Song Kwon-sook, President of KSI Sokuluk Kyrgyzstan

KSI Sokuluk organized a "K-Pop Culture Festival" to celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Kyrgyzstan, deepening the relationship between the two countries and spreading the friendly influence of Korean culture. Over 1,300 people came to the venue to enjoy K-pop dancing and singing performances.

Good morning, Ms. Song. Can you please introduce yourself and tell us about your role in the operation of the 2022 KSI specialization project?”

Hello, my name is Kwon-sook Song, and I am the President of KSI Sokuluk. I was in charge of the overall planning and execution of this project.

What inspired KSI Sokuluk to organize a K-pop culture festival? Also, could you tell us about the current status of K-pop in Kyrgyzstan?

The year of 2022 marked the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Korea and Kyrgyzstan, and the K-Pop Culture Festival was organized to celebrate this occasion while deepening the relationship and spreading friendly influence.
In addition, over the past four years, KSI Sokuluk has attracted an increasing number of students who want to go beyond simply experiencing Hallyu culture and seek professional training opportunities. There is a high demand for direct cultural interaction with Koreans. There is a thriving community of Koreans in Kyrgyzstan who interact with each other, learn Korean, and share K-pop, movies, and dramas. In this context, Korean culture has gone beyond leisure activities and hobbies to become majors and careers for many.

Do you have any memorable anecdotes about preparing for the 'K-Pop Culture Festival'?

One of the hottest topics of conversation in Kyrgyzstan was "Harmonize," a performance team and lecturer for the festival. For the past two years, KSI Sokuluk has collaborated with Harmonize on online projects and cultural academies due to COVID-19. Their recent participation in a TV show on SBS titled "Sing for Gold" coincided with their festival preparations, sparking the interest of our staff and students. It was a dream come true for both staff and students to be able to join the performers they had only seen online in person. With swelling hearts, we eagerly prepared for the K-Pop Culture Festival.

How many people participated in this festival? And what other accomplishments and results do you think you left behind?

This festival was designed for the youth of Kyrgyzstan and was supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Korean Association in Kyrgyzstan, and the Kyrgyz International University. A total of 61 students and nine teams performed K-pop dances
The performance allowed us to collaborate with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and attract sponsorships from Korean companies and organizations in the region. The program also provided an opportunity for cultural exchange between Korean and Korean youth and attracted students who wanted to learn advanced Korean courses.

Please tell us about the experience of holding a K-pop culture festival as a part of the KSI Specialization Project and your plans for operating KSI Sokuluk in 2023.

In 2022, we applied for and successfully executed the KSI Specialization Project. Throughout the preparation process, we were able to witness the passion and potential of our faculty and students. We are currently in the midst of planning and intend to apply for the project once again. At present, we are in a meeting to discuss potential projects that would be suitable for a public contest for business.

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