have to do it twice.
- Sam will do it too. - I'm a musician too. I'm in TOY.
I can do it.
- Sing in 1, 2. - 1, 2, 3, 4.
- JTBC - JTBC
JTBC
(Off-beat)
- JTBC - JTBC
I probably like you
JTBC
(Refreshing)
- It's great. - Did you write that song?
Yes. Back then, JTBC station...
was working on creating a new image.
- I was commissioned for it then. - How much did you get paid for this?
I'm curious about that. I wanted to ask about the money.
It keeps flowing in due to song rights, right?
I did receive some money for it since...
- I produced it. - Was it pretty good?
Could you indicate with your fingers?
(Could you indicate with your fingers?)
They gave her 200 dollars?
They gave more than I thought.
I heard you recently met Sohn Suk-hee.
Yes. I was going to a meeting for As I Say that day.
- It was for our show. - Yes. I went to JTBC station,
and the CEO said he has time and told me to come up.
Does he know about us?
- He does. - Does he know about this show?
He complimented the show, saying it's great.
- He asked me to do well on the show. - Really?
Also, it's getting colder. He was worried about the audience in the street...
watching a performance or busking.
- This is incredible. - I guess they'll be buying padded coats for us.
- Exactly. - Really?
We'll also get gloves.
Does he plan to invite us to the newsroom at all?
There can be an exchange for our appearances.
- Tell him that it'd be mutually beneficial. - I was so nervous all I did was greet.
Next time, go up and meet him.
I want to meet him at least once.
CEO, we're also doing our best every week.
Exactly.
If you appear on our show, we'll go on your show.
I must make a request too.
You invited all other presidential candidates. Why not me?
Please invite me.
(Desperate)
- I keep waiting for it. I'll stop now. - It's so funny.
I'm waiting desperately.
(He got to meet CEO Sohn on January second.)
(Thank you for inviting me.)
Personally, with Yuna,
- we sometimes meet through my music show. - Right.
But for those who don't know, please update us on your life.
How have you been?
Most recently, I released my solo album in early December.
I released my album and I've been in various television shows and performances.
I've been well.
Her releasing a new album...
made me so happy. This is why.
She once went through a slump.
She had a huge one in the past.
I had something like a burnout.
I was very tired in both body and heart.
- Your throat was also worn. - Yes. Ever since a few years prior,
just constantly singing like a cricket...
often made me feel so pathetic.
Starting with school loans,
- there were really hard issues in society. - It was about the issues of reality.
There were these societal issues in reality.
But to sing "Ha Ha Ha Song" and "Magic Carpet Ride" on stage...
and to act like I'm so joyful made me...
- ashamed. - Is it okay for me to be like this?
It made me feel ashamed. My work felt seemed so useless.
Of course, now...
I know it's not something I must view in that light.
But I felt that back then. I was healed in various ways though.
- I'm such a fan of you. As your fan, - Thank you.
- you are a blessing to us all. - Ultimately,
musicians must tell their tales through music.
That's true.
But actually, I can see her on music shows sometimes,
but I don't see you on variety shows.
I really like variety shows.
But variety shows don't really like me.
- But you're so refreshing. - You are.
- Really? - Your character is unlike others.
I feel like I'm watching a musical.
- Oh, Saera! - For me, it's like a melodrama.
Hi, Haha!
What was that all the sudden?
- They don't invite you? - They don't.
- They don't want me. - Then what about As I Say?
- As I Say is... - Didn't you come here to promote your album?
(Be quite!)
a show that I like so much.
Also, the title song of my album is "Dream."
I felt like on this show, I could talk about dreams.
- She's incredible with her promotions. - She is.
She pretends like it's not but then comes right in.
Then you'll be talking about dreams today?
- Could it be? - It's related.
- Really? - How incredible.
But I think right now is the time to talk about everyone's dream.
Right.
Here is Lee Jae-Myung, the mayor of Seongnam.
Thank you.
He's constantly in headlines nowadays.
- He also has quite a lot of nicknames. - Really?
- I wrote some of them here. - You looked them up?
- There are Fighting Cock, - That's when I was in a citizens' campaign.
- Bulldog, - That's also from the citizens' campaign.
and then this funny one.
- You're Runny Nose? - What's that?
What's with Runny Nose?
It means I had a very runny nose.
It's from when I was in elementary school,.
Sam, did you have a runny nose too?
- Have you ever done this? - Yes, I used to just eat mine.
You ate it?
I enjoyed eating it.
I read this somewhere recently. Malnutrition gives you a severe runny nose.
- Really? - Yes, it's malnutrition.
So, even now when you look at videos of kids at third-world countries,
- they have runny noses right? - Right.
Don't you remember? At entrance ceremonies,
- every kid had a handkerchief here. - Right.
It was to wipe off his or her nose.
- Right. It's almost nonexistent nowadays. - I see.
It's related to how malnourished they are.
What was your nickname when you were young?
- I'm curious. - Let's each say our nickname.
- What was your nickname? Be honest. - Be honest.
- It was Bare Forehead. - Bare Forehead?
- What was it? - I see. It was Bare Forehead.
- It's Bare Forehead. - Your forehead is very pretty.
Another one was Pachcephalosauria.
- Bare Forehead is a funny one. - What was yours, Haha?
I was Blowfly.
- Why? - It's because of Dong in my first name.
- It was from your name. - And then they added the "Fly."
- What was yours? - My childhood nickname?
- Yes. - It was Gandhi.
It was Gandhi.
(Sitting modestly)
I think I know why.
- It fits him. - I had short hair. When I sat with glasses on, I'd be called Gandhi.
