for those who never read the papers.
from The Electric New Paper
20,000 downloads of her pictures in one day
Her pictures have turned up in e-mail in-boxes in M'sia following news of missing Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu. But she's a Korean singer known for her risque moves.
By Chang May Choon, 15 November 2006
HER 'wireless pictorial book' electrified a whole nation.
Released jointly with three Korean telecommunication companies in August last year, fans had to pay 2,000 won ($3) each to download pictures of the singer to their handphones.
Within a day, there were 20,000 hits, reported the Chosun Ilbo.
This translates to a staggering 40 million won, or almost $66,000.
Understandably so, perhaps. After all, Korean singer U-nee is known for her sexy and very often controversial image.
When she released the music video for her single Call Call Call from her second album Passion & Pure last year for example, it was deemed too risque.
The result: A ban in Korea.
However, the five-minute clip attracted some 100,000 hits within a month when it was posted on fan sites.
On YouTube alone, it registered over 8,700 hits.
Despite all this, outside of her own country, U-nee, 25, remains a relative unknown.
But all that has changed recently.
Suddenly, she's shot to a kind of dubious stardom when sexy pictures of her made the rounds via e-mail in Malaysia.
The e-mail claims she is missing model Altantuya Shaariibuu.
It is believed that the 28-year-old Mongolian was shot and then blown up with explosives at a dam outside Kuala Lumpur.
A prominent political analyst and several police officers in KL have been arrested in connection with the case.
Sharp-eyed fans quickly pointed out that the woman in the sexy pictures was actually U-nee and not Altantuya.
So, how did a relatively-unknown singer's pictures end up in e-mails circulating in Malaysia?
That is the question the K-popster's managers and fans are puzzling over.
A spokesman from her management company told Korean news agency Nocutnews yesterday: 'U-nee has no activities in South-east Asia and nobody knows her there, so why are her pictures being circulated?'
Puzzled fans have also posted online scanned images of her face in newspaper reports and asked: 'Isn't that our U-nee?'
Nevertheless, over here in Singapore, the mix-up was largely unnoticed by K-pop fans.
Two of them whom The New Paper spoke to did not even know who U-nee is. Another said he had heard of her but did not realise that it was her picture until told by this reporter.
It is not known who started the chain of e-mails, but this is certainly not the first time that U-nee's curves have hogged news headlines.
Though not as famous as two other Korean hotties, Chae Yeon and Lee Hyo Lee, U-nee has a knack for catching attention with her skimpy outfits and provocative dance moves.
Starting out as a wide-eyed teen actress going by the name Lee Hae Ryeon in 1996, U-nee has dabbled in movies such as Born To Kill (co-starring Jung Woo Sung) while studying acting in college.
Her first album in 2003, U-nee Code, was reasonably well-received.
But the follow-up early last year, Passion & Pure, caught the public's attention with its controversial Call Call Call music video.
Given U-nee's penchant for showing off her curves, it is no surprise that publishers have offered her up to one billion won ($1.6 million) to strip, reported the Chosun Ilbo.
Early this year, U-nee again grabbed eyeballs when she displayed her taut abs and toned legs on the cover of her first Japanese maxi single, One.
Released in Japan in February by major label Avex Trax, it marked her first showbiz foray outside her country.
Despite the Korean Wave in recent years, U-nee has yet to expand her music base to the rest of Asia.
But her sexy pictures have appeared in newspapers around the region.
Apple Daily Taiwan called her 'Korea's Kumi Koda', referring to the Japanese star known for her 'dirty' dancing.
U-nee had said then: 'I don't know how much longer Korean artistes can remain popular in Japan, but I believe I can succeed as long as I work hard.'
But U-nee's figure-flaunting days may be over sooner than fans would imagine.
While attending an event in Seoul on 31 Aug, she told reporters that she was feeling tired after so many rounds of intensive album promotions.
She added that she intended to take a break to recharge and reinvent her image.
'I'm not sure exactly when... but I'm going to come back with an improved self. I want to try shedding the sexy image I've built for myself and show a new image to my fans.'
