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[jstn]

The people that I met this time were â??Girlsâ?? Generationâ??. Following the footsteps of â??Boaâ??, the idol group was created by the illustrious entertainment producer, Lee Sooman.
Interviewing a celebrity is more difficult than interviewing a politician. Unless they are well established like Jo Yongpil or Ahn Sunggi, they will strictly censor themselves. The public is cold. They wonâ??t even forgive a small wording mistake. The case is worse if the target is a top idol group. (Thatâ??s why I did not differentiate their replies with each names today) Because of the spot light, most of the interviews conducted with celebrities are silly questions like â??Do they fart?â?, â??If so, does it smell?â?. But this interview must take a step further. Otherwise, itâ??s a failure.

1. Intro

- (I met 7 of the members at a nice coffee shop in ChungDam-Dong. Their manager told me that was the best he could do due to their busy schedule. The busiest of them all, Yoona and Tiffanyâ??s interviews had to be conducted at a later date.)
Hello.

â??Hello. Nice to meet you. Hello. Nice to meet youâ?¦â?

- (7 persons but 1 greeting. Their voices were beautiful but it felt as if they were in harmony. It grabbed the attention of all the customers in the shop and their cellphone cameras were buys at work.)
I am really happy to meet you guys. I will be the ajussi that will be interviewing you guys today. Do any of you guys recognize me?

â??Yesâ?¦ the author of â??New Heartâ?

(Their lips moved in sync with the conductorâ??s baton. I asked their manager not to give them pre-interview questions but I felt uneasy. But at least they didnâ??t think I was an â??investment criticâ??. Am I being prejudice? It didnâ??t seem like they were young girls. There is no point of conducting an interview about getting rid of their prejudice if the interviewee is being prejudice against them.)

- (I couldnâ??t find the curiosity or the innocence possessed by other girls their age.)
I will warn you in advance. This is not an ordinary celebrity interview. The purpose of this interview is to reveal your true selves to other adults that have no idea who you are. You may not be able to have more opportunity like this in your career. Should we start with your introductions?

â??I am Yuri. I am HyoYeon. I am Jessica. I am TaeYeon. Iam SooYoung. I am SeoHyun. I am Sunny.â?

- (I purposely didnâ??t take my notepad out. Only when I showed them a picture of their over-nervous manager taken by another reporter, they laughed and finally loosened up. I wondered what was real. The split exposure of their â??just a girlâ? image or the â??beauty pageantâ? pose. I was curious.)
Shall we start from your debut? How did you feel?

â??Anxious, nervous and my heart felt like it was going to explode. I couldnâ??t believe I was going to show my singing, dance and talent. I couldnâ??t sleep the night before because I was so happy. I couldnâ??t think of anything else other than showcasing my talent. I was delighted when I was getting off the stage.â?

- (â??I had a black-outâ?, â??My legs were shakingâ?. They didnâ??t say the expected answers.) So you became a singer and gained popularity and now you are on the top. What is your pride as an artist? Some members are not only singing but acting and DJâ??ing right?

"It must be overwhelming to act and be a singer at the same time. But in school, there are students that are good at Math and Science. Canâ??t you view as the same? I think itâ??s too early for us to have pride as an artist right now. Plus, we all have different dreams and goals. "

(I was surprised at their honesty. The expected answer, â??I want to be recognized as a singerâ? was wrong again. Their goal is to be good at Math and Science.)

2. Birth

- When did you start? Was it endurable?

â??I started when I was in grade 5. It was a wild dream. I was motivated by Boa-unnie. I already had the talent. I thought it would be easy once I started. But I got hurt, injured and learn to toughen up. You begin to feel attached. And then your heart is set on it. The urge to succeed...â? â??It would be a lie if I said that it was not difficult. There are times of struggle, and endless crying. But we were there for each other and we just went through itâ?. â??It was exciting. I was having fun at practicing to become a celebrity. But dancing in high heels made my feet hurt so much. I learned then what pain meantâ?¦â?

-(People view them as â??bred idolsâ? â??stuffed toysâ?. It was the same story with Boa. People wondered if it is okay for kids that should be studying in schools are being raised by entertainment corporations. I realize it is a sensitive subject but I had to ask these questions in this interview.) How does it feel to compete against each other? You must beat your friends to succeed.

