Hit Korean Talent Show at Berklee to Discover Next K-Pop Star

Superstar K, South Korea's most popular television talent show, is visiting Psy's alma mater, Berklee College of Music, hoping to discover the next K-pop star. 

May 16, 2013

Superstar K, South Korea's most popular television talent show, is visiting Berklee College of Music, the alma mater of Psy ("Gangnam Style"), to look for the next K-pop star. 

The Berklee auditions will be held 2 p.m. on May 28 at 25 Fordham Road, Allston. Auditions are open to anyone, not just Berklee students, and there is no age limit. Applicants are encouraged to fill out the audition form at Superstar K's website. Additional auditions will be held in New York and Los Angeles on May 25, and in Vancouver on May 28. Last year, over 2 million people applied for the show. 

Berklee students have competed in past seasons of Superstar K. Jung Sun Kook advanced to the top 10 in the first season in 2009, and Kim Jung Hwan was a participant in last year's fourth season. Next season's first episode will air on August 9, 2013. Contestants compete for $500,000 in cash and prizes, and an opportunity to sing at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Superstar K is broadcast on CJ E&M's music channel, Mnet.

In addition to Psy, famous South Korean Berklee alumni include Bom Park, lead vocalist of the chart-topping girl group 2NE1, rapper/producer Cho PD, and Korean Music Award-winning singers Yangpa and Eru, to name just a few. 

Since 2010, South Korean musicians have represented the largest group of international students at Berklee. Some 250 are currently enrolled, and over the past three decades nearly 600 alumni have attended. Alumni returning home have had a major impact on the Korean music scene as singers, instrumentalists, songwriters, composers, producers, and educators. Last month, Korean Berklee film scoring major Soo Yeon Shin won Best Music Composition at the Emmy's 34th College Television Awards for her score to the animated film George and Rosemary