That Strait Times article in Jakarta Post about KHJ

A lot of us Hyun Joong fans are still smarting and hurting after reading Rachael Boon's article about him. Of course I can't resist saying something about it here ...it's possible she's prejudiced and have negative preconception about Hyun Joong...so she can't write an unbiased account about him. I don't know much about the code of Journalistic, but I thought that principle of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability were involved. And what happened to the fact that a journalist should avoid stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion, ethnicity, geography, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance or social status ??

Oh well, if you're curious you could click HERE to read the article. I'm sad that Jakarta post put this article in their column. The title is : Korean idol plays it safe [ I guess she's talking about playing it safe in answering questions hehehe...].

In the article, there's this sentence : Here are some things Life! found out about him in an e-mail interview that is the equivalent of an anatomically correct Ken doll - there is only the smile and perfect hair with no controversial bits to mar his image. Hmm, stereotyping by physical appearance I see....pretty like a doll....empty headed ?? No brain ??  Is she implying there's nothing to KHJ other than the smile and perfect hair ? O-boy...no wonder many Henecian's blood was boiling. [ Plz see comments for other horrors ! ]

Then there's this : Here are some of the questions he took a scalpel to: How do you stand out from other solo artists such as Rain, Se7en or Taeyang and G-Dragon from Big Bang? Do you find it harder to succeed in K-pop as a solo artist, compared to being in a K-pop band? What is the one fashion style that you really like? The first question requires a looong answer...and she did say it's an e-mail interview [maybe in English ?] and he'd need to think this one through [ I think this question is more appropriate to be asked of his fans than him ] I'm glad he didn't answer that....the second and third questions have been asked and answered in various interviews...so I understand if Hyun Joong won't answer this...perhaps if her questions were a bit different and creative...

And this : Forget about him speaking out in support of fellow entertainers in South Korean show business who have been harassed. Also this : Questions about Open World Entertainment CEO Jang Seok Woo, who is being investigated for alleged charges of sexual harassment, were all crossed out. Are these questions relevant ?, I mean...isn't she interviewing him in connection to his coming FM in Singapore ? Why is she digging up dirt on K-entertainment ?  It doesn't take a genius to know why these questions were refused.

Not to forget this one, just dripping with sarcasm : He sure works hard for his money, er, sorry, we mean his fans. And this ...Few things please him more than when his feelings align with his fans' desires. And if that's not enough, with her wording and strategically placed punctuations [attention to : "actively", (smile) etc]...she manages to convey that all his words and actions are shallow and meaningless.

I'm so sad to read this article...hope the reporter will write better  Journalistic articles...this one is more suitable for tabloids about celebs...where you can poke fun of celebs all you want [ me hate those too]. Are S'pore Strait Times and Jakarta Post lowering their standards ? *shrugs*

Oh well....take heart Henecians and Triple S-es, specially Singapore and Indonesian fans...never mind her ! Hyun Joong and us have been through  worse than this. Just let your anger flare and pass on....it's not worthed, lets put our energy into something positive, like participating in KHJ fan club charity programs and the like. There's something I want to say about KHJ's fans in Singapore : Singaporeans KHJ fans are THE BEST !!  I know...as I'm a proud member of LKHJ...lovekimhyunjoong.com, I'm very happy to be a member still...even though I mostly just lurk around :) Thanks for taking me in girls....good luck for KHJ's FM !!

Hmm...my anger has flared [witness this post] and I'm passing onto happier things...like imagining going to KHJ's FM here...oh boy !!

In contrast to the Article/interview above, there's an interview that I really really love...here it is, I found it in hyunniespexers.wordpress.com [thanks a lot !!] ...me added a few words to make the trans clearer with out changing the meaning/content:

Creasta KHJ Interview ( * Crazy for Asian Star )

Q1: What kind of music genre did you aim in the current album? (Lucky )

KHJ: Frankly speaking, it seems that nobody is interested in my songs in themselves. I focused on “ music to see performance “ rather than “ music to listen to “. However, what I would like to aim [for] from now on is a sort of music which makes everyone cheerful. I know that nobody expects [from] me high-quality music pieces. That is why I wanted to create songs easy on the ear. I aimed [to sing] songs which make people comfortable and cheerful by just listening to [it]. Maybe I talked about this too honestly (laugh)

myoce : I think this reporter is smart and has made KHJ really comfortable ... KHJ spoke truthfully about his abilities...shows he knows his skill and limitations well ....he is not exaggerating anything. Note that the reporter wrote in (laugh) without making it sound derisive.

