bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

The Korea Times

By Pyo Kyung-min
In the dynamic world of K-pop, new idol groups are frequently hailed as unique or exceptional. Big Ocean, a boy band who debuted in April, truly live up to these claims.
The trio – Park Hyun-jin, Lee Chan-yeon and Kim Ji-seok – are making waves not only for their music but also for breaking new ground as K-pop’s first idol group with hearing loss.
When the group debuted on April 20, coinciding with Korea’s Day of People with Disabilities, many questioned whether a deaf group could thrive in the music industry.

However, Big Ocean have defied the scepticism, evolving into a fully fledged K-pop group with three singles already to their credit.
Despite their hectic schedules as idols, the members of Big Ocean enthusiastically express their happiness at the opportunity to connect with fans.
“Our fans are fully aware of our hearing difficulties,” Lee says. “During performances, they’re considerate enough to hold back their cheers so that we can hear the music better and then they give us thunderous applause as soon as the performance ends. It’s the most touching experience.
“Seeing that from our fans makes me feel like becoming an idol was the right choice.”
The members’ diverse backgrounds add to the richness of their story.
Lee, who worked as an audiologist at a university hospital, joined Park, a YouTuber actively raising awareness about hearing disabilities, and Kim, a former Paralympic alpine skier, to form Big Ocean.

Using cochlear implants, hearing aids and lip-reading to communicate, they have no trouble interacting with spoken language during our interview.
However, the members reveal that entering the world of music posed a different set of challenges.
“The three of us have different levels of hearing ability,” Kim says. “During recording, we often struggle to stay on beat because we can’t hear the rhythm of the track clearly. It’s hard to fix this on our own, so we rely on the staff’s hand signals to help us stay in sync.”
“Tuning our voices is also challenging,” Park adds. “We use an app that helps us match our pitch and then we memorise the amount of muscle effort needed to produce each note. It’s not easy to remember the muscle tension required to hit the right notes, so we focus a lot of our training on that.”
To overcome these challenges, the group also received support from artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which was designed to learn and adapt to the members’ voice data.
For choreography rehearsals, they use a smartwatch-style metronome that provides pulse feedback through vibration, along with a visual metronome on a monitor that helps maintain rhythm with light cues.
Right now, the concepts of disability and non-disability are separated, but ultimately, we want to see a world where those boundaries are erased
Park Hyun-jin of Big Ocean
The world was quick to applaud the group’s efforts when their debut song “Glow” was finally released after much hard work. The group’s official YouTube channel surpassed 100,000 subscribers in less than a month, reaching 159,000 by August 28.
Their debut also attracted attention from an unexpected source: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization (WHO). On his official X account, he wrote: “Congratulations for your debut as the world’s first K-pop group with hearing loss. I salute you for breaking barriers and the stigma of disabilities.”
Kim says: “I felt pride in the reactions from those around me when I became part of such a groundbreaking idol group. Friends and parents sent me messages, praising my courage for taking a path no one had travelled before.
“I especially remember my parents encouraging me by saying that, ‘You are special just by being yourselves, but the fact that you’re performing on stage makes you even more extraordinary.’ Receiving that kind of support inspires me to keep being a positive influence on others.”
K-pop fans have also showered them with praise for overcoming barriers as individuals with disabilities.
One YouTube comment on the group’s performance video read: “This is truly beyond just being a boy band: it will likely be a great source of strength for people [with hearing loss] all over the world.”
Another user, revealing their use of a hearing aid, wrote: “It’s nice to see people representing a community that is a huge part of my life.”

Despite their groundbreaking achievements, Big Ocean strive to be recognised beyond their disabilities, rather than being solely defined by the label of the first K-pop boy band with hearing loss.
“While we do carry the title of the world’s first idols with hearing loss, we don’t want our disabilities to define our group’s entire identity,” Park says.
“Like other K-pop groups, we want to carry out our activities just the same and we hope that when people first encounter us, they’ll naturally think, ‘Oh, I didn’t know they are hard of hearing. That’s cool.’”
The decision to pursue the same activities as other K-pop idols reflects the inclusive message Big Ocean ultimately aims to convey: to create a barrier-free world where people with and without disabilities are viewed equally.
“Honestly, I hope the term ‘barrier-free’ disappears altogether,” Park says.
“Right now, the concepts of disability and non-disability are separated, but ultimately, we want to see a world where those boundaries are erased and everyone is naturally and equally accepted as just people.”
Read the full story at The Korea Times.


