1. Scarf, Zara. Black baggy pants, General Idea by BumSeok. Belt, stylist.
It is 1 in the morning, inside MBLAQ's van. Their schedule began at 10 in the morning, through recordings, fan signings, and photo shoots, and the members are sitting tiredly. Because the schedules were set, they did not even get to eat dinner and are going on with the photo shoot. I think of seeing the members hurriedly eating foil-wrapped rice balls and feel sorry for them. But they went through the filming brightly, one member saying, "Why don't I get smoky eye make-up like Thunder and Joon", or, "Why am I only getting two cuts". Joon kept picking up dumbbells because of his shirtless photos, and Thunder and Mir, who kept meeting in front of the camera, could not hold in their laughter and had to look the other way. They are still the same members I met last year for the October issue of Elle Girl, still boisterous and full of energy. I thought, "You guys really had a lot of hard work" after seeing them pumping out tears after placing first on a music program. I feel the same way now, seeing them sitting in their van with exhausted eyes. And although we had to finish the interview quickly because they had no time, and they have been going tirelessly with no plans of summer vacation, only worried about their next album and thinking about each individual's problems, they still joked around until the end, saying to the exiting editor getting off the van, "Aren't you going to drive?".
2. White jacket, bracelet, ring, all Bell & Nouveau. White top, Skullism. White shorts, Hazzys.
3. Seungho's white hood top, Kai-aakman. Lee Joon's navy jumper, Song JiOh. G.O's white hood jumper, Song JiOh.
4. Mir's ruffle-detailed black top, Eloq. Baggy pants, ilmostreet.com. Gold bracelet, Forever21. Thunder's silk shirt, Bell & Nouveau. Shorts, Christopher Shannon by Addicted.
5. Ruffle-decorated white shirt, JaeHee Shin.
6. Shirt, Kwak HyunJoo. Bold jewel ring, Bell & Nouveau. Silver ring, Macos Adamas. Bracelet, Diesel.
7. Silk shirt, JaeHee Shin. Shorts, General Idea by BumSeok. Gold bracelet, ring, H.R. Silver ring, E.S Donna.
8. Lee Joon's white shirt, JaeHee Shin. Beige shorts, Bean Pole. Shoes, Vans. SeungHo's ruffle-detailed top, A Film Project by Addicted. Denim shorts, Kai-aakman. Shoes, Vans.
EG. Now MBLAQ is a #1 singer.
Thunder. We didn't know that we would get first place. As always, my mind was empty, and suddenly they say that we're first place. I was so touched that tears came out.
EG. You didn't anticipate it at least a little bit?
Thunder. A little. Honestly, I think I anticipate it every time we're on stage. I got so surprised because it became a reality. I cried even after we went to the dressing room.
EG. Did the five of you grab each other and cry together inside the dressing room?
Thunder. It was embarrassing, but I was the only one who cried. I thought I had stopped, but the tears kept coming.
Mir. I was the one who cried the most. When we became candidates for first place, I didn't know if we would get it. In the confusion of the moment when they announced it, I cried.
EG. Did you not know that your come back album would do so well?
Mir. Confidence we had enough of. I cried of happiness because I thought, "We got first place already".
Lee Joon. So I was the only one who smiled. We were lucky, because usually singers practice between five to eight years.
EG. Are you saying that you're relieved that you came out during the era of idols?
Lee Joon. It's more like our preparation time was short. Despite that, we did this well. Without much suffering, we enjoyed what we were doing and came this far, and with a result like this I'm happy. To be honest, first place isn't that important. The important thing is standing on the stage as a singer. When you call us '#1 singer MBLAQ', it's embarrassing and uncomfortable. Whatever our rank, even if we don't make it to a rank, the goal is to show everyone a good performance without worrying about ranking.
EG. We saw an unexpected side of SeungHo. At our last interview, I saw you as a human who was a strong leader hyung, but when you got first place, you shed tears.
SeungHo. It's true that there were emotions from getting first place, but my grandfather had also passed away recently. If he had lived for just a few more weeks, he would have seen his grandson have a come back, and that reality was sad. Before going on stage, I had my mind set, but the emotions just came up.
EG. Tell us some unexpected sides of the other members.
SeungHo. Thunder is a boy with a very naive and innocent mind. He's never dated. We see him as a prince. But inside his mind, he wants to play. To put it in other words, he doesn't want to be seen as a small child, but accepted as a man.
EG. Thunder, you've never dated?
Thunder. Yeah. But I have confidence that I can date well. The hyungs teach me a lot, the kinds of mistakes that men should not make.
EG. What are they?
G.O. Women like to play hard to get. Even though that's true, I told him that men have to be straight and unchanging. That men can't play around with women's minds. Women are bound to come to the person who likes them instead of to the person they like. I told him that they like the sincerity in men and to work hard at it.
EG. Does your company permit dating?
Lee Joon. JiHoon hyung told us only to date when we think, 'I really can't do it without this woman'. He said that he would push us to do well. But right now, we haven't done anything, and we're not solos but a team. We have to have precaution. My goal is to become someone like Rain, and I think that before I become someone like him, I cannot act in any way I want to. All our members are soft-hearted and kind, so if they were to date, they would treat her well with everything they have. So it's good to focus on one thing for now, because you can't have two rabbits at once.