â??Everyone thinks that way in the beginning. But you realize itâ??s not the case once you begin to learn and practice. A lot of them leave disappointed. There are the ones that are let go by the management and the ones that quit. I realized something in that phase. Itâ??s not about winning but about surviving.â? â??We supported each other. We motivated each other to make it and comforted each other. Thatâ??s how we bonded. But it was still difficult.â? â??I was casted in a SM sponsored competition. 30-40 of us made it. There were some that left and some let out by the management. I doubted myself when I saw people leave. But I still loved singing and dancing.

-(My initial thought of not being able to understand these girlsâ?? language turned out to be wrong. They were at the same level as me. Competition began in the training phase and they matured during those years. â??My heart was set on itâ?. You can tell that this young girlâ??s view on the world is different. But whatâ??s the difference compared to running across the field to become a soccer player or riding on a airplane to get better in English?)
But the fact that you have to survive in thereâ?¦ isnâ??t that like the survival of the fittest?

â??Itâ??s not like we try to bring down the other trainees. We all have the greed to get better. Itâ??s kind of like having the urge to be better than the competition. We donâ??t try to bring down the competition but improve ourselves to be better than the competition. Only the ones with big dreams achieve their goals. I need to look forward and just think about myself.â?

-(Are these words truly coming from a 19 year old girl? The words that can only be used by the best of the best are being used so freely by these girls. Were they planned by their management in advance? I couldnâ??t be fooled by their act. The seriousness in their eyes told me that itâ??s not an act.)
The biggest worry that the adults have is that what will happen later if you concentrate on dancing and singing when you are suppose to be learningâ?¦

â??We learn in our social life. We even learn stuff that are not taught in the classrooms. We are taught in the studios and we learn big things. The studio is like a small society. Itâ??s like a small school with trainees with common goals. So we often hear things like â??you are too mature for your ageâ?. But itâ??s true that we donâ??t have as much time to study as other students. We try to learn in our own ways by reading a book, read the newspaper. We are quite ambitious.â?

- Even then, adults still wonder if you can even speak a sentence in English.

â??Can they even write their own names? Thatâ??s just a stereotype that the people have against celebrities. Our dream is to be a singer. Singers may not be able to solve math problems as well as someone who is studying to become a professor. But our goals are different. We study how to get better at dancing and singing. Everyone studies to achieve their goals.â?

- (Their speaking ability that they showed me sounded just as good as a native speaker. All in Chinese and English. They said the management considers languages to be as important as dancing or singing in order to succeed in abroad. These girls were beginning to scare me now.)
Do you miss being â??normalâ?? Compared to your ordinary friends?

â??We lost a lot of things. I miss being in school. The grass is always greener on the other side. They may be envious of what we do but we are envious at what they do. Going to school festivals, chatting with friends at lunch time after sharing your food. I miss that a lot. But we have out own memories.â? â??I used to be a DJ. I read some of the stories that gets sent to the radio show. There are lots of different stories. Stories that make you sad or happy. Kind of like a love story. I felt sad whenever I read those. It felt like a child who lost their mother.â?

-(They said itâ??s a different world. They also said itâ??s bad to take something that you donâ??t have.)
Girlsâ?? Generation is already branching off. There are members that are busier and members that need to catch up. How do you feel about that?

â??Everyone has their time to shine. Other membersâ?? time came faster and my time hasnâ??t come yet. The order is just different. I am not jealous. I cheer them on. We tend to say â??Thanks to youâ? a lot. The member that got the head start says it. I am just thankful to have more time to prepare and wait for the other members to catch up. I can work on more stuff.â? â??I donâ??tâ?? think I am â??aheadâ?? of our members. Itâ??s just that Iâ??m the first one, thatâ??s all. Itâ??s not important who gets to ride shotgun. We are all going to the same destination after all.â?

-(Is this the true power of education? Lee Sooman is a great man as a producer if he raised their human nature up to this level while teaching them how to sing and dance. But I know too well not to take every word they say.) But donâ??t you think Girlsâ?? Generation will eventually disband like S.E.S or Finkl?

â??That time will come sometime. Even now, our roles have changed due to our talent. Who knows? Some of us might grow out of our innocent girl image and take on a sexy woman concept. Maybe one of us will leave to further pursuit their acting goals. And one of us could leave for other reasons. We canâ??t say that â??Weâ??re Girlsâ?? Generation!â?? then.â?

