f(x) (Korean: 에프엑스; pronounced /ˌɛf ˈɛks/) is a five member South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment in 2009. The name is a play on the mathematical notation for function, with "f" signifying "flower" and "x" representing the female's double X chromosome. The group members have also been nicknamed "function girls". The group made their debut on September 1, 2009 with release of a digital single "La Cha Ta" (stylized as "LA chA TA"). The quintet consists of Victoria, Amber, Luna, Sulli and Krystal.Krystal Jung was first spotted by SM Entertainment in 2000, which earned her a small role in a short segment of Shinhwa's "Wedding March" music video. Sulli Choi first debuted as a child actress in 2005 when she was selected to play young Princess Sun-hwa in the SBS television drama, The Ballad of Seo-dong. In 2006, SM Entertainment recruited Luna after seeing her performing on SBS's television program, "Truth Game". Victoria was scouted by SM in Beijing in September of 2007 at a dance competition. 2 months later, Amber was cast from an audition in Los Angeles, California, where she was one of two people (one male) selected to be trainees. SM first released a teaser preview of the group via YouTube on August 24, introducing them as "Asia's Pop Dance Group." For five days, SM individually released information through news portals and posted pictures of each member on SM Town's official website, starting with Korean member Sulli on August 26, Taiwanese-American member Amber on August 27, Korean-American member Krystal on August 28, Korean member Luna on August 29, and lastly the Chinese member Victoria on August 30. On September 1, the group's first single "La Cha Ta" (stylized as "LA chA TA") was digitally released.
Following their first performance at the Samseong-dong Fashion Center on September 2, the music video was screened and released online the next day. The group's first broadcast performance of "La Cha Ta" was held at MBC's music show Show! Music Core on September 5. On October 7, the group also released the electro-pop version of the digital single, "Chocolate Love", alongside their label mate Girls' Generation. The single was released for the promotion of the 4th edition Blacklabel series of LG CYON phone, LG Chocolate (BL40. It was announced by SM Entertainment that Amber returned from USA after a long leave since June 2010 and that f(x) are planning to release a studio album in the first half of the year. The first teaser photo for their full-length album entitled Pinocchio was released on April 7, 2011 at the f(x) official website. The MV teaser for the lead single, "Pinocchio (Danger)", was released on April 15, 2011. The album was released on April 20, 2011 and the group held their first comeback stage through KBS’s Music Bank on April 22, 2011. The group have achieved 8-wins from the music shows, namely M! Countdown, Music Bank and Inkigayo. On June 8th, it was announced that f(x) will be releasing their repackaged album of Pinocchio, titled "Hot Summer", on the 14th. It will include all 10 songs from their first album and new track "Hot Summer" (written by Thomas Troelsen and Remee), their OST song for "Paradise Ranch" and digital singles "Chu" and "La Cha Ta."
f(x) "Hot Summer" Song
f(x) with their red costume in their video clip in "Hot Summer"
"Mean" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, taken from her third studio album, Speak Now. The song, solely written by Swift, and produced by Nathan Chapman and Swift was first released as a promotional single on October 17, 2010, by Big Machine Records. The song was later released as an official single on March 14, 2011. The song contains heavy elements of fiddles and banjos, with critics saying that it was the most country song on Speak Now. According to Swift, she wrote the song to get back at her critics who constantly question her songs as well as her ability to sing. Upon its release as a promotional single, the song garnered mixed to positive reviews from critics for its lyrical detail and profound country sound. "Mean" received commercial success in the United States and Canada, debuting at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100 and number ten on the Canadian Hot 100.
The song also appeared on the Australian Singles Chart at number forty-five. It was later re-released as the third official single from Speak Now, and re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number ninety. Additionally, "Mean" became Swift's thirteenth consecutive single to reach top ten on Hot Country Songs when it jumped from number 12 to number 9 on the week ending May 14, 2011. This achievement makes Swift as one of the two women (the other being Carrie Underwood) to begin their chart histories with as many consecutive top 10s dating to the survey's 1944 launch. The song's accompanying music video was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who developed the concept together with Swift. Upon release, it received mixed reviews from critics who perceived ambivalent messages in the video, despite the prevalent self-empowerment and anti-bullying themes. "Mean" was performed for the first time by Swift at the 46th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards on April 3, 2011.