EG. For how long?
Lee Joon. I'm not sure. All I can do is work hard.
EG. On TV, Joon looks very extroverted. But in reality, I hear he's introverted with lots of fears?
Lee Joon. That's true. It's not like I've never dated, but it's worse in front of women. It doesn't matter when it's one-on-one, but when there's lots of people, there's a problem.
EG. Is this a different problem from standing on stage?
Lee Joon. On stage, I perform thinking that I'm just playing alone, so it's okay. When you're with a lot of people, you have to please everyone. I'm not good at that kind of thing.
EG. I hear that SeungHo also was annoyed because of such social issues. A lot of people contact you pretending to be close?
SeungHo. There are people that will be by my side for a long time, and then there are people who just pass by. My 'Thanks to' list is clear-cut. If anyone tries to come into that territory, I have resistance. I hate it when people who never contacted me call one day to say, "It's me, how are you?". Most of those calls are because they're drinking and want to brag about knowing me. When that happens, I say, "There's no business between you and me". They might get hurt, but I can't do anything about it. It's a good and a bad thing, but I can't beat around the bush.
EG. You must be more sensitive because of your busy schedule. Do you get any sleep?
SeungHo. We sleep almost five hours when we get to sleep a lot. Today, we woke up at 10 and are here now (1 in the morning).
EG. You're on music programs, variety programs, and reality programs. Which do you dislike doing the most?
SeungHo. Variety is hard. I'm not good at being funny, and my reactions aren't that great. When they ask me a question, all I do is answer. I have a personality that when it's not funny, I don't laugh. I should just smile and look like I'm enjoying myself, but I can't do that.
EG. Among the members, who has the best sense for variety?
SeungHo. G.O talks really well. His personality is unique, so it's fun, and he reacts well to unexpected situations. Thunder doesn't talk much, but when he does talk, it's with sense. Mir is just funny. He does body gags that you wouldn't find amongst idols.
EG. Each of you have a lot of individual schedules. I was really touched when I saw G.O on Mnet's 'A-Live Acoustic Live'. I didn't know that you had that sort of sensitivity.
G.O. It's an honor to stand on stage with people like J and JungYeop. It's easier for me to do R&B and ballads than dance tracks. Sometimes with dance tracks, there are times when I am not showing my true self. Also, dance lyrics are more simple compared to those of ballads and R&Bs, which have a lot of lyrics dealing with realistic love that makes me like them more.
EG. G.O, are you happy with what you're doing with MBLAQ?
G.O. Of course. Standing on stage as MBLAQ itself is satisfying.
EG. Are all the other members satisfied with your lifestyle now?
MBLAQ. Yes!
EG. Thunder, you said in the last interview that you wanted to quit.
Thunder. (looking at the flustered members) I think everyone has contrary feelings sometimes. There are times when you're enjoying it, but then there are also times when you want to quit.
EG. What is MBLAQ's biggest worry right now?
G.O I was really afraid when we came back with our second album. The other members probably thought the same thing, but I thought a lot about how we could look cooler. Although it hasn't been long since promoting our second album, I'm already worrying about our third album. Am I just being too forward? This time, we emphasized a strong image, but now I'm thinking about what concept we're going to show next, and how much we can develop and grow.
Thunder. I want to write the next album's title track. I've been listening to and watching a vast variety of different music and music videos, but it's not working out. I keep thinking that maybe I'm not cut out to be a producer. I've already thought of the next visual concept.. to shave half my head and wear sunglasses.
EG. Do the members' suggestions really get taken in for usage?
G.O. The good thing about our company is that when we submit ideas, they are taken into consideration.
EG. For this come back, what suggestions were used?
G.O. Firstly, they listened to us when we said that we didn't want our hairstyles and outfits to be as excessive as it was in our debut. The choreography was also completed after discussion. The biggest thing was that the title track became the song that we recommended the most. MBLAQ doesn't come out just made by other people. Our album and stage style have our suggestions in them. It's more fun and purposeful.
Mir. But I've been thinking recently about what I should do once I stop being an idol. When I look at other idol sunbaes, they go into variety shows, act, or do business. I keep thinking about what I should do. Personally, I want to do business. I want to become a part of management at an entertainment company.
Lee Joon. You're already thinking about things like that? Compared to that, my worries are trivial. I want my body to be better, but I don't want to exercise. I want to dance well, but I don't want to practice. I want to sleep more, but it's irritating because I can't sleep. When I got the swine flu and hurt my ankle, I had some anxiety about whether I would be able to keep going. Oh, another thing. I don't know how to treat people once I meet them for the first time.
EG. All of you have lots of worries. When you get summer vacation, go cool off your heads.
SeungHo. There won't be a vacation. Including our trainee days, we've only received a three-day vacation in three years.
EG. What did you do then?
SeungHo. That was at the beginning of our debut, so it went by quickly. We said that we would all go play together somewhere, but I just ended up sleeping at my house. I'm still sad about that. When we get a vacation, I want to go on a vacation with the members or with the entire company.
Thunder. I want to go on a trip to Europe alone.
SeungHo. Oh, okay. I guess the four of us will have to play without Thunder.
Source: Elle Girl
Translator: ilovepocky @ AbsoluteMBLAQ
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