[article] Riding the Seoul Train

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Excerpts:

Born and raised near Los Angeles, Danny Im is among a growing cadre of Korean Americans who have broken into the Korean entertainment industry and now serve as K-pop stars to be exported globally.

Some hail from the suburbs of Northern Virginia: Chart-topper Micky Yuchun of boy group TVXQ attended Chantilly High before he became famous in Asia for his baby-face good looks and Justin Timberlake dance moves; Lee Ming Young of the best-selling pop duo As One is a graduate of Fairfax High School.

So on a recent balmy Sunday afternoon, Alice is among about 200 hopefuls who show up at SM Entertainment's talent auditions at the Don Quixote bar and club in Alexandria. Parents pull up to the peeling facade of the two-story Latin dance club in their Honda Odysseys, dropping off sons and daughters -- perhaps the next Beyonces and Ushers of Korea. Five friends in knit caps and trucker hats practice break-dance moves in the parking lot, fine-tuning their footwork and robot-sharp turns. A dozen contestants are gathered around a parked minivan that is playing Korean music videos on two drop-down DVD screens.

Inside the Don Quixote, talent scout Jung Ah Kang of SM Entertainment sits behind a folding table on the dance floor as contestants come before her in groups of five. They each take turns singing a cappella for Kang, "Idol"-style. There's a silver disco ball overhead and Spanish-language beer posters on the walls.

Read it: Riding the Seoul Train
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