-Letâ??s say, an unimaginable multi-million dollar contract with a big role in a production in Hollywood has been offered to one of you. What would you do? Please be honest.

â??I donâ??t think I will leave. Because thatâ??s a deal/contract that has been offered to me as a member of Girlsâ?? Generation. I donâ??t think they will offer based on myself alone. We are not at that level yet. I am here because of Girlâ??s Generation but Girlsâ?? Generation isnâ??t here because of me.â?

(Other girlsâ?? reactions were similar. Iâ??m sure they couldnâ??t say â??I will leaveâ? when other girl already said she wouldnâ??t. Their replies were just as good as the one of a politicianâ??s. Lee Soomanâ??s SM Ent. Probably embedded the concept of â??modestyâ? significantly.)

3. Icon

-Letâ??s talk about less comfortable topics. Do you really feel that name â??Girlsâ?? Generationâ? is innocent? Donâ??t you think that innocence is used to cover up the sexiness?

â??Itâ??s not the concept that we came up with for sure. Some people may disagree. It feels weird to read some stuff on the internet. But I think we got to where we are right now by not hiding the true image of an innocent girl. We showed the process of growing up. We will keep on showing our true image. Iâ??m sure it will change as we grow older. But now is now and the future is future. Itâ??s not our problem that other people view us differently. Why do they view us in that way? We are still girls. Itâ??s not our fault for showing what girls are like. Donâ??t you think fault lies in the people that try to find and pick at stuff that we donâ??t have?

(Their heavy make up, their short miniskirt, the way they sit and behave, they may not know but they are giving off the image of a â??ladyâ?? rather than a girl.)

-The picture of a â??Candle-light girlâ? can be found on the anti-beef import posters. Itâ??s a young girl with a candle saying â??Please protect me.â? The word â??girlâ? brings this kind of pure and innocent image but are the girls of Girlsâ?? Generation fit this image?

â??We are not the fragile or the girls that needs to be protected. We are the girls that can entertain our fans and shout â??Cheer up!â? We donâ??t want to give off the fragile-girl image. We want to be the girls that are cheerful, pure and most importantly, girls that can be your friend.â?
(I knew this question was mean to them. I shouldnâ??t have asked.)
-Do you think celebrities are public figures?

â??We think itâ??s true although it may sound awkward for us to say that about ourselves. We expose ourselves to other people whether we like it or not. Whatever we do or show, itâ??s shared with everyone. Whether we like it or not, our acts can potentially cause a big scene. It has an affect. So I guess that is kind of like a public figure.â?

-How do you feel about other celebrities speaking out?

â??I want to applaud them for their bravery. But we are not mature enough yet to speak out. Our knowledge and ability to judge are limited. We canâ??t just pretend like we know something. We feel what we think but we fear on what we should say. There are things that can be said easily if we werenâ??t celebrities. But we are.â?

4. Between reality and fantasy.

-What would you say to your younger sibling if they said they want to become a celebrity?

â??I would let them do whatever they want. If they say they want to do it, then that means they already set a goal. I donâ??t think I should stop that. I think itâ??s good to have them experience it for themselves.â? â??I can do what I do because itâ??s me. You need to have a strong mind. You can endure it only if you have the strong will to succeed. But I wouldnâ??t recommend it to someone that I love.â?
(Their opinions were split 4:3. Their reasons were all different but even the ones that supported thought that itâ??s better to quit after experiencing it first hand. The ones that didnâ??t support said itâ??s a long and tough road. They kept mentioning that you need to have a strong mind/mentality.)

-How do you feel about your competition, Wonder Girls? They established themselves more than you guys with their â??Tell Meâ?.

â??A competitor similar to Girlsâ?? Generation has been created. We should both do well.â? â??But we both approach our concept or music in completely different ways.â? â??We should motivate each other. To become better.â? (When I said that these replies are too stereotypical and sugar-coated and that they should be more honest, they lashed out against me.) â??Why do you not believe that itâ??s our honest feelings? When we do an interview, all the reporters say â??Did you memorize that?â? â??Arenâ??t you jealous?â? â??No way!â?. How come you canâ??t trust us?â? (I was caught off-guarded. I could only say, â??Thatâ??s what a stereotype is. The way the public views idol stars. Like a doll put together in a factory. Iâ??m sorry but itâ??s the truthâ?)

