(continued from interview ②) Singer and actor Kim Jong-hyun talked about the differences between NU'EST activities and solo activities, as well as the unchanged closeness with the members.
On the 26th, Kim Jong-hyun met with OSEN for an interview at the Evermore Entertainment office in Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
Kim Jong-hyun debuted in 2012 as the leader of the five-member boy band NU'EST and was active for 10 years. He later took a new nest at Evermore Entertainment in 2022 and began a fresh start as a solo singer, and when asked why he joined Evermore, he said "Rather than fate, I met the CEO while attending company meetings, and the CEO was a very open-minded person. So I thought it might be okay to try starting here."
Kim Jong-hyun, who said he is involved in all aspects of actual activities, said "There are parts the company recognizes as well. There may be problematic parts I don't recognize, so the company tends to check those things," and "When deciding something we ask, 'What do you think?' and 'Then let's do it that way,' exchanging opinions. It seems decisions are often made by majority rule, but I think about 80% of the decision includes my opinion. When I accept the company's requests I do so, and it seems we are doing well together," expressing the synergy with the new company.
When asked about the differences from team activities, he admitted, "There were some difficult parts, and there were parts I could do because I was alone." Kim Jong-hyun said, "I think there are clear pros and cons to everything, and the pros and cons I experienced in a group and as a solo were different. You somehow learn, alone, how to know and make up for those parts. I think it's a valuable experience," and added, "As a solo artist you are alone so the energy of synergy you can produce inevitably decreases. Naturally, the more people gather, the more the energy rises, so the fun that comes from that can be a bit lacking, but whether I do this or that, everything comes out as 'Kim Jong-hyun,' and I think that's an advantage." He also noted that focusing on the album concept the way he wants is another advantage.
After standing on his own, not only Kim Jong-hyun but Aaron, Minhyun, Baekho and Ren and other NU'EST members have been active in various fields in their own places. When asked if they talk a lot about each other's solo activities when they meet, Kim Jong-hyun said, "Yes. In any case, among our members we all know about each other's activities. We say things like, 'You're doing this,' 'You were doing this this time?,' 'You did this?' and talk about 'How was it?,' 'It was like this,' 'It was like that.' It's like friends who work at companies asking, 'How's your company?,' 'What do you do?,' and we do the same," he said.
He said he tries to watch works featuring members "if I can," and jokingly said about Baekho, who caused a big sensation as the 'Waterbomb god,' "His body has gotten really good." He continued, "We've known each other for so long. We've seen the kids for about 20 years, so we say things like, 'Hey, did you take it off?,' 'You really looked cool,' 'You worked hard on your diet,'" and said, "When we meet we talk a lot about personal things. These days it's also a time for sharing information about what the trends are, and we have everyday conversations too." However, when asked "Who knows trends best?" he candidly said with a laugh, "Everyone except me. I'm not very knowledgeable, so the others seem to know about them similarly well."
In fact, Kim Jong-hyun even went to members' individual fan meeting sites to cheer them on. He said, "Watching the members I think, 'Did he make a mistake?,' 'What is he doing?,' 'Is he acting cute or not?' If someone acts cute, I go to tease them. I send KakaoTalk messages like, 'Your aegyo was cute,'" showing his 'real friend' side.
He added, "Actually, even without saying it we always support each other. The closer you are, the less you tend to contact each other, right? We don't contact each other every day either, but if we contact each other two or three times a month, those two or three times are very long. It's like pouring everything out," describing their family-like relationship. He said they also often meet privately with the members, "We just set a time and meet if we can. Maybe we'll see each other next week," and laughed, "Except Baekho. He can't come so it's unavoidable. We'll see him when he comes on leave." (continued in interview ④.)<
[photo] OSEN reporter Min Kyung-hoon
[OSEN]