Taylor Swift "Mean" Song
In an exclusive interview with E! News as part of an ongoing series leading up to the release of her third studio album, Speak Now, Swift expressed that "Mean" is a response to people who constantly criticize whatever she does. She said, "there's constructive criticism, there's professional criticism, and then there's just being mean. And there's a line that you cross when you just start to attack everything about a person." In another interview with Dose.ca, Swift revealed that she wrote the song to get back at her critics, saying "there's a song called 'Mean,' that I guess you could categorize it into feelings and or relationships but it's actually about a critic." Swift also wished that the song would appeal to people of all ages in different situations. She continued, "this happens no matter what you do, no matter how old you are, no matter what your job is, no matter what your place is in life, there's always gonna be someone who's just mean to you. And dealing with that is all that you can control, how you handle it. This song is about how I handle it." In NBC's 2010 Thanksgiving Special, Swift indicated that this song was about feeling small because of somebody else. She said, "there are certain things that make me feel better. One of them is writing songs, and the other is having people around that I really love. Some of them are my band." It was released to country radio as the third single on March 14, 2011. Two exclusive packages were released to Swift's official store one included a T-shirt, an individually-numbered "Mean" CD single and an autographed lithograph. This package is no longer available. The other package (which is still available) has just the T-shirt and CD single. Only 2,500 copies of the CD single were made.
The accompanying music video for "Mean" was directed by Declan Whitebloom. It was shot over two days in Los Angeles, with the Orpheum Theatre serving as its backdrop. The concept of the video was developed by both Swift and Whitebloom, who praised Swift's commitment and involvement with the production of the music video. In an interview with MTV News, Whitebloom said that "Mean" is very personal to Swift because lyrically it's about a critic who was a little too harsh on her. However, he added that people can relate to its message, saying "We all have similar stories in our life that hit similar emotional cues, and to open it up and make it broader about lots of people and situations .. makes it much more accessible." Whitebloom described the video as vignettes that feature scenes from all different time periods, from vaudevillian scenes to scenes resembling O Brother, Where Art Thou?. He also stated that the video was inspired by Swift's performance at the 46th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. Child star Joey King is featured in the video. Prior to the release of the video, Jocelyn Vena of MTV predicted that the video of "Mean" will be "a honky-tonk-type performance video, in which [Swift] and her band have a little fun at someone's expense." The music video premiered on Country Music Television on May 6, 2011, at 22:00 EST (03:00 UTC).
"Mean" was released as a promotional single from Speak Now on October 19, 2010, as part of Countdown to Speak Now, an exclusive campaign by the iTunes Store. Upon its release as a promotional single, "Mean" debuted at number two on the Billboard's Hot Digital Songs with approximately 163,000 downloads, which led to its appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week ending October 30, 2010. "Mean" debuted and peaked at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100, making Swift the first act to claim the chart's top debut (Hot Shot Debut) in three successive weeks. The following week, the song fell off the chart. On the weeking ending November 6, 2010, the song also debuted on Hot Country Songs at number fifty-five. Upon its release as an official single, "Mean" re-entered Billboard Hot 100 at number 90. It also re-entered the Hot Country Songs at number 17, two weeks upon its release as a single. On the week ending May 14, 2011, Swift made a record when "Mean" jumped from number 12 to number 9 on the Hot Country Songs, becoming her thirteenth consecutive top ten hits on the chart. This achievement made Swift as one of the two women (the other being Carrie Underwood) to begin their chart histories with as many consecutive top 10s dating to the survey's 1944 launch. It peaked at #2 in June, having been blocked from #1 by Blake Shelton's "Honey Bee." Prior to the official release of the song as a single, digital sales accounted for "Mean"'s appearance on international charts. In Canada, the song entered the Canadian Hot 100 and peaked at number ten. It also made an appearance on the Australian Singles Chart at number forty-five on the week ending November 7, 2010., On May 17 2011 , Mean was certified Gold by the RIAA for shipments of 500,000.
The video begins with Swift and her band playing a banjo, all dressed in vintage-inspired clothes. The stage is set up like a front yard of a farmhouse. Then, Swift is shown being tied to the tracks by a villain, similar to the song's artwork. The villain and his friend laugh as she sits there helpless. However, Swift and the others are hardly the only victims in the video. A montage of Swift plucking away at her banjo is shown alternately throughout the video with scenes of a boy being bullied while reading a fashion magazine in a locker room by the football team and a girl, wearing a fast-food uniform, who is being made fun of by her peers. Another cut-scene shows a girl who is not allowed to sit with the popular clique at lunch and is forced to eat in the school bathroom. The next scene shows that the stage is transformed into a ritzy nightclub, with the singer all dazzled up in a sparkly flapper gown performing in the big leagues. It is revealed that the boy reading the fashion magazine is now a famous fashion designer; the fast food girl saves up for college and is a big-time executive. The final scene shows the other girl sitting as an audience watching and applauding as Swift finishes performing.
