OUT NOW: “AMERIKA (CHECKMATE)” FROM KPOP THE MUSICAL
Along with producers Tim Forbes and Joey Parnes, we are excited to announce the premiere the new track “Amerika (Checkmate)” from KPOP – Original Broadway Cast Recording – listen here. Following the release of “Super Star” and “Upduryuh (Bow Down),” “Amerika (Checkmate)” is the third track to be made available from the forthcoming Original Cast Recording of KPOP, which is set for digital release on Monday, May 8 and on CD Friday, May 12. Featuring vocals by KPOP boy group F8, “Amerika (Checkmate)” debuts today alongside an accompanying performance video – watch here.
Of the track, Music and Album Producer, Composer, and Lyricist Helen Park notes: “This number describes the tension between people that couldn’t be more opposite from each other — who are also oppressed under the same power, America. My goal with this song was to bring out this tension and duality without one overpowering the other.”
Available for preorder and presave now, KPOP – Original Broadway Cast Recording was produced by Helen Park, Matt Stein, and Harvey Mason jr. (NCT 127, Red Velvet), and features music, lyrics, music production and arrangements by Park and music and lyrics by Max Vernon. The first-ever Broadway musical to celebrate Korean culture with Korean, Korean-American, and API representation on and off-stage, the album features a star-studded cast of performers from the world of K-pop, including chart-topping superstar and lead Luna, BoHyung (from the K-pop group SPICA and half of the duo KEEMBO), Min (from the K-pop group Miss A), Kevin Woo (from the K-pop group U-KISS), and more.
KPOP – ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST RECORDING
ALBUM TRACKLISTING –
1. This Is My Korea 우리 이야기
2. 엎드려 Upduryuh (Bow Down) (Intro)
3. 엎드려 Upduryuh (Bow Down)
4. F8 Intro
5. 한국놈 Hanguknom (Korean Man)
6. Still I Love You 아직도 사랑해
7. Perfect 완벽한 걸
8. Wind Up Doll 태엽인형
9. Halfway 중간 지점
10. Super Star 슈퍼스타
11. 시간 낭비 Shi Gan Nang Bee (Waste of Time)
12. 벙어리새 Bung Uh Ree Sae (Mute Bird)
13. Amerika (Checkmate) 아메리카
14. Supergoddess 슈퍼가디스
15. Gin & Tonic 진 앤 토닉
16. Meant 2 B 멘 투 비
17. 흔들어 Hun Du Ruh (Shake It)
18. Phoenix 불사조
19. Blast Off 발사
KPOP PERFORMANCE VIDEOS:
“Amerika (Checkmate)”
The exhilarating energy of a stadium concert meets the talent and passion of your favorite musical in KPOP. Packed with pulse-pounding new music this original musical explores the relentless discipline, raw talent, and commercial ambition behind the international sensation. As global superstars put everything on the line for a special one-night-only concert, they face struggles both cultural and personal that threaten to dismantle one of the industry’s hottest labels. Featuring a cast of K-pop and musical theater stars, it was a multimedia experience unlike anything else on Broadway.
Starring K-pop super star Luna as MwE, KPOP, the new Broadway musical, premiered on November 27, 2022 at Circle in the Square Theatre. Directed by Teddy Bergman, KPOP features a book by Jason Kim; choreography by Jennifer Weber; music, lyrics, music production and arrangements by Helen Park; and music and lyrics by Max Vernon and was conceived by Woodshed Collective and Jason Kim. KPOP also starred Julia Abueva, BoHyung, Major Curda, Jinwoo Jung, Jiho Kang, Amy Keum, James Kho, Marina Kondo, Eddy Lee, Joshua Lee, Jully Lee, Lina Rose Lee, Timothy H. Lee, Abraham Lim, Kate Mina Lin, Aubie Merrylees, Min, Patrick Park, Kevin Woo, Zachary Noah Piser, and John Yi.