5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, November 22-24

Why Miriam Yeung, leading Hong Kong singer and actress, ‘lost her whole self’ for a while

Singer joins Ed Sheeran in criticising Band Aid’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas’ song

5 shows to see in Hong Kong this weekend, November 22-24, including Elim Chan’s return

Music

Meet Big Ocean, the first deaf K-pop idol group, and find out how they make music

(From left) Kim Ji-seok, Park Hyun-jin and Lee Chan-yeon of Big Ocean. Photo: Courtesy of Parastar Entertainment

(From left) Kim Ji-seok, Park Hyun-jin and Lee Chan-yeon of Big Ocean. The deaf boy band are breaking new ground as K-pop’s first idol group with hearing loss. Photo: Courtesy of Parastar Entertainment

(From left) Kim Ji-seok, Park Hyun-jin and Lee Chan-yeon of Big Ocean. The three members all have different levels of hearing ability. Photo: Courtesy of Parastar Entertainment

The group’s official YouTube channel has nearly 160,000 subscribers. Photo: Instagram/big_ocean.official

Big Ocean want to create a barrier-free world where people with and without disabilities are viewed equally. Photo: Courtesy of Parastar Entertainment

How K-pop boy band SF9 are keeping things fresh, as new mini-album Fantasy drops

K-pop boy group SF9. Photo: Courtesy of FNC Entertainment

K-pop boy group SF9 dropped their new mini-album Fantasy on August 19. Photo: Courtesy of FNC Entertainment

SF9 debuted in 2016. Photo: Courtesy of FNC Entertainment

SF9 members Hwiyoung (left) and Inseong. Photo: Courtesy of FNC Entertainment

Jay Park on ‘awkward’ fan meeting, why he didn’t do one for 11 years, and his soju brand

Korean-American music Jay Park talks on stage during a fan meeting at Myunghwa Live Hall in Seoul, South Korea, on August 11, 2024. Photo: AP

Korean-American rap and R&B star Jay Park holds a garlic light stick on stage during a fan meeting at Myunghwa Live Hall in Seoul, South Korea, on August 11, 2024. Photo: AP

Park (left) makes his viral garlic health drinks on stage during a fan meeting at Myunghwa Live Hall in Seoul, South Korea, on August 11, 2024. Photo: AP

Park (left) at the fan meeting at Myunghwa Live Hall. Photo: AP

Park performs at the fan meeting at Myunghwa Live Hall. Photo: AP

Le Sserafim fly-on-the-wall documentary divides opinion about K-pop girl group

K-pop girl group Le Sserafim have released a fly-on-the-wall documentary. Photo: Source Music


Fly-on-the-wall YouTube documentary Le Sserafim – Make It Look Easy has drawn both sympathy and criticism for its focus on the challenges members of the K-pop girl group face. Photo: Source Music

A still from K-pop girl group Le Sserafim’s newly released documentary.

The best new K-pop music dropping in August 2024 from Le Sserafim, Taemin, Nmixx and more

August will see K-pop album and single releases from a variety of acts including girl group Nmixx. Photo: JYP Entertainment

Taemin marks his return to solo work. Photo: BPM Entertainment

Global K-pop stars Stray Kids in UK festival debut ahead of ‘comeback’ album ATE’s release

Stray Kids perform live at British Summer Time Hyde Park in London on July 14, 2024.  “This is a career highlight,” the popular K-pop group said. Photo: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Stray Kids perform live at British Summer Time Hyde Park in London. Photo: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Stray Kids members on stage at British Summer Time Hyde Park in London. Photo: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Lifestyle

K-Pop

Bands

Health & Wellness

Health

The boy band already have three singles to their credit and attracted the praise of WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus


Korean boy band Big Ocean are making waves not only for their music but for being the first deaf K-pop idol group, even attracting the praise of WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