-How much reading do you guys do? Do you guys even have the time?

â??The book I read last week was â??River Boyâ? and the one Iâ??m reading now is â??March is the Red Cloudâ?. I tend to read a lot of romance novels.â? â??itâ??s good to read but I canâ??t find the time. We have our schedule in the afternoon and we are too tired at night.â?


-When are the most difficult and hurtful times?

â??Some reporter captured a screenshot of me and other people on the internet photoshopped it and it was floating around the internet as the â??Hyo-ULKâ?. You know how sometimes you look weird when you pause a video. I know the people that make it do it for fun but itâ??s really hurts us. Itâ??s like getting our hearts stabbed with a knife. We are celebrities and we are an idol group. I was really hurt.â? â??Words travel fast and rumours travel even faster. In the entertainment industry, itâ??s easy to get hurt by a harmless click of the (computer) mouse because it all adds up. I know we have to accept the fact but itâ??s difficult for us to handle it yet.â?

-Do you feel the burden to be famous as a young person?

â??Itâ??s hard to have privacy. You actually grab more attention when you try to hide yourself with a hat and a mask but at least people canâ??t tell who you are. I enjoyed the attention at first and felt disappointed when they didnâ??t recognize me. I thought, â??Oh, they donâ??t know who I am yet.â? But now itâ??s too much. Thatâ??s being selfish right? If you want to take a picture of a person on the street or whatever, they usually ask you for permission first. If they donâ??t, then thatâ??s like a hidden camera. But people ask us for autograph and for pictures when we are eating at a restaurant. I exist in Girlsâ?? Generation but my own being is non existence now. But Iâ??m okay now. Now that I think about it, I was like that too before. Itâ??s such a rare opportunity to meet a celebrity so thatâ??s why people want to take pictures and shake hands. If I put myself in their shoes, it makes sense. Itâ??s actually normal to be that way. If I only think about myself, then I would be only showing myself to my fans only when I feel like it.â?
(is this really coming from a 19 year old high school girl?)

-What was your dream? Not â??singerâ?? but what else would you have liked to do instead of a celebrity?

â??Designer. I wanted to be an entrepreneur. A pianist. Probably learning how to dance. Announcer. Actress. â??
(But one of them said this instead)
â??I had a dream before but I gave up on it long time ago.â?

-(Her words dampened the mood)
Why did you give up? What was your dream?

â??you may laugh but it was an international lawyer. That was my dream. I wanted to study at NYU. I was chasing 2 dreams when I was younger. But I had to let go when I was casted in a subway when I was 12 years old. But maybe when I finally reach my current goalâ?¦â?

(Even though she has given up on her dream right now, she would like to try it later on. Although itâ??s an interview, I couldnâ??t continue on with more questions. We had a small discussion about their dreams for a while.)

-there are some bad rumours about the management. How do you guys feel about it?

â??We are people too.â?
(I wasnâ??t expecting that. I can sense their managers tense up as soon as they heard it.)
â??our management is really good. Lee Sooman ajussi is nice to us as well. He is a teacher in the musical sense. But when I hear about other managements and their policies and how other people think about them, it makes us angry. Our company is not like that but we feel their pain because we are on the same boat.â?

-(Girlsâ?? Generation lives together. Even If they donâ??t have any events to attend to, they said itâ??s mandatory. The busiest ones, Yoona and Tiffany, who barely squeezed 30 minutes of their time said the same. It was to prevent any rumours from being created.)
Who do you miss the most? And who motivates you the most?

â??Mom and Dad. Our parents.â?
(They all said mom and dad. Not a single exception. Every one of them said that their mentors were there parents as well. They missed them very much and thankful for everything. Thankful for trusting their choice of path and believing in their decisions. And thankful for understanding. They did not fail to live up to their â??girlâ? image.)

-Werenâ??t your parents against you when you told them you wanted to become a singer? I would imagine your dad was strongly against it.

â??If your parents are against it, then you canâ??t make it this far. There are lots of trainees that get dropped off and picked up by their parents at the studios. For my instance, my dad encouraged me to sing after he saw me sing at the church. He said I had the talent for it. That was in grade 6. My mom was the one that was concerned and said that itâ??s a tough road. But our management assured our parents that we are in good hands.â? â??I asked my mom why she supported my choice. She said that she didnâ??t want me to have a grudge against her. She wanted to see me happy by doing things that I was passionate about. When I heard her say that, I felt bad for being so selfish.â?


