[K-Artist] Ro Woon 로운

mademoiselle · June 9, 2023

2023.06.09 Rimowa's 125 Years Anniversary Event/Exhibition in Japan

Rowoon came out of the event and started signing for fans. He used the Rimowa postcards he's got from the event. The interactions are quite enjoyable to watch. The boy definitely understands more Japanese vocabs than I do and able to speak/pronounce the words much more accurately too, albeit he still uses an interpreter.

Looking super gorgeous for the event, except that weird Rimowa on his chest xD

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Hey @Tofu @Chocolate Check this website out. https://retoys.net/231321/

Some photos from the exhibition on the Rimowa's luggages throughout the years! Pretty cool actually!

mademoiselle · June 9, 2023

2023.06.09 Rimowa's 125 Years Anniversary Event/Exhibition in Japan

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The boy started from looking like this (above) to this (below)...

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... and this!

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Definitely have too much to drink that he's not even shy that he's showing us so much chest! :pandaheadstomp:

mademoiselle · June 11, 2023

2023.06.11 [Videos] ANDZ - Fan Signing Event

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mademoiselle · June 12, 2023

2023.06.11 [Fan Pics] ANDZ - Fan Signing Event

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Rowoon shared some in-depth thoughts of his with his fans about how Rowoon is "merchansise" and Kim Seok Woo is human. If the fans idealised or has longings of Rowoon, he asked fans to respect Kim Seok Woo's life for him to be able to continue as being Rowoon. He asked the fans for understanding and support in this matter.

mademoiselle · June 12, 2023

Rowoon and Friends

Apparently whilst in Japan for Rimowa event, Rowoon met up with Ahn Hyo Seop who was there for holiday. They both bought the hat together.

Then at ANDZ event, he must have told the fans he is going to catch up with "Mr. Ahn" which sparks speculation that it was Ahn Hyo Seop, but turns out it is Ahn Bo Hyun!

My introverted boy is making friends! Did Seok Woo meet Bo Hyun through Jo Bo Ah? But seriously, we never get photos of Seok Woo and Ahn Hyo Seop hanging out. They were actually spotted eating together before - in spoiler tag.

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mademoiselle · June 16, 2023

2023.06.15 Incheon Airport

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mademoiselle · June 28, 2023

2023.06.28 SF9's Rowoon in talks to lead new historical drama "Muddy Waters"

According to media outlet reports on June 28 KST, SF9 member/actor Rowoon has been offered a male lead role in the historical drama 'Muddy Waters' (literal translation).

The drama is a highly-anticipated new historical series scripted by Chun Sung Il, the mastermind behind the legendary series 'The Slave Hunters' (2010) starring Jang Hyuk. Director Choo Chang Min of 'Masquerade' (2012) is expected to oversee the its production.

Little is known about the new series so far, other than that it will be a classic Korean historical drama portraying the culture and the social customs of the Joseon era in close detail. The story follows the epic journey of a man who starts out from nothing, and becomes a legend.

Meanwhile, Rowoon is set to greet viewers on the small-screen soon in JTBC's 'Destined With You', premiering some time in August.

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On June 28, Xportsnews reported that Rowoon is in talks to star as the male lead for the new drama “Takryu” (romanized title).

In response to the report, Rowoon’s agency FNC Entertainment stated, “[‘Takryu’] is one of the projects that he is reviewing [the offer for].”

“Takryu” is the second historical drama by writer Cheon Sung Il who led the success of ”The Slave Hunters.” The drama will tell the story of a man who starts out as a gangster at Han River’s Mapo Port, the hub of logistics and economy in Joseon Dynasty, becoming a legend of Joseon solely with his body.

Rowoon is currently in talks for another historical drama “Wedding Match” (working title). The actor is also gearing up for his upcoming drama “Destined with You” with Jo Bo Ah.

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Edited June 28, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · June 29, 2023

2023.06.24 Rowoon's FM at Kyoto, Japan

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2023.06.17 Acapella

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White Night

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Making

Edited September 29, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · July 10, 2023

2023.07.10 Rowoon & Lee Jae Wook's Hangout

These two boys went to an art exhibition at Namsan.

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mademoiselle · August 1, 2023

2023.08.01 Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5

mademoiselle · August 27, 2023

2023.08.23 FNC Naver Update

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mademoiselle · September 18, 2023

2023.09.07 Incheon Depature

2023.09.09 Arrival

Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 21, 2023

2023.09.18 Rowoon To Halt Group Activities + SF9 To Continue With 8 Members

SF9’s agency has shared an update regarding Rowoon and the group’s activities.

