Unlikely Connections: K-Drama Star Na In-Woo Boosting Metal Music
If Slipknot getting promotion because of Korean dramas seems totally unrealistic to you, think again!
Thanks to Na In-Woo — the South Korean actor who plays the male lead in hit Prime Video K-drama series Marry My Husband — bands like Slipknot, Black Sabbath, Guns N' Roses and AC/DC are getting some exposure in a world that you wouldn’t immediately associate with rock and metal.
Na In-Woo is currently enjoying success from his breakout role in the much talked about and globally successful drama and his Instagram followers (which currently sit at 1.7M) are growing by the day. He’s using his new-found popularity to post… guitar covers of Slipknot’s “Duality” and “Unsainted”? Yeah, you read that right.
Listen, as a lifelong fan of rock and metal and a newer (I started watching them around 2021) fan of Korean dramas, I was as surprised as anyone when I saw the video of the actor from my new favorite K-drama covering “Duality” on my Instagram feed.
READ MORE: Pop-Punk Band Randomly Features on New Song by K-Pop Girl Group
In his latest videos, Na In-Woo has cut off his face (much to the chagrin of many fans) to show only his hands and the guitar and is wearing a T-shirt of the band he is covering.
Upon further inspection, the actor has also posted guitar covers of “Paranoid” by Black Sabbath, “Back In Black” by AC/DC and “Nightrain” by Guns N' Roses to name a few. You can see them all below.
In recent years Korean popular culture has exploded in popularity globally so much so that the phenomenon has a name: hallyu or the Korean Wave. Everything from K-Pop and cuisine to skincare and film have become known and loved around the globe.
Often Korean celebrities will share different parts of their personality with fans via social media and to see the male lead from a wildly popular series choose to share metal guitar playthroughs with fans is interesting at the very least.
I'm sure plenty of rock and metal fans might be wondering why Loudwire is posting about a K-drama actor. The answer is simple: It's cool to see bands from our community find a place in mainstream culture like this across the globe.
Plus, as a fan of both metal and K-dramas it's fun to see crossover like this, And, judging by the comments on Na In-woos covers, I'm not the only one out there who appreciates both art forms.
If you find this upsetting you can go read another article and have a nice day. If you want to see the actor's metal guitar playthroughs or learn more about Na In-woo and the success and plot of Marry My Husband (no spoilers) then keep scrolling.
Na In-woo Slipknot “Unsainted” Guitar Cover
Na In-woo Slipknot “Duality” Guitar Cover
Na In-woo Black Sabbath “Paranoid” Guitar Cover
Na In-woo Guns N' Roses “Nightrain” Guitar Cover
Na In-woo AC/DC “Back in Black” Guitar Cover
Who is Na In-Woo?
Na In-woo is a South Korean actor who was born on Sept. 17, 1994. He made his official television debut in 2015 with the drama and has appeared in a variety of dramas and reality TV shows since.
In Marry My Husband Na In-woo plays the lead actress' (Park Min-young) first nerdy but later hot and weirdly protective boss who is hiding a secret of his own.
Marry My Husband Success and Streaming Record
If you aren’t deeply entrenched in the world of South Korean dramas, then Marry My Husband may be unfamiliar to you; however the melodrama is taking the globe by storm.
According to the site allkpop, “Marry My Husband became the first K-drama to clinch the top spot in the global daily TV show rankings on Amazon Prime Video since the platform's inception in 2016."
In addition to taking the K-drama fandom by storm, the series received praise in reviews from NME, Forbes and The A.V. Club.
Marry My Husband Plot (No Spoilers)
Marry My Husband is based on a popular webtoon with the same name, and it begins with terminal cancer patient Kang Ji-Won coming home from her treatment to discover her selfish, deadbeat husband and her best and only friend having an affair.
Not only that, but the pair are cozying up in bed giggling about what they are going to do with the life insurance money when Ji-won dies.
Shocked and hurt, Ji-won gets into a physical struggle with the cheating pair but is too weak from her illness to defend herself. She is pushed through a glass coffee table by her useless husband and dies.
But, Ji-won wakes up and finds herself 10 years in the past at her job where her husband and best friend are her co-workers. Ji-won realizes that she has a second chance to change her fate and get revenge on those who hurt and used her. She must get her best friend to take her fate and marry her husband.
Meanwhile, her attractive and secretly very rich boss Yoo Ji-Hyeok (Na In-Woo) works as a manager in the same department and goes out of his way to help her out. He also has a secret.