The Bubbling & Boiling Music and Arts Festival from China held its first overseas edition at the Resorts World Ballroom at Sentosa last weekend (Sept 13 and 14).

AsiaOne spoke to K-pop girl group I-dle, who headlined Saturday's (Sept 13) performance, before they took the stage performing hit songs such as Good Thing, Queencard and Super Lady.

I-dle, previously known as (G)I-dle, debuted in 2018 and comprises five members — Soyeon, Miyeon, Minnie, Yuqi and Shuhua. The group officially rebranded themselves as I-dle earlier this year before dropping their eighth mini album We Are on May 19.

Seeing as the girls have set foot on our shores before, we first asked if there was anything left on their bucket list here.

"I wonder what it will be like if the unnie line (Soyeon, Miyeon and Minnie) went bungee jumping together at the same place the maknaes (Yuqi and Shuhua) did. That's so scary! I don't think I could do it," said Minnie, 27, while Yuqi, 25, added that she wanted to ride the Sentosa Giant Swing again.

In 2018, Yuqi and Shuhua went bungee jumping at Skypark Sentosa in Singapore as part of a mission for their pre-debut reality show.

While the girls have had their share of local delights, Minnie said she found the salted egg fish skin from Irvins "really delicious" and "something that I want to buy" to bring back home.

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Lights, camera, action: Minnie to make film debut

Minnie is also set to make her silver screen debut in the Thai remake of 2004 romantic-comedy 50 First Dates.

Playing the female lead alongside Thai actor-model Nadech Kugimiya, Minnie said: "I'm really honoured to be able to partake in this film with Nadech whom I've respected deeply since young. 50 First Dates is also one of the movies that I enjoyed watching when I was younger.

"I'm really looking forward to how it will turn out and I'm working hard to prepare for it."

This is Minnie's first acting gig on the big screens after her role in the 2021 sitcom So Not Worth It alongside Got7's Youngjae.

The original film follows Lucy Whitmore (played by Drew Barrymore) who struggles with anterograde amnesia and marine veteran Henry Roth (Adam Sandler) who falls in love with her at first sight.

However, the Thai remake features a plot twist where the male lead, played by Nadech, is the one with short-term memory loss instead.

Filming is slated to begin in October.

Yuqi made deal with Chinese actor Wang Anyu

Yuqi recently made a solo comeback on Sept 16 with the release of her single Motivation featuring three tracks — M.O., Gone (Korean version) and Gone (Chinese version).

On which concept photo she liked the most, Yuqi picked the ones from her title track M.O. since she "personally still likes hip-hop".

"The concept photos inside are all quite different," she said, elaborating on the photobook album process. "I feel that fans will like the simpler and nicer ones. So, this time round, I went to Jeju Island especially to capture a set of photos and make it into a photobook album for my fans."

Yuqi also dropped the music video (MV) for the Korean version of her B-side track Gone, starring herself and Chinese actor Wang Anyu, on Sept 10.

On why she chose to feature Anyu, 27, Yuqi said: "At the time, I was thinking the MV will need a storyline and performance, so I was looking for someone within my social circle.

"Coincidentally, the concept of the MV requires a sense of broken-heartedness, such as crying and intense scenes, and I was thinking who among my friends (fit the bill). I remembered Wang Anyu and I joked before and he wanted me to write a song for him.

"So, I told him, 'Why not I write a song for you, and you act in my MV?'

"He is also a very good actor, so I invited him. Thanks to him, the filming for this MV was a success."

I-dle gears up for upcoming Japanese EP

On Oct 3, I-dle will release their first Japanese EP since the group's rebrand which will include five tracks, including a Japanese version of the hit song Queencard.

Gearing up for the release, the members have been practicing Japanese to communicate with fans and one of the new terms they learned was doushiyou kana, which translates to "What should I do?".

Soyeon, 27, also revealed that Beijing-born Yuqi is "quite interested" in Japanese these days and that she "keeps switching between Japanese and Korean".

"When we were in Japan filming the music video and jacket photoshoot, Yuqi would repeat the Japanese words she heard to me. It made me think, 'Her language skills are excellent'," added Miyeon, 28.

Voices behind the festival

The Bubbling & Boiling Music and Arts Festival, organised by Beijing-based company Sparkle Live Entertainment and co-produced by event partners AMA and SMG Live, first started in Beijing in 2023.

The Singapore edition of the festival, co-presented by Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), marks the first time it is being held outside of China.

The first day focused mainly on K-pop acts with performances from girl groups H1-Key and HITGS, boy group Cravity and Exo's Xiumin.

The second day, headlined by Chinese singer-songwriter Cai Xukun, featured performers including Hong Kong singer Joey Yung, Singaporean singer Boon Hui Lu, and American singer-songwriter Anson Seabra.

"As Singapore's first integrated resort, we are proud to host global lifestyle events such as the Bubbling & Boiling Music and Arts Festival, reinforcing our position as both a top-notch MICE venue and a premier lifestyle destination where experiences take centre stage," said an RWS spokesperson.

"As co-presenter, RWS goes beyond being a venue partner. We are immersing festival-goers in the full journey — from exclusive merchandise and premium perks, to ultra-interactive art installations and specially curated Festival Official Hotel Packages."

AsiaOne also spoke to Zhang Chongshuo, founder of Sparkle Live Entertainment and the organiser of Bubbling Boiling Music & Arts Festival, on why Singapore was chosen to host the festival.

Zhang, 43, said: "Considering the Asia region, Singapore is closer to China, be it in terms of culture or distance. Secondly, Singapore's development and business hub is very healthy and mature so the safety and stability of organising a music festival here would be higher."

He added: "The packages, resources and transport are all very convenient," he added. "We felt that Singapore was the most suitable option for hosting the first edition [of Bubbling Boiling Music & Arts Festival]."

Watch out for our upcoming E-Junkies video interview with I-dle.

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esther.lam@asiaone.com

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