On September 18, the agency shared the following statement:

Hello, this is FNC Entertainment.

This is an announcement regarding SF9’s activities.

SF9, who debuted in 2016 and has been active as our agency’s artist for seven years, came upon the expiration of their first contracts on September 18.

All members of SF9 previously renewed their contracts with our agency, and they will now take another leap forward with eight members excluding Rowoon.

Rowoon will focus on individual activities including acting.

Although the directions of their activities are different, Rowoon, who will remain as the ninth member of SF9, along with the other eight members will cheer each other on and each put in their full effort on their own paths in order to impress fans.

We ask that fans continue to show lots of support for SF9 and Rowoon.

Thank you.

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Rowoon Pens Heartfelt Letter To Fans As He Halts Group Activities With SF9

Following news of Rowoon halting group activities with SF9, the star penned a handwritten letter on SF9’s official fan cafe.

He wrote the following letter:

Hello, this is Rowoon.

I think I thought a lot about what words to start with.

It honestly also feels a bit scary to write for the first time in so long.

I think I’ve become slightly more familiar with being more strict on myself while taking on scheduled activities and taking on new challenges.

There was also frustration in not being able to solve big or small misunderstandings one by one, and while thinking that one day my sincerity would be delivered, the days passed by while I focused on the work I immediately needed to do.

Of course, I understand that I may receive as much hate as I’ve received interest and support, but I guess I’m a little soft.

Depending on the occasion, you need to have courage to face and deny a misunderstanding when it arises, but the past days I was always busy hiding. I sincerely apologize if there are fans who were hurt and felt upset at my complacent attitude.

If you felt unfamiliarity with how I changed, you must have also definitely felt upset that I hid away. I sincerely apologize.

I participated in scheduled activities with a grateful heart for each and every precious memory during the past seven years.

I’m only filled with gratitude as I’m writing [this letter] while looking back on my life. This is also thanks to everyone.

This year, I am 27, and I want to take on a new challenge.

I really didn’t know at all how to say this or where and how I should start speaking, but I want to take the courage to convey that I want to take on a new challenge.

Please keep watch so that 27-year-old Kim Seok Woo (Rowoon’s real name) can live a life that he can be responsible for.

I will be exactly as how everyone remembers.

I am grateful to everyone.

I would be grateful if you keep watch over me with affection.

Rowoon debuted with SF9 in 2016 and has been active as both an idol and an actor. He first gained praise for his performances in supporting roles in dramas including “School 2017,” “About Time,” and “Where Stars Land.” Rowoon is currently starring in JTBC’s “Destined With You,” and he is gearing up to star in “Wedding Match.”

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Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 23, 2023

2023.09.22 FNC Actor Update

Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 24, 2023

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So beautiful :pandablush:

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Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 24, 2023

PANORAMA: In Conversation with Rowoon

This interview contains some insights into Destined With You and Shin Yu's character

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source: Panorama

Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 24, 2023

2023.09.24 FNC Naver Update: Rowoon x Rimowa

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More → LINK

Edited October 1, 2023 by mademoiselle

mademoiselle · September 28, 2023

2023.09.14 Interview with AnOther Magazine: Rowoon’s Ascent From Korean Idol to Global Icon

As the lead vocalist of idol group SF9 and an award-winning actor, Rowoon is much more than a K-pop pin-up. In the new issue of AnOther, he speaks about grappling with fame, hitting at rock bottom, and why he finally feels free.

At 6ft 3in, the 28-year-old multi-award-winning South Korean actor and K-pop star Rowoon – real name Kim Seok-woo – towers over most. That includes many of his co-stars, who stand on boxes for close-ups. Described as “perfect boyfriend material” by fans and media alike, he’s renowned for his legion of dedicated followers, who have shown up religiously at live performances of idol group SF9. The band’s name is an acronym of Sensational Feeling Nine, after its nine members, and Rowoon is lead vocalist and the ‘visual’: a controversial but universal label in K-pop, defined by most as the member who best fits South Korea’s notoriously rigid beauty standards. When it comes to being genetically predisposed to seduce millions, the K-pop idol (a term used for all members of K-pop groups) ticks every box. Rowoon is manly without any red-flag machismo: take him off topic in conversation and a rapid-fire banter ensues – when he laughs, it’s with his whole body and a resounding clap of his hands. He’s also reassuringly down to earth – at a public appearance in Japan in June, he ventured out into the pouring rain to sign autographs for fans and, rather sweetly, brought his own pen and paper in case anyone didn’t have their own.

