Gotta See It: K-pop Star Rocks Red Wings Jersey

The immense popularity of the Detroit Red Wings is frequently reinforced through appearances by the club in pop culture references.

You’ve seen the Red Wings appearing in The Simpsons and South Park. There was best friend Cameron sporting a Gordie Howe Red Wings jersey in the cult classic Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Now, it appears that the Red Wings are gaining status with an icon of the K-pop stage. In a Tik Tok video on her personal site, K-pop sensation Jeon Somi is shown backstage preparing for a concert. And she’s wearing a Red Wings road jersey.

solo singer Jeon Somi, who was born and raised in Windsor, wore a Dennis Cholowski red wings jersey in a backstage video 👀 pic.twitter.com/rwClUgnNzc

— sash 🇷🇸 (@MacScorevat) July 30, 2024

Whose jersey is it? Dylan Larkin? Moritz Seider? Lucas Raymond?

How about none of the above?

It’s actually an old Dennis Cholowski No. 21 jersey.

Is Somi a Red Wings fan? Well, she doesn’t actually reveal that fact. However, it is worth noting that she was born across the Detroit River within the sightlines of Joe Louis Arena in Windsor, Ontario.

Red Wings Hold South Korean Connection

Another curiosity in this whole episode is the role the Red Wings organization would play in the South Korean team when that country was playing host to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games. The Korean squad for that tournament was coached by long-time Grand Rapids Griffins assistant coach Jim Paek.

The child of a Canadian-born father and a South Korean-born mother, Somi still holds a Canadian passport. When she was just six months old, the family made the move back to her mother’s homeland. Somi’s first entry into the K-pop (short for Korean popular music) realm as part of groups before branching out into a solo career.

K-pop artist Jeon Somi with Kodai Senga before throwing out the first pitch at the Mets game tonight#JEONSOMI #SOMI pic.twitter.com/E41W5kolX1

— MLB Life (@MLBLife) September 14, 2023

In 2021, she was given an invitation to perform in front of South Korean president Moon Jae-in at a celebration for the anniversary of the Korean Declaration of Independence. In the sporting realm, last year the New York Mets were extending an invitation to throw out the first pitch prior to a game at Citi Field. And if you’re a Toronto Maple Leafs thinking about giving her the business for sporting a Wings jersey, that would be a bad idea. Somi is a fourth-degree black belt in Taekwondo.

If you’re unfamiliar with K-pop, or curious about Somi, her new single Ice Cream drops August 2.