H.O.T., the biggest idol group of the 90s, has faded away to
become mere memory, but its members are still thriving as solo singers
or producers, enjoying their share of influence in entertainment.
Moon Hee Jun, former leader of H.O.T. and current TV personality and
solo singer, is one of the most successful of the five members.
Recently, he′s even made his return as a solo singer for the first time
in three years and seven months. He, however, he hasn′t returned with
the rock music he′s so well known for. He′s announced his return as a
dance singer with his new mini album
Begins, surprising many of his fans.
During the interview, the singer also seemed determined to change his
attitude as much as his music, throwing off the mysterious veil
characteristic of old-school top idols and giving his most sincere
answers to the questions.
From rock to dubstep
"I′m nervous at the thought of standing before the public as a singer
once more. The album is overall in dubstep, and the promotional single
I′m Not OK
is an electronic dance piece. I suddenly took a liking to dubstep while
working on band music... so I started digging into that genre. I was
reminded of how it was during my H.O.T. days while writing my music and
thinking about my performances."
Why did he set down the rock music he had hung on to even in the midst
of the malicious comments he was hit with regarding his entry to the
genre? Did he finally decide to give in to the negative opinions and
release his hold on rock music?
Certainly not.
"I want to be comfortable with all types of music. I thought because I
had stayed with one genre too long, I had fallen into it too deeply. I
wanted to work with music free of genre, so I once said on a show that I
hoped someone would throw down a rope for me to hold. I was prepared
for this since then."
All throughout the interview, he continued to emphasize that his new
album didn′t mark a ′return′ to being a dance singer, but rather a
′challenge′ in the genre of dubstep. That was why, he said, the title of
the album wasn′t ′Returns′ but
Begins.
On dating in secret
Scandal
, the track released as a preview to the entire album, is
about the secret love relationships between celebrities and
non-celebrities. As the singer himself had been a top celebrity in the
past, the song can′t help but be taken as a true story of himself. When
asked about the matter, Moon Hee Jun didn′t deny it.
"A lot of stars date like that. If someone asked me, I too would
recommend that they date in secret. I don′t date in secret just because I
was once a member of H.O.T. It′s because, to be honest, there isn′t one
woman in the world who wants to open up her past to the public.
Normally they want to hide their pasts and just concentrate on their one
man. Though [the lyrics] aren′t very widely relatable, I still believe
many will understand what they mean."
He said he had dated in secret even recently, but that he was currently
single. The lyrics were written from his own experiences from the past,
or from those of his friends.
"It′s not about any one woman. I used some of the stories I heard while
talking with celebrities too. The key to dating secretly is that you
have to give up feeling ′comfortable′. You can′t do what others do, and
you have to do what they don′t. You have to stay in your car, and when
you want to watch a movie, you have to go to a drive-in theater."
Will H.O.T. ever reunite?
The reunion of H.O.T. has been a rumor that has followed the members
around ever since their disbandment, and a wish that has steadily
continued to grow in the hearts of their fans. Hopes that H.O.T. would
come together again grew when Shinhwa made a miraculous comeback and
rumors flew that Sechs Kies was also preparing a reunion.
The members also felt the same.
"Up until exactly three weeks ago, we were talking about all the
details. Some of the members practically coughed up blood in their
efforts to bring the group together, letting go of everything else they
were doing. We all needed each other. When [Lee] Jae Won was released
from the army, we got together for drinks and agreed to come together,
and we all cried so hard. I don′t know why we cried. One member said he
had been ′so lonely′ and we all started to break down."
The reunion, however, has met many roadblocks. Their changes in status,
as well as the problems in their contracts with their agencies, were
some of the most important problems posed to them. Though the members
continued to talk through Kakao Talk and met up to grab meals together,
reality wasn′t so easy to overcome.
"We all share the same view, but it′s sad. Whenever we got talking about
our comeback, and about our music, something else would go wrong. The
main obstacle was that we were all signed under different agencies.
We′ve never been jealous of Shinhwa when we were active as H.O.T., but
after seeing them together again we became so jealous and sad at the
same time."
Moon Hee Jun hopes people will keep this in mind
In the interview that lasted for an hour and a half, Moon Hee Jun tried
to be more honest than any other singer. He tried to talk about
everything he could even for the simplest question, and tried to make
everyone understand by using as many examples as possible. He first
spilled on even the most uncomfortable questions, then asked that the
answers not be published.
Near the end of the interview, he sighed and talked about the biggest
misunderstandings he′s often met over the course of his career. He also
hoped to at least set them right through this interview.
"I′ve written my own songs for 15 years, ever since H.O.T.′s third
album, but even composers didn′t know that I wrote songs for myself.
It′s hard to write melodies and lyrics, but producing a whole track
can′t be done without much effort and study.... I hope more people get
to know that I write my own songs and lyrics."
"Ah, there′s another thing. It is true that I had a difficult time when I
sang rock music because I had so many anti-fans, but my concerts all
sold out, and I sold over 500,000 copies of my album. I did suffer, but I
was doing okay financially. Many describe those times as my ′darkest
time′... It hurts when I hear that expression. Couldn′t you replace it
with something like it was a ′difficult time?′"
Photo credit: Line Entertainment, Kim Byung Kwan
Reach reporter Park HyunMin on Twitter @happygato!
