The New Susan Boyle? ‘Korea’s Got Talent’ Singer Puts Judges in Tears

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Though without Rain’s killer abs or Asian pop-star moves, this bushy-haired Korean twentysomething is putting viewers around the globe in tears.

Sung-bong Choi has the voice — and a grim Oliver Twist-ian childhood story— to become the next talent sensation. Choi says he lived like a “dayfly,” sleeping on street corners, peddling gum for ten years. A manual laborer by day, Choi has found his way into the hearts of South Koreans by singing Sarah Brightman’s “Nella Fantasia” on Korea’s Got Talent.

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But it seems there is more than what meets the eye. Controversy has abounded over his training, putting a spin on his popularity streak. Internet-savvy viewers have discovered that he attended a high school specializing in the performing arts. The network tvN explained that Choi, in fact, had mentioned his training to the judges, but it was edited out to make the story flow better.

He’s not the first one to be swept up in controversy, either. It was revealed later that Paul Potts had taken a master class with the legend himself Pavarotti, and Susan Boyle had also trained and recorded for a charity CD before her appearance on Britain’s Got Talent.

Even after the scandal, many including the judges are standing in for Choi. One of the judges called his voice “magical,” and another said she “just wanted him to be happy.” Despite the hullabaloo, it’s apparent that this Korean singer has pipes.

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