Giant penguin character becomes popular YouTube creator

By Lim Chang-won Posted : October 18, 2019, 16:59 Updated : October 18, 2019, 16:59

[Giant PengTV YouTube channel]




SEOUL -- An actor wearing the character costume of a 10-year-old giant Antarctic penguin created for a kidvid is gaining popularity, with his YouTube live performance video being watched by more than 200,000 viewers including many young adults who love hip-hop music.

The lively and wacky male penguin named "Pengsoo" began appearing in April on a children's program aired by EBS, an educational television radio network, and its YouTube channel "Giant PengTV", which is aimed at conveying basic knowledge or introducing new experiences and characters.

At first, Pengsoo targeted elementary school students. Contrary to expectations, however, it is now popular among young grown-ups. In just three months, Pengsoo appeared to have achieved the dream of becoming a star YouTube creator who has been invited as guests at other TV programs and talk shows.

This week, Pengsoo is set to appear in "My Little Television", a popular MBC TV program formatted in the form of a competition between main casts based on their internet broadcasting performance.

The actor's identity has not been disclosed, but Pengsoo described himself as a hip hop fan who expresses joys and sorrows and uses new Internet words freely. He is also good at rapping and beatboxing. "Only the unilateral injection of ideal and good messages cannot be considered educational, but rather an attitude that does not respect elementary school students," producer Lee Seulyena said in an earlier interview.

The producer changed the title music from a nursery rhyme to hip hop music, reflecting its growing popularity among South Korean children. Hip-hop is not harmful "because it's a child's taste these days."

Hip-hop songs dominate real-time song charts, becoming a mainstream culture in South Korea. "Modern hip-hop in the South Korean music scene has more melody and hook parts so the songs are much more easy-listening to old school hip-hop songs. Hip-hop songs are especially popular among young female fans in their 20s. It is also popular among teenagers," said "Kooki2", a user of South Korea's Clien online community.

Pengsoo aims to follow the footsteps of Pororo, a cute animated penguin who dreams of flying and plays around with his friends. Pororo is one of South Korea’s greatest cultural exports, bringing joy to children all over the world. The wildly popular animated penguin from the children's TV series "Pororo the Little Penguin" that began airing on EBS in 2003 is now omnipresent, reaching and appealing to global users without borders.
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