Artists across the musical spectrum, including Wendy of Red Velvet, Taeil of NCT, Leenalchi and Han Young-ae, are honoring singer Kim Min-ki with covers of his best-known song “Morning Dew” and more.

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the release of “Morning Dew” that was written, composed and sung by Kim, the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation has created an 18-track album dedicated to the singer-songwriter.

The iconic song has come to be closely associated with student activism and the democratization movement, and was included in Kim’s first album released in 1971. He was a 20-year-old student at Seoul National University at the time.

The song is better known by the version sung by singer Yang Hee-eun in the same year. 

In an homage to Kim’s songs, the foundation released five covers from the album on Sunday by Han Yeong-ae, Yurisangja, acapella band Maytree, alternative pop band Leenalchi and Taeil from K-pop band NCT.

Following Sunday’s release, five more songs from the album -- covered by Kwon Jin-won, Park Hak-gi, Yoon Do-hyun, Yoon Jong-shin, Lee Eun-mi, Jang Pil-soon, Crying Nut, Wendy of Red Velvet and more -- will be released each Sunday in June.

The foundation will release a version of “Morning Dew” that was sung by all of the participating singers in the project on June 27. An LP version of the album will be released in August.

On June 20, terrestrial broadcaster KBS1’s “Open Concert” will air a special episode honoring Kim. A tribute concert for Kim will be held at the Gyeonggi Arts Center in September.

An exhibition commemorating Kim will be held at the Seoul Arts Center from June 10-23, showcasing the works of artists who were influenced by Kim’s music.

The tribute album is part of the Gyeonggi Culture Road project led by the foundation.

By Im Eun-byel (silverestar@heraldcorp.com)