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If by some chance your only exposure to the stratospheric western rise of South Korean culture in recent years has been Parasite and Squid Games, or the artists Blackpink and BTS, you’re just standing at the edge of a cultural behemoth. Long before Psy horse-danced into the history books in 2012, K-pop’s first-generation idols, such as the boy band HOT, and Korean dramas and films, like Shiri, What Is Love, My Sassy Girl, First Love and Winter Sonata, were captivating audiences across east Asia in the late Nineties and early Noughties. In 1999, Chinese media coined the term hallyu – which translates as ‘Korean wave’ – to encompass the unprecedented success of Korean entertainment.

With the advent of social media, beginning with Myspace in 2003, K-pop’s reach broadened significantly in the West thanks to existing fans translating and adding subtitles to interviews, video content and lyrics in various languages, as well as setting up community forums on Reddit and LiveJournal. In 2021, according to South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the export of the country’s cultural content was worth £9.8 billion. In April, Netflix announced its plans to invest £2 billion into Korean productions. On Spotify, K-pop currently receives about 8 billion monthly streams, with the US making up a large part of its primary audience. The booming business of K-culture is bigger than ever, and Rowoon, who is starring in two new series this year – JTBC/Netflix’s Destined with You, and the historical drama The Battle of Marriage – has become one of its most lucrative stars.

The idea of this status – the immense popularity, his edging up the ladder in a frenetic and competitive industry (the film/drama site AsianWiki lists 137 new K-dramas for 2022 alone) – gives Rowoon pause. He doesn’t entirely feel like he’s earned his stripes. “I have a way to go, I feel very uncertain,” he says in Korean over Zoom, his interpreter sitting close by. “I try to be a little harsh on myself so I can keep on track and not fall back. Acting is very humbling.”

Rowoon branched out into the industry just one year after joining SF9 – his first, albeit minor, part was in the coming-of-age comedy School 2017, where, in a textbook example of art imitating life, he played a K-pop idol. He then starred in another high-school series, the fantastical Extraordinary You (2019), in which the heart rate of the female lead character, Eun Dan-oh, increases every time she encounters Rowoon’s character, Ha-ru. That was his breakout role, landing him best new actor at the MBC Drama Awards that year: The King’s Affection (2021), in which he plays the male lead, is the first South Korean television series to have won an Emmy. To date he’s made nine, mostly romantic, drama shows, and they have turned him into a global heartthrob – his Instagram following is just shy of five and a half million, each post’s comment section an avalanche of compliments in a dozen languages.

@ewsbdi Rowoon's IG

Despite that, Rowoon describes his first day on each set as “still nerve-racking. I always ask myself, ‘Why do I feel this way? Why am I so nervous?’ And it’s the thought that someone is going to be judging my acting.” He’s trained himself to embrace that uncertainty, to use it as motivation to continue doing something he loves. He considers himself a “tool of the director”, but like all instruments, he needs to be perfectly tuned to perform at his best. “I always go on set thinking I may know the right answer and I try to persuade a director that a certain scene is acted a certain way,” Rowoon says. “But if the director was to give me an order afterwards, I’d take it on board because there’s never a correct answer. That’s why it’s so fun. It’s like walking blindfolded.”

When he was growing up, film and music weren’t prevalent in his Seoul-based family home, though his mother took a young Rowoon to church, where he would sing hymns with the rest of the congregation. He laughs: “Really, none of them have inspired me in the arts.” His father worked in real estate and his mother ran a hagwon (a private cram school). Aged 14, Rowoon joined FNC Entertainment as an idol trainee, where he spent six years in dance and vocal training. At the same time, he studied acting at high school, hoping to continue that at the university he ultimately wouldn’t end up attending. The way Rowoon tells it, he never had a preference – music or acting – so when the chance arose to debut as a fully fledged, multifaceted idol, he took it.

He was nominated as 2018’s best new actor by South Korea’s SBS Drama Awards for his supporting role in the series Where Stars Land, which follows the lives of young airline staff. When he didn’t win (it went to his close friend Ahn Hyo-seop), Rowoon was relieved and unsurprised. “Not with that acting,” he says, with a grimace. The nomination itself didn’t reassure him, either, that he was cut out for the profession: his first inkling that he was on the right path came when he worked on Extraordinary You. “There was a lot of pressure in being a main character, and my script almost fell apart because I’d read it so many times. I was so scared. But I was doing everything I could to prepare, so I was actually very liberated on set. By being so in touch with myself and the character, I felt a kind of catharsis.”

