Plaintive melodies that pierce deep into your heart, combined with novel, acrobatic performances — 2PM holds onto the hearts of those who watch them and doesn’t let go. On sale in May, their first Japanese single “Take off” is a positive, refreshing number that gives off the feel of a new beginning. We have asked 2PM, who has finished their preparations for “Take off” in Japan, to talk about the appeal of this single.
Please enjoy our talk with the 6 members, which was as bright and energetic as the tune of “Take off”!
—Let’s work hard today. It’s early in the morning; aren’t you sleepy?
TAEC: (in Japanese) It’s not morning right now! It’s… 11:40am. So it’s the afternoon. Lunch time~
—You’re strangely energetic (laughs). Maybe you really are sleepy?
TAEC: I’m okay. Let’s start!
—In that case….. 2PM’s single “Take off” goes on sale in May, but the song has a vibe that’s rather different from your usual style, doesn’t it?
TAEC: Because I had to shoot for the drama, “Dream High”, I was the last member to listen to the song. As you said, it’s completely different from our usual image so I was a little hesitant about it, but it’s the type of song that’s appropriate for people of our age to sing. So I’d like to have fun singing it.
WOO: Honestly, I was also hesitant, but I got addicted to it after listening to it repeatedly. The song has a curious charm to it.
NICKHUN: Amongst our past songs, “10 out of 10″ is the one with the lightest mood. This song is even brighter than that, so it felt fresh to me.
JUNSU: It’s fast and positive. I thought the chord progressions were interesting, too.
—I have the impression that it’s a song that closely resembles your true selves.
TAEC: Not at all. We’re not like that at all.
JUNSU: It’s more bouncy.
—This song was a collaboration between J.Y.Park-san and Changoddai-san. Did they expect you to sing it in a certain fashion?
JUNSU: After listening to the mock Korean version that J.Y.Park-san did for us, we understood what kind of feeling he wanted. We’ve been with J.Y.Park-san for 3 years, so we can tell, without words, how he wants us to express a song simply by listening to the mock version.
TAEC: Super Changoddai-san basically advised, “Have fun and sing it freely in any way you like!”
JUNSU: In his case, he puts more emphasis on our inner emotions than following the score, so it’s okay as long as we bring out something better than the score.
WOO: For me, I had to shoot for “Dream High”, so I recorded my parts in my intervals of free time, little by little. It was tough; there were times when my voice didn’t come out well because I was tired from filming.
JUNHO: I went for the recording after reading the paper with the lyrics and translations – in hiragana, its reading in hangul, and just in case, romanji – everyday until I ripped a hole through it.
NICKHUN: First, we always discuss about the song’s outlook together. We bring up ideas on how we should sing it and how we should express the message we want to convey. We also listen to each other’s parts at the recording session. That’s how we create the mood of the song. Wooyoung and Taecyeon had to shoot for their drama, so they couldn’t take part in the meetings this time. I think that’s why it was harder for us to “catch” this song.
—Specifically, what was difficult about it?
CHAN: I had difficulty pronouncing characters like “tsu”, “chi” and “za”. I had to rerecord my parts with just those sounds. The Japanese staff members really helped me with their advice.
TAEC: There was a lot of English in the rap, but I had to rearrange the lyrics a little bit while rapping.
—When I first listened to this song, I thought it was a refreshing song that people would want to listen to in the morning.
WOO: In the morning…… that’s a good idea. It might work well as an alarm tone.
TAEC: Because the beginning of the song is quite slow, I actually think it’ll make you fall into deep sleep when you’re tired (laughs).
JUNSU: You might wake up feeling great when the chorus comes on.
NICKHUN: I recommend listening to it on your way to work, too. Doesn’t it make you feel like you’ll have a refreshing day?
—What’s your favourite lyrics in the song?
JUNSU: The parts with “I’ll be~” and “with you~”.
—That’s Chansung-san’s part, isn’t it?
JUNSU: I think the lyrics match the melody. I sing the chorus, and I tried to ad lib with the “inochi” (life) part in the second half of “Deai ga inochi wo~” (Encounters make our lives~~)!
TAEC: I like the phrase, “Kore wo unmei to yobun da” (This is called fate.) Because I believe in fate.
JUNHO: I like that phrase, too. I don’t believe in fate, though, because I want to open my own path in life instead of depending on fate.
CHAN: I like “Tsuyoi yuuki ni naru mahou no kotoba” (The magic words that give us strength.)
—What a romantic phrase. By the way, what would you consider to be magic words that give you strength?
JUNHO: The cheers we get at concerts. 2.P.M. JUN. HO. AWESOME! WE. LOVE. YOU!
CHAN: For me…… what’s mine?
WOO: Chansung’s magic words are stuff like, “Shall we treat you to a meal?” (laughs)
CHAN: Yeah that does motivate me.
—Your catchy dances are characteristic of 2PM’s image, but will a catchy dance be included with this song?
NICKHUN: Of course. It’s a choreography that everyone can instantly imitate!
WOO: Imagine an airplane spreading its wings and taking flight.
JUNSU: The person who always takes charge of our choreography came up with the idea.
—Do you like it?
NICKHUN: Yes! It’s simple!
JUNSU: You like it because it’s simple? (laughs)
—But the staff members said that the choreography wasn’t easy at all?
NICKHUN: I think it’s easier for everyone to join us in this dance compared to our Korean songs.