-Any plans to perform and promote yourselves around the world? Like other Korean-wave celebrities?

â??Of course. We have been studying Chinese, English and Japanese since we were young. But everything depends on the publicâ??s view. They must approve of our skills. Singing, dance and our language must be in top level. We are preparing for it and itâ??s one of our many goals.â?

- how do you feel about young peopleâ??s focus on â??appearance-onlyâ? views these days?

â??Of course itâ??s wrong to â??winâ?? with your looks only. But celebrities do need it because we are showcasing ourselves. But itâ??s one of many conditions to be a celebrity. But looks can only take you so far down the road. Like in any other professions, I think itâ??s more important to possess the skill.â?

-How do you feel when you see other artists such as Kim Janghoon donate so much to charity?

â??Itâ??s not as easy as you think. I want to follow in his footsteps and donate as much as I can. I want to be conservative and we will try to become a better person like him.â?

-you guys are going through some tough times with the fanclub situation right? What is your view on what a true fanclub culture should be like?

â??I wish we can just enjoy it together. Being a celebrity is about enjoying the time with your fans. But there are people that want to destroy that mood. They pick on every little detail. Itâ??s frustrating. I think it should be changed. There is some mob mentality against celebrities. I realize that every time we read comments on the internet. We get scared sometimes.
(During the same timeframe as the interview, the â??10 minute silenceâ?? happened due to fanclub conflicts and Girlsâ?? Generation had to post an apology letter on their homepage.)

-Do you think you are running low on variety-talents? Do you ever feel you reached the limit?
(Their voices got louder when I asked this question)

â??No. We havenâ??t shown all of our abilities. We need to show more. This is just the beginning. We still need to learn as we go on. If what we showed until now is all we have, then itâ??s over for us. We need to be ahead of the competition. I donâ??t think we are at a point where we should be feeling the heat. We do not deserve the title of being on the â??topâ?. Thereâ??s still more mountains to climb.â?

-How is Lee Sooman? Do you meet him often?

â??he treats us as an artist. He helps us find the way. He is strict in a musical sense but we know itâ??s for the best intentions. Think about it. A senior artist that truly treats us as another fellow artist. We were thrilled to just even think about it before.â?

The End!

Original interview by JoongAng Ilbo

translations by [email protected]/forums

[Kero_kEiro]

simply..WOW...
i feel so much more from the girls by reading this...
i can actually feel what they are trying to express....
eventhough us fans don't really know the girls well...but we do know that they are trying their best to show their true-self rather than faking it because showing your true self is easier....
i don't like that fact that they compared the girls with WG again...but the girls did well on answering and even gave the interviewer a fright haha...
i love how the girls gave unexpected answers to the interviewer...which left him wondering and wanting to know what the girls will say next

the girls are more mature than anyone think they are...they really know how to think...
they are all strong-willed and understanding to each other...
i love them more after reading this...i can go on and on bragging on the girls..but i shall stop here because writing about their positive side is just endless
thanks for sharing...and translating this..
i always believe in the girls <3

i love soshi...now,then and forever...

btw..i love this line "We are not the fragile or the girls that needs to be protected" ^^

Edited by KeroKero, 28 June 2008 - 12:29 AM.

[boxclub]

역시 ACE답게 번역하셨네요..
수고 하셨어요 삼촌 ㅋ
간장은 삼촌처럼 대단한 번역자가 있는게 행운이야 ㅋㅋㅋ

잘 읽고 갑니당.

[Soy]

^^ sigh you guys should be asleep.
brb to edit

It’s not important who gets to ride shotgun. We are all going to the same destination after all.”

Wow that quote just made my night. So true, this really shows the Soshi Bond!

Sigh the thought of them disbanding, just makes me unhappy, but at least they can face reality and know that it might happen one day, but still support one another

I like the question about the movie deal, because whoever said that was right, Girls' Generation made them, they didn't make Girls' Generation. And that made me happy, to see how dedicate they are to the group.

“you may laugh but it was an international lawyer. That was my dream. I wanted to study at NYU. I was chasing 2 dreams when I was younger. But I had to let go when I was casted in a subway when I was 12 years old. But maybe when I finally reach my current goal…”

That was maknae. Urgh, she could have easily become an international lawyer if she wanted to, never give up maknae, it's never too late to learn and succeed, you can do it all.

