Sandara Park was in Singapore yesterday (July 16) to mark the start of a new adventure.
The 41-year-old K-pop star met local press and announced her personal label Aradnas’ partnership with company Power Entertainment for representation in Southeast Asia (SEA).
She spoke about the milestone after over 20 years in showbiz, where she started with a singing and acting career in the Philippines from 2004 before debuting with South Korean girl group 2NE1 in 2009.
“Now, for the first time, I’m actually directly involved in not only composing songs, but also producing my own album,” said Sandara, who’s also known as Dara. “Right now, my biggest homework that I’m focusing on is how I can deliver the message that I want to tell fans through my music.”
In June, she released her single album Reprism featuring the songs Nail and a remake of her 2023 single Festival.
The former was inspired by her past habit of trimming her nails to learn the guitar, telling the story of a newfound crush.
She added to reporters later: “It’s been 22 years since my debut and I’m actually feeling a little sad that I started now.
“The time when I started cutting my nails and playing the guitar was more than 10 years ago when I had just debuted with 2NE1. At the time, I’d just listen to music using my iPods and appreciate songs on my own. But it’s only recently that I started to realise I can write my own songs and put my story into them.”
Sandara added that even though she might be “slower” compared to her peers, she expects to tell her narrative more earnestly from now on.
Besides being a singer, Sandara also has acting experience with her appearances in projects like Filipino series Komiks and Your Voice (2006). When asked if she has any plans going forward with her screen career, she told AsiaOne that acting is an area she has constantly worked on since shooting to fame in the region.
She mentioned possibly diving into acting again once she wraps up album releases and meeting fans through her upcoming events.
However, her focus remains on music. “My main job is to be a singer, right? Ironically, even though I did activities arduously with 2NE1 – I was very active – I feel like it wasn’t enough music activity for me,” said Sandara.
“Right now, my biggest goal is to tell my story as a solo artist and as Sandara Park through my own voice. That’s what I really want right now.”
She shared that her motivation stems from fans’ trust and faith, which she feels a huge responsibility for.
She explained: “It’s not only responsibility towards my fans, but also on myself. In the past years, I feel like I’ve been committed to doing things that I know I could do. But from now on, I want to do things that I know will be challenging and hard, while showing fans the parts of me I have yet to, and go on stage with music and choreography I’d like to try.”
Coming home
The remake of Festival in Reprism has a new harder rock sound compared to her 2023 version.
Sandara noted that while many fans were receptive to the change, others hoped for more novelty. “There are some fans who kind of nagged me, saying, ‘Are you repeating what you did?’ Though I had the same sentiment because I’m also human and have the same way of thinking.
“Before making this decision, I contemplated it a lot because originally Festival wasn’t going to be the track for release. It first started when I thought if I should create a new version of it. And when I heard the result, Festival was so good and I really liked it, so that’s why I felt like starting with it would help me re-tell my story.”
She also said the music in Reprism is “quite strong”, a stark contrast from the cutesy rendition of the original Festival track. In unveiling a different side of herself, she wanted to show that she could do more genres including rock.
Aradnas announced on June 11 that Sandara would go on a fan-con tour this year around Asia, with stops including Seoul, Macau, Tokyo, Bangkok and Hong Kong.
The Philippines, where she spent 11 years of her childhood, was excluded due to local contractual arrangements and business-related considerations.
“I grew up in the Philippines, so I’m used to this kind of weather and heat. Whenever I come back to this region, it feels like I’m coming home,” she reminisced.
“Each country has a different way of enjoying performances and every time I return, it feels like Southeast Asia is uniting in their dancing and singing. The energy is just next level, it’s different.”
Though she has yet to discover artists from the region, she is open to recommendations from fans and is looking forward to singing songs from the countries she visits.
On signing with Power Entertainment to connect with SEA, Sandara emphasised their role in bringing her artistic vision to life. She harkened to her multicultural background from South Korea and the Philippines, sharing that she has different personas and ways of expressing herself in new environments.
She explained: “I feel like I adapt to diverse languages, cultures, people and the ways to relate to them. It’s just become who I am.
“Until now, I feel like I haven’t started but now that I’m solo, I want to create a more mirrored experience with local fans, where we can both relate to and be empathetic with one another.”
Sandara will be at Orchard Central, Level 1 Atrium on July 17 at 7pm, where selected shoppers can score an exclusive meet-and-greet with her, complete with a hi-bye session and group photo opportunity.
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kristy.chua@asiaone.com
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