TAEC: Each and every movement is simple. But it certainly is difficult for 6 members to perform that in sync.
—It has been confirmed that “Take off” will be the theme song for the anime “Ao no Exorcist” (The Blue Exorcist). Was this a happy piece of news for the anime-loving Taecyeon-san?
TAEC: Considering that we’re still rookies in Japan, I think we’ve been given a huge opportunity.
NICKHUN: When we were young, didn’t we all run to the front of the TV, thinking, “It’s starting~” whenever we heard the theme song of an anime playing? I hope our song can also move the hearts of children in that way.
TAEC: We’ll become “Orinewan (a children’s hero)”~!
NICKHUN: (tries singing the Doraemon theme song) Like Doraemon (laughs).
—”Doraemon” aired in Thailand too?
NICKHUN: “Doraemon” aired in the original Japanese with subtitles. “Detective Conan” and “Card Captor Sakura” aired, too.
TAEC: I hope our song can be popular enough to become a fond memory for children after they grow up.
—The accompanying song in the recording is the Japanese version of “Heartbeat”.
NICKHUN: It felt really strange at first.
JUNSU: That’s true. Especially at the “Uh Uh girl” part.
TAEC: For me, I was shocked that I didn’t recognize the English words in the line “Kanari DEEP na BEATS ga~” (Rather deep beats are~) at first. (laughs) I tried to pronounce the English in a way that fit the Japanese lyrics.
—Is the sound different from the Korean version’s?
JUNSU: It has been remixed so the sound of the base can be more strongly heard.
NICKHUN: I think they’ve produced a dynamic and three-dimensional sound. If the Korean version has a 2D image, the Japanese version’s one is 3D.
TAEC: The base really reverbrates even when you listen to the song on a laptop.
JUNSU: Maybe it’s ’cause you’re using a good laptop? (laughs)
—How was the recording session here?
JUNHO: We definitely had to pay attention to our pronunciation. We have certain habits when we sing, right? For example, I tend to breathe a sigh into the “Ah” so it’s expressed into a more melancholic “A-haa”, but for the lyrics “Ima mo hibiki~” (Still continues to echo now~), I was told that it’d be difficult to hear if I sang, “I-hi~ ma-ha~ mo-ho~”. I had problems with working in expression into the pronunciation.
CHAN: For me, the “Wae ajikdo” (Why do I keep) part in the Korean version has been changed to “WHEN DID YOU kono ai~” (When did you; this love), so the timing to fit those words in has changed, too. It was difficult to grasp that timing.
—Did you get confused with the Korean and Japanese versions?
JUNSU: There were moments when it seemed like we’d make a mistake. But I think we’ll sing the Japanese version a lot from now on, so I’m sure we’ll gradually be able to make the switch in our heads.
—You performed the Japanese version for the first time at the “Mezamashi Super Live” in Okinawa a few days ago. How was the response of the fans?
TAEC: That performance was a very important learning experience. When the introduction played, we could hear the fans cheering. But, when I started singing, “Kanari DEEP na BEATS ga~” (Rather deep beats are), the cheers suddenly stopped.
JUNHO: We could tell the fans were confused. “What? Japanese? Are they singing in Japanese?” (laughs)
WOO: But I’m glad they watched over us warmly, since we had decided to sing in Japanese.
—Given that it was your first time performing it, you must have been so nervous.
CHAN: We usually don’t get nervous on stage, so we weren’t nervous about the performance. We were actually way more nervous about doing the MC in Japanese.
—When you greeted everyone with, “Banza~i, we’re 2PM!” (Raise your hands and cheer, we’re 2PM) the Okinawa fans looked very happy.
2PM: Thank you very much.
—I think the fans have high expectations for your Japanese MC in your Live Tour in Japan’s 5 Cities in May.
NICKHUN: Yeah~ (he says as he glances at the members)
—Are your Japanese studies going well?
CHAN: We study once every 1 or 2 days, and in between our work, we also have bits of lessons focusing on conversation with our Japanese teacher. The latest phrase I’ve memorized is, “Itsukara sonna ni kawaikatta no?” (When did you get so cute?) It’s a line from the drama, “Secret Garden”, but now I remember it as a pick-up line in Japanese. (laughs) Also, “dangkeun” (carrot in Korean). ….. what’s “dangkeun” again?
—”Atarimae” or “mochiron”? (Both mean “of course/naturally”.)
CHAN: I think it was something else…… I don’t remember. (laughs) I’ll go back and study again.
JUNHO: People laughed really hard when I said the word “Totonoimashita!” (I’m prepared!) at our arrival last December, but….. I want to find another word!
—We have great expectations for your new release. Last of all, please tell us the highlights of your upcoming concert.
TAEC: It goes without saying that we’ll give you performances that scream, “This is 2PM.” I also hope we can show you an unexpected side of ourselves with our solo pieces. And our “Orinewan” side! (laughs)
JUNHO: I don’t know if we’re “Orinewan” or not, but I hope people will see that 2PM isn’t just beastly.
NICKHUN: I’m also really excited already. About the concert, of course, along with the delicious food in each city.
TAEC: I want to eat meat! We can never leave out meat.
JUNSU: Anyway! (laughs) We’ll make preparations that will allow all our fans to fully enjoy themselves, so please come and join in the fun!
Source: WPK Magazine Spring 2011 Interview
Scans from Daegutang
Translated by fantaisie @ Wild2Day.org
