Asia Song Festival or ASF is a music festival that is held in South Korea every year since 2004. It is normally hosted by KOFICE of Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange and they invite Asian artists to perform in the event. ASF is Asia’s largest cultural festival where people around the world come together through music.
This festival is being aired in major broadcasting networks in Asian countries including Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Philippines, and Vietnam. Although this is an Asian festival, countries like the US, Bulgaria, and Finland also air this event.
The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism usually give a plaque of appreciation to all artists who participate in the festival. On the other hand, the top award which is the “Best Asian Artist” award is handed out by the chairman of KOFICE.
This year, the Asia Song Festival 2012 was held last August 4 at the EXPO 2012 Yeosu in South Korea. The event was well-attended, 14 artists from 6 countries were there and they all gave amazing performances.
The fest is successful and many fans came to watch the show. People start coming in at the venue as early as 4 pm. Although most of the viewers still have to wait a few hours before the event starts, they were not disappointed as everyone really enjoyed the performances.
The list of the performers/artists:
1. South Korea
- Kim Hyun Joong
- MBLAQ
- Sistar
- Tiger JK & Yoon Mi-rae
- ZE:A
- TEEN TOP
- Ailee
- B1A4
- Brave Guys
2. Japan
- Aqua Timez gained fans in Korea after singing “Rainbow,” the OST of Gokusen 3 – a popular Japanese drama.
3. China
- Wei Chen – China’s rising star
4. Singapore
- Fann Wong – the artist who’s well-known for his appearance in Jackie Chan’s film “Shanghai Nights”
5. Thailand
- Candy Mafia –they once appeared in one of Korea’s popular show “Star King” so Koreans know them.
6. Taiwan
- Lin Yoga – after taking home the Rookie of the Year award in ASF 2008, he instantly became a top star in Taiwan.
In the end, one of Korea’s most popular Hallyu star, Kim Hyun Joong, was awarded the ‘Best Asian Artist’ Award. The singer/actor got the crowd cheering as he perform his hits like “Lucky Guy” and “Do You Like That.”
By: arsisi@koreanupdates.com
Reported directly from South Korea
photo credit as tagged