KPOP was produced by Tim Forbes, Joey Parnes, Jay Alix & Una Jackman, Hunter Arnold, Kayla Greenspan, Ad Hoc Live Entertainment, Sony Music Masterworks, James L. Nederlander, John Gore Organization, Ira Pittelman, Salman Al-Rashid, Gideon Friedman, Dodge Hall Productions & Courage the Producer, Jamie deRoy & Dawn Smalberg, Eric Falkenstein, Suzanne Grant, John Paterakis, Susan Vargo, Miranda Gohh and Hui-Dress, and in association with Ars Nova. Music Direction by Sujin Kim-Ramsey, Scenic Design by Gabriel Hainer Evansohn, Costume Design by Clint Ramos & Sophia Choi, Lighting Design by Jiyoun Chang, Sound Design by Peter Fitzgerald & Andrew Keister, Projection Design by Peter Nigrini, Hair & Wig Design by Mia M. Neal, Makeup Design by Joe Dulude II & Suki Tsujimoto, Music Production Supervision by Matt Stine, Casting by Tara Rubin Casting and the Production Stage Manager was Cherie B. Tay.
Harvey Mason jr. has not only penned and produced songs for industry legends like Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, and Elton John, but also for today’s superstars including Justin Bieber, Beyonce, John Legend, Ariana Grande, Justin Timberlake, and Chris Brown. In addition to his work with American artists, he has also garnered hundreds of millions of streams and millions of albums sold in Korea and was one of the first American producers to begin producing K-pop. Traveling to Korea at least once a year since 2014, he now has dozens of cuts in the Korean music market, writing huge songs for groups like EXO, NCT 127, Girls Generation, BoA, Red Velvet, SHINee, and many more. With his high-level experience in both film music and K-Pop, Harvey is uniquely qualified to bring the music for this project to life.
Helen Park is the first Asian female composer on Broadway. A three-time Drama Desk nominee and recipient of the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical and the Richard Rodgers Award, her music has been described as “perversely addictive” (The New York Times) and “infectious” (The Hollywood Reporter). Park wrote music and lyrics as well as music produced and arranged the score for the Broadway musical KPOP, which will be released digitally as an Original Broadway Cast Recording on May 8, 2023. The earlier Off-Broadway production of the show was sold out and was the most nominated show of the 2017-2018 season. In addition, Park wrote songs for the Oscar-nominated Netflix Original Animated Feature musical, Over the Moon (2020). Aside from The New York Times and The Hollywood Reporter, Park has been featured in VOGUE, ELLE, Grammy.com, and NPR’s Weekend Edition. Named “the calmest, coolest, chicest, young prodigy in town” (Broadway World), Park performed a sold-out solo concert at Feinstein’s/54 Below in NYC. Park is an alumnus of NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program and the BMI Lehman Engel Advanced Musical Theater Workshop and is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
Max Vernon is a playwright, composer, and lyricist whose musicals include The View UpStairs (30+ productions including New York, Chicago, Tokyo, London, and Sydney), KPOP, The Tattooed Lady, and Show & Tell. They are a three-time Drama Desk nominee, Out100 Honoree, two-time MacDowell Fellow, Dramatist Guild Fellow and recipient of the Lucille Lortel Award, Richard Rodgers Award, Jonathan Larson Grant, Pew Arts and Culture Grant, JFund Award (Jerome Foundation), and New York Foundation of the Arts Fellowship, among others. They have also written work for Audible, Disney, Virgin Group, and Tyra Banks. Notable concerts include Joe’s Pub, the Kennedy Center, Kimmel Center, Lincoln Center, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They earned an MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.
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SONY MUSIC MASTERWORKS is a global entertainment company specializing in recorded music and live experiences. Theatrical productions and cast albums include Almost Famous, The Old Man and the Pool, Back to the Future, Sing Street, Lempicka, POTUS, Macbeth (Daniel Craig), Flying Over Sunset, The Prom, SpongeBob, Harry Potter, Hello, Dolly! (Bette Midler), Kinky Boots and Once, plus the musicalfilm soundtracks The Prom, Tick, Tick…Boom!, and Matilda. For email updates and information please visit www.sonymusicmasterworks.com/.
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