Shining charisma on stage <--> Exploding gag sense
That gap has grabbed hold of girls' hearts!
That gap has grabbed hold of girls' hearts!
2PM may be the representatives of the "beast-dol" (beast + idol), but because of "muscle prince" Joon, MBLAQ was first categorized as "beast-dol," and also called "chic-dol" (chic + idol) due to their refined fashion. Certainly, when the five of them are on stage, the scent of their chic charisma is strong.... But when you watch them on variety shows it's a complete change from their charismatic personalities on stage. Rather, they go crazy without any hesitation, fully showing their fun characters! In the end, due to the large gap between their on- and off-stage personas, they've been called "double personality-dol," and from the Korean word meaning "noisy," "sikkeureopda," they're called not "chic-dol" but "sikkeu-dol." Consequently, their mischief has paid off! They've made a strong showing, with their 2nd single "Y" released in May of this year reaching #1 on a music program two weeks after its release. Out of the boy groups who have debuted last year and this year, they're standing out a head above the rest.
Yes, speaking of double-sided personalities, the music video for "Y" is a hot topic. They sing about vengeful and sad feelings towards a beloved girlfriend who has betrayed [them], but for some reason they appear in clothes like sentai heroes. Why these clothes with this song? It really is 'Why'? Is this another clever tactic from their teacher Rain? Their interview felt just like being at an all-boys school. G.O says, "Rain, who was so strict about us maintaining our images, has now completely abandoned us (laugh)." One strangely agrees with these words.
Q: Rather than introducing yourselves, please introduce the member sitting next to you.
SH: Cheondung is our team's idea bank. At the same time, he's the tall one, and he's good at English. He's the only one who can converse with native speakers, so he's great as a guide.
CD: I'm always being treated like a guide....
GO: But being a guide is such a great duty (laugh).
SH: After that, Cheondung is also studying songwriting, and has good sense when it comes to songs. He's a good guy.
CD: I'll introduce Joon! He has such a good body that his nickname is "Muscles." When we're exercising together, I don't even have to ask, but he'll give me advice saying, "If you do this, you can get a better body." He has great muscles (laugh).
J: Don't you have anything to mention besides muscles? (laugh)
CD: Recently, he's improved quite a bit as a singer. For our first single ("Oh Yeah") I thought, "Wow, he 's so cool when he sings." But for our second single I thought, "He's really able to convey his emotions," and admired him. And he's handsome!
J: When you don't have anything else to say, you think it's okay to just say "handsome"!
CD: Um.... His personality's good..... And.....
J: That's enough! (laugh) I'll introduce GO. GO boasts such great skill as MBLAQ's vocalist that can compare to any other group, and in addition he'll never back down no matter what stage he stands on. Unlike other singers, when anyone first looks at him they feel "manliness!" but not only that, he has talents in humor, and that provides synergy to the viewers.
ALL: Ohh~!
J: (Looking at Cheondung) This is how you have to introduce someone~. What's up with only talking about muscles (laugh).
GO: It's my turn to introduce Mir. Mir is the mood maker of MBLAQ. But it'd be nice if he would think a bit more about the time and place (laugh). Though he has that humorous side, his rap skills are great! People who hear his rap get into it and can't get away; he's that talented. Recently he's also awoken to acting, so he's a member whose future I look forward to.
M: About Seungho, uh.... (Here, Seungho immediately glares at Mir)
M: It's okay, I'll give a proper comment (laugh). As the leader, Seungho always boosts us up, and when our team's gone off track he'll set us back in the right direction. Of the singers active now, I don't think any have such varied talents as him. For example, besides the other basic roles, he has personal talents like playing piano and magic. Whatever the situation is, he stands in front of us as our leader.
Q: What did you think when you first heard your debut song, "Oh Yeah"?
M: I thought that it wasn't run-of-the-mill, in a good way.
SH: Rather than just listening to the song or the melody, it's a song that's fully complete when together with the performance on stage!
GO: The dance is almost completely acrobatics (laugh). Dancing while wearing the outfits is a lot harder than it looks, but it's appealing because it doesn't let you get bored when there's no singing.