The music video was met with mixed reviews from the critics. Story Gilmore of Neon Limelight perceived the clip to be "adorable", while Amanda Lynne of Gather.com was not disappointed with the video and thought that Swift delivered once again. The Huffington Post called the video as effective that puts Swift alongside the underdogs and dreamers. Daily Mail praised the theme of the video which is about self-empowerment clip, writing "her new video for her upcoming single Mean depicts how young people picked on at school rise up and become successful later in life." The same opinion was echoed by Jocelyn Vena of MTV who wrote that the video "is the latest entry in an avalanche of empowering clips, which we've seen from artists like Katy Perry ("Firework") and Pink ("Raise Your Glass")." Ashley Iasimone of Taste of Country complimented Swift's looks in the video which corresponded with the video's art direction. She concluded that "it's difficult to not feel as empowered as superstar Swift. In a different perspective, Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly thought that the message in the music video was confusing, writing "Is she really equating a professional critic questioning her ability to sing at an awards show to getting bullied because you’re different?" Donna Kaufman of IVillage also felt the mixed messages in the video, stating "the video doesn't show Swift being bullied...Instead, she's a kind of savior to the outsider kids, who are all shallow stereotypes."
Rebecca Black (born June 21, 1997) is an American pop singer who gained worldwide attention with her 2011 single "Friday". Her mother paid $4,000 to have the single and an accompanying music video put out as a vanity release through the record label ARK Music Factory. The song was co-written and produced by Clarence Jey and Patrice Wilson of ARK Music Factory. After the video went viral on YouTube and other social media sites, "Friday" was derided by many music critics and viewers, who dubbed it "the worst song ever." The music video, uploaded to YouTube, has received more than 160 million views, causing Black to gain international attention as a "viral star". The song was released as a single and made the Billboard Hot 100 and other charts. As of June 2011 the video has been removed from YouTube pending a "copyright claim by [Rebecca] Black". Rebecca Black was born on June 21, 1997, in Anaheim, California. She is the daughter of John Jeffery Black and Georgina Marquez Kelly, both veterinarians, and is of Spanish, Italian, Polish, and English descent. An honor student, Black studied dance, auditioned for school shows, attended music summer camps, and began singing publicly in 2008 after joining the patriotic group Celebration USA.
In late 2010, a classmate of Black and music-video client of ARK Music Factory, a Los Angeles label, told her about the company. Black's mother paid $4,000 for Ark Music to produce her daughter's music video while the Blacks retained ownership of the master. The single, "Friday", written entirely by Ark, was released on YouTube and iTunes. The song's video was uploaded to YouTube on February 10, 2011, and received approximately 1,000 views in the first month. The video went viral on March 11, 2011, acquiring millions of views on YouTube in a matter of days, becoming the most-talked-about topic on social networking site Twitter, and garnering mostly negative media coverage. As of June 14, 2011, the video had received more than 3,190,000 "dislikes" on YouTube compared to more than 451,000 "likes". As of March 22, 2011, first-week sales of her digital single were estimated to be around 40,000 by Billboard. Black appeared on the March 22, 2011 episode of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, during which she performed the single and discussed the negative reaction to it.
The song has peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 and the New Zealand Singles Chart at number 58 and 33, respectively. In the UK, the song debuted at number 61 on the UK Singles Chart. In an interview with The Sun, Black said that she is recording a new song for possible release as a single. She is currently working without a record deal. She also said that she is preparing materials for her debut album at Flying Pig Productions studio in Los Angeles containing songs with themes similar to that of "Friday", as she wants it to be "appropriate and clean." Black teamed up with Funny or Die on April Fools Day (the site was renamed Friday or Die) for a series of videos, including one which addresses the controversy about the driving kids in her music video, stating "We so excited about safety." She has also stated that she is a fan of Justin Bieber, and expressed interest in performing a duet with him. In response to the YouTube video of "Friday", Black began to receive death threats in late February 2011, specifically by phone and email. These threats are being investigated by the Anaheim Police Department. In March 2011, Ryan Seacrest reportedly helped sign Rebecca to manager Debra Baum's DB Entertainment. MTV selected Rebecca to host its first online awards show, the O Music Awards Fan Army Party in April 2011. As a homage to "Friday", Black appears in the music video for Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)", in which Black plays alongside Perry as her best friend. "Friday" was also performed on the second season of Glee in the episode, "Prom Queen," which originally aired May 10, 2011. When asked about why the song was covered on Glee, show creator Ryan Murphy replied, "The show pays tribute to pop culture and, love it or hate it, that song is pop culture."
