BTS's Jin says he was "sad and down" while writing Abyss but is grateful for time off during pandemic to "reflect on who I am"
With BTS's Kim Seok Jin's, known mononymously as Jin, 29th birthday approaching, all eyes are on the oldest BTS member on when he would enlist for South Korea's mandatory military service.
While the new change in the law will allow for a delay, Jin will have to enroll at the latest by 30 years of age. But for now, it is music and another kind of ARMY on his mind.
Jin recently spoke to Rolling Stone magazine about his time with BTS and gave his fans some insight into his inner thoughts. The Gwacheon-si-born star also spoke about his trainee days and how he has to train harder than his bandmates in some aspects. This was because he joined Big Hit Entertainment (now HYBE Entertainment) as a trainee in acting.
Fans can read on to learn more about what Jin said.
What Jin said about 2020
In the interview, Jin admitted that while BTS was on tour, there was not any time to reflect on himself and understand what gives him joy and makes him relax. However, due to the restrictions caused by the pandemic, 2020 was a lighter year for the band, as he noted:
"Being off the road for a year gave me a chance to reflect on what I want and who I am, and sort of learn to love myself. I got a chance to sleep more, and that makes me a lot more satisfied. I tried exercising, and I realized that's something that I like. And everyday things like playing games, watching movies, singing, those kinds of things."
However, the downtime in 2020 also brought up a "sense of loss" for Jin and the other members:
"Not just myself, but other members really felt that. When we couldn't go on tour, everybody felt a real sense of loss, a sense of powerlessness, and we were all sad. And it took us a while to get over those feelings."
Also read: 5 best BTS songs by Jungkook
The singer also spoke about writing the song "Abyss," which was released in honor of his birthday in December last year. He said:
"As the title suggests, I was feeling very down, deep in the abyss when I was writing the lyrics. I was feeling very sad and down. But the process of actually singing the song and recording it alleviated a lot of those emotions."
Also read: BTS' net worth: How much each member of the K-pop group earns
What Jin said about learning to sing and dance as a trainee
Unlike the other BTS members, Jin joined Big Hit Entertainment as a trainee in acting, which meant that he had to learn singing and dancing from the basics when he was a trainee. Jin said that even now, it takes him more effort than other members in many areas:
"For example, a lot of the other members will learn a dance once, and they'll be able to dance right away to the music. But I can't do that, so I try to work harder, so I don't hold the other members back or be a burden. So I would come to dance practice an hour early, or after the training was over, I would stay behind another hour or so and ask the teacher to go over the choreography one more time."
However, the songwriter believes he is yet to master singing and that a singer's duty and obligation is to bring joy to the audience:
"As we went on tour, I began to see the audience liking what I was doing. We shared the same emotions, and what I was doing was resonating with them more and more. So whether it was my singing or my performance or whatever it might be, I began to realize that I can communicate with the audience.
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Ravi Iyer