- That's so funny. - It was Gandhi.
Recently, in the New York Times,
there was an article about Lee Jae-Myung. I'll introduce it now.
It said he's Donald Trump of Korea.
Actually, due to an article about me in Bloomberg,
there was a buzz around the world. I was asked,
- "Who fits you better, Trump or Sanders?" - They're in the democratic party.
I said, "victorious Sanders."
The journalist said that's what he wrote.
But at the main desk, they said, "People won't read this."
- "They'd click a lot only if he's called Korea's Trump." So, they did. - Right.
That's how it circulated around the whole world.
So, I ended up becoming Korea's Trump.
Have you ever heard me just say whatever like he does?
It's true that I say strong words.
- But I don't say irrational things... - Right.
- although I say strong words. But he says many irrational things. - Right.
For example, he wanted to halt immigration. He's from a privileged class.
He's a successful real estate businessman.
But I was originally a Runny Nose boy.
You were a malnourished boy.
Also, I was originally a factory laborer.
Even now, my work is different from his.
I'm so sorry for suddenly talking about something else.
He's going to as a sharp question, I'm sure.
You have very pretty ears.
He really does.
His ears are...
high-quality ears.
His ears are so pretty.
Now that I look, they're pretty.
- Exactly. - They're pretty.
My life is owed to my ears.
It really was. People say I look like I grew up in privilege...
and lived an easy life. I feel so falsely accused.
It was to the point of being called Runny Nose.
I lived in a mountain village.
I'm from a family of a slash-and-burn farmer.
When I was young, my mom sold makgeolli at night.
It was bootlegging.
It's illegal.
- I shouldn't say these things. - It's okay, go ahead.
Who are you to say that? What's with you?
What are you?
He has great political power, it seems.
But there was a memorable customer.
He kept touching my ear, saying, "He has handsome ears."
Hey, yours is handsome too. It's just a bit small.
What was that all the sudden?
Then, he said,
"Since his ears are handsome, he'll be a great figure one day."
I heard that a couple of times.
But it helped me a lot later on.
Being in such a poor family,
- it's not easy trying to get out of that. You'd give up. - Right.
That comment about my ear was what made me think of trying.
I can definitely become someone important.
You held on just from that one comment.
- It's like the ring in "The Lord of the Rings." - Right.
- I can do it! - That was it for me.
- He'd say, "I can do it." - I really did.
People say this nowadays.
There are dirt spoon and golden spoon. Which one are you?
I am no spoon. I was born without a spoon.
- You didn't even have a spoon. - Yes.
- You are "no spoon." - Yes.
It's the first time I've heard of "no spoon."
I don't know if you know, but I worked at a factory after elementary school.
- I didn't know. - I didn't go to middle school or high school.
I worked at a factory, but I was injured from an industrial accident.
I have a crippled arm.
I can't use my arm very well.
And so, I came from very difficult circumstances. My dream...
was to drink tap beer and dried young pollack head without end.
They're delicious.
- I had many dreams. - You'd dip it in mayonnaise.
- It's delicious. - You'd also dip it in red pepper paste.
- I want it now. - It's a killer.
This was my first dream.
It was to put fruits in a fridge and eat them as much as I want.
This was why.
My father was a street cleaner of a street market.
He'd always bring fruits that are about to rot...
or fruits that were thrown out. He'd give them to us.
We had to eat them immediately because they'd rot soon.
We had to eat like crazy when he came home. Once, I ate about 20 apples.
- It's since you also can't throw them away. - Yes.
I ate 20 apples. I wanted to be sophisticated and put them in a fridge.
It was my dream to take one out when I wanted to.
(The young boy's dream was to eat them as he wanted.)
According to our informers, Jae-Myung...
had been on "War of Words."
- That's true. - From that, the viewing rate rose by one percent.
I heard you pledged that our show's viewing rate would also rise.
I must pledge.
- Please do it. - Please raise it by one percent.
(Raise it by one percent.)
That's not it. I'll do it again.
- Who are you talking to? - Who are you talking to?
Is there someone else more powerful behind you?
I will keep my pledge.
- How is this possible? - This is why.
- This makes me anticipate. - I have to post it on SNS.
Right. He's good at it.
I have about a million followers.
I'll say, "Spread the news. If it doesn't rise by one percent, I'll be fired."
He's kind of like G-Dragon of politics.
You must have G-Dragon's level of influence.
I can't live if I don't use SNS.
What do you mean?
For me, it's a like shield to protect me from attacks that twist truth.
Also, it's a way to show who I am.
At times, it's like a weapon to attack with.
- I heard the representative revealed something. - What was it?
"Mayor Lee Jae-Myung uses SNS to show off."
- It's to show off. - He said,"I'm very nervous because he does it so often."
Please answer this honestly.
To be honest, I do show off a lot.
When I'm in an article, I post it on Twitter and Facebook.
We call this taking credit for oneself.
But I also add, "#ShowOffTwo."
- You do it blatantly? - You mean as a hash tag?
- "I'm showing off again." - Sam is so relaxed in filming television shows.
"You mean as a hash tag?
He's infinitely optimistic Sam Okyere Ghana, Africa.
- It's nice to meet you all. - Sam!
- Sam! - Yes!
Sam, how long have you been in Korea?
This is my eighth year.
- I see. - It feels like just yesterday when I landed in Incheon airport.
(It feels like just yesterday.)
- But it's already my eighth year. - He's been in Korea for quite while now.
In your opinion, what's great about Korea?
First of all, it's convenient.
- It’s convenient. - It is.
