Singer Kim Yong Bin will appear on TV CHOSUN's "Friday Gold Rush" Lunar New Year special project "Korea-Japan Deathmatch," airing on February 13. In this competition, Kim Yong Bin, a trot singer with 23 years of active experience, will face off against Rie Utagokoro, a veteran singer with 32 years of experience. Rie Utagokoro is regarded as the strongest opponent among Team Japan members. She has gained explosive reactions with every song she sings, forming a powerful fandom in Japan, with her stage videos surpassing 10 million views.

Kim Yong Bin recalled the experience of sharing the stage with Rie Utagokoro in the past, mentioning that "her voice was like a nightingale." This remark shows respect for her opponent while also creating a psychological battle between the two, attracting much attention. On the day, Kim Yong Bin declared to Team Japan members, "I will crush you," showing strong enthusiasm from the start.

The song chosen by Kim Yong Bin is Na Hoon-a's "Dangsin-a." Drawing on 23 years of experience, he delivers a powerful emotion and delicate expression that gives the audience chills. Despite the performance being in Korean, Team Japan singers responded with comments such as "It was beautiful from the first verse" and "I felt such deep sorrow that I was drawn into the song."

Rie Utagokoro surprised everyone by declaring she would perform Choi Jin-hee's "Cheonsangjaehoe" entirely in Korean. It is a challenge for Japanese people to pronounce the difficult batchim endings and convey the emotional flow of the Korean lyrics, but she revealed that she has been steadily studying Korean for this stage. Kim Yeon-ja expressed her admiration, saying, "For a Japanese person to sing this song in Korean must have required ten times the effort," and gave her generous applause.

Veteran singers Kim Yong Bin and Rie Utagokoro, with a combined 55 years of stage experience, will compete as representative trot singers of Korea and Japan. Attention is focused on what kind of resonance their fierce showdown will leave. The Lunar New Year special "Korea-Japan Deathmatch" of "Friday Gold Rush" will air at 10 PM on the 13th.