Kim So-eun (born September 6, 1989) is a South Korean actress under NOA Entertainment. She has appeared in a number of series and dramas, such as The Iron Empress and Sad Love Story. She is best known for the role of Chu Ga-eul in the popular drama series Boys Over Flowers.Kim So-eun, born September 6, 1989, is a South Korean actress and model. Her first acting role was a small part in the 2004 film "Two Guys", when she was still in junior high. Since then she has appeared in various films (including "Fly, Daddy, Fly" and "The Show Must Go On") but she is known more for her acting on TV. Her best-known TV role was in the 2009 Korean TV drama series "Boys Over Flowers", in which she played Chu Ga-eul, the love interest of Kim Bum's character, So Yi Jung. In 2009 she also played one of the lead roles in "The Man Who Can't Get Married". She has also appeared in music videos for musical acts like SHINee and 8eight, and has done commercials for Clean and Clear and Pocari Sweat. In 2009 she became the ambassador of the 5th Korea International Youth Film Festival.She currently attends Chung-Ang University majoring in Theater and Film with her good friends, Choi Woo Hyuk, Go Ara and Kim Bum.
Ku Hye Sun (Korean: 구혜선, born November 9, 1984) is a South Korean actress. An admirer of Leonardo Da Vinci, Ku also dabbles in directing, writing, illustrating, singing and composing. Ku entered the entertainment industry after gaining popularity on the internet as an ulzzang. She soon rose to fame in the drama Pure in Heart and surprised critics with her performance in the historical drama The King and I. But Ku is most well-known for portraying Geum Jan-di in the hit KBS drama Boys Over Flowers. With her drama The Musical currently without a broadcaster, Ku will next star in the Taiwanese drama adaptation of the manga Absolute Boyfriend. Originally set to debut as a singer (supposedly in a 3-member girl group with 2NE1's Park Bom and Sandara Park), YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun-seok advised Ku to pursue acting rather than music. In recent years, she has displayed her vocal talents through Saranga (which became the title song of Pure in Heart), a cover of Shim Soo-bong's I Don't Know Anything But Love (which played during a crucial scene in Boys Over Flowers),
and a duet of Kim Gun Mo's song Rain Falls on a Sleepless Night with Big Bang member Seungri on the music talk show Lee Hana's Peppermint. Ku has also composed an album of New Age music titled Breath. Ku wrote Tango, a semi-autobiographical novel about a twentysomething woman's experience with love and relationships. The book was a bestseller, selling 30,000 copies within a week. Its release coincided with her first solo art exhibition, also titled Tango, in July 2009 at La Mer Gallery, which attracted 10,000 visitors. The exhibition featured around 40 of Ku's illustrations, some from her novel. She has also done artwork for Gummy's fourth album Comfort. Ku made her official debut as a director through her short film The Madonna (Korean title translates to The Cheerful Caretaker) at the 13th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival. She has since written and directed her first feature-length film Magic, and pre-production on her second film Peach Tree is underway. In 2011 Ku established her own company, Ku Hye-sun Film, and she will produce and film her projects under its name, which will offer her a measure of legal/business protection.
Kanata Hongō (born November 15, 1990) is a Japanese actor and model. He is part of Stardust Talent agency and has appeared several times in music videos, movies, TV series, and magazines. His major breakthrough role was as the anime character Ryoma Echizen in the film adaptation of The Prince of Tennis, and became even more widely known when he was cast as Shin in Nana 2. In television, his most notable role was as Hinata in Himitsu no Hanazono and recently he starred in Seigi no Mikata.Hongō has appeared in several movies, including Moon Child, which also starred Gackt, Hyde and Leehom Wang. Hongō played the role of Sho as a child, while the adult role was played by Gackt. He appeared in a movie called Hinokio which was released in July 2005 in Japan. Hongō is also the young boy in the singer Yui's music video for her song "Tomorrow's Way." In 2006, Kanata was cast as the popular anime character Ryoma Echizen in the live-action adaptation film of The Prince of Tennis. He joined the majority of the Seigaku Regulars of the Prince of Tennis musicals as he was replacing Kotaro Yanagi, who couldn't play the role due to a car accident he was involved in.