Internet is so fast.
It's so fast. Also, it's the 24-hour delivery service.
- That one's a really great item. - It is.
Even if I'm in bed at midnight,
they can come if you just press some buttons.
I know what you mean.
- I bet Korea's the only one. - It doesn't exist anywhere else in the world.
- Right. - It's probably true.
Are you pretty famous in Ghana?
Does anyone recognize you there?
- Amazingly, some people do. - How?
Ghana people are very interested in Korean culture.
- They watch Korean shows. - They all know me.
- That's amazing. - What makes you really feel that fame?
For instance, what's different when you go to Ghana?
- It's when they ask for pictures with me. - They ask for it.
I even get VIP treatment at the airport.
You get a pass without inspection?
- Right. I just get a pass. - He's like a king.
- They wouldn’t do that for us. - Really?
Come to Ghana, I'll arrange it for you.
(He's my buddy.)
I heard you did something altruistic at Ghana.
I said on a show that my dream is to build a school in Ghana.
That dream came true.
- He's so cool. - I built Okyere school in Ghana.
- It's named Okyere? - My name is Okyere, right? So it is.
- I see. You really did it. - It's in Ghana.
- Let's give him a round of applause. - You're so cool.
Congratulations, Mr. Okyere!
- You're so cool. - He's so different from my first impression.
He is. He's totally different.
It said in one interview article that Sam's dream...
is to become the president. Is this true?
Yes, it's true.
I thought he just goes to nightclubs.
- I think he'll be the most handsome president ever. - I agree.
(Coming soon)
What is this dark person doing in Korea?)
(Shocking confession of a foreigner)
What is your dream, everyone?
It's to escape the torturous Joseon country.
Aren't you just here because all your money went to taxes so you can't leave?
I don't think that's true.
When did you feel most happy recently?
It's when I was on a thermal blanket...
- and ate tangerines. - You know what's important.
- Right? - It's the first time I've seen a busking like this?
Let's do that among ourselves.
(It will begin soon!)
Now, with courage,
we will begin our talk. We'll head into our actual topics.
The place for our busking today...
is the birthplace of busking in our country.
- Right. - It's a sacred land.
That's what it is.
It's Seoul, Mapo District,
Hongik University Entrance metro station.
Let's go to the 1st street for our talk this 2017,
Hongik University Entrance metro station. Let's go.
- Let's go. - Right. Stand up.
- We will begin our journey. - We must go.
This is the 1st busking of 2017. Should we do something special?
- Exactly. - What should we do?
- It's to Hongik University. - Should we go as a train?
- We'll be a train? - Sure.
- We'll go as a train, you mean? - Yes.
(They begin, following the cheerful Sam.)
Are we really doing this?
(Our New Year day)
Let's go now!
(is today!)
(The first train car is lost.)
- Let's go already! - Let's go!
Let's go.
(The winter rain soaks up the street.)
Let's go.
(They pass through the door with umbrellas.)
- This is cool. - Yes, it's cool.
- It seems like a movie scene. - We safely...
arrived at Hongik University Entrance metro station.
It's the first time it rained this much.
- Exactly. - Hongik University is the most beautiful...
- when it's raining. - Right.
So, we were originally going to have our citizens stand here.
But it's raining so we had them gather indoors.
- Shall we go indoors now? - Yes.
Hello.
Hello, hello.
- Welcome. - Hello.
- Thank you. - Hello.
Hello.
- Oh, wow. - Hello.
Clap for her.
- Here we are. - How exciting.
How exciting.
Normally, we would busk...
outside. But today, since it's pouring outside...
- I was worried that not a lot of people would show up but... - Yes.
I'm amazed at the passion. Anyway, let's not waste any more time.
We'll start the busking right away.
(Lee Jae-Myung, Sam Okyere, Kim Yuna)
(As I Say)
We arrived at the waiting area for busking.
He's our first speaker.
How do you feel?
- This is a hard time for the younger generation, isn't it? - Yes.
It'll be difficult but I'd like to talk about something that'll revive them.
- Wow, I see. - But, what are you doing?
- What? - Get out there!
You want me to go?
The first busker will be Lee Jae-Myung.
- We'll be looking forward to it. - Yes.
See you later.
(The bookcase door opens.)
Hello.
(Lee Jae-Myung appears on the busking zone.)
Hello.
Yes. Thank you.
(The citizens give him a hearty round of applause.)
I've been the mayor of Seongnam City for over six years now.
We opened up Seongnam's city hall so anyone can come in.
- They did? - Please stop by when you're bored.
- Anyone can go in? - You can come and take pictures too.
Whenever groups of third graders come into city hall,
I ask them a question.
"Everyone? Who's the master of our country?"
Around 90% of them answer back, "The president."
And then, there are several "know-it-alls" who reply back,
"Park Geun-hye."
Time to time, they even reply, "Dangun."
They're third graders.
Then I move on to the next question.
"Who's the master of Seongnam City?"
Because there has been consistency,
and because the mayor is right in front of them,
they all reply, "The mayor."
"Oh, is that so?"
"Thank you. That mean I'm the master, right?"
"Everyone, bow to me, saying, 'Master'."
Then, they bow down to me as a joke.
They bow down, jokingly saying, "Master."
After that, I tell them to do something.
"Those of you who just bowed down to me, come here."
"As of now, you're mine."
Before, he talked politely, but now that he's the master,
he's talking impolitely.
Even then, the students, thinking it's all a joke, come, saying, "Sure."
But what I say next...
makes the students reacts very differently.
"You have parents, right?" "Yes."
