"I almost had a stroke": Korean singer Yoon Sang reveals his reaction to RIIZE's Anton wanting to become a K-pop idol

On Wednesday, January 17, RIIZE's Anton and his father, Korean singer-songwriter, Yoon Sang, appeared as guests on tvN's You Quiz On The Block for their family special episode. During the same, the show's MC, Yoo Jae-suk, asked Yoon Sang if he had ever imagined that he'd turn out to be the father of a K-pop idol.

Anton had previously revealed that his parents were initially against his desire to become a K-pop idol. During the two's appearance on the variety show, Yoon Sang opened up about how he didn't expect his son to say that:

"When he told me that he was coming to Korea to become a K-Pop idol, I almost had a stroke."

Though his father knew he had a great interest in music, he didn't expect his son to take the route of K-pop to develop his passion. However, Yoon Sang anticipated that the idol might start rebelling and purposely not do well in his studies, and therefore let him try out K-pop.

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Musician Yoon Sang dishes about his reaction to RIIZE's Anton wanting to become a K-pop idol

Anton, the maknae of the recently debuted RIIZE, is the son of the renowned Korean singer-songwriter Yoon Sang. The group debuted back in September of 2023 and has since been dominating with their show-stopping performances and addictive songs. While netizens initially had no idea about Anton's connection with the songwriter, the recent revelation shook the industry.

The two even showcased their combined talent at the MBC annual festival, 2023 Gayo Daejejeon, as they covered Yoon Sang's hit 1996 track, Running.

During their recent appearance in tvN's You Quiz On The Block, Anton's father explained why he was against his son joining the music industry.

He stated that though he was aware of Anton's interest in music, he wasn't expecting to see a passion for K-pop in his son, especially since he was a swimmer for about ten years.

However, the RIIZE member explained during the interview that he wasn't passionate about swimming, and only did it so he could get into a good school.

During the interview, Yoon Sang noted:

"I never once imagined it in my life. I mean, it's true that he loved music since he was a child, but being an idol is a different area altogether. He was actually a swimmer for 10 years. Among his peers, he was pretty good at it."

To this, Anton replied:

"I didn't swim because I dreamt of becoming a professional swimmer. It was rather so I could get into a good school. While swimming, I also learned the piano and the guitar. In middle school, I became interested in composing music as well."

Yoon Sang then continued:

"At first, when he told me he wanted to be an idol, I said, 'Don't joke with me.' When he told me that he was coming to Korea to become a K-Pop idol, I almost had a stroke. He, his mother, and I talked about it for about a year. In the end, we decided to let him give it a shot. With a goal like that in mind, he wasn't going to do well in school anyway. That's how he ended up flying over to Korea."

The RIIZE member was born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, and three years later, he and his mother moved to New Jersey, while his father stayed in Korea, pursuing his career.

Anton, during his personal interview, shared how he came to realize his passion for music:

"I knew that my parents had planned a different future for me. Even though my dad was living in Korea apart from us, when he came to visit us, he would work on music in a studio in the basement. When I heard the music coming up through the floors, I would press my ears down on the floor to listen closer. I would go down to the basement by myself when he left because it kind of smelled like him and I just wanted to get to know more about what he was doing."

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At the end of the day, his parents seemed to be proud and happy about Anton's choice to become a K-pop idol and Yoon Sang shared that he was touched to see his son carve out his own career.