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“I want to appeal to producers and directors – not just as a pretty face but able to show the full spectrum of emotions inside me, to portray the different types of people that exist in the world” – Rowoon

In interviews at the time, Rowoon described Ha-ru as puppyish but also someone who “hoards” his feelings. Similarly, his character in The King’s Affection, Ji-un, operates at opposing ends of the spectrum. “He’s one of my favourites. The way he was written was inspiring, the juxtaposition of his bright and dark sides, and their coexistence, was what really appealed to me,” Rowoon says. The motivations and moral compasses of his characters (office intern, royal tutor, student) diverge, but there is a common base point: a seemingly worldly and steadfast young man whose true form – capricious and sometimes endearingly bumbling – must undergo a steep learning curve.

One such arc belongs to Tomorrow’s (2022) Jun-woong, who accidentally finds himself working with grim reapers on special missions. “There was one particular scene that made me choose this character,” Rowoon says. “There’s someone on a bridge trying to kill themselves and Jun-woong initially looks away. There’s usually a stereotype for the main character to be a good person, but if you look deeper into people, in general, we’re all living in harsh realities, so do we really have the mental capability to look after others in those situations? Those kinds of fundamental questions are what made the character so appealing and made Jun-woong develop a more serious perspective on life.”

In the real world, Rowoon finds little in common with the men he plays on-screen, and that disconnect works fine for him. He’s drawn to his characters’ stand-out traits and works to express them by envisioning them in a range of mundane settings, imagining how they would move, think and react. “I want to appeal to producers and directors – not just as a pretty face but able to show the full spectrum of emotions inside me, to portray the different types of people that exist in the world. But I also feel like it’s my role to open those kinds of doors to release those emotions. If you wish for something so greatly, you start acting on it. If you want it, you can get it.”

And so he immerses himself in finding interesting divisions and differences between characters he’s already played and those he might play next. This is understandable – K-drama series have an average of 16 episodes and require considerable time and emotional investment from the cast, and the viewer. But for the millions who love them, these slow-burn plots are all part of their charm.

In recent years, the popularity of K-content among non-Koreans has drawn increased focus from both the media and academics. Several major UK universities now offer degrees in Korean studies, with modules covering music, film, and television. Speaking to the news outlet Al Jazeera, Arizona State University’s Dr Areum Jeong attributed K-drama’s explo- sion in its global standing to: “Sociocultural issues packaged in an entertaining story, skilful acting and design, an accessible platform that allows millions to view, and a message that resonates with the audience.”Korean is now one of the fastest-growing languages in the world, according to the Duolingo app. “This is something I feel proud of,” Rowoon says. “I think the Korean alphabet, Hangul, is beautiful, and I’m grateful that other people perceive it that way too.” He questions what drives people to become superfans of South Korean actors and idols, to disappear into the fantasy fed to them. “This may be a little dangerous to say,” he says, “but I think it’s about loneliness. That’s how I feel, honestly. I think it’s a contradiction, because at the end of the day, it’s a form of consumption. Once you try to find a reason for it, it turns into loneliness.”

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“It’s not because of me that I feel depressed, it’s because I’m a human and I recognise that I’m a human, an animal” – Rowoon

Like many celebrities, he’s had his share of unhinged levels of stan-dom, a no-win zone of obsessive love, and hate. The former has given rise to stalkers – a commonplace problem for most K-pop idols. But it’s the latter (which has included endless, depressing dogpiling about everything from his appearance to his acting skills) that has most affected him. “It used to be very hurtful,” he says, “so now I just treat it as more attention. It keeps me on edge, alert and hard-working.” For the most part, he sees his fans find comfort in what he does as a singer and actor, and “there’s a sense of a mission and responsibility knowing this. I always ask myself, ‘Would there be meaning to what I do if these people didn’t exist?’ For them, I feel like I need to live my own life to the fullest. I used to feel a lot of pressure from fame but now I just try to enjoy it.”

Rowoon is paradoxical. Effusive – his hands shape the air as he talks – yet grounded and direct, he says he sometimes finds himself “trapped” inside sadness. He deals with it in an almost painfully pragmatic manner: “I just leave it be as it is. It’s not because of me that I feel depressed, it’s because I’m a human and I recognise that I’m a human, an animal, who feels things, so I try not to delve too much into it.”

He’s learnt to respond that way to emotionally low periods. “That process is hard,” he says. “I really like Fight Club. I must have watched it, like, 20 times, and my favourite line is, ‘It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything.’ I like that it’s not just talking about gaining everything but having the courage to do so after losing it all. That’s really stuck with me.”

