Part 1 of the interview series. There are ten parts in total.
When the group Big Bang first appeared to the world, people whispered that they were ‘ugly’ idols.
Daesung (22, Real name: Kang Daesung) in particular, who is famous for his (small) ‘smiling eyes’, flaunts such humble looks that he was once told by Kim Jong Kook on the SBS variety show ‘Family Outing’ that “If you were around in my time, you would never have been able to become an idol”.
But Yang Hyun Seok of YG Entertainment chose him for his ‘smile that lights up the world’ and unique voice, and he definitely did not make a mistake in his choice.
Daesung’s characteristic optimistic personality and friendly looks have earned him the appraisal that to the public, he seems like the friendliest and most easily approachable out of all the current active idol stars.
Asia E has interviewed Daesung and heard about his hidden efforts and the pain behind his smile as he worked towards becoming a singer as well as being accepted on variety shows.
From his childhood to the present, where he is active as a singer and actor, as well as his enormous yet trivial dreams for the future will be revealed through the ‘Star Diary’ [=name of this interview; GD’s was ‘Star Confession’].
”Before I did music, I liked sports. I played soccer in primary school but I had to give it up after stretching a ligiment in my knee. I still liked sports though so I consistently learnt Aikido and Taekwondo.”
The young Daesung was a normal but ambitious boy with many dreams, including becoming a soccer player and a pastor.
”I was born into my religion so there was a time when I even dreamed of becoming a pastor. So I studied really hard but I couldn’t get past the ‘wall of study’ in middle school. No matter how hard I tried, it was just too hard and I couldn’t understand it so I decided that ‘Studying isn’t my path’. (laughs)”
Under a normal office working father and deeply religious mother, he spent his school days faithfully going back and forth from school and cram schools. But like everyone else, he too hit puberty and his hidden talents were put in motion.
”I think it was in my first or second year of middle school, there was this thing called Internet Kareoke. Everyday, I relieved all my stress from school by putting on my headphones and singing. My parents always told me off for being loud so at night I would sing with my face smothered in a pillow.”
Daesung liked singing enough to smother his face in a pillow to do so. In his heart, his desire to sing grew and grew.
”Around about my second or third year of high school, my desire to sing grew so I told my dad. I told him I wanted to major in music in university and asked him to send me to a singing academy. But dad was really against it. There was a relative of ours who tried to become a singer but it didn’t really work out, you see. S/he even got a scholarship when s/he was in university, but didn’t manage to become famous as a singer. My dad had seen that and so he was determined to go against me no matter what when I said I wanted to become a singer too.”
Daesung felt frustrated but after contemplating for a while, he decided that his father would change his mind after seeing his abilities. He auditioned for MBC Academy and passed, then proudly showed his father his certificate [for passing].
”I was young and naïve, I thought he’d let me pursue singing if I was accepted into the academy. But dad said “Isn’t it just like any other academy where you just have to pay to get in?” and after that he wouldn’t even look at me. All my relatives would just look at me and sigh...ㅠㅠ I think what drove me at the time was determination against my family who wouldn’t accept and my dream, rather than love for music.
Sources:
Original articleTranslation by
sjay.x@BBVIP.net
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