"That means your parents are also mine, okay?"
When I say that, they suddenly back off, saying that's not right.
"How can our parents be yours?"
I then go on and say, "Let's try this again."
"Who's the master of our country?"
That's when they realize there's a different answer.
They answer, "Us" or "The citizens."
They all know this because they all learned it.
In Article 1, Section 1 of our Constitution,
it states, "South Korea is a Democratic Republic."
The citizens are the masters.
Everyone a part of this country. That's what democratic republic means.
Everyone learns this at school but they don't feel it.
Although they learned that, they go, "The master of the country is the president."
They go, "The master of Seongnam City is the mayor."
This is really sad.
Why did this happen?
Why does it feel natural to have someone rule over us?
(Why does it feel natural to have someone rule over us?)
Because Korea's society is actually like that.
The fact that citizens are the masters are only in textbooks.
In reality, the people who act as if they're the masters...
are the ones in power.
The minority is taking over the power.
That's exactly what we've been witnessing recently.
In government, in economy, in society...
This became a country where people with power became the best.
Things became illegal, irrational, and unjust.
(Spread of illegality, irrationality, and unjustness.)
In terms of economy,
you'd have to compete with each other fairly, in the boundaries of law.
But major corporations do things under the table.
They inflate the price for the others,
while selling it cheaply...
within their own affiliated companies.
But this kind of thing is a criminal offense punishable by law.
Although this keeps happening in our society,
I've yet to see anyone get punished for it.
Also,
in places like America or other developed countries,
when youths develop a new technology,
they buy it for a big amount of money.
But in our country, we plagiarize it.
And if this guy is the central developer,
we bring him over...
We scout him and only take the central figure.
But this is illegal. And who'd make a start-up when things are like this?
You have no guarantee of fair play.
That's why, right now,
of all the wealthy class in our society,
at least 80 percent of them inherited their wealth.
- That's true. - Yes.
There's not a lot of people who got rich from start-ups.
But in America, 80 percent of the wealthy got rich with their abilities.
And how much assets do they have?
The top 10 percent has 66 percent of the assets...
in our whole country.
The top 10 percent has 2/3 of the country's assets.
The remaining third of it is distributed among the 90 percent.
These kind of inequality and unjustness...
cause the resources, opportunities, and abilities of our society...
to be used very inefficiently.
When one person has too much, it's not used efficiently.
If things were distributed more evenly, everyone will have an equal chance.
If that happens, our society and country will advance.
But if the special minority group monopolizes all the assets...
Actually, we're all witnessing that in reality.
A good example of that is something called "Brexit."
(Brexit: abbreviation of "Britain" and "Exit,")
(where British citizens voted to exit the European Union in 2016)
It's advantageous for the Britain to stay in the European Union.
They earn a lot back from being part of the EU.
But those profits..
are mostly given to the special minority.
The profit as a whole is a very good for Britain...
but the many laborers and middle class is starting to feel the burden.
For example,
because there are no borders, the British...
keep giving work to cheap laborers outside the country.
There's lesser work in the country.
The British conglomerates benefit greatly.
They earn a lot more outside...
than when they give work inside the country.
But those benefits aren't going to the British citizens.
They're all going to the special minority, the British corporations.
The inequality becomes worse and worse.
That's why the British citizens decided to leave the EU.
This is a case where the citizens of a country...
asserted their power over the government.
What this means is...
that the power of the citizens have become big.
It means that we, the citizens,
can assert our will over the government.
And the center of that lies within the youths of today.
Because they are the ones who are the most active...
and the generation that took the most damage.
This is the first time in history...
where the present generation is off a lot worse than the previous generation.
Even during the war, every farmers and manual laborers...
believed strongly that future generations...
would be off better than them, and they were.
But for the first time, advancement has come to a stop.
People have started not to have children,
have started to give up, fall into despair, and throw away their dreams.
- Even during wars, there was hope for a better tomorrow, - Yes.
but now, we're off worse than previous generations.
(An era of despair...)
But we can't give up hope and let things end here.
This is our chance.
This is our chance to make up a society...
which respects the values of a true democratic republic.
I really wish this could become a world...
where future generations can have dreams.
If we can change our given environment...
If we can expand our opportunities...
If we just put in some effort, we can easily make those opportunities.
A world with a future...
In the end, we are responsible for creating such a world.
It's only right that the victims of this abnormal world...
take this into their own hands to make a better world.
Everyone, we need your strength.
Mr. Mayor, if, by any chance,
you lose to the opposing party members for the preliminaries,
what will you do then?
I believe I'll have to accept the outcome, whatever it is.
That's what I believe.
Just because you lost, it doesn't mean everything was for naught.
The policy will still remain.
Even if I were to lose the preliminaries,
there will still be those people who supported my cause.
To win over those people, the new candidate will have to...
also take in and consider my policies.
That's also another form of progress.
Thank you, everyone.
Thank you.
(Lee Jae-myung's refreshing busking!)
- Wow. - Wow.
- Wow. - As expected...
Please, have a seat.
- Wow. - That was great.
Lately, variety shows are having a crisis.
It's more fun to watch the news these days.
- You're right. - What do you think of this statement?
I agree 100 percent.
It's because the situation is so abnormal.
Usually, you have fun outside the ordinary.
You don't have fun within the ordinary.
On the other hand, I like that people are getting more interested in politics.
You know how they say, "Politics is everyone's sport."
Everyone's sport. It's really fun to watch them fight.
It's pretty fun. Also, believing it's not right...
The fact that the citizens feel they should take it into their own hands...
at the same time both very funny and sad.
