My K-pop idol smells incredible
Korean singer picks out lucky fan from 1,200-strong crowd and hugs her. She says:
She went to hear him rap Your Scent, and ended up breathing in his scent up close.
Ms Wendy Liew was the lucky girl whom K-pop star Gary picked from the 1,200-strong crowd at his showcase on Friday night.
On stage, amid thunderous screams from his other fans, he hugged her tightly.
And, according to the 20-year-old logistics coordinator, the Korean star smells incredible.
Before the show started at Kallang Theatre, Ms Liew's two friends had secretly left a request for Gary - the rapper in top hip hop duo Leessang and cast member of immensely popular Korean variety show Running Man - on a post-it note.
Fans could leave him notes on a board which he would later pick to read.
On their pink post-it, Ms Liew's two friends told Gary, 36, that Ms Liew's birthday was coming soon and asked if he would sing her a birthday song.
Ms Liew, who turns 21on Wednesday and paid $202 for a front-row seat, could not believe it when her note was chosen first.
'SO NERVOUS'
She told The New Paper: "I was already so nervous when he was walking towards me from the stage and started singing Happy Birthday.
"My hands went numb when he hugged me tightly, and all I could smell was his cologne and wonderful scent.
"His body felt very toned, his hands were very soft. After that, I just cried because I was in shock."
Calling it a fantastic way to turn 21, Ms Liew said her boyfriend, who was not at the concert, was also over the moon for her when he found out that Gary had hugged her.
The rapper was all swag when he performed his hits like Zotto Mola, Can't Break-up Girl Can't Breakaway Boy, Bicycle and Your Scent.
Korean singer Jung In, a special guest at the gig, sang with him on the last three tracks.
But fans of Running Man's Monday Couple - because the show is filmed every Monday - got the most bang for their buck when Gary played up his on-screen love for fellow cast member, actress Song Ji Hyo.
When the emcee tried to teach him the word "chio" (Hokkien for pretty), he purposely misheard it and repeated: "Ji Hyo?"
The crowd went wild, especially those wearing Song masks and caps.
When the emcee said he liked the actress as well, Gary went into overprotective boyfriend mode and told him to back off in mock anger.
"Try to erase Ji Hyo from your heart," he said. "It's not good to have two people liking one girl."
All eyes were on Gary when he was asked if he was going to propose to Song in real life.
SHIPPERS
Hardcore Monday Couple shippers - the term used for fans who like a particular pair on the show - squealed with laughter when Gary joked: "If it's not Monday, she doesn't even look at me."
One person that Gary cannot forget is the girl he played the Pepero game with when he was here for Leessang's showcase last year.
Pepero is a cookie stick and the game requires two people to chew it at opposite ends till their lips touch
Said Gary: "When I think of Singapore, I remember that game because she ran away right after kissing me.
"Is she here? Is the girl who kissed me (last year) here tonight?"
Ms Winnie Tan, 23, an administrative assistant, who was seated in the middle section of the theatre, stood up with her friend and yelled, "I'm here!"
Unfortunately, Gary could not see or hear her, and gave up searching after he thought there was no response.
He quipped: "That's why I didn't bring any Pepero with me this time."
Meet the real Gary
In a chat with the local media, Gary talks about going solo with his album, Mr Gae, that was released early this year.
Q: THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU'RE PERFORMING SOLO, DO YOU FEEL LONELY NOT PERFORMING AS PART OF LEESSANG?
G: Yes, I do feel a bit lonely. A solo album can be good and bad. The good part is that it's challenging me a bit more and since all the stress is on, I'm enjoying it.
Q: YOU DO MUSIC AND VARIETY SHOWS. WHAT SATISFACTION DO YOU GET FROM THE TWO GENRES?
G: Music is something I do alone, so the only struggle is within me. In the variety world, I work with a lot of people and the good energy that I get from them helps me produce better music.
Q: WHO IS THE REAL GARY? THE ONE WE SEE ON STAGE OR IN RUNNING MAN?
G: I don't find anything different about these two sides of myself. I know that the audience feels that I act like a fool and I am blur on Running Man. On stage, they find me more charismatic. Actually, both of these facades illustrate the actual me.
Q: HOW HAS FINDING FAME CHANGED YOUR LIFE?
G: When I'm eating, people take photos of me and they post all these ugly pictures of me online. It's every time I'm eating something. If you search 'Gary hamburger' on websites, you'll probably find one of these ugly pictures. I'm human too and I want to look good as well, so these things do stress me out. But that being said, I'm really thankful because if no one knew me, I'd be even more stressed, I think.
Q: WOULD YOU CONSIDER ACTING?
G: I love watching movies, it's really cool to be an actor. I don't know if I can pull off those scenes though. But if I were given the chance, I would love to challenge myself, probably with a role that requires me to play a fool. I love Andy Garcia, he's really handsome.
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