[series] Inkigayo Chronicles: A Rain Retrospective – Rainism #3 (11/2/2008)

Cloud cover by: Michele, Staff Writer

Rain’s reign of the K-pop music stages in late 2008 was no match for any act trying to compete. Inkigayo was no exception. With Rainism as the driving force, it was a runaway freight train and everyone had to simply step away or get run over! It goes without saying that Rainism is a fierce storm of swag, sexuality, power and aggression. Rain brought all of that in full force in the first performance, as well as the second. He was not playing. There were no moments of sweetness. No, not even his signature smile. Rain was asserting himself with authority. We were being taken by force and Rain wasn’t about to let any one of us avoid his attack.

And then came the third performance. I don’t know, maybe he felt bad for pummeling us with all of that Rain-gression! In this performance he changed things up slightly – and did so with cheeky delight.

The performance began as all the others. Fierce. Aggressive. Intense. But then, he decided to remove the sunglasses. Something happens when Rain lets us see his eyes.

It is like a channel switch and for a moment all of that intensity and aggression melts away (well, briefly anyway). He lets us into the playful Ji Hoon space and reminds us that even if he is coming at us with vengeance and aggression, he is still able to temper that with absolute sweetness.

This is the power of Rain. It is his special magic. I have mentioned it before. Maybe it is just that he himself cannot hold that sweetness back. Perhaps when he is surrounded by his Clouds, there is a moment when he wants to take that pause to remind us that yes, I am slapping all of you around with my intense swag and aggression BUT you do know I love all of you and that I am still your sweet Ji Hoon.