Choi Yuri Stuns with Unreleased Song on KBS The Seasons

Singer-songwriter Choi Yuri delivered one of the most talked-about moments of the week when she appeared on KBS 2TV's music talk show The Seasons — Sung Si-kyung's Ear-Friend on May 8, premiering an unreleased track live on national television for the first time.

The episode, which aired at 11:10 p.m. KST, saw Choi Yuri step into the spotlight as the seventh guest of the show's signature "Two People" duet corner — a segment that pairs Sung Si-kyung with a fellow artist for an intimate musical conversation. What fans did not anticipate was that the evening would include a public first hearing of music they had never encountered before.

An Unreleased Song, Performed Live

The centerpiece of Choi Yuri's appearance was her live performance of "Malhanun Bangbeop" (말하는 방법), a track that has not yet been commercially released. The performance gave studio audiences — and later, viewers at home — a rare window into music still being shaped before its formal debut.

This kind of live premiere on a broadcast platform is uncommon in Korean entertainment, where unreleased music is typically guarded until carefully staged rollouts. For a singer-songwriter of Choi Yuri's caliber, choosing to premiere the track on live television rather than a streaming platform spoke to her confidence in both the song and the connection she shares with Sung Si-kyung.

She also performed "Woeroumiraneun Geon" (외로움이라는 건), another emotionally resonant track that showcased the distinctive vocal tone — clear, unhurried, and deeply felt — that has earned her a devoted following in Korea's indie and acoustic music scene. Sung Si-kyung, one of Korea's most respected ballad vocalists, hosted both performances with visible admiration, describing the energy of the evening to the studio audience in real time.

A Reunion Defined by Candid Stories

The evening was not only about music. Choi Yuri and Sung Si-kyung had previously met through his YouTube channel about a year before the broadcast, and their reunion on set was immediately warm and unexpectedly candid. Both noted that the other had lost weight since they last met, turning the observation into a shared, lighthearted topic that quickly humanized both artists.

When the conversation turned to how she had lost weight, Choi Yuri explained that it was less the result of intentional effort and more a byproduct of the summer heat. She described simply losing her appetite during a warm spell, with the change accumulating gradually over time. The casual admission gave viewers a glimpse of the down-to-earth personality behind her quietly powerful music.

But perhaps the most amusing moment of the evening involved a story about a song she once wrote for Sung Si-kyung himself. Choi Yuri, who has built a significant parallel career as a songwriter contributing to recordings by artists including Kim Bum-soo and Davichi, revealed that she had offered Sung Si-kyung one of her compositions — but never received a reply. The disclosure, delivered with characteristic composure, prompted visible warmth from the veteran singer, who responded by calling her "a gem-like junior." It was the kind of unscripted moment that the show is designed to cultivate, and it landed with genuine authenticity.

Who Is Choi Yuri?

For viewers encountering her for the first time through the broadcast, the appearance may have prompted an immediate search for her catalog. She is not a recent discovery — she has been building her reputation steadily since before her formal debut.

Choi Yuri debuted in 2020 with the EP Donggeurami (동그라미), but her profile as a serious musical talent was established two years earlier. In 2018, she won the grand prize at the 29th Yoo Jae-ha Music Competition, one of Korea's most prestigious songwriting events, with her original composition "Punyeom" (푸념). The competition honors the legacy of the late singer-songwriter Yoo Jae-ha and is known for recognizing genuine voices in Korean acoustic and ballad music. Winning it placed Choi Yuri on a short list of artists whose careers would be worth following closely.

Her most recognized single, "Sup" (숲, meaning Forest), became the track that cemented her relationship with listeners drawn to introspective, nature-inflected songwriting. It accumulated its audience through playlist discovery and word of mouth rather than headline-grabbing promotion — the kind of growth that tends to be slower but more durable.

As a songwriter, her circle of collaborators has expanded considerably. She has contributed compositions to established Korean vocalists across multiple genres, and her appearance on The Seasons came just days before the May 13 release of Park Jin-young's album Said and Done, on which she collaborated on the track "Oe-sarang" (외사랑). The timing feels less accidental than it does like the measured momentum of an artist entering a new phase of visibility.

Earlier this month, her label Nave announced that she had received the 2026 Brand Customer Loyalty Award in the Female Singer-Songwriter category from the Korea Consumer Forum — recognition from a public survey that placed her at the top of her field in terms of lasting influence. She has also formally debuted in Japan with a release targeting audiences across the region, signaling ambitions that extend well beyond the domestic market.

The Setting: An Unusually Strong Episode

The broadcast was the seventh episode of The Seasons — Sung Si-kyung's Ear-Friend, which has distinguished itself from louder variety formats by centering genuine musical performance and unhurried conversation. Sung Si-kyung hosts with a warmth that tends to draw unusually honest moments from his guests.

The same episode also featured Kim Jong-kook and Lee Chang-sub of BTOB, making it a night dense with vocal talent across generations. Kim Jong-kook recreated his iconic performance of "Han Namja" (한 남자), the track that changed his career, appearing in sandals and a sleeveless shirt just as he had 22 years prior. The unannounced performance prompted Sung Si-kyung to declare the episode a "Kim Jong-kook special." Lee Chang-sub, for his part, performed Sung Si-kyung's own composition in front of its author, then read aloud a lengthy apology message he had once sent for twice covering Sung Si-kyung's songs without making prior contact — a moment that drew laughter from everyone present.

Against this unusually strong lineup, Choi Yuri's performance of an unreleased track stands out as the segment most likely to draw the most replays. A live premiere is not something that can be restaged once the broadcast has passed.

What Comes Next

The combination of factors converging around Choi Yuri right now — a growing songwriter reputation, expanding live performance presence, a consumer brand award, a Japanese debut, and a collaborative credit on a Park Jin-young album — points toward a second half of 2026 in which her name will appear more frequently and in larger contexts.

As for "Malhanun Bangbeop," the unreleased track she performed on The Seasons, no formal release date has been announced. But for anyone who witnessed the live premiere on May 8, the question of when it will be available on streaming platforms is already pressing. Sung Si-kyung may have missed his chance to receive one of her songs years ago — but there is little doubt that a much wider audience is now paying close attention.