Uptempo Global

Hello, this is Uptempo! Anxiety is a feeling of fear and uneasiness that can cause one to sweat, feel restless, tense, or even have their heart race. It is usually a natural reaction to stress. However, sometimes having positive feelings toward someone can make you anxious as well. A Korean sibling duo, 악동뮤지션 (Akdong Musician), wrote a song titled ‘Give Love’. It describes someone who is anxious and nervous ( 전전긍긍 ) because he cares so much about the girl he has a crush on that everything she does affects him emotionally. The literal meaning of ' 전전 ' is ‘ to tremble with fear ,’ and ' 긍긍 ' means ‘ to cringe (often in fear) ’ https://youtu.be/x2XX3cNW4K0 Some of the lyrics from 'Give Love' are as follows: Give Love 사랑을 좀 주세요 Give Love, please give me some love Give Love 사랑이 모자라요 Give Love, I need more love 매일매일 자라는 사랑을 그녀에게 주는데도 받질 않으니 My feelings for her become stronger every day, but she rejects me every time. Give Love 사랑을 좀 주세요 Give Love, please...

Hello, this is Uptempo! Some ‘ 막장드라마 (soap operas) ’ in Korea, like in most countries, ‘ 무리수를 두다 (go too far) ’ in their attempts to catch viewers’ attention.   Instead of being original with their plots, many 막장드라마 (soap operas) lack originality and revolve around infidelity or cruelty. One of the popular cliche storylines of a ‘ 막장드라마 ’ is about a man discreetly marries again while his wife is on vacation, and he exhibits no guilt when questioned by his first wife. The video below is titled ‘ 막장 드라마의 특징 (The characteristics of soap operas) ’. https://youtu.be/ztJI_C9mW8o In the first example, a girl accuses her mother by saying, ' 엄마 , 나 주워 왔지 ?' . When directly translated, it means ' Mom, did you pick me up from the street when I was a baby? '.   There’s an expression in Korea ‘ 다리 밑에서 주워 왔다 (Found and rescued a baby from beneath the bridge) ’. It is not likely that the baby’s their biological kid if they rescued one from somewhere. So, when Korean kids try...

Hello, this is Uptempo! How would you react if a stranger on the street asked if you knew Tao? In Korea, you have to be careful of someone who asks “ 도를 아십니까 ? (Do you know Tao?) , ” because it’s most likely that they are cults. “ 도를 아십니까 ? (Do you know Tao?) ” is known to be the cliché question asked by cults. They usually stop someone on the street and ask a question. https://youtu.be/ImXhbFPCO1c Some of the cliché statements these cults say or ask are: " 착하게 보이시네요 (You seem friendly) ," " 효도하실 것 같아요 (You seem like a good daughter/son) ," " 복이 많아 보이세요 (You seem to be lucky) ," " 공덕이 많아 보이세요 (You seem like a generous person) ,” " 눈빛이 좋네요 (You have nice eyes) ,” " 밝아 보이네요 (You seem like a cheerful person) " " 조상의 덕이 많은 것 같아요 (Your ancestors must have inherited you a lot of luck) ," " 똑똑하고 지혜롭게 보여요 (You seem smart and witty) ," " 일이 잘 풀리지 않고 , 걱정이 많으신가요 (Are you worried about something? Do ...

Hello, this is Uptempo! Below is a ‘ 과일로 고백하는 노래 (confessing song with fruit)’ by 셀프어쿠스틱 (Selfacoustic) who has 1.81M subscribers on YouTube. https://youtu.be/7Q7EONQRZUc The lyrics are as follows: 연애한지 얼마나 오렌지 It’s been so long since I’ve dated someone ‘ 오렌지 ’ originally refers to ‘ Orange(s) ’ but here, it’s used as ‘ It’s been so long ’. To spell it correctly, you should write ‘ 오랜지 ’ to mean ‘ it’s been so long ’. Ex) 오렌지 (Orange) 를 먹은 지 얼마나 오랜지 (been so long) It’s been so long since I’ve had an orange. 니가 내가 이쁘냐고 묻는다면 If you were to ask whether you’re beautiful 내 대답은 그래 이뻐 My answer is ‘Yes, you are’. 이렇게 말한다면 나에게 바나나 Will you have a crush on me if I say this? ‘ 바나나 ’ means ‘ banana ’. However, because ‘ 반하나 ,’ which means ‘ will you have a crush ,’ sounds like ‘ 바나나 ,’ the word ‘ 바나나 ’ is often substituted for ‘ 반하나 ’ as a joke. 썰렁하면 받아 내 사과나 Please accept my apology if that wasn’t funny. 이제 망설이지 말고 망고 고백할 수밖에 I don’t have any other option except to c...

