Song Joong Ki for Tony Moly…in Singapore!

Song Joong Ki, the celebrity ambassador of Tony Moly, was recently in town to promote the beauty brand. A rising Korean star, his role as Yeorim Gu Yong Ha in his last Korean drama, Sungkyunkwan Scandal, was extremely memorable. He plays a seemingly frivolous playboy in this popular series but manages to infuse depth and seriousness into his character.

His acting chops are evident – even his minor role as Han Ye Seul’s brother in Will It Snow For Christmas last year left a deep impression on the tv audience, despite him having only a few scenes in that drama. His most recent project is Although I Was Born, a film in which he reunites with Han Ye Seul.

Having watched and liked him on-screen, I was quite looking forward to seeing him in person at the press event. Interestingly enough, he is almost reticent in real life – he was soft-spoken and extremely polite throughout the event; patiently answering questions and posing for photos. Here he is, flanked by Brian Paek, Overseas Sales Director for Tony Moly and Calle Teng, Director of Tony Moly Singapore.

Here to promote the new Floria (anti-aging) and Latte Art (detoxifying/perk-me-up) skincare lines from Tony Moly, as well as to commemorate the opening of the brand’s flagship store at Parco Bugis Junction, Song fielded questions from the media, as he revealed his favourites from the brand.

Here are some beauty tidbits from the 25-year-old star:

• Taking care of the skin is important and even more so, for a celebrity. He confessed to feeling the pressure to look good in an interview with The Straits Times where he lamented not having any makeup on when fans swooped down on him at Changi Airport upon his arrival here. ;)

• He believes that as much as skincare is functional, it should be creative and fun too, as exemplified by the cute packaging of many Tony Moly products.

• His favourite skincare line from Tony Moly is the Dandy Guy series from which he likes the essence and scrub.

• He also recommends the Tony Moly mask packs and the Floria Youth Energy Capsule Essence.

• As Singapore has humid climes, he strongly recommends sebum-control products, as well as sunscreen.

• His favourite Tony Moly BB cream is the latest one for men which contains SPF.

• He enjoys collaborating with his popular female Tony Moly brand ambassadors, The Brown-Eyed Girls, whom he feels are fun ladies to work with.

In a rare departure from his reserved manner, he would occasionally lapse cheekily into Mandarin, peppering his speech with “没关系” (no matter) when telling his translator to take it easy and “好吃” (delicious) when referring to our famous chilli crab! ;)

The end of the event was marked by a simple work of latte art by Song. Using a stencil etched with the letters ‘TM’ on it, he gamely dusted coffee (cocoa?) powder onto the surface of a cappuccino and signed the cup thereafter. A nice touch, considering that he was here to promote the Tony Moly Latte Art range.

One last shot for Joong Ki-sshi, before taking a break!

Here is the interior of the Tony Moly flagship store at Bugis, the second Tony Moly store in Singapore after the successful launch of the first at Marina Square. Calle revealed that Tony Moly plans to open twelve shops in three years, with the third store to open at Raffles Exchange in January 2011.

Cosier and smaller, this main store has a different concept from the one at Marina Square. I love the stylish logo on the ceiling outside the shop.

Song arrived at the store in the afternoon for a fan-photo event…

And hordes of people outside the store burst into screams when they saw him approach! The excitement was palpable and paled in comparison to the genteel press event, where I suspect only a handful actually knew who he was. Here, though, were the true fans who had waited patiently for him. Thanks to a well-organised pre-draw by Tony Moly, 10 lucky few eventually went away with a memorable souvenir – a photo with their idol. :)

He later adjourned to a tent set in the open, where he would meet 90 (!) fans and sign autographs for them.

The perfect baby face and flaxen skin to endorse beauty products with!

What a brilliant move by Tony Moly to sign Song Joong Ki on as its celeb rep – his star is indubitably rising and his popularity is phenomenal in Korea…and across Asia. For more photos of his trip in Singapore, do visit the Tony Moly Singapore Facebook page.

Image source: Tony Moly Singapore and Tony Moly Korea