Lee Chan-won hosts 390 combined debut years on Immortal Songs K-POP Time Machine special

KBS2's Immortal Songs ran a K-POP Time Machine special on August 1, stacking the stage with eleven acts from the 1980s and 90s: Shin Hyo-beom, Park Mi-kyung, Park Nam-jung, Hyun Jin-young, Noise, R.ef, So Chan-hwi, Yuri Sangja (유리상자), Hong Kyung-min, Chae Yeon, and Geobuksee (거북이, members Geumbi and Jii).

Host Lee Chan-won did the math. Combined debut years: 390. Combined age: 864. Average age: 54. Shin Hyo-beom, Park Mi-kyung, and Park Nam-jung each sat at 39 years since debut—Shin drew laughs admitting she thought she was only 29 years in. Hong Kyung-min, 50, had logged 105 Immortal Songs stages, a milestone Lee Chan-won called out on air. Hong leaned hard into the age humor. "I'm 50 now... I'll only stand up halfway," he said, then promised to fully rise when Park Nam-jung appeared. When Park did walk out, his response landed: "It feels like I'm receiving senior citizen benefits."

R.ef members Seong Dae-hyun and Lee Seong-wook recalled their autograph sessions once grinding Seoul city-center traffic to a near halt. Hong Kyung-min revealed another relic from his active years: the nickname "Korea's Ricky Martin," earned from choreography he'd learned on the fly.

Yuri Sangja picked Lee Moon-se's "그대와 영원히" and committed to standing mid-song, a departure from their usual seated ballad approach. So Chan-hwi performed "해저문길에서 새가 돼." R.ef covered Noise's "상상 속의 너" with Noise watching from the wings.

Chae Yeon, at 23-24 years since debut and the youngest there, called out Noise and R.ef's outfits as "too flashy." Both acts shot back that they were channeling Tae Jin-ah energy.

Part 2 of the K-POP Time Machine special runs next week with more legend-era acts. Immortal Songs airs every Saturday at 6:05 PM on KBS 2TV.