But it can also be considered to be a good opportunity.
Thank you. That was Lee Jae-myung's busking.
(The first busking was a success.)
Thank you.
- Our second busker is... - It's Sam Okyere.
Sam's dream is to become the president of Ghana.
- Think of this as giving your first speech as an aspiring president. - Yes.
- Yes. - It'll be good for you to think of this as practice.
- Yes. - Okyere, what are you doing?
(Nervous)
- Get out there! - Now?
(Second busker, Sam Okyere, appears.)
Good luck.
- I'll be cheering for you. - Good luck.
- Good luck. - Go for it.
(Spins)
(Sam enters the busking zone.)
- Wow. - Wow.
I thought I'd have that kind of body when I became an adult.
(A wishful dream...)
I feel really great coming to Hongdae after such a long time.
I used to play around here often in the past.
When I was a freshman, every weekend,
I'd come here with my friends.
I'm glad to have come here again.
Today, I'm going to talk about...
something I've never talked about on TV.
I first came to Korea...
back in 2009.
I didn't know any Korean back then.
So for a whole year, I spend my time studying Korean in school.
While I was studying Korean,
do you know what my favorite Korean word was?
It was the word, "Our."
(It was "Our.")
Our house, our father, our mother...
I really liked it.
It's because I grew up in that environment.
Back in Ghana, we live together as a big family.
It's very common for your mother, father, uncle, aunt to all live under one roof.
- I heard not a lot of countries use the word, "our" as much as us. - Really?
- In English, we use "my mother" and "my home." - Yes.
But here, we use "our house" and "our mother."
That's why today, I'll be...
talking about the word, "our."
I like the idea of "our" and "us" instead of "my" and "me."
But, in Korea,
in that word, "our" and "us,"
are people like me with darker skin...
included in that term? I'd often wonder about that.
Let me tell you...
about some of the things I've experienced in Korea.
When I first came here...
and said I was from Africa, people asked me a lot of questions.
They would ask me a lot of ridiculous questions.
For example, they'd ask if we raised lions in our house.
After getting so many of those kinds of questions, I started to reply back...
that my father had two lions.
(Of course, my father has two lions.)
That makes no sense, right?
But that's how much Koreans...
That's how much they didn't know about Africans.
But one day, when I was going to school,
I'd often commute on the number 2 line of the subway.
There are a lot of people on that line.
So you'd have to run to get a seat.
But some old lady ran there before me and took a seat.
(She got to his seat first.)
As soon as she sat down, she spread out her legs, and prevented me from sitting.
"What's a black man like you doing in Korea?"
- Oh my... - Oh.
(Shocked)
"Go back where you came from."
She would say that, openly discriminating against me.
That really shocked me.
I was shocked at her blatant discrimination.
- On top of that, she turned to my... - I want to apologize on her behalf.
Korean friend and criticized him for hanging out with me.
To his friend?
But out of everything,
I felt the most hurt...
by all the other Koreans there.
Why?
I felt hurt by how they just sat there and watched silently.
(He got hurt by everyone's silence.)
I'd think, "Were all Koreans like that?"
- Oh. - If a foreigner was in that kind of difficult situation,
- would they all just stay silent and... - This is so...
and watch like that?
It really hurt.
(He got hurt by the Koreans looking away.)
- I feel ashamed. - I feel sorry.
Sorry.
There's another incident. You have to work when you're a college student.
You'll have to work if you want to eat.
People don't really know that while there are Ghana languages,
- the official spoken language in Ghana is English. - Oh, they do?
- Did you know this? - No, I didn't.
You didn't know, right?
Anyway, whenever people hear me speak English on TV, they're surprised.
"Oh? You know how to speak English?"
(It's an awkward question.)
- Even though the official language is English... - This is prejudice.
- Because they don't know. - Yes.
(A prejudice that Africans can't speak English...)
So, to work part-time,
I went to apply at a English hagwon.
Before the interview, they usually do a phone interview first.
"Can you speak English well?" "Yes, I can."
"Are you a native speaker?" "Yes, I'm a native speaker."
They went on to invite me over the next day for an interview.
So I went for the interview.
But this is what the director said.
"Everything's great about you but..."
"unfortunately, we can't hire you."
(Why can't they hire him?)
"It'd be unthinkable to have a black man teach in our school."
"The parents will not like that."
Basically, they refused me for...
being black and an African.
Even after that, when I went to other interviews,
they always ask if I'm Caucasian in the end.
When I tell them I'm African, they say they'll call me back later...
and never call me back.
(The discrimination Koreans have against black people.)
Before I went on TV,
I worked a lot as an extra on movies.
- Other black people like me... - He did a lot of part-time work.
When they work as an extra,
their roles would always be thieves.
When Korean girls walk by,
we would be given roles where we assault them and steal their bags.
Even when I went to work in another drama,
they'd make me do a similar role.
They'd give the Caucasians...
great, wonderful roles as one of the good guys.
But to the Africans, they'd give all the bad roles.
Our society is still...
very discriminatory towards people of color.
They see them as someone lower.
You guys know about Ebola, right?
Three years ago, there was an epidemic called Ebola...
in West Africa.
A lot of people got sick.
One day, while I was passing by Itaewon,
I saw a restaurant put up a sign on their door that read,
"No Africans allowed..."
"due to Ebola outbreak."
- What? - Really?
(The actual sign during that time.)
When I saw that,
I thought that was taking it too far.
They were blatantly saying we weren't allowed because we were Africans.
That really made all the Africans living in Korea very angry.
We were also customers paying them the same money...
but why weren't we allowed in there?
