Herald Interview In series
A series of in-depth interviews.
#Interview
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Herald Interview In series
A series of in-depth interviews.
Would you like to subscribe?
Spyair's love for turning live performances into pure connection
For Japanese rock band Spyair, performing live on stage is about sharing music with the audience in the most direct and genuine way. The group, which formed in 2005 and professionally debuted in 2010, operates under the belief that music is at its best when it brings people together. Each song has something to say and the singers carry that message forward. "The magic of a live performance comes from the things that can only happen on stage — the sense of unity with the audience and the emotion
Nov. 18, 2025 - 09:45:02
'Korea must look beyond the US,' economist says
Countries like South Korea should strengthen economic ties with Southeast Asia to prepare for a global trading order that increasingly sidelines the US, according to Danny Quah, professor of economics at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. “Korea has no shortage of countries that want to deal with it on coequal terms,” Quah said in a group interview in Seoul on Monday, during a visit for a joint conference hosted by the KDI School of Public Policy and its Singaporean counterpart. “Countrie
Nov. 17, 2025 - 17:35:54
[Exclusive] SK On fast-tracks pilot output in all-solid-state battery race
SK On is moving faster than expected toward commercializing next-generation all-solid-state electric vehicle batteries by 2029, with its pilot line in Daejeon set to begin operation before the end of the year, as key partner Solid Power completes the final round of on-site equipment testing. “We’re on batch three right now of the Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) of the planned six batches at SK On’s Daejeon pilot line. … We’ll have that completed by the end of November,” Solid Power CEO John Van Sc
Nov. 17, 2025 - 14:29:15![[Exclusive] SK On fast-tracks pilot output in all-solid-state battery race](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2025/11/18/news-p.v1.20251117.611a51c182b546348b32ccc3233f6193_T1.png?type=h&h=320)
'Kokuho' director Lee Sang-il wants you to stop making it about identity
"Don't take it so seriously," Lee Sang-il says, waving off questions about what it means for a Zainichi Korean director to have made Japan's biggest film of the year. The numbers tell one story: "Kokuho" has pulled in over 12 million viewers since June, earning 17 billion yen ($110 million) and becoming 2025's singular phenomenon in Japanese cinema. The film is all but certain to dethrone "Bayside Shakedown 2" (2003) in the coming weeks to become the highest-grossing Japanese live-action film of
Nov. 17, 2025 - 13:56:47
SK Chemicals zeroes in on recycling, next-level copolyester
SK Chemicals is doubling down on recycling and advancing its copolyester technology, as the Korean green chemical firm seeks to maintain and expand its lead in the global market. “We collect polyester waste, break down polyester from such waste into raw materials and polymerize them. In other words, advancing our chemical recycling business is the most important next step for us,” said Kim Eung-soo, head of SK Chemicals’ Green Materials Business, in an interview with The Korea Herald at the comp
Nov. 16, 2025 - 16:05:39
South Korea ripe for more private credit exposure: Apax exec
Institutional investors in Korea are ramping up their allocations to private credit as they seek to broaden alternative portfolios while maintaining tighter risk control, according to a senior executive at global private equity firm Apax Partners. Derek Jackson, partner and head of Credit at Apax, said Korean institutions are increasingly exploring private credit — debt financing provided by nonbank lenders such as private equity firms — as they look for yield and diversification beyond traditio
Nov. 13, 2025 - 15:26:51
K-culture boom: Are Koreans really that creative? Sam Richards says that's the wrong question
Korea’s reputation as a conformist, hierarchical society has long raised questions about its creative potential. How could a country often described as rigid and rule-bound become a global cultural powerhouse, producing works likes "Squid Game," "Parasite" and the worldwide phenomenon of K-pop? For American sociologist Sam Richards, a professor at Pennsylvania State University, the answer lies in the paradox: Korean hierarchy and conformity that have often been criticized as stifling creativity
Nov. 12, 2025 - 09:00:00
'Squid Game' star Lee You-mi finds power in fragility in 'As You Stood By'
Learning life’s toughest lessons often begins with empathy — the ability to inhabit someone else’s pain. Few professions demand a level of emotional surrender quite like acting. In the new Netflix Korean psychological thriller "As You Stood By," Lee You-mi embodies that challenge, portraying a terrified wife trapped in an abusive marriage — a role she says made her stronger and helped her grow in a healthy way. The series follows Hee-soo (Lee) and Eun-soo (Jeon So-nee), two close friends who con
Nov. 11, 2025 - 14:14:01
Ven. Pomnyun won’t 'answer' thousands of questions
The Ven. Pomnyun walked onstage to a rock beat Friday afternoon, moments after the singer Maya energized the opening of Youth Festa. Before hundreds of young people, he launched into his signature live dialogue — often mislabeled as an “instant Q&A.” “I cannot trust my senses because I’m disabled. I kind of realized that I have to live differently from those without a disability, but I don’t know what to do next,” a person in the audience posed. “I’m struggling in my relationship with my mother.
