Rocker Kim sets tongues wagging (N. Korea)

[ensho]

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/MB18Dg01.html


It's not clear whether Dear Leader Kim Jong-il's second son, Jong-chul, 30, will make the trip to Seoul this Sunday to see Eric Clapton's concert; he already saw one in Singapore on Monday. Jong-chul is known to be an unusually fervent, if not religious, follower of the British guitarist.

During Clapton's German tour in 2006 - the last time Jong-chul was seen publicly outside North Korea - he attended all four concerts, tailing Clapton as the musician moved from city to city. Jong-chul even tried to invite Clapton to stage a concert in Pyongyang, but it has yet to materialize.

Jong-chul is the immediate older brother of Jong-eun (born in 1983, but known inside North Korea as 1982), the heir appointee. They have the same mother, Koh Young-hee (1953-2004). An older son, Jong-nam was born in 1971 to a different mother, Sung hye-rim (1937-2002).

Jong-chul's rare public appearance on the week that his father celebrated his 70th birthday reignited international imagination on the three princes of the Kim dynasty and the still unanswered question of why the third son, Jong-eun, became the crown prince. Indeed, little is known about the character of the leader-in-waiting.

-very long snip-

(picture of him)
------------------------------

article has lots of interesting stuff

[Octafish]

1. If Clapton's busy, maybe West, Bruce and Laing are available?

The show'd pretty much straighten out a lot of heads regarding what this pale blue dot's all about, IMFO.



Thank you, ensho, for the fascinating insights into North Korea through contemporary music. Pappalardi Lives!