Man I really wish that he told us some of the names of the girls that said this stuff during the interview, but then again SNSD will be SNSD, and they probably have the same intentions and feelings.

Amazing interview, thank you justin. Extremely long, but totally worth the read. You can tell that our girls have become stronger and growing up so much. They indeed have images of "young ladies", but are still "So Nyuhs" at hearts. It's just great to see all their hardwork and dedication showing now, that it's been a year. Some extremely unexpected answer from the girls, but once again the Girls always end up surprising me, so I guess that isn't new.

[luvshe]

woa..this is really long..
i'll read this later...
will be back to edit after reading it...

thanks jstn for this long translation

[Cute_BoA]

wow... this is one of the best interview that the girls ever had i think..
you can see the maturity of the girls in this interview..
They are just 19 years old girls, but they are able to give a response that maybe a real MATURE person can give..

our girls are stronger that we thought.. they are more mature than we thought..
im so proud of the girls..

SOSHI HWAITING..

[rayrain]

This quite a touching read.
I'm not surprised but I am kind of surprise at their answers. It shows their real maturity level, and even more so impressed how they answered the question professionally yet very heartfelt and honest.
This is a very good insight for us fans, knowing what the girls' feelings about public image and celebrity life. Throughout the whole interview, I can't help but feel sad, happy and proud all at the same time, I've never seen such a passionate and hard working girls my age. It makes us realize what "fame" really is and what consequences it brings along. They answered on a personal level and I am simply amazed how they manage themselves, it proves to show that they are not just a "cutesy teeny idols" that everyone make them to be, but a person who works hard on their profession, a dreamer and someone who wants to be better.
The whole scandal/issues about them only made them stronger and definitely wiser, this interview really proves it. As a fan..(I don't think the word "fan" can justify it enough how much I love them and how proud I am of them) I am truly happy and amazed at their willpower and their passion to do something they love. I hope all of us learn something from this. Soshibond is something that always amazes me about them.
I don't care about what others say about Snsd nor about me being their fan. I love the Power Of Nine and my fellow Soshified Members who shares this love I have for them. I couldn't be more proud of calling myself Soshified.

[lolly88]

i have to reply to this ..this is one their best interview ever ..everyone should read it .
they are clear headed and mature in what they are doing or saying its shows that
they understand the path they are taking.
I dont know how to express my thoughts well after reading this interview because this is an interview that is very different from all the other interview that they ever had before .
It show fans a different side of them the MATURE side , that they are able to handle things well

[sunphrodite]

THIS IS IT! I'm loving them even more. I can feel their passion for their work. It's not Girls' Generation without them. I BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF NINE.

Words like those can really be said by a 19 yr old girl. Even a friend of mine can think or say something deep like that. SNSD is a group that believes in each others' strengths, weaknesses, and passion. They've been taught what should be taught. They've given the reporter the most candid answer they could ever say. They've matured because they are on each others' side. I could've answered the same if I were to be interviewed. XD but I know I won't. haha. XD

ok.. SOSHI JJANG!! AMAIJJING!

[meeramans]

thanks 100000000x for the long translation
its worth reading tho my eyes sore lol

i thought the one that wanted to become the international lawyer was jessica

its good for them to open up and express their feeling after what happened
and so many quotable quotes too
soshi bond forever

soshi whaiting!

[Minipinki]

I'm so proud of our girls. I didn't even expect them to answer the questions like that! But, somehow i felt the interviewer guy seems to be looking down on our girls, and that WG comparision part hurts me a lot! How can he cannot trust them??

And also, i thought it was JESSICA who dreamt of becoming a lawyer?? And instead Maknae was the one that dreamt to be a pianist? Umm...i don't know, am so confused right now :s

[ivonchu]

I love interviews like these. They show the mature side of SNSD. Even though their dorky side is still love. It's evident sitatuions like this makes you grow more and so have our girls. Their words in this interview makes me proud to be a SoShi Fan and lols. And I love the comments from the reporter. I genuinely (is that how you spell it) believe that those comments were from ours girls, even though it's the entertainment industry and alot of things are made up. But I believe that the girls truely said and believe that (as the reporter kept wondering if those words were really coming from a 19 year old), not as a soshi fan but someone just reading an interview with the girls. I believe they are qualified to express such feelings as in how they achieve their goals and to never give up. About their lives and people around them! Also it's great to hear them speak about the fanclub issue.

