Korean Reporter Recalled Last Phone Call With Late Shinsadong Tiger To Show What A Great Man He Was

In an article posted on February 25, reporter Kim Hyun-sik from the Korean media outlet eDaily recalled the conversations he had with the late producer Shinsadong Tiger. The article is as follows:

At around 3:30 p.m. on February 20th, I called music producer Shinsadong Tiger (S.Tiger, real name Lee Ho-yang). It was right after TRI.BE, a girl group he produced, held an on-site showcase at Sungam Art Hall in Gangnam-gu, Seoul for the press for their new single “Diamond”.

I often talked about music with Shinsadong Tiger on the phone. We also had a face-to-face interview at his studio. The reason I called that day was to say hello to him after spending a long time at TRI.BE’s showcase. “Diamond” is also an album that he produced.

Shinsadong Tiger answered the phone, saying, “Have you returned safely?” As if he knew I had made a call after the showcase. He then said, “Please take care of TRI.BE.”

He said he couldn’t come to the showcase. He answered the phone at his studio. He said he was working on a new song for the boy group TAN. He added that Jae-joon, a former member of TREI, a boy group who had previous relationships with Banana Culture Entertainment, is now in TAN. It was good to see that he maintained his relationship with other artists.

I talked a little more with Shinsadong Tiger. When I said, “These days, promotional videos for your composing lectures keep popping up on my SNS algorithm,” he replied, “I’m helping my acquaintance’s business,” and gave a unique loud and pleasant laugh. At the end of the phone call, I said, “I’ll visit the studio soon and greet you for the first time in a while,” then Shinsadong Tiger replied, “Any time is good.”

Industry insiders say that Shinsadong Tiger is a person who truly loved music. I have the same thought. When I asked over the phone for his opinion on K-pop industry issues or music genre, Shinsadong Tiger would respond kindly and passionately, saying, “Conversations related to music are always welcome.” When asked about a specific topic, he always gave sincere explanations from A to Z.

In a face-to-face interview conducted at the studio about two years ago in the fall, I could clearly feel how serious he was about music. At that time, he said, “I go to the studio as soon as I wake up, and I just work until the evening, and then I leave work,” and added, “I am studying two or three times harder about music than before.”

“I used to have a lot of links to shopping malls on my favorite Internet list, but now I only have music-related pages. Haha. I’m mainly researching Afro beat genre music that is popular all over the world these days.”

What was particularly impressive was that he was also interested in paving the way for junior producers. “We are also making efforts to discover new producers with outstanding skills,” Tiger said. “I often give connection to those who don’t get the opportunity to sell their works.”

At the time, Shinsadong Tiger said, “In order for K-pop to continue to develop, the treatment of writers must be improved,” and expressed his desire, “I hope that the staff will be guaranteed their rights as much as the artists.” As well as being an ongoing “hit song maker” who has written a number of hit songs, he is also a music producer who was interested in the development of the K-pop industry and the growth of his juniors, so his death feels more regrettable.

Shinsadong Tiger’s funeral will be held at the funeral hall of Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital at 2 p.m. on February 25. I pray for the soul of the deceased.

Source: eDaily