GANTZ - Trailer 2 (subtitled)
Hongō also portrayed the young bassist Shinichi Okazaki in the movie Nana 2, which was released in Japan on December 9, 2006. He had replaced Kenichi Matsuyama, who had previously played Shin in the first Nana film. His next feature film was alongside Michael Pitt and Keira Knightley in Silk which was screened at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. This marked Hongō's first appearance in an English language film, where he played a Japanese servant boy. He also starred in another music video, B'zs "Eien no Tsubasa" along with Tsubasa Honda and in GReeeeN's music video of "Namida Sora". In television, Hongō's first major role was as major supporting character Hinata in Himitsu no Hanazono and performed a wonderful tear jerking moment in one of the later episodes. His superb job in acting lead him to being another major supporting character in the drama Seito Shokun! as rebellious student Kohei Aoki. Later, he appeared as a guest in two other shows. In 2008, he starred as Riku Okamoto in Seigi no Mikata, broadcasted by NTV. He said Okamoto was probably his most normal role to date. He was then featured in the music video for The Gospellers' "Sky High", which was the opening to the second season of anime Nodame Cantabile. Hongō starred in three films in late 2008. They included Aoi Tori, K-20: The Fiend with Twenty Faces and Goth. The latter two were released in Japan on the same day, December 20. Goth is based on a Japanese novel with the same name, written by Otsuichi.
Chloe Bridges (also known as Chloe Suazo) is an American actress, singer and musician. She was born on December 27, 1991 in Louisiana, USA. Bridges is best known for her role as Dana Turner in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. She has also appeared in the films Legally Blondes and Forget Me Not.
Chloe Bridges beautiful face
Chloe Bridges beautiful smile with her trendy fashion
f(x) (Korean: 에프엑스; pronounced /ˌɛf ˈɛks/) is a five member South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment in 2009. The name is a play on the mathematical notation for function, with "f" signifying "flower" and "x" representing the female's double X chromosome. The group members have also been nicknamed "function girls". The group made their debut on September 1, 2009 with release of a digital single "La Cha Ta" (stylized as "LA chA TA"). The quintet consists of Victoria, Amber, Luna, Sulli and Krystal.Krystal Jung was first spotted by SM Entertainment in 2000, which earned her a small role in a short segment of Shinhwa's "Wedding March" music video. Sulli Choi first debuted as a child actress in 2005 when she was selected to play young Princess Sun-hwa in the SBS television drama, The Ballad of Seo-dong. In 2006, SM Entertainment recruited Luna after seeing her performing on SBS's television program, "Truth Game". Victoria was scouted by SM in Beijing in September of 2007 at a dance competition. 2 months later, Amber was cast from an audition in Los Angeles, California, where she was one of two people (one male) selected to be trainees. SM first released a teaser preview of the group via YouTube on August 24, introducing them as "Asia's Pop Dance Group." For five days, SM individually released information through news portals and posted pictures of each member on SM Town's official website, starting with Korean member Sulli on August 26, Taiwanese-American member Amber on August 27, Korean-American member Krystal on August 28, Korean member Luna on August 29, and lastly the Chinese member Victoria on August 30. On September 1, the group's first single "La Cha Ta" (stylized as "LA chA TA") was digitally released.
Following their first performance at the Samseong-dong Fashion Center on September 2, the music video was screened and released online the next day. The group's first broadcast performance of "La Cha Ta" was held at MBC's music show Show! Music Core on September 5. On October 7, the group also released the electro-pop version of the digital single, "Chocolate Love", alongside their label mate Girls' Generation. The single was released for the promotion of the 4th edition Blacklabel series of LG CYON phone, LG Chocolate (BL40. It was announced by SM Entertainment that Amber returned from USA after a long leave since June 2010 and that f(x) are planning to release a studio album in the first half of the year. The first teaser photo for their full-length album entitled Pinocchio was released on April 7, 2011 at the f(x) official website. The MV teaser for the lead single, "Pinocchio (Danger)", was released on April 15, 2011. The album was released on April 20, 2011 and the group held their first comeback stage through KBS’s Music Bank on April 22, 2011. The group have achieved 8-wins from the music shows, namely M! Countdown, Music Bank and Inkigayo. On June 8th, it was announced that f(x) will be releasing their repackaged album of Pinocchio, titled "Hot Summer", on the 14th. It will include all 10 songs from their first album and new track "Hot Summer" (written by Thomas Troelsen and Remee), their OST song for "Paradise Ranch" and digital singles "Chu" and "La Cha Ta."
f(x) with their red costume in their video clip in "Hot Summer"
f(x) choreography concept in their video clip
f(x) and their cool costume concept
f(x) cool pose
