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Kim Chaewon of LE SSERAFIM, a new K-pop girl group, recently spoke out about her decision to join HYBE after signing exclusive contracts with the label. The 21-year-old idol, who rose to fame after joining IZ*ONE, a Korean-Japanese girl group created through Mnet's Produce 48 reality show, admitted that starting over as a trainee was challenging.
LE SSERAFIM is the member's second chance at debuting after IZ*ONE, a unique opportunity for artists and idols in the ever-growing and competitive K-pop industry.
Taking this chance, Kim Chaewon discussed her state of confusion, her attempt at stepping out of her comfort zone, improving her skills and more in the Weverse Magazine interview published on May 9.
LE SSERAFIM’s Kim Chaewon opens up about her decision to join SOURCE MUSIC
Kim Chaewon's tryst with HYBE for their future girl group under SOURCE MUSIC has been widely reported since last year. Bang Si-hyuk, the founder of HYBE, only verified the news on March 14, 2022 by posting a photo of himself with Kim Chaewon and another former IZ*ONE member, Miyawaki Sakura.
Kim Chaewon, currently a member of LE SSERAFIM, spoke with Weverse Magazine about her difficulties following the disbandment of IZ*ONE in April 2021. The K-pop idol went on to reveal that two and a half years flew by as she realized she missed being in a group.
“I wrapped up my time with IZ*ONE last year but then I became worried and uncertain about what I should do going forward. Two and a half years isn’t very long to be in a group, after all. I wanted to be in a group again because I still had a lot of dreams of things I wanted to achieve as part of a group and because I really regretted all the things I never got a chance to show off.”
The 21-year-old LE SSERAFIM member expressed how she had some regrets and wished to demonstrate her abilities to her fans again. SOURCE MUSIC came knocking at the opportune time and her then-agency, Woollim Entertainment, encouraged her to start over.
“That’s when SOURCE MUSIC told me they were making a new group and made me an offer, and the people at my previous label supported me and respected my decision, and that’s how I ended up making a fresh start somewhere new.”
Kim Chaewon of LE SSERAFIM then talked about starting her journey again in the K-pop idol world, which meant beginning again as a trainee.
She admitted that switching labels and being a trainee after being an idol wasn't easy, but she saw it as an opportunity to test herself.She even touched upon the rare opportunity to debut again.
“It’s not easy changing labels, being a trainee again and having to start everything over from the beginning. But I thought I would have regretted it if I didn’t do it. It’s not every day that you have an opportunity to debut with a group again, and I wanted to challenge myself, rather than take the safe way and keep myself from the things I want to do. I decided to follow my heart in the end.”
As for the trainee life, the experienced LE SSERAFIM member shared that she had “certain shortcomings.” Partaking in promotional activities as a IZ*ONE member was hectic, and she regretted that she had almost no time to improve her skills.
“Since I was only a trainee for a short time before, I felt I had certain shortcomings performing with IZ*ONE, and we were so busy that I didn’t have time to improve my skills, just practice our songs, and I really regretted that."
Kim Chaewon leapt at this fantastic opportunity, seeing it as a chance to refine her skills and gain vital training experience.
"So I thought I should use this opportunity to properly experience all the parts of trainee life that I couldn’t before and work on my skills from the ground up.”
Kim Chaewon, amusingly, had a completely different demeanor than her IZ*ONE idol self. Her debut with LE SSERAFIM reveals a fiercer, bolder, and more dynamic side to the singer.
LE SSERAFIM released the album FEARLESS, the music video of which has surpassed 50 million views in just eight days since its release. They also bagged their first music show win on The Show on May 10.
