You’ll see his crazy world never before shown to anyone. Jang Keun
Suk, who released his first album “Just Crazy” at the end of May in
Japan, got a No.1 ranking on Oricon daily and weekly chart. It means he
became the first solo foreigner artist in the history of music in Japan.
He has a clear and beautiful voice we can’t help but get lost in.
Listening to songs into which he puts a lot of emotion, we tremble all
over with the rhythm. It’s a moment when his new creative talent
sublimes. Who on earth is this 25-year-old young superstar? A close-up
of the real face of Jang Keun Suk, the most mysterious and attractive
guy who is gifted with remarkable talents inside.
He is only 25 years old, but this year is his 20th anniversary since
his debut. Jang Keun Suk has succeeded to become the most popular Hallyu
star, with superb acting skill he has gained from his experience as an
actor and born artistic sense. Now, he’s taking the first step in
becoming a singer. His free spirit helps this new challenge.
Looking back over the past 20 years, Jang Keun Suk started his career
as a model when he was 5 years old. Then, he debuted as a child star on
TV when he was 10 years old. Whenever he went for shooting, he brought a
big bag and used expressway bus from his home in a rural area to Seoul,
all by himself. As his parents daringly had his son do anything by
himself, it encouraged his self-reliance. He had wanted to study abroad
since elementary school and went to New Zealand for studying English
when he was at the first year of high school. He planned to attend the
school until graduation, but he went back to Korea to accept an offer
for appearing on TV. Since then, he’s pushed forward with his work as an
actor.
A while later, the trial which every child stars would experience
also came to Jang Keun Suk. There is a jinx that says “Actors who have
career as a child star never succeed,” which means it’s hard for them to
break away from the fixed image. For him, especially he has a long
career as a child star was not exceptional. He experienced hard times in
his late teens. When he was 20 years old, he appeared in the drama
“Hwang Jin Yi” and it became his turning point. He was selected as the
first love of the lead actress. Contrary to viewers’ expectation that
young Keun Suk can’t play the role, he did quite well. The success
helped him to become more mentally mature. And he gradually succeeded a
transition from a child star to an adult actor and expanded his range of
acting. Movie “The Happy Life” in 2007 and Drama “Beethoven Virus”
proved his acting skill and he won the Newcomer Awards for each work. He
eventually got rid of the image as a child actor.
In 2009, he had a chance to act his perfect role in Drama “You Are
Beautiful.” He played Hwang Tae Kyung, a leader of a popular pop band,
who is a very sensitive and very difficult person to get along with. He
perfectly performed this bossy character and after YAB, he’s become
increasingly popular. Without exception, as soon as it was broadcast in
Japan, he’s became a big hit and getting a ticket of his tour is very
difficult to obtain now.
Despite of the success of his tour, a dilemma occurred to his inside.
Most of the songs he sings at the tour are those of which his
characters on dramas sing. Since then, he gradually began to think that
he wanted to sing his original songs. Then, he debuted as a singer in
Japan, with a single CD “Let me cry” released in April last year. He set
a new record for the first solo foreign male artist who topped on
Oricon chart with his debut single. Furthermore, he released his first
album “Just Crazy” this May. It contains various songs from rock music
to ballad. It’s really a high-level of completion which shows his many
talents.
He talked about the album as follows. “I first thought I wanted to
make my own album when I was 23 years old. Honestly I had a dream to be a
singer when I was a kid, but in Korea I was satisfied to be appreciated
as an actor. However, while I was singing songs of my characters, I
gradually came to think that I want my own! My dream to release my album
came true this time. I’m more than happy to be on stage as a singer who
has own songs from this tour.”
He describes that the title “Just Crazy” reflects “his real self” perfectly.
“When I wonder what is happiness for everyone, it might be thought
that everyone feels happy every day. Every day is a new day. As for me,
when I wake up in the morning, I feel very happy thinking about what
will happen or who I will meet today. Our life is so short that I put a
message in the title saying ‘Let’s do whatever you want to try, not you
have to do. Let’s enjoy your life like living in CRAZY WORLD.’”