Hello, this is Uptempo! There are Californian English, Midwestern American English, Southern American English, etc. People from the South have one of the most well-known accents in the country, thanks to their distinct drawl and the "y'all." Certain terms that are used in the South are not used in the rest of the country. Outsiders may be confused when a familiar term has a completely different meaning when pronounced in the South. For example, Coca-Cola is known as "Coke" in most regions of the United States. However, in many parts of the South, coke (spelled with a lowercase C) is just a general term for soft drinks, like "soda" or "pop". Likewise, southerners refer to 'barbecue' as a 'cookout.' Photo by   Volodymyr Hryshchenko   on   Unsplash Some regions in Korea like 경상도 (Gyeongsang-do), 전라도 (Jeolla-do), 충청도 (Chungcheong-do), and others, also have regional accents or dialects called ‘ 사투리 (Satoori) ’. The video below i...

Hello, this is Uptempo! Koreans often use the expression “ 그러게 왜 그랬어 ? , ” which directly translates to ‘ So, why did you do that? ”. It implies that the speaker knew that the other person’s actions would have a negative impact. It can also mean “ I told you ,” or “ I knew something like this would happen ”.   A Korean artist, Kiha, wrote a song titled “ 그러게 왜 그랬어 (So why did you do that? )”   https://youtu.be/t9GYZ2InEq0 The following are the lyrics: 왜 그랬어 ? Why did you do that? 왜 애초에 그런 말을 했어 ? Why did you say that in the first place? 이렇게 이 시간에 찾아올 거면서 If you were going to come over to see me at such a late hour. 비는 또 왜 맞았어 ? Why are you wet? (Did you get caught in the rain?) 너 지금 무슨 드라마 찍어 ? Are you filming a drama now? 그렇게 걸친 것도 없이 얇게 입고서 You’re wearing such thin clothes 왜 그러고 섰어 ? 들어와 Why are you standing there? Come in. 얼른 들어와 씻어 보일러 켜놨어 Come in now. Take a shower. I turned on the heater. 나 내일 일 있어 . 어제도 잘 못 잤어 I have some work to do ...

Hello, this is Uptempo! In the last article, I wrote that the term ‘ 싸구려 ’ refers to a ‘ cheap and low-quality product ’. Chang Ki-ha has recently become more popular after releasing his first solo album ‘ 공중부양 (Levitation)’. One of his oldest hit songs is titled ‘ 싸구려 커피 (Cheap coffee) ’ https://youtu.be/cb0V4Dc1nnE The lyrics are as below: 싸구려 커피를 마신다 I’m sipping a cheap cup of coffee 미지근 해 적잖이 속이 쓰려온다 It’s lukewarm and making my stomach hurt ( 미지근하다 means lukewarm ) 눅눅한 비닐장판에 발바닥이 쩍 달라붙었다 떨어진다 My feet keep sticking to the wet floor mat 이제는 아무렇지 않어 바퀴벌레 한 마리쯤 슥 지나가도 I’m no longer surprised when a cockroach passes by me. 무거운 매일 아침엔 다만 그저 약간의 기침이 멈출 생각을 않는다 Every heavy morning, I can’t seem to stop coughing 축축한 이불을 갠다 I fold my damp blanket and make my bed ( 축축한 means wet or damp ) 삐걱 대는 문을 열고 밖에 나가 본다 I crack the door open (‘ 삐걱 ’ is an onomatopoeia for the sound of door opening ) 아직 덜 갠 하늘이 너무 가까워 숨 쉬기 가 쉽질 않다 I can’t breathe becaus...