[special article] He’s in the Army now, but not out of sight: Rain’s commercial ads & projects shine on.
* PLEASE NOTE: This is a Cloud USA special article. The proper way to share it is with a link. However, if you import it to another site, please do so in its entirety, exactly as it is presented and with all credits and links intact. Thank you.
— Written by: Stephe Thornton, Cloud USA Managing Editor ^@@^
Earlier this month, on February 11, South Korean singer, actor, and mega-entertainer RAIN (a.k.a. ROK Army Private First Class JiHoon Jung) completed four months of service in the Republic of Korea military. In those four months, he has established himself as a serious super soldier at one of the toughest training camps (near the DMZ), as more physically fit than recruits ten years his junior, and as a loyal squadron leader and top sharpshooter of the 5th Division. No one can say he has used his celebrity and taken the easy road when it comes to doing his duty for his country.
Rain has never taken the easy road at anything. He’s always taken the one he knew was right, worked very hard, and weathered whatever storm it may have entailed.
According to the Defense Ministry, the latest on Private FC JiHoon is that, after earning a spot as an Assistant Training Officer back in mid-December (with his excellent marksmanship and superior physical accomplishments during basic training), he is now being transferred from the Infantry to the Defense Media Agency and will serve the remainder of his compulsory duty as a PR agent.
Although he’d wanted to serve his entire two years as an Ordinary Joe, this is a good thing for several reasons. First, Rain’s God-given stage talents won’t have a chance to get rusty (as if that could ever really happen!). Second, with Shinhwa’s Andy Lee and actor Lee JunKi recently discharged, and actor Kim JiSuk, actor Lee DongGun, and actor Lee Wan approaching their discharge dates, the DEMA was about to be pretty short of capable acting recruits for radio, TV, and live programing and events for the troops. So, Rain handing in an application along with singer Kim SungWon, actor Kim JaeWook, and actor Im JooHwan—and the four of them being chosen for the job—makes perfect sense.
Rain can instill morale with the best of them. Just ask the soldiers he’s been serving with for the past four months. And he had to have felt bad at the possibility that some DEMA programs might be shut down without the proper entertainment help. Of course, he would decide to go where he was needed the most.
For his fans, it seems like forever since he enlisted at the Uijeongbu 306 Reserve Troops Station on October 11, 2011. The time is passing terribly slowly towards his July 2013 discharge date, but there are bright spots that continue to shine in Rain’s temporary absence. Those bright spots are the projects he did in advance.
You see, Rain is a very smart cookie. So in addition to using the bulk of 2011 to bid us a fond farewell with his The BEST Rain Asia concert tour, RAIN The Best Show Korea national tour, his live charity concerts for Japan, and Last of The Best free street concert in Kangnam-gu, as well as completing filming for his upcoming Korean summer blockbuster movie 비상 [飛上]: 태양가까이 (Soar Into The Sun), the man bulked up on new sponsors in a major way. Which wasn’t very hard to do, seeing as companies were practically beating his door down for a shot at pairing his name and face—and body—with their product. And who could blame them?
From the time of his April 2002 career debut to the present, Rain has been a successful brand ambassador and model for top fashion, electronics, media corporations, and consumer products galore, in Korea and across Asia. CJ One, Nikon, Hyundai, KB Bank, LG, Pizza Hut, Pepsi, Samsung, Pantech, Clinic Clear, The City of Seoul, BMW, and AFLAC are only a few.
He has been a fashion plate for Louis Vuitton, Calvin Klein, Giordano, DOHC, André Kim, Jeremy Scott, and a slew of other designers. He has graced the covers of Esquire, Men’s Uno, Harper’s Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, MovieWeek, Filmax, Kung-Fu, and well over one hundred other magazines, several times over. Photographers have said that when it comes to photo shoots, Rain always gives them exactly what they need. They never come away from a project lacking.
To name all of his affiliations would make this article more than a mile long. So we’ll only mention some of them here, starting with his current product sponsors.
2011 — Present
J.VJQ Skincare (China). Rain joined forces with J.VJQ in March 2011 and became a new face for V•Onface for four years. This commercial spot began airing last month, in January 2012.
MENtholatum Skincare for Men (China). Rain also signed with Mentholatum China in March 2011, and before we knew it, the OcHyPo campaign (Oil. Control /Hydration /Power.UP) came out of the gate sizzling.
Haechandle (해찬들). Under parental giant and longtime sponsor CJ E&M. Any problem can be solved with red pepper paste!
