Ha Ji Won is capturing everyone’s attention with her sudden transformation into a pop idol.
The video of her recent appearance on the music program Show! Music Core racked up over 1.72 million views in less than 48 hours, as of June 1st. The clip had already crossed the 1-million-view milestone within its first day, drawing an explosive response from fans. This marked the first time in 23 years that she stepped onto a music show stage to perform her old track, “Home Run.”
The song was originally part of the soundtrack for the 2003 film Reversal of Fortune, written by the global hitmaker PSY. Ha Ji Won’s return to the stage was the result of a promise she made on her JTBC variety show, Student Number 26 Ji Won (literal translation). During an episode, her co-stars, webtoon artist Kian84 and TV personality Kangnam, teased her about her short-lived music career. The duo jokingly dared her to perform the song again, and she confidently pledged to recreate the stage if that specific episode crossed 1.2 million views.
Fans rallied behind the challenge, sending the view count skyrocketing past the goal. Ha Ji Won later admitted, “I checked the views every day. I thought, ‘If it doesn’t pass, I might not have to do it. Thank goodness,’ but it went over 1.2 million. Kangnam sent me a message saying, ‘Yar! Noona, I’m going to the practice room!'” She added, “I have to keep the promise. I guess I have that kind of personality. I tend not to say I can’t do something, but rather dive in headfirst and then work hard to achieve it. So, I’ll need to practice quite a bit.”
True to her word, she hit the rehearsal studio and delivered a flawless, passionate performance on live television. Reflecting on the experience afterward, she opened up about confronting her old anxieties. “Honestly, it was a stage I used to think of only as dark history that I wanted to erase. But after Kangnam and Lee Sang Hwa surprisingly brought it up, and with Kian84’s encouragement, I felt a mix of emotions as I prepared for the stage again,” she shared. “Although I had little time to prepare and was worried, I practiced day and night so I wouldn’t let down the talented younger singers I performed with. I’m relieved that I was able to finish the performance without any mistakes.”
>> Ha Ji Won Gives First Look Inside Her Modern-Meet-Antique Two-Story House
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