This sparked outrage all over the world.
There were a lot of Africans who'd wanted to come to Korea,
but they were shocked to see something like that.
Because Sam was always smiling,
I never thought he was a victim of discrimination.
Sam really, really loves this country.
After I started appearing on TV...
in "Non-Summit Meeting," I got a lot of commercial offers.
I started to think I could make a living out of this.
Out of all of them, I still remember the commercial...
There's the Doota building in Dongdaemun.
There was a huge picture of me on that building.
(Okyere's big advertising billboard)
When I went to Dongdaemun with a friend one day,
that friend saw my picture and started crying.
When I asked him why he was crying,
he said...
as an African living in Korea,
he never thought it was possible for an African...
to be on the billboard like that.
He felt hopeful that Koreans...
were starting to look at Africans a little differently.
He was very happy that we were being perceived in a better way.
Even though I went through...
so many bad experiences as an African in Korea,
why am I still living here?
Why am I still going on TV?
It's precisely because...
of that term, "our" and "we."
Even though there were bad things,
there were also a lot of good things too.
I also gained a lot of great friends.
Whenever I'm having a tough time, those friends...
come to me and say, "Don't worry. We're here for you."
"So you can do it."
Also, as a foreigner, I feel the most lonely...
during Christmas.
I can't help but think a lot about my family then.
My friend would ask,
"Oh Chul..."
My Korean name is Oh Chul-Hui.
Yes.
"Chul-Hui, what are you doing for Christmas?"
"I want to go back to Ghana,"
"but plane tickets are so expensive, I'll just stay in Korea."
"Then, come over to my house..."
"for Christmas."
I thought I was just going to eat dinner and come out.
But I ended up staying there for three days.
(He spent three days there.)
His family...
wanted me to eat a lot for Christmas.
Because it was "us," we should spend Christmas together.
(His friend's family wanted him to feel he belonged.)
Last year, I built a "572 School" back in Ghana.
Yes, "Okyere," "572 School."
(Sam built a school for the children of Ghana.)
Thank you.
(That's amazing.)
But "572 School"
I wouldn't have been able to do it if I was alone.
But around 5,000 Korean people donated to our cause.
Together, we made our "572 School."
Not my but our "572 School."
We were able to make our dreams into reality.
That's why I came here to...
thank all the Koreans. Thank you, everyone.
(Thank you for your support.)
(The greatness of the word, "we" and "our")
The word "our" is important, isn't it?
(Korea's wonderful word, "our.")
But recently, I noticed a lot of Koreans...
are becoming more possessive of their individual space...
But I think that will become really tough.
These days, you don't even know who's living next to you.
We should all help each other.
If I have a lot, I should share with those that don't have any.
You shouldn't only think about yourselves, but think of "us."
If we take these steps towards that idea,
I believe Korea...
has the potential to become a more wonderful society.
Thank you.
(A Ghana youth tells us the strength behind the word, "our.")
While listening to Sam, I felt both thankful and sorry.
It makes me reflect back on my actions too.
(This busking makes us reflect on our past actions.)
While I'm here, I would like it if you'd call me,
"Brother Okyere," "Little Okyere," and so on.
I would really appreciate it.
Because time to time, there are people who call me,
"Black Bro." There really are...
"Black Bro!" or "There's a black bro!."
It makes me feel uncomfortable.
Do they really have to address me like that?
It'd be so much nicer if they call me, "Brother Okyere."
That's what I thought.
Getting rid of the term "black"
Regardless of skin color, I would like to be called...
"Brother."
It's my dream to live in that kind of society.
Those of you with questions, I would really appreciate it if you call me familiarly.
Okyere. Since we're the same age, I'll call you by your name.
- Whoa! - Whoa!
Look at her go!
It's like a scene from a movie.
You can also call me Chul-Hui, since that's my Korean name.
Chul-Hui.
First of all, I'd like to thank you for staying and telling us this great story...
even though you experienced discrimination for a long time.
In February 2017,
I'm going to be dispatched to Tanzania, Africa.
I also heard there was discrimination there...
about Asians.
Do you have any advice for me to get through that?
When you're there, you should do your best to learn their...
culture and language. That will help you greatly.
Just like people who don't speak Korean...
can think Koreans are cold,
once you speak Korean, they compliment you on how good your Korean is.
They treat you to lunch and start opening up towards you.
It's the same everywhere, even in Africa.
Even though you're not fluent, as long as you greet them,
they'd be happy to see you speak their language.
- They'll welcome you. - It's amazing how just a few words can...
- open people up. - And you'll have a better time there.
You talked about discrimination,
but can you tell me what was most difficult about living here in Korea?
Personally, the most difficult thing about living in Korea...
happened when I was in college.
I was really bad at Korean back then.
When there's a project, you'd have to do it with your friends.
But I was so sad and upset when I had no friends.
Back then,
there was an African music club in my school.
I ended up joining that club as the first African.
Yes.
A real African came into the African music club.
Out of those members, there was one person...
named Kim Moong-chul.
At first, he was very cautious of me.
He felt awkward around being near an African.
But suddenly, he got a chance to study abroad in Canada.
When he came back, he told me he understood how I felt.
He told me he's take better care of me.
He would help me with all the assignments...
and eat together with me. Because of that friend,
I was able to endure through that tough time.
Everyone, Happy New Year.
And thank you.
That was great. He's really good.
(Okyere comes back.)
That was awesome.
- You were great. - "Our," "us."
- "Us!" - I learned a lot.
Please, have a seat.
Sometimes we don't ...
- even realize we're discriminating against people. - It's so shameful.