Did it stick because he’s been there, at rock bottom, before? “Yes, about a year ago. But I never expressed it to others around me because life is just hard in general. I didn’t want to be recognised through my suffering, so I didn’t want to talk about it.”

Rowoon still doesn’t want to talk about it. He’s worried that people might perceive it entirely differently from the truth of the situation but, having come out the other side, he’s feeling the importance of staying in the moment and living simply. “I eat because I’m hungry,” he says. “I do things just because they’re fun.”

Rowoon keeps his dating life private. I ask if he’s a romantic in real life. “I don’t know what to say,” he replies, crumpling into laughter before composing himself. “Thinking about what might be romantic ... Maybe it’s remembering things and being aware and alert. In that way, I could be [described as] romantic.”

It might not sound like the biggest overture from a man who has been sweeping co-stars and viewers off their feet for half a decade but, for him, it’s a step-up, having previously struggled to express his own feelings. “It’s much better now,” Rowoon says. “Some things are negative, so I try to contain them, but if there’s something positive within me, I feel it’s my role as an actor to share it.”

One of Rowoon’s own triumphs – his own learning curve, if you like – has been in creating a balance between the public and the private, a peaceful, healthy coexistence of persona and person. Sometimes they blur into one simply because they’re fed into by the same source but, equally, that’s part of his evolution, in being able to control and command his many facets. It’s made easier through the respect that the bulk of his fans show him when he’s out and about off-schedule. By respecting his boundaries, they give him the space and time needed to work on himself. “I’m successfully managing to keep Seok-woo at the same time as developing Rowoon,” he says. “That’s why I feel very free now. Instead of being too overconscious about how I’m portrayed, I try to trust myself that I’m a good person and that’s how I’m going to keep going along.”

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Hair: Hyunwoo Lee at CO-OP using AMOS and L’ORÉAL PROFESSIONNEL.

Make-up: Sunghee An at CO-OP using NARS, CHANEL and GLOSSIER.

Prop stylist: Minkyu Jeon.

Lighting: Ari Sadok.

Photographic assistant: Kundo Song.

Styling assistant: Jinee Jung.

Hair assistants: Hanbin Kwak and Jeong Her.

Make-up assistant: Hyeme Jo.

Prop assistants: Inseo Hwang and Kyungil Seol.

Production: Starch Haus.

Executive producer: Min Kim.

Line producer: Donhyeok Choi.

On-set production assistant: Minhyuk Ahn.

Post-production: Two Three Two

Photography by @collierschorrstudio⁠
Styling by @f22lmin⁠
Sittings editor @rebeccaperlmutar ⁠
Interview by @_xtgx⁠
Editor-in-chief @susannahfrankel ⁠
Art direction by @sarahjaynetodd_ ⁠
Hair by @ozikc ⁠
Make-up by @ansunghee7⁠
Prop stylist @jeon.minkyu⁠
Production by @starch.haus ⁠

This story features in the Autumn/Winter 2023 issue of AnOther Magazine, which is on sale internationally on 14 September 2023.

Article source: AnOther magazine

More Not-so-great-Photos 😅

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Sixties long-sleeved top in wool from THE VINTAGE SHOWROOM. Shirt and shirt sleeves in cotton poplin and trousers in wool with layered pleats by DIOR. And Original Check-In and Original Cabin suitcases in anodised aluminium by RIMOWA

Cardigan in wool with metal studs by LOEWE. Vest in cotton by SUNSPEL. Leggings in wool by LOEWE. Ring in sterling silver by TOM WOOD. Personal Sling clutch in grooved aluminium by RIMOWA. And boots in leather by RECTO.

First slide: Rowoon is wearing @loewe, @recto_official and @rimowa⁠

Rowoon is wearing @loewe, @sunspelclothing, @tomwood_project and @recto_official ⁠

Coat in wool with metal clip closure, vest in cotton and skirt and trousers in wool by GIVENCHY

Double-breasted suit in wool and necklace in silver by WOOYOUNGMI. Stylist’s own asymmetric vest in cotton. And Personal Sling clutch in grooved aluminium by RIMOWA

Cardigan in wool with metal studs by LOEWE. Vest in cotton by SUNSPEL. Leggings in wool by LOEWE.

Coat in wool with metal clip closure, vest in cotton and skirt and trousers in wool by GIVENCHY. Personal cross-body bag in grooved aluminium by RIMOWA