Kim Jong-kook Recreates the Stage That Changed His Life 22 Years Later

Twenty-two years ago, a young singer sat on a staircase in sandals and performed a ballad that would transform his life overnight. On the May 8 broadcast of KBS 2TV's music talk show The Seasons — Sung Si-kyung's Eardrum Boyfriend, Kim Jong-kook did something nobody in the audience expected: he replayed that exact moment, right down to the sandals.

The episode's seventh installment brought together an extraordinary lineup of vocal talent — Kim Jong-kook, singer-songwriter Choi Yuri, and BTOB's Lee Changsub — each delivering performances that showcased why host Sung Si-kyung's concept of gathering "eardrum-worthy" artists has resonated so strongly with Korean music fans since the season premiered.

Kim Jong-kook's Legendary Comeback to the Stage

For many younger viewers, Kim Jong-kook is best known as the physically dominant cast member of SBS's long-running variety show Running Man, or the fitness enthusiast whose YouTube channel regularly pulls in millions of views. Friday night's broadcast served as a powerful reminder that before all of that, he was — and still is — one of Korea's most commanding vocalists.

Kim Jong-kook opened his segment with "별, 바람, 햇살 그리고 사랑" (Stars, Wind, Sunlight and Love), a 2005 single that carries the gentle warmth of a mid-2000s Korean pop ballad. The audience, many of whom grew up with the song, visibly stirred as the familiar melody filled the studio. He followed it with "회상 (December)," a Turbo classic, inviting host Sung Si-kyung to rap the featured verse — a moment that drew both laughter and genuine appreciation from the crowd.

But the evening's most talked-about sequence came when Kim Jong-kook reflected on his career. He mentioned that August 2026 marks his 30th debut anniversary — or rather, a second reckoning of it. "My actual 30th anniversary was last August," he explained, "but I miscounted and missed releasing an album, so I'm using the 'full years' calculation now." The self-deprecating admission drew laughs, but he quickly pivoted to a public request directed at Sung Si-kyung: "I need to put out an album before August. Give me a song." The boldness of the ask rippled through the studio audience.

Then came the recreation. Kim Jong-kook recalled the night 22 years ago when he sat on a staircase in sandals and first performed "한 남자" (One Man). "The next day, my life changed," he said quietly. In what appears to have been a spontaneous suggestion from Sung Si-kyung, Kim Jong-kook kicked off his shoes, pulled off his outer jacket, and stood at the microphone in sandals and a sleeveless shirt — just as he had that night two decades ago. What followed was one of those rare live television moments that studios rarely manufacture on purpose: a veteran artist, stripped of everything but his voice, delivering a performance that stopped time.

Duets, Surprises, and the Turbo Medley

The evening did not slow down after that peak moment. Kim Jong-kook and Sung Si-kyung paired up again for a duet rendition of AKMU's "어떻게 이별까지 사랑하겠어, 널 사랑하는 거지" (How Can I Love the Heartbreak, You're the One I Love), a choice that underscored both artists' range and their easy on-stage chemistry. The song's bittersweet melody took on new weight delivered by two seasoned vocalists with decades of stage experience between them.

Kim Jong-kook closed his set with an energy shift that had the entire studio on its feet. Joined by Mighty Mouth's Shorry, he launched into a Turbo medley spanning "White Love (스키장에서)," "Love Is… (3+3=0)," and "Twist King (트위스트 킹)" — tracks that remain embedded in the collective memory of Korean pop. The audience danced, the cameras caught the joy in the room, and for several minutes the broadcast looked less like a structured talk show and more like an impromptu late-night concert.

Choi Yuri and the Art of the Reluctant Singer

Between Kim Jong-kook's two sets, Choi Yuri appeared as the seventh guest in Sung Si-kyung's recurring duet segment, "두 사람" (Two People). Choi Yuri occupies an unusual space in Korean music: her voice is immediately distinctive, yet she spent years working primarily as a songwriter rather than a performer. She revealed that her songwriting credits include collaborations with Kim Bum-soo, Davichi, SEVENTEEN's Seungkwan, and Hong Isaac — an impressive catalog for someone who initially had no plans to step in front of a microphone herself.

In an awkward but endearing revelation, Choi Yuri disclosed that she once sent songs to Sung Si-kyung, only to receive no response. Sung Si-kyung's defense was both disarming and principled: "It wasn't that the song was bad. I simply wasn't the right person for it. That's the same reason I've turned down songs from Yoon Jong-shin, someone I deeply respect." The exchange captured why the show works — its conversations are unscripted enough to be genuinely revealing. The two ultimately sealed the segment with a duet of "Romeo N Juliet," their harmonies intertwining in a way that turned a slightly awkward backstory into a graceful on-stage resolution.

Lee Changsub: The Introvert Who Becomes Someone Else Onstage

BTOB's Lee Changsub rounded out the episode with a performance that demonstrated why he is consistently regarded as one of K-pop's most technically gifted vocalists. He chose to perform "그 자리에, 그 시간에" (In That Place, At That Time), a song originally written and released by Sung Si-kyung himself — a selection that required no small amount of confidence given the composer was seated a few feet away.

Sung Si-kyung, who had previously seen Lee Changsub remix two of his songs without ever receiving a personal message, admitted on air that the silence had stung. What followed became an unexpected highlight: Lee Changsub, widely known for being an introvert both in conversation and on social media, publicly read aloud a DM he had sent to Sung Si-kyung as a belated apology. The studio erupted in laughter. The moment neatly illustrated the paradox that Lee Changsub himself acknowledged — off-stage, he is so reserved that during the first episode of his YouTube series "전과자," he stood alone outside a university for forty minutes, unable to approach anyone. On stage, performing in front of thousands, he becomes what he calls "power E," an extrovert unleashed.

The contrast is not lost on fans who have watched Lee Changsub's solo and group careers develop over more than a decade. His voice has long carried BTOB's more emotionally intense material, and Friday's performance of Sung Si-kyung's song — rendered in his own understated but deeply felt style — confirmed that his artistic range continues to expand in ways that reward close listening.

Why The Seasons Keeps Working

The Seasons concept, which rotates hosts each season and builds programming around genuine musical conversation rather than celebrity spectacle, has now delivered several episodes that feel less like television and more like something worth preserving. Sung Si-kyung's "Eardrum Boyfriend" season has benefited from a host who is equally comfortable performing alongside his guests and drawing out the unexpected story — the unreturned demo, the sandal-wearing legend, the introvert's public apology.

Kim Jong-kook's recreation of the "한 남자" stage will be the moment that circulates online long after the broadcast ends. Not because it was technically flawless — though it was — but because it was the kind of thing that only happens when an artist has accumulated enough years to look back without sentimentality, and enough confidence to make a live audience feel the weight of what those years actually cost. The Seasons — Sung Si-kyung's Eardrum Boyfriend airs every Friday at 11:10 PM KST on KBS 2TV.