Nov. 10, 2025 - 15:51:15
Wooriwa plans to triple sales as K-pet food goes global
Wooriwa, barely seven years old, is making a case that the next wave of K-culture will be pet food. Spun off from Daehan Feed in 2018 and merged with US brand ANF the following year, the nation’s top pet food maker has since clawed its way to the top of the domestic market — and it is thinking far beyond it. Wooriwa currently generates revenue in the 100 billion won ($68.8 million) range and aims to triple that to 300 billion won by 2030, under CEO Choi Kwang-yong’s push to scale the business gl
Nov. 10, 2025 - 13:29:34
Lucid Fall's new album is timeless snapshot of his musical journey
For Lucid Fall, an album is more than recorded music; it's the way the 50-year-old musician documents his life, and a medium for him to share his music and thoughts with listeners. "As a person who has been making music and releasing albums, an album is my personal record. Since I release a full-length album every two to three years, each one becomes a reflection of who I am at that moment in time," the singer-songwriter told reporters during an interview held at Antenna, his management agency,
Nov. 9, 2025 - 10:38:18
The patient craftsman's Korean canvas
SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates — Time slowed down in Sharjah. The emirate's film festival moved at its own languid pace, with long gaps between screenings and plenty of empty hours to fill. Ahn Jae-huun, there as a juror for the animation competition, had just come back from a local museum when we sat down to talk. "I saw this Chinese mother and her little boy at the museum today," he says. "The kid was bouncing around everywhere, totally restless. And I thought: It's totally fine that you're lik
Nov. 8, 2025 - 16:00:02
Smart cities can aid aging Korea, if built for people
BARCELONA, Spain — As South Korea continues its ascent as a global leader in smart city innovation, the integration of AI and advanced technology into urban infrastructure is becoming indispensable. In an exclusive interview at the Smart City Expo World Congress held at Fira Barcelona Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain, Kate O'Neill, an AI strategist and tech humanist at KO Insights, shared her thoughts on how Korea’s smart cities can empower citizens while upholding ethical standards. O'Neill’s visio
Nov. 8, 2025 - 16:00:00
Berlin Phil’s Albrecht Mayer brings healing music to hospital before Korea tour
On Thursday afternoon, an unusual musical event unfolded at Myongji Hospital in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Large hospitals occasionally host charity concerts featuring amateur or professional musicians, but this one took the audience by surprise: Albrecht Mayer, principal oboist of the Berlin Philharmoniker, and Amihai Grosz, the orchestra’s First Principal Violist, took the stage. The intimate performance offered patients, caregivers and medical staff a rare chance to experience the warmth and
Nov. 7, 2025 - 18:52:49
'No AI bubble': Industry veterans see chip supercycle intact
Despite the steep selloff in global chip and AI stocks that rattled markets this week, industry veterans Colley Hwang and Kim Sung-soo Eric laid out a rosy outlook, downplaying concerns of an "AI bubble" and predicting that the semiconductor "supercycle" will continue. "I think the concerns about an AI bubble come from not really understanding how much the technology is evolving right now," Kim, CEO of Datacrunch Global, said during an interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul on Friday. "The cur
Nov. 7, 2025 - 17:53:45
