No Rain on his parade

Rain's latest album - "Eternal Rain"

His reputation has taken a severe beating and his assets frozen since losing a lawsuit in Hawaii after abruptly cancelling a concert there in 2007, but South Korean superstar Rain is not ready to retreat into the shadows just yet.

Instead, the defeat has spurred him to work even harder to pay the US$8 million fine.

His no show cost Honolulu-based concert agency Click Entertainment US$1.5 million and the American company sued Rain - whose real name is Jung Ji-hoon – and his producers for fraud. It also sought additional damages for cost of staging the event, promotions and advertising.

The 27-year-old singer maintains that he had every intention of performing in Hawaii but the series of concert cancellations were out of his control and “regrettable”.

In an interview with “Men’s Uno” magazine, Rain said that while it is going to be a tough ride ahead, he is “determined to overcome it”.

“Don’t worry about me. I will not succumb to hardship. I feel like the man of the house, a father to 60 children, this will serve as a motivation and I won’t be defeated easily,” he said.

And the star seems to be walking the talk. He recently launched his own fashion label, Six to Five, and will be heading to Hong Kong and Macau to promote the line.

Rain who is in charge of designing, branding and publicity events for his pet project, is looking forward to the upcoming trips. “I have always been interested in fashion and design, and this will be a great opportunity to share my passion with everyone,” he said.

Source: channelnewsasia


Check out Rain's Men's Uno China pictures.

Rain's Interview from Men's Uno Magazine

UM: What are your working plans as of lately?
R: As of lately the most important thing that I’m doing is the promotion of “Six to Five” fashion brand which I’m a designer and model for. We will be holding fashion concerts on June 6th in HK and June 27th in Macau. I’m really looking forward to them.

UM: Why do you want to engage in fashion business? Are you directly involved in everything including designing?
R: I’ve always been interested in fashion trends and designing, so I just want to share my feelings about fashion for others to enjoy. During the “Six to Five” designing process, I can’t say that I’m thoroughly involved as a designer, but during that process I will bring into play my own perspective, and will continue to give my opinions on designs.

UM: Where does the brand “Six to Five” stand? Who are its target customers?
R: I believe that young people who enjoy fashion will like our fashion brand. “Six to Five” combines both traditional and relaxing styles while at the same time stressing practicality with a simple and relaxing feeling to them.

UM: What is the origin to the name “Six to Five”?
R: Humans have 5 senses. We hope to exceed the 5 senses to pursue an even higher ‘6th sense’. “Six to Five” contains emotional and cultural significance, and it uses the logo of a rocket to express the extreme emotion of transcending through space; challenging the meaning of the future.

UM: What are your plans for the development of your brand in the fashion market?
R: We have a lot of interesting plans, for example incorporating famous artist Paul Klee’s art designs into our clothes, as well as opening a museum with our well-loved teddy bears, etc. We will be continuing to release more styles, hope that everyone will like them.
**(skipping the next few paragraphs, the writer describes Rain’s past. It’s honestly very long for me to translate, and it is mostly stuff that we already know about him. ^__^)**

UM: What is the difference between the real you and the one who is on stage?
R: The one on stage is one of the best singers who can make fans scream and cheer for him. In real life I’m constantly doubting myself, thinking back to the very beginning and the very real Jung Ji-hoon. I’m constantly training myself; my self-satisfaction derives from overcoming my own biggest obstacle.

UM: You’re getting famous very quickly, what kind of effect does this have on you?
R: I think that compared to others I have a little more of certain kinds of experiences. Even though I have a quite a definite popularity right now, I don’t think that this is the end of my success. As a singer and actor, in order to give a better sound to my fans, and better acting for my audience, I’ve sacrificed a lot of things. But while sacrificing all these things, I’ve in turn been able to give a more well-rounded appearance on stage, and through this I’ve also gotten to know more people, and for this I feel very blessed.

UM: What kind of character would you like to experiment with for future movies or drama series?
R: Since I was young, I had always wanted to be in a male role in a heroic kung fu movie. Now that I’m in Hollywood I can finally fulfill that dream. “Ninja Assassin”—which will be released worldwide—is just that kind of movie. In order to achieve the final results of the requirements of the movie, I had to train myself real hard and had to learn kung fu stunts. I hope everyone will enjoy my first Hollywood production.

UM: What kind of plans do you have for your own performing career?
R: I’m always thinking about which step I’d take next, I don’t know until when I’ll keep singing, I think that I’ll just let more fans enjoy my music; I’ll just give it all I’ve got for them to hear me sing.

Credit to: sixtofive1982