VIPS, Korea’s No. 1 Steakhouse (빕스). We love VIPS. We love steak.
Coupang (쿠팡) . South Korean social commerce firm Coupang is a massive buying service, one of Korea’s largest, that offers just about anything a consumer would want to purchase, but at amazingly exclusive discounts daily. The CFs, starring Rain and Kim TaeHee, hit the scene almost a full month after Rain’s enlistment.
Adidas. Adidas went all in with Rain around the spring of 2011, and it was impressive indeed. Here are Rain and actor Yoo SeungHo ruling the winter and bringing the heat.
Anchor Ice Beer. For Hainan Asia Pacific Breweries, under the Heineken International umbrella. Drink up!
The Span of His Career
Luxury leather goods brand MCM was smart enough to jump onto the Rain train around 2009, and has been on board since. Renowned jeweler and watch manufacturer Cartier is another luxury brand that benefited from Rain as its spokesmodel, in 2010. One-stop shopping and hotel conglomerate Lotte Duty Free and Rain have had a most fruitful relationship that we’ve watched grow for years.
For the two years that Rain was the face of the “back to nature” skincare line Nature Republic (March 2009 to March 2011), some of the most amazingly beautiful ads and commercial spots filmed on location in Australia and Jeju Island graced television, the Internet, and shops all over the world.
One of the longest affiliations Rain has had is with wireless telecommunications corporation SK Telecom. Their relationship has spanned the whole of his career, with one of the earliest commercials showing Rain dancing on the side of a very busy street in polka-dotted pants in 2002, and the latest one (shown below) filmed during the wee morning hours in the summer of 2010 in Yokohama, Japan.
For all the billions of won (₩, KRW) in phone sales racked up during Rain’s reign, he should have free phone service for life, we say.
Waiting for Rain, with Rain
Even with world star Rain in the military for the next seventeen months, his fans are as active as ever and haven’t slowed their support of him.
His official fan club The Cloud, based in South Korea, has become quite diverse with thousands of members in Korea, Japan, China, the U.S.A., Puerto Rico, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Canada, the U.K., Mexico, the Philippines, Argentina, the United Arab Emirates, Peru, Singapore, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina, Denmark, Germany, Indonesia, Macao, Thailand, Vietnam, and Italy. Beyond The Cloud, Rain’s extended nation of fans touches every continent, hundreds of countries, and isles in between—Micronesia, Malta, and the Faroe Islands, to name a few—and includes men, women, and children from every walk of life.
The great thing is that this passionate fan base doesn’t have to wither and go completely dry from lack of Rain as it waits for the man to return to civilian life. Thanks to the projects he left in his stead, every now and then, something new not yet seen pops up and surprises us. That is so like JiHoon Jung—always thinking ahead, always planning for the care and feeding of his family, dependents, fans, and career.
As Hollywood actor and Speed Racer star John Goodman told the Media about his South Korean cast mate in 2008, “He’s so talented and he works so hard… He’s like the hardest working man in show business…”
Dear John, we wholeheartedly agree.
We have Rain’s past and present endeavors to back that up.
— Stephe @cloudusa.wordpress.com / CloudUSA.org
Images: courtesy of J.VJQ, Mentholatum China, MCM Worldwide, AllAdidas
Graduation image: credited to Jep8 @YShwarang, Key Unit Cafe @Daum
Additional Sources: 대한민국 국방부 (Republic of Korea Ministry of National Defense), eNews World, Star News
Videos credited as tagged
Cloud USA 
What a great article, as usual. U guys sure do know how to get ur point across well! I’m always glad to see a clear concise article about our guy.
He sure is a smart one, too. I feel like we’ll b seeing new commercials or ads featuring him every so often for two years coz the man is smart as heck.
I’m excited to see him performing again so being it on, PR division!
LikeLike
Thanks, Deev! ‘preciate it.
