Premiering Tuesday, Sept. 23, the music audition series asks contestants to reimagine the soundtrack to our memories―those timeless ballads―on the hunt for the defining new voices of 2025.
A previous spot featuring the “Top-Tier Ears” panel―Jung Jae-hyung, Cha Tae-hyun, Choo Sung-hoon, and Jung Seung-hwan―stoked buzz. Now, back-to-back first-look clips showcasing the go-to ballads of Jun Hyun-moo, Park Kyung-lim, Danny Koo, Crush, and MIMI are grabbing attention.
Ever the trend-chasing MC, Jun Hyun-moo hangs upside down on a Pilates reformer and hams it up to "Introduce Me to a Good Person," leaning into a bit of playful vocal power. The higher the notes climb, the redder his face gets―and the funnier it gets.
Park Kyung-lim turns a backstage holding room into a mini-concert with Dream High musical leads Lee Ji-hoon and Kim Da-hyun. Teaming with original singer Kim Da-hyun on YADA’s "Already Sad Love," the trio stacks a pristine three-part harmony that draws audible wows.
Meanwhile, Danny Koo stands in the middle of a California vineyard, pouring out Kim Kwang-seok’s Becoming Dust with a voice sweeter than the wine. His honeyed tone against the postcard-perfect vines plays like a scene from a movie.
Crush and MIMI’s living-room “concerts” are ear candy, too. Crush absentmindedly rubs his dog Dooyou’s belly while delivering Sung Si-kyung’s "Two People" with unmistakable feeling. And MIMI―so quick-witted on variety that people forget she’s a rapper first―uses a box fan as a mic for Lim Hyun-jung’s "Love Is like Spring Rain, Breakup Is like Winter Rain." Her secretly silky tone impresses, until a quip about the room “getting drier in real time” makes her crack up mid-song.
"The Ballad of Us" brings together the Top-Tier Ears panel and music lovers from all walks of life for a crowdsourced search for fresh voices. How will teens today―average age 18.2―reinterpret the ballads of yesteryear? Expect cross-generational sing-alongs from the very first line.
From Park Sung-hoon (K-Pop Star) and Jung Ik-seung, with writer Mo Eun-seol of Netflix’s 2024 global hit "Culinary Class Wars" and Ahn Jung-hyun of "My Little Old Boy," "The Ballad of Us" continues SBS’s tradition of marquee music auditions. Produced with SM Entertainment and SM C&C, the large-scale series premieres Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 9 p.m. KST.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Sun-ae)