- Thank you for your busking. - Thank you.
- Nice. - Yes.
Right now, it's currently 7:25pm.
What does 7:30pm mean in Hongdae?
- It means it's getting started. - It's getting started?
It's time to change into another outfit and get started.
It's exciting.
Last, we will have Hongdae's original goddess busking for us.
I'm looking forward to the "glam-head" girl.
"Glam-head?"
(He's looking forward to the busking of the girl with the glamorous forehead.)
All right. What are you doing?
- Get out there! - Let's do this.
- Have fun. - Of course.
I'm so excited.
(The door opens again...)
(The goddess descends into the busking zone.)
Hello.
Hello. I'm the vocalist for the group called Jaurim.
I'm Kim Yuna. Nice to meet you.
I have never busked before, not even once.
Whenever I meet people who have busked before,
I can't help but feel a little jealous.
I can't help but think of how it'd feel to sing on the streets.
And so, because today's a little chilly,
I wanted to talk about something warm and cozy...
with everyone here.
All right.
When was...
the last time you felt you were happy?
Happiness. While I was preparing for this busking,
when I asked people around me when was the last time they felt happy, they'd say,
"When I had my first child."
That was three years ago.
"When I got hired."
It's been a while since that girl got hired.
I noticed everyone would talk about big events...
that happened a long, long time ago.
But does happiness only lie...
in big and grand events?
That's why I made up this kind of cool title to my talk.
"Kim Yuna's Asteroid."
It's short for "Kim Yuna's talk about small happiness and success."
(Purring)
(Wow)
Welcome to Kim Yuna's Asteroid.
(Welcome to the asteroid.)
Her busking feels like a small talk concert.
It's so elegant.
- She's like a host. - I want to take that cue card from her.
(He wants that elegance.)
People often ask me this question as a musician.
"Yuna, you're married, have a kid,"
"and seem to get on fine with your husband. What's there to worry about?"
"Why are you all your music so dark? Why aren't they happier?"
They always ask that.
I'm not sure if this is a blessing or a curse,
but I grew up in a family without...
receiving a lot of love.
That's why...
I spent a lot of time alone,
reading books and drawing pictures...
Those kinds of things were like a refuge.
It was hard for me to make friends.
After spending my childhood like that, I became a little twisted.
When I said I didn't know if it was a blessing or a curse,
I believe I'm still able to make music because of that painful period.
(Music was her refuge.)
But as I grew up,
I started to learn about relationships because I went to school.
And soon enough I was a college student.
One day, I was working part time as a college student.
In front of the place where I worked,
right in front of the bus stop,
was a place that sold rare and exotic...
music records.
It's not good to go in there.
You end up spending a lot in there.
Especially since they're imported...
But that day, I felt a strong pull towards that store.
I ended up buying a lot of CDs.
I knew I shouldn't have bought the last CD to have money for my commute back home.
But somehow, I just wanted to be selfish.
I wanted to buy all those CDs.
I bought them all. Back then, we used to carry around CD players.
After inserting the batteries into the player, I listened to...
each and every CD.
As I was listening, because I didn't have money for the bus,
I ended up walking home for three hours, at night.
I was so happy. I didn't have a dime.
But I was filled with music.
And the night sky was so pretty.
I remember how I felt so happy back then.
I would like to ask everyone here...
if they had any happy moments from something small like that.
The guy in the back with glasses and a gray jacket?
You nodded just now, didn't you?
- Are you a student? - Yes.
- What grade? - I just took the college entrance exam.
- It was really tough, studying for the exam. - I'm sure it was.
Everyday, from when I woke up to when I fell asleep,
all I could think about was how hard it was.
- That's how I spent the last two to three years. - I see.
But one day, I was walking along the stream...
- when I saw a bridge. - Oh.
While walking on the bridge, I remembered...
I walked on that same bridge with my friends.
Even though it was hard back then too, because I had my friends, I was happy.
Seeing that, I remembered what happiness was.
I remembered...
that even small things can make you happy too.
I see.
I'll have to go give you a hug.
(Is this for real?)
Thank you.
(She pats him on the back.)
- You had it tough, didn't you? - Thank you.
She's asking them about their happy moments...
It makes them happy just thinking about it.
- I'm getting ready to send in work applications. - Yes.
Whenever I'm sleeping in on Saturday morning,
- my mother makes kimchi stew. - Oh.
- Sounds great. - I wake up, smelling the kimchi stew.
When I think of how our family used to gather around to eat together,
it makes me happy.
- So I think I was happy... - Yes.
- when I was with my family. - Yes.
Come here.
(Come here.)
- My boyfriend is sitting next to me. - How cute.
I meet him once every week,
always in Hongdae.
We go eat a lot of good food here and there.
Doing that makes me very happy.
- Yes. - Also, I'm one of your biggest fan.
Thank you.
Lying in bed with my electric blanket on...
- and eating tangerines. - You know what's good, don't you?
Recently, I've been watching this drama called, "Dokebi"
- Gong Yoo is so handsome. - He's so hot, isn't he?
I'm happy whenever I watch "Dokebi."
I know what you mean.
Keep being happy.
(She hugs everyone to cheer on their happiness.)
- This is a very unique style of busking. - It's really nice.
Hearing everyone talk about their happy moments...
I want to be a part of it too.
- Oh my... - I know what you mean.
Let's do that too.
- I'm really happy when I eat tteokbokki. - You are?
I have a favorite tteokbokki place.
I get so happy when I go to that place.
I live in Haebangchon.
There's this steak place...
While I was eating steak, some jazz music came out.