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
Stephe I love your article, very well done and to the point. Baby Boo works so hard and here you see the results. Let me tell you that those CFs are amazing, very well done and in each one, Rain represent the product beautifully. Regarding the change in Rain’s military position I must said that I’m with Terri. I think he made an excellent choice. I mean, he’s doing what’s best not only for him but also for the military and his fellow soldiers. It doesn’t matter if people see it that way or not. A soldier’s life is very stressful, hard and difficult even when they want to be, when is force by your government, it becomes a burden, a big fat log in your life. I think Rain can soften that burden with his positive view of life, with his amazing sense of humor and his creativity as a performer. Besides being the poster child for the ROK army, he’s can reach those boys and make the time they are serving bearable. I think that’s a better contribution to his country than being in the front line. Good soldiers are made not only with strategy and a hard body, a good soldier also needs a strong, focused mind. I think Rain can help with that cuz he’s being thru hard moments in life and can teach these boys to see life in a better light. To see the big picture for their country, for their future and not be depressed cuz they are forced to be there leaving behind their loved ones and their way of life. If he can contribute to boost morale, to inspire, to bring a moment of joy and relaxation to these boys why don’t do it? It doesn’t make any sense to stay as a regular soldier when he can do much more than that! I think his superiors saw what he did for his unit and said, oh we need to let this man do what he’s born to do. To shine and bring light to every human being that cross his path. People will shove their tongues down their throats when they see what Rain can do and we’ll celebrate his achievements. Go baby, rock the ROK army!! Fighting!! 😀
LikeLike
Beautifully, said, Mari.
Thank you.
Terri :-}
LikeLike
Just my two cents. oh well more like a dollar but who’s counting right? lol!! 🙂
LikeLike
Really beautiful article dear Stephe, always keeping Rain present, always waiting for his return 🙂 this is the better way to remenber him while we are waiting for him to be back where he belongs ^_^
LikeLike
Thanks so much, Angela.^^ 🙂
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
Thank Stephe so much for the article! This is an amazing article and very informative. I can always count on this wonderful site to keep me update with all the wonderfulness that is Rain!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LikeLike
You’re welcome, Flower.^^ 🙂
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
I just left out of a group that I was apart of for over 10 years because the head of the group has a husband in the US Military. She criticized that Rain was being given special attention and why wasn’t he on the frontlines and if he’s in he should serve like everyone else. I tried to explain that if war broke out he’d be fighting alongside the other soldiers and that he wasn’t shown special priviledges or anything, but just doing his duty and that in Korea, their military duty is more of a community service, whereas here in the States if you enlist, it’s a different thing, but if you’re drafted then you have to go, but they didn’t see it this way. Since I began liking Rain (in the group) it has been nothing but nonstop criticism of him which I am not sure where it’s coming from nor do I understand. But I left because if my explanation of the situation wasn’t enough, then it would never be, so good riddance. Glad I have the Cloud, we can discuss Rain and know the ins and outs and goings on and not have to worry about that type of hypocrisy. I love this group, and thank you for letting me be apart. P.S. I had never seen the Anchor Beer commercial. I knew he shot one, but hadn’t seen it so thanks for that.
LikeLike
Hi, Connie. Thanks for your comment.
Sounds to me like somebody’s got a burr up their ass and are simply taking it out on Rain and/or the military because of their own “baggage”. Happens a lot. I mean, good grief, there are some 600,000 soldiers on the ROK troop roster and not all of them are “on the front lines” because then, who would be minding the store in the rest of the hundreds of divisions? Who would be backing up that front line? He IS serving like everyone else — where the MMA decides to put him. Korea isn’t at war, so what the heck is this “front line” business anyway?
He didn’t CHOOSE to serve (like this woman’s husband did), he was FORCED to serve, so how the heck can people compare apples and oranges and think they sound logical?
People have unresolved issues of their own that they will dump on the most available target — of which Rain is one, for some ungodly reason. If they knew how ridiculous it made them sound, they wouldn’t. (Let me insist that this guy who was forced into the Army be forced to throw himself into harm’s way to make me feel better. R-i-g-h-t.)
I was born an Air Force brat. My dad is a 21-year U.S. vet and very blessed to be home alive and well at all. If I can keep a clear head today after all he’s been through during wartime, peacetime, and the horrors of desegregating the military (as well as my mother weathering that storm with him and managing to still be fair to others), then what the heck? I have little sympathy or patience for folks like this chick.
Stephe ^@@^
P.S. This Anchor Beer CF — with him speaking English — is terrific!
LikeLike
Thanks, Stephe, I totally agree with what you said. I went to the store today rethinking our so-called friendship and it’s not just Rain but other things she criticizes me in a very snide snarky sneaky way and for a while have been feeling that she’s really not a friend, so today I finally took the step and unfriended her in a lot of ways, I let go let God because I just couldn’t take it anymore. I love everything you said, but my main thing is either she didn’t want to see that Rain’s service is different than her husbands, but I guess she didn’t. Anyways, not my problem anymore.
And PP.SS. That Anchor Beer with him speaking english is so the schiznit!
