Lim Han-byeol Finds a ‘Baek Yerin-Caliber’ Singer at Cheonggyecheon in Office-Worker Band

Singer Lim Han-byeol encountered a remarkably talented non-celebrity vocalist on the streets around Cheonggyecheon, leading to an unexpected moment of musical connection. The meeting unfolded in the third episode of Lim’s music series, No-rae-ha-reo Ga-neun Gil Season 2, or On the Way to Sing.

After failing to find the exceptional singer he was seeking in the first two episodes, Lim returned to the streets for another attempt. This time, his journey through the Cheonggyecheon area finally led him to a genuine “Noraejjang,” the program’s term for a singer with outstanding ability.

The defining moment of the episode was Lim’s encounter with the vocalist of a band made up of office workers. He had struggled to locate a sufficiently skilled performer in the previous installments, but the atmosphere changed when he met a vocalist whose distinctive tone and singing ability brought Baek Yerin to mind. Despite belonging to an ordinary office-worker band, the vocalist displayed an unmistakable presence while performing.

A Baek Yerin-evoking voice fills the Cheonggyecheon night with polished covers

The vocalist delivered a performance strong enough to surprise Lim Han-byeol. The distinctive vocal color, particularly reminiscent of songs associated with Baek Yerin, blended naturally with the nighttime atmosphere at Cheonggyecheon and gave the street performance an especially vivid quality.

The repertoire began with “If It Were Me” and continued through “Square,” “Behind You,” “Shallow,” “A Night Like This,” “When It Rains at Night,” “Into the New World,” “Cookie” and “Manchanga,” meaning “Feast Song.” By moving confidently across such a broad selection, the vocalist demonstrated stage presence comparable to that of a professional performer.

The performance stood out for more than technical singing ability. The vocalist conveyed a different emotional character in each song, a versatility that impressed even Lim. The covers moved between widely popular hits and emotionally driven ballads while maintaining an unusually polished standard for a performance by a non-celebrity participant.

Lim listened closely throughout the set, sustaining the sense of musical rapport created by the encounter. His attentive response emphasized how completely the office-worker band’s vocalist had overturned the disappointment of the earlier episodes.

A long-awaited Noraejjang appears after repeated setbacks

The series follows Lim as he personally takes to the streets in search of gifted singers. Having come away without finding the right person in Episodes 1 and 2, he had faced repeated difficulties. The Cheonggyecheon installment finally introduced a performer who lived up to those expectations.

Presented in a busking format against Cheonggyecheon’s nighttime scenery, the performance offers viewers a musical experience distinct from a conventional stage. The setting and the vocalist’s singing work together to give the episode its reversal: what begins as another search becomes the discovery of the talent Lim had been hoping to find.

Through this meeting, Lim brought renewed attention to the hidden musical abilities of ordinary people. The vocalist’s powerful singing, concealed behind the everyday identity of an office-worker band, showed that the episode was more than a simple street excursion. It became a musical journey toward discovering a genuinely exceptional performer.