In that very moment, I couldn’t hear anything else but that. It made me so happy.
That's so cool. I want to cancel what I said about tteokbokki to steak.
That's so cool.
- What about you, Haha? - For me, let's say I have an...
- early morning shoot tomorrow. - Okay?
When I wake up, I see I have a text message.
"The shooting time has been rescheduled."
(Laughing)
(Shivering in delight)
I have the best sleep.
Yes, that really makes you happy.
That sounds so good.
Do you have any moments you felt happy within the past week?
When my approval ratings went up.
(This guy is so honest.)
(It makes you cry.)
This word keeps coming up when...
we talk about our happiness.
What do you think that is?
(A word that keeps coming up when we talk about happiness?)
Dream.
It's like saying we can only be happy...
and successful if our dreams come true.
People who have succeeded in society...
When those successful people do an interview,
they say the key to success is effort.
"I put in a lot of effort."
"Therefore, if you put in effort, you can be successful too."
"I really wanted it bad."
"That's why my dreams came true."
"If you really want it, your dreams will come true, too."
That's what they always say.
Whenever I hear that,
I feel like we're being treated unfairly.
They're right...
when they say effort is very important.
It'd be really nice if all you needed was effort to achieve your dreams.
For those people who haven't achieved their dreams,
they're seen as people who didn't want it bad enough...
or as people who didn't put in the effort.
But I don't think that's right.
That's why whenever I hear that, I can't help but feel doubtful.
This time,
I'd like to ask everyone about their dreams.
What do you dream about?
What are your dreams?
- My dream was to work with music. - Yes.
- But I decided to apply again next year. - I see.
I want to work in music without worrying about money.
I want to do music but why is it that...
I have to give up on money if I choose to do music?
I couldn't give up on money, that's why I choose to apply again next year.
I...
want to do music without worrying about money.
I used to think I wanted to become a musician too.
But I didn't think I'd be able to make a living...
being just a musician.
Because I knew that kind of dream would be hard to achieve,
I had a backup plan.
That's why I think you made the right choice.
It's better for you to study something else at the same time.
Also, I want to tell you about Jaurim.
I achieved my dreams.
I became able to make a living out of music.
Before our debut,
we used to perform in this club.
In that club, there was another very popular band.
We were nothing compared to them.
But one day, something came up for that band,
so our band filled in for that band one night.
But coincidentally,
someone from a film crew...
came to watch that other band's performance that night.
He was forced to watch our band instead.
And he asked us if we could make a song for one of his movies.
That song was "Hey, Hey, Hey."
That was our debut song.
After that, as you all know,
because of luck, because of you guys,
we were able to keep continue making our music.
You never know what's going to happen in life.
All you can do is leave it up to fate...
while you keep looking for a sensible backup plan.
And I would also like to cheer you on for your wonderful dream.
I hope we can meet on stage one day.
I'll be waiting.
(I'll be waiting for the day we can meet on stage.)
We all have dreams.
But when people ask you what your dreams are,
it can be hard to give them a straight answer.
But I think each and every dream is something very precious.
Also,
there might be dreams that will be hard to achieve,
but I also believe you won't be able to lose those dreams.
So that we can all have dreams...
So everyone can support each other...
to achieve their dreams...
I hope we can all live in that kind of world.
I'll sing you all a song.
(Everyone cheers for her.)
("Dream," composed and sung by Kim Yuna)
My dream is to become a good person.
Until now, many people around me have supported and loved me.
I want to be a good person as much as I've been loved by them.
Now, I wouldn't mind if I can't be a professional singer.
I just want to sing my songs for other people.
I want to open a gift shop.
I'll open a gift shop and donate five percent of its profits to others.
If you buy a diary, you will be giving a diary to a boy living in Africa.
- That's my dream. - It's beautiful.
(Yuna sings a song to comfort people who're tired of seeking their dreams.)
(Her speech was about small happiness and success in life.)
We've just finished the first busking event of 2017.
I wonder how much today's buskers have raised today through their speech.
The first busker,
Lee Jae-Myung raised...
I can't wait.
(Everyone is paying keen attention.)
- 42,000 won today. - Wow.
(He can't hide his pleasure.)
- You managed to save your face. - Yes, he did.
It might sound not really big,
- but it means as many as 42 people donated to him. That's a lot. - Right.
Next is a busker who represents Geoje.
The total amount of fund raised through Jae-Myung and Sam Okyere is...
- 78,000. - Wow.
- Really? - It's big.
- It's the total amount. - I see.
(Relieved)
(Disappointed)
You shouldn't do that to me. How could you do that?
- He had another agenda. - You thought you raised that much of money alone, right?
Yes, I was a bit surprised.
It's the final busker. She even sang a song for the audience.
She was an iconic singer of Hongdae.
The total amount raised after Yuna's speech.
Let's see the total amount of fund raised today.
How much is it?
Haha, please tell us.
It was the New Year Special of busking.
We finished today's busking successfully.
Dear viewers,
we will continue to try our best in the new year as well.
Please look forward to us.
In 2017, all your wishes...
will come true as you say.
- Happy new year! - Happy new year!
(A special episode with attractive buskers)
It's almost addictive.
It's called "the spirit of paragon."
(A best-selling author, Jo Seung-yeon)
(A man who fascinated two former presidents with his writing)
(Former Speech Writing Secretary of President, Kang Won-guk)
(And...)
(A pan-Asian beauty that also enchanted Hollywood)
(Claudia Kim who starred in "Avengers")
("As I Say" will air on Wednesday, 9:30pm.)
Subtitles by OnDemandKorea