LikeLike
It’s awful to lose a friend… even if the friend might not have really been a friend to begin with. I salute you for having the courage to do what was right for YOU. It could not have been easy. *hugs*
Glad you’re here with us. CloudUSAers don’t always agree, in fact sometimes folks are on the opposite ends of things and boy, do we get wound up LOL but we do believe in mutual respect. Let go let God! Yeah!
The few other Anchor commercials where Rain is speaking a different language sure are cute too. But the one where his voice is dubbed over by another person… UGH. Just my 2 cents. 😦
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
Hi, Connie. I also thank you for your comment.
Thanks for being part of our Cloud USA crew.
I knew that when Rain made the decision to go ahead and apply for an entertainment soldier position people would immediately begin bad-mouthing him. Why? Because, frankly, that’s what his hatemongers always do. They always want to believe badly about Rain. Ever since I learned of him, they’ve been like that. I just ignore them usually, but this time, they’ve irritated me greatly. So, I’ve spent quite a bit of time making sure I commented whenever I saw a poorly-worded blog post or news article. Because enough is enough.
I do think Ji-Hoon was being sincere when he said he wanted to serve his time in the military as an ordinary soldier, in relative obscurity. However, at the time he said that, he didn’t know that the entertainment division would be losing some of their stars that were already serving, and that they might have to shut down some of their current programs. One of his aides even said that in a recent interview. The aide said that when Rain heard that some of the programs might have to go, then he made the decision to go ahead and apply for a position.
But does it really matter anyway what he did or why? I mean, really. The man spent the first four months of his service being a stellar soldier. What does it matter whether or not he wants to be a grunt the entire time? Does it make him less of a soldier to serve in one division over another? Does that mean he is taking the easy way out? He’s still in the military, for goodness’ sake.
The answer to that is no. No, it doesn’t. It doesn’t make him any less of a man to be one or the other.
Frankly, I take exception to the idea of being an entertainer being the “easy way out.” Have any of you ever BEEN an entertainer? Does anyone out there realize how difficult an entertainer’s life can be–even WITH all the perks (which only come after you prove yourself and you are super successful, btw)? Do any of you know how much time it takes to make just ONE music album, how all of those clever shows you listen to and watch are actually put together? Do you think they just appear magically in your radios and on your TV and movie theater screens? Seriously?
Well, let me clue everyone in. It ain’t that simple. Most entertainment projects are complicated endeavors, which take a LOT of planning and coordination and involve crews of sometimes hundreds working like dogs to bring them to fruition. And these entertainers do what they do simply because they have a passion that calls them to “entertain.” And who do they entertain? US. Just so we can escape from the drudgery of our mostly boring, daily lives. Even better, they do it almost every single day too, without a break even on most holidays. Remember Rain’s Christmas concert in Las Vegas and his Adieu Concert on New Year’s Eve? How pissed off do you think his sweetheart was at midnight THAT night?
So, don’t you know that all of this talk about his taking the “easy road,” the “easy way out,” is bugging him to death? Probably the first thing that ran through his mind after this opportunity came up was how it might look to everyone if he decided to take this opportunity. So, he had to think about that long and hard. I’ll bet it even plagued him the whole time he was taking his leave. Some vacation, huh?
I mean really. What would you do? If you were a world star and you were sitting in a unit training soldiers in basic military skills and an offer came in to be back on stage and on TV, where you could be impacting thousands at a time, which one would YOU choose?
I know which one I would choose. It would be a no brainer. I would choose the stage in a heartbeat. I also know that if I were a military leader, I would be busting my ass trying to get Rain in my PR division. Talk about making a great recruitment poster boy! What’s there to figure out here??? Good grief.
People need to just shut the hell up.
Terri :-}
LikeLike
Hai Connie,,I’m a new Rain fan frm Indonesia, and I also found Cloud USA is really cooll. Just read ur comments and sympathize coz u have to leave that group of friends, but if i were u, i definitely would do the same. If i can tell that woman right on her face, Rain doesn’t need to be on the front line ‘coz he already been in the war on his life, it was when his mom sick and he couldn’t do anything to help her, and when he was hungry, and couldn’t buy any food. That was his war, and he conquered it.
LikeLike
Great article. We can always count on CloudUsa to keep us informed and up to date on our man Rain.
LikeLike
Thanks, Lady! 🙂
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
Nice article stephe.. thanks for all the info. Rain is irreplaceable.. miss this guy so much..
LikeLike
Thank you so much! It is an Excellent article about Rain! 😀
LikeLike