The Korea Herald

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Hangeul project helps expats put their stories in song

By Korea Herald

Published : Oct. 7, 2014 - 20:39

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Got something to get off your chest? Write it down and send it to the My Song Project and see your words performed to music ― in Korean.

The organizers of the My Song Project are collecting lyrics in all languages to convert them into Korean and write songs based on them.

The project was conceived by songwriter Kama and his wife Newzen, who is a teacher of Korean language and multicultural studies.

“We think everyone is a poet, and all of us have stories we hold onto, buried in our hearts. We thought that bringing these out and turning them into songs would give people wings,” said Kama.

People are invited to send their lyrics via the project’s Facebook page, where they will be translated into Korean and put to music in what Kama calls an “instant composition performance.”

They are also asked to submit a picture as “cover art” for their songs.

“Just as each album has its own image, we encourage people to send in a picture that represents each song,” said Kama.

“People don’t have to send in a picture of themselves if they don’t want to. If they send in any photo they took that conveys the story of the lyrics as a cover image for the song, we think that will be enough.”

Kama said that he was writing most of the songs at the moment, but they were looking for singer-songwriters from around the world to participate.

The project has been accepted as part of the Culture Ministry’s Hangeul celebrations, which began Tuesday and will end Friday. Kama and others are performing in Hyehwa-dong, Seoul, as part of the project.

The lyrics submitted through Facebook will be performed in Gwanghwamun as part of the festivities on Hangeul Day. Project organizers plan to upload videos of the occasion to YouTube.

Then the 10 best songs, chosen for lyrical quality among those most shared on social media, will be taken to a recording studio to be made into an album.

To find out more, visit www.facebook.com/mysongproject.

(paulkerry@heraldcorp.com)