Q: Then, what is a time when you had an "Oh Yeah" moment?
SH: For me, when receiving electronics as a present. Basically I like all electronics, so I'm happy with anything.
CD: When cool lyrics or a melody pop into my head after a lot of hard work, I yell "Oh Yeah" (laugh).
J: When I'm standing on stage, I always feel "Oh Yeah."
GO: When performing on stage, and there are more cheers than we expected, maybe.
M: When our first album as MBLAQ was released, I let out a yell, "Oh Yeah!!!" (laugh).
When they debuted, GO gave a mild shock, that "idols have changed." He appeared as the first bearded idol in Korean idol history, and has made bold claims that he's had 20 relationships in the past. In this interview, not only the love leader GO, but the other members as well, actively responded to our questions about love.
Q: What is your ideal type of woman?
SH: For me, someone with beautiful eyes. Regardless of the woman, I'm the type to stare into the eyes of the person. If you look at someone's eyes, you can feel more than what can be conveyed through words. And if she's beautiful, has a good figure, and a good personality, it'd be great! (laugh)
CD: I like a chic person. Chic, but kind.....
M: And then?
CD: Beautiful....
GO: Then after that, a good figure!
CD: Yeah, someone with a good figure!
J: For me, a person who is completely into me. It's fine even if she's so into me that it's a bit strange. She doesn't spend time with friends, she doesn't go out, but instead is unconditionally attached to me. I'm not joking. I really want someone like that.
GO: Mine is a bit similar to Joon's. I'm the type who's all-in when it comes to love, so I want her to be as all-in as I am. Someone who gives back to me what I give to her. I want to meet someone who will give me everything (laugh). I'm the type who pushes forward if things click at the first impression, rather than going by outward appearance.
M: I like someone who I can date in a relaxed way. My first requirement is... her figure matters to me too, but the most important thing is that she's kind.
CD: Mir doesn't like girls who have strict families (laugh).
J: You said before that your ideal was someone who could casually go on a date overseas, didn't you?
M: A woman who could go to a date by private jet would be great.
SH: You thought you were going out to eat, but before you realized it, you're in Hawaii? (laugh)
M: If we talk like this, I wonder if Japanese fans will be disappointed. Is it okay?
SH: There aren't idols like this, are there? (laugh). Our greatest charms are our undefeated strong energy no matter where we go, and our lack of deceit! Please continue to support us.
Just like watching a variety show in front of our eyes, the five talked excitedly about what's in the hearts of boys these days. How much of it was joking, and how much of it was the truth.... The only thing we know for certain is that they have an inexhaustible supply of charm! The fun of unearthing that charm, happily, seems like it will continue for a while.
* Shooting sketch
This photo shoot and interview took place in the midst of promoting "Y." The time provided was exactly one hour. It seemed they had a performance afterward, and we were given prior warning many times that, "We can't give any extensions on time." Just from that, our editorial team's stress was heightened..... But the five who came to the studio weren't worried about that! They started playing games on their phones, practicing wrestling moves on each other, and one member even fell asleep on the sofa -- they were freedom itself. If we had more time, it would have been fun being able to see these types of heartwarming scenes as well as how they act normally, but we had no time!!! It was then that I met eyes with Cheondung. He understood that we were rushing, and he took the initiative in getting his hair and make-up done, and after seeing that, the other members finally started preparing as well.
The shoot started with the solo shots of each member. The proposed style was to have the other members reflected in the background behind the main person, but their staff said, "We don't understand the final image," and "That seems like it'll take a lot of time," but here as well, Cheondung helped us out! Before the others had even finished preparing, he appeared in the studio alone. He stood in front of the camera as the top batter, and he received a lecture from the cameraman. He understood the idea of the shoot more than anyone else. During the other members' shoots he gave detailed directions, and readily enjoyed the shoot, which helped raise the spirits of the other members! Midway through we had to suspend the shoot because they were playing around so much, but that just meant that the scene was boisterous and filled with unending laughter (and yelling). The recipient of the fighting spirit award this time is undoubtedly Cheondung!
SOURCE: CTONE
TRANSLATION: lnw1984@AbsoluteMBLAQ
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