Then, we asked him what inspires him most to be crazy. He replied
immediately, “It’s my album. It’s my first album in my life and all
songs were selected by me and I love them all. And to keep trying to
achieve my goal to conquer the world also inspires me.” Then, we asked
him about the moment when he becomes crazy in his private life. He
answered shyly, “Well, I’m crazy every day. Lol. While working, if I
think it’s ‘work’, it’s absolutely ‘work’. On the other hand, if I try
to enjoy it, I feel happy at that moment and I think it has a different
meaning. Work and play is totally opposite like black and white, but by
just changing our view or way of thinking a bit, we can enjoy working as
well as playing. And this thought encourages me to be crazy.”
It’s because he approached the work with a feeling that he tries to
enjoy everything, he has confidence in the album. He said, “Every song
reflects my life.” Interestingly enough, there are similarities in songs
“Let me cry,” “Abracadabra,” “Tomorrow” and “In my life,” which he
wrote the lyrics and music. All the songs include a word, “fly.” This
word implies his view of life?
“I want to become ‘a free man’ more than an artist or a singer. I
don’t think it necessary to restrict what we should speak in interview
to keep the image of an artist. As long as it isn’t impolite to others, I
want to show all my view of life. That’s why ‘fly’ might have a meaning
of ‘freedom’. My goal to conquer the world doesn’t mean to gain more
money or expand my business to the world. Rather it means I want to
meet, talk and drink with various people living all over the world. If
there were Doraemon, I would ask him to give me wings with I can fly to
the world freely. Lol.”
His saying that he wants to be treat people in the world frankly reflects his belief “I’m a human before I’m an artist.”
“People consider me as an artist, but I’d rather want to be
considered as an individual, ordinary person like everyone. My view of
the world might be different from yours, but I eat the same food as you.
I also enjoy eating. Of course, I feel lonely, too. I’m living with
such various feelings like everyone. That’s why I use Twitter and my
apps on smartphones to share ‘the world I see’ with you. In this way, I
open my heart to my fans first, so I believe they also open their heart
and we can feel an intimate connection with each other.”
It’s Jang Keun Suk who follows the path he believes in. To our
surprise, he had never thought what he wanted to do until he turned 20
years old.
“As I started to work in showbiz when I was 5 years old, I have more
memories of staying at TV stations than those at school. I always cared
about what seniors around me thought. That’s why I had not had my own
idea in those days. However, when I turned into 20 years old, I began to
think if there was my own will in my life so far. I want to be a good
actor. But at the same time, I want to care about my own life. Since
then, I’ve started to think ‘fly’ and ‘free man’. It might be a bit
slow, but now I can search for my new life by myself and finally enjoy
my own life.”
When it comes to the story he got No.1 ratings both as a single and
an album on Oricon chart, he told us an interesting episode. “When I
knew the news I got a No.1 ranking on Oricon single chart, I was in Hong
Kong. At first, I thought it must be a fraud. Lol. Someone must have
posted a fake news on the Internet as a joke. I can’t still believe I
also got the No.1 with my album. I’m sure I got the No. 1 ratings not
because of my effort only. I made it because a lot of fans and staff
united together and supported me. For me, this achievement means more
than No.1 ratings. As I want everyone to listen to my good songs, I
bought 50 copies of my album at TOWER RECORDS in Shibuya (I paid for
them out of my own pocket), autographed on them, and gave out them to
passers-by while walking around. Lol.”
He’s been active in various areas such as Actor, Singer, MC, DJ and
Director of movies. He’s quite versatile. He said, “I want to be an
artist, not just a celebrity. The important thing is I have something to
express inside me. I don’t want to act like a robot. Whoever has
something to speak or tell can become an artist. For example, when I
write lyrics as long as I use my own words, it becomes my song. No
matter what genre it is, the most important thing is what I want to
express myself. I think there’s no longer a big difference.”
Talking with him, we felt his solid vision as an artist.
He always keeps his antenna fully spread out to catch immediately
what he wants to do. Then, he expresses them freely. He stands firm in
his own convictions even if he faces new challenges. “I just do what I
want to do. So, I never feel pressure. If I feared pressure, I wouldn’t
try to do anything.” Hearing his reliable saying, we can’t help but feel
his unlimited potential that he will surely accomplish his goal to
conquer the world.
Lee Min Ho is currently attracting a lot of attention with his superior martial arts skills.