Q2: Do you believe that you have grown up in music through this album?

KHJ: Yes, I feel that I could have made improvement during this album production. I made my best efforts in vocal lessons to change myself. Though there are still many things to be improved, I feel that I could have changed the tone of my voice.

Q3: The 2nd mini-album, “Lucky “ includes a few pieces of ballad.

KHJ: As I knew that people expected me to sing a ballad, I added them in the current album (laugh). In order to give a sense of stability in [the] tone of the ballad, I especially focused on this to show how I had changed. I hope that everyone like them.

Q4: Compared with the previous mini-album, “Break Down”, 

      how do you think of “Lucky” ?

KHJ: To be honest with you, “Lucky” is better than “Break Down”.

Q5: You produced the 2nd mini-album in four months after the release of “Break Down”.You seemed to have really worked hard to produce your album with such a short interval.

KHJ: Exactly! I really worked non-stop. I have been working hard without taking any rest till now. The current reaction from people itself is amazing for me because I thought in a different way. I felt that I was too late to release an album. I wanted to meet with my fans through my music as soon as possible. This feeling was overwhelming in myself. I wanted to deliver good songs to them. Therefore, I will continue to produce a single album constantly to see my fans.

Q6: Do you mean that you would release your album frequently?

KHJ: True enough. Being a member of SS501, I released only one full-album. From my viewpoint, there is no point in differenciating a mini-album from a full-album. I will just count my album as the first, the second, and so on.

Q7: Could you explain about the title truck of “Lucky” album?

KHJ: The basic sound of the title track consists of a rhythmical electric guitar and brass rock’n’roll band music.  It’s a funky rock. As I was involved from the planning, concept, ideas, and overall production, I am very attached to this album.

Q8: What kind of music do you want to create ?

KHJ: The music I am really interested in is a band music. Before I joined SS501, I loved rock’n’roll music. When I was a high-school student, I was playing (a guitar) in the rock band. I would like to learn more about music so that I will be able to be confident. For me, it is music that I can get along with till the end of my life.

Q9: Could you tell us more details about “band music” which you are interested in ?

KHJ: The genre I am much interested in is “club music”, but I also think that “band music” is exciting as well. That is why I introduced a real drum sounds in my album. The real sound of the musical instruments increases the “loose feeling “ in music.  The sound of guitar was used to aim to add “dry and rough “ touch in the music. I love such taste. In addition to that, I wanted to show that we could dance with a band music. The choreography accentuated the dancing as well.

Q10 Could you tell me about episodes during the recording, if any ?

KHJ: Nothing special. I just enjoyed recording. You may easily recognize while listening to “Lucky Guy”, there’s a sound like the howling of a wolf just before the song goes to bridge (* the melody line between the 1st lyrics and the 2nd lyrics ). Originally, I wanted to insert a female voice, but I could not find a preferable female sexy voice. Therefore, I did it by myself. Please check this while listening (laugh)

Q11: Finally, could you tell us your plan as artist ?

KHJ: I just want to create a good album. In the far distant future, on the occasion of my retirement as dance-music singer, I would like to invite my fans to the concert and show the best (unsurpassable ) live. I can stand here thanks to the warm support from all of my fans. I would like to convey my appreciation to the fans as much as possible. 

myoce : About the last question...all KHJ fans will know he often mentions this...giving a free concert to  fans on his "retirement", where they can come with their family/children.  Notice that KHJ's answers in this interview are not one-liners, his answers show some depth..depth in his understanding of his weakness and strength, depth in his understanding of music...in his passion for it and in his involvement with the production and conception of his work. I admire the reporter for getting these information from KHJ :)

Okie dokie...me feel much much better !! See ya later, girls ....

Photo credits : 

KeyEast and Google image search [aka iforgotwhereIgotem :( ]