Rain Asia Tour in Hong Kong 2009
Sat-Nov 29, 8pm, AsiaWorld Expo
Although he is better known for his six-pack abs than his R&B vocals, South Korean pop sensation Rain, 27, can't seem to stop winning the hearts of women around the world - most recently, Megan Fox's.
In July the then newly-single sex symbol declared her crush on an Australian radio station. When asked who she would like to date, Fox replied: 'There is this Korean Justin Timberlake named Rain and I'm really on his situation now. I'm trying to fix this up. I'm working hard.'
Rain has quietly ignored this: he has always been known to put work first.
Born Jeong Ji-hoon, Rain (above) started in the music industry in his early teens as a backup dancer, allegedly rejected as a solo artist because he didn't have double-lidded eyes. He gave himself the stage name Bi (pronounced 'bee'), which means 'rain' in Korean, because he liked the way rain makes him feel.
Rain's big break came when he was discovered by legendary producer Park Jin-young, who roped in the quiet but expert moonwalker for his production company, JYP Entertainment. The years Rain spent perfecting Michael Jackson moves paid off as he won competition after competition against other pop-star hopefuls.
Since his debut as a solo artist in 2002, Rain has recorded five albums, won dozens of regional artist awards, and is possibly the most recognised K-pop name in the US.
In 2006, he became the first Asian to perform at New York City's Madison Square Garden, and performed a sold-out concert in Las Vegas.
A year later he appeared on Time magazine's Time 100 list, and gamely accepted a dance-off with American comedian Stephen Colbert on his satirical news show.
Last year he performed at the Beijing Olympics' closing ceremony, which was followed by his Hollywood debut with a role in Speed Racer.
This weekend, Rain returns to Hong Kong to perform a medley of hits from his five albums.
'If I really have to choose a couple of my favourite ones, I would pick Bad Guy and Rainism,' he says. 'Bad Guy is my debut song and Rainism is my latest [album] title song. And there are a couple of new dances I have prepared just for this tour.'
Besides performing at AsiaWorld Expo this Saturday, Rain is promoting his third film this week, the Wachowski brothers' Ninja Assassin, in which he stars.
'I love acting, singing and dancing. Asking me to choose which I like more is like asking me to pick between my father and mother,' Rain says.
'I'm not perfect at any of those, but at least I can try to work hard for all of them.'
HK International Airport, Lantau, HK$380-HK$1,280 HK Ticketing. Inquiries: 3606 8828
