Q1. Please tell us the concept of the mini album “Break Down”
It is the process of a young man changing to an adult.
As I have received alot of positive comments on it, this is a satisfied work.
Q2. It was said that you were involved in producing, could you tell us exactly what have you participated in?
From selection of songs to selections of lyrics, arrangement of the melody lines, design of the jacket & logo and music videos, I have given all my ideas on it. In the end, I think alot of my ideas were reflected in it.
Q3. Having your hair blonde is also manly?
Currently I’m in the midst of the promotion activities of “Kiss Kiss”, so I decided to try out changing it. I thought it might show a little cuteness, but everyone around me said, “It looks manly.”.
Q4. In regards to your solo activities, did your management company boss, Bae Yong Joon or members of SS501 gave any advice to you?
Young Saeng (Had his solo debut first) had told me, “As you already have the experience, I think that it’s good that you have it to spare to do your activities” Bae Yong Joon is always giving his support behind me. He would mail such as “Today, this part is good” etc
Q5. Please tell us about your 2nd album which is to be released in Autumn.
As of now, there is the selection of songs. Also, 2 songs have already been recorded. It would be good to show a different image from what I have till now.
Q.6. It was said that your nationwide tour has been decided
Till now, my activities has always been centralized in Tokyo and Osaka, I would like to reach out to fans in other areas, so we decided to hold it at 7 areas. It is a concert but with talks where I can interact with the fans. So please do not hesitate to attend and I would be happy!
I’m really late in watching this, because like I’ve said I have stopped watching videos with Kim Hyun Joong a long time ago, and it takes a while to catch up now.
I love this so much, love this, because it is such a good reminder of everything, and it makes me feel like we’ve indeed watched how he grew all these years, from a carefree young teenager back during M!Pick days, and as he climbed his way up and experienced incredible amount of attention and limelight because of his role in the successful Boys Over Flowers Korean drama, I always felt that he seemed to have realized that fame is such a double-edge sword, it brings you all the way up, and kills a bit of you inside along the way. Fame for one, has killed some bits of the old him, made him more cautious with his words, more wary of people around him, and led him to see more faces of the people around him and the industry that he is in. For such a long time honestly, I truly do not like the Kim Hyun Joong he has become after he became more famous and popular, with everybody wanting a piece of him.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I am unhappy. I was proud and glad to see him doing so well, like he fully deserves to. But a part of me knows that I miss and will always miss the Kim Hyun Joong back in those days when he could do funny dances with his butt, and sprout out a bunch of nonsense and show certain cute (and sometimes unmanly) sides of him on TV – this is after all the Kim Hyun Joong that made me laugh so much, and it’s also the reason why I found my way to become a fan of this man who has this irresistible charm and smile. He was never someone I found handsome in that way – but he is always such a lovely person to look at, because just looking at him reminds me of a kind of light that will shine brightly forever and ever.
So for a long time I always struggled. On one hand I don’t like seeing him saying politically correct answers and looking so tensed and tired in his interviews and appearances. On the other hand, he is doing so well that it is impossible not to be happy and proud of him. At times I also wonder how he feels about his path; does he still like it just as much? How does he feel about the fans who have stuck by him all these while, and the fans who left him?
Watching this interview makes me understand some of the questions I have in my mind a little better now. He haven’t actually said anything, but I can feel this difference in him now as compared to the days between 2009-2010.
He looks happier, for one. I cannot be certain if he’s really happy, because after all, I don’t know what he’s thinking. I just know by instincts that he is definitely not that tense and cautious person that he once was, especially during January 2010, because of that incident which I don’t want to mention about. Fans of KHJ would know… I have not forgotten… and I’m sure many fans have not either.
I love how he still finds expressing himself so difficult. The way he described it is so candid, but when you hear it, your reaction will probably be, “oh my, I KNOW that feeling.” Like how he wants to get over certain awkward ‘thank yous’ and expression of feelings quickly, especially with people that he loves the most. Sometimes that’s really so true, for people who are so important, the more you want to get those ‘thankyou’ and expressions of love over and done with quickly, because they weigh so much that it’s too overwhelming to go through them.
And I also love how clear and realistic he is about the future. His future, to be exact. The fact that he knows it’s crucial for him to go all the way now, because a star will not always shine forever, even if you are Kim Hyun Joong……. (haha) He knows that there’s a time limit to everything in this world, and when the time is up, I love how he is a person who does not want to hold on to it when the time is up. Rather, he wants to be someone who accepts it, and moves on, doing what he can for those he can still impact.
And Kim Hyun Joong seems to think that by being a cool ahjusshi (‘uncle’), he can still impact little children by being someone who can now buy ice cream and treats for the children and make them happy. For this, I think Kim Hyun Joong has completely underestimated himself….. (: There’s so much more he can do, not just being a cool ahjusshi!
Now, there is something that many fans are always unwilling to see or find it difficult to accept when they see other people commenting about it. But I still want to and will, because it is not like this is a lie. I am sure that we all know that he isn’t the best singer in the world. If you want to compare him with other solo singers, even idol group singers, he is truly just an average Joe in terms of singing ability. There are probably so many other singers out there who have so much talent in them. All of you can definitely list down a few names without much difficulty.
But there is one thing I always hope that all non-Kim Hyun Joong fans can try to appreciate is how singing is sometimes more than just about ability. I think it is fine, if you are someone who likes singers for their singing ability and talent.
However, you should not judge if someone else likes certain singers even if they aren’t as good a singer, because there are also other things that are important, not just talent.
For example, a person without a lot of talent but he tries to make it up with a lot of other things, like sincerity whenever he holds the mike, his emotions, his feelings that comes out together with his voice. Singing is sometimes more than just talent, because if you can tell a story along with your voice, and the audience can feel it, this sometimes takes a lot more than just pure God-given talent.
Like this one, for example:
Can you see the expression on the faces of audience?
When I see it, I know it immediately, that they have felt it too; the story Kim Hyun Joong wants to relate through this song, the emotions he is feeling, and his sincerity when he sings this song.
So he isn’t someone with a particularly powerful voice, nor is he someone with a very good pitch and neither is he extremely musically inclined. But I still love it when he sings songs like this, because I can feel it in his voice and in his eyes that he is doing something that is not just singing, but also talking to us, the audience, and telling us a story that has no words in it except the lyrics of the song and the emotions that he is trusting himself to put across to the audience.
This is beautiful beyond measure. As a musician, I remember one of the things we are taught to concentrate on is how our wordless music notes can somehow reach every single person in the audience, to connect them with us and let them feel what we are feeling inside. It’s more than just being talented with the instrument, or playing everything correctly. Some people can do that and still not be able to connect with the audience, because this takes more than just talent, it’s about sincerity and a heart so pure and focused on the performance that even if they don’t specifically say it, you can feel it all the way across the room.
I feel that Kim Hyun Joong has this ability. Behind his 4D personality and bright smiles, there’s so much more about him that we don’t often get to see, and so much more going on in his mind that he only occasionally let slip of. Only when he is singing songs like this, you can feel it so strongly.
I wish for people who don’t know Kim Hyun Joong to understand and get to know him too. Not for his good looks, his CF-appeal, his dramas and especially not the stereotypical image of him being a ‘flower boy with good looks’ as what the media often portrays him as.
I wish for people to know the Kim Hyun Joong that is less known and less harped about in magazines and newspapers. To know Kim Hyun Joong from the eyes of the loving fans who have always watched him from far, who also have their own families yet they always keep a special spot for this guy and his brightness.