(When I said that these replies are too stereotypical and sugar-coated and that they should bemore honest, they lashed out against me.)

Why can I just imagine that scene happening in front of me. Those two are on good terms! Well I believe.

No. We haven’t shown all of our abilities. We need to show more. This is just the beginning.

That just made me anticipate the second album more!

Woops forgot to add! Thanks for the awesome translation! ^^

Edited by evee-stah, 28 June 2008 - 05:46 AM.

[CupCake]

I do really love how the reporter got yelled at.
But this is certainly a LITTLE less biased than other articles.
Thanks for translations!

[hid_pit]

Wow, i love this interview. Everyone should really read it. It's so deep and heartfelt. Their answers are so mature yet, candid. Not something you would expect from an idol group. And i'm glad they addressed the DC happenings, even if it's just a small paragraph. At least we knw their opinions on it. They handled it rly well, considering they had a reporter that had a prejudiced about them in the beginning.

And i think that Jessica is the one who wanted to be the international lawyer. Since she said she would want to go to NYU. I remembered it from the her 84 qns thing. It's more likely that the americans in the SNSD wanted to go to NYU rather than the others. And since tiffany didnt attend the interview, that leaves us with our Sica. And i think the reporter kinda give us a hint when he said ''(Her words dampened the mood)'' Sica effect anyone.. Anyway, i think she would make a great lawyer. She has that aura around her.

Btw, thank you Jstn, for taking the time and effort in translating this really really long interview. Really appreciate it!

[lksmjcnt]

i think this interview really shows their maturity. This little insight how they answer their questions really does show why we love them...their genuine honesty. They even surprised the reporters several times with their response.

this was a great interview. thanks for translating.

[Avyran]

Honestly, like the interviewer, I was surprised by SNSD & their mature responses. After past events, I would've expected them to give the canned answer, the "politically correct" response. But even in just a simple newspaper article, you can see that these girls have maturity. I'm actually sorta happy 'Sica responded by saying that she gave up her dream for this. It shows that the girls aren't merely... well, stereotypical female entertainers. Heh, their drive is almost scary, though. That's good!

I also really liked that the reporter wrote her (his? her, I think) responses to SNSD. Much of what she wrote is similar to how I would feel interviewing celebrities. Her comments added to the human element of the interview, allowing SNSD to shine a bit more. Hopefully, a lot of people read this and see the maturity & the real drive of the girls to be known as strong singers / entertainers / etc.

Thanks SO much for translating this! It must've taken a long time, but it was really great to read. Thanks for taking the time to do this.

[hiD]

Its long but so worth reading. I love how mature, humble, and realistic the girls are, they know their stand and work hard to improve it. Their bond is indeed strong when they talked about "time to shine" and "catch up". Im glad they debuted becuz it proves that they are the best to be chosen.

and jstn, thanks so much for translating

[ak6c]

Oh wow, great job on translating this Justin. It was so long I was hoping someone would do this. lol
I really liked this interview as well. Great interview.

[ninikins]

WOW. Such a nice article. This really showcased the girls' maturity. I was shocked by their responses.
I can't believe that answers like those are from 18-19 year old girls, they showed us their dorky/playful
side and now comes the mature side. I mean, wow i'm so speechless atm.

7 persons but 1 greeting.

How i wished that Fany and Yoona were able to come. But i know that they're working hard as MC and actress so, YoonFany fighting<3

But dancing in high heels made my feet hurt so much. I learned then what pain meantâ?¦

aaww poor girls<3 they've been through so much pain and hardships and to see them still smiling
and keeping their heads up high just makes me love them more.

Thanks for translating such a wonderful article.

[octi-eww]

That was probably their best interview yet (and the longest). There were some pretty impressive and unexpected answers for me to be honest. But we could feel it was straight from the heart. The reporter may look down on them or whatever but if it wasn't for his bluntness, this interview wouldn't be this genuine. In fact, he pointed out every thing that the girls have been through : training, debut, rumors, Fanclubs, Wonder Girls, etc. It's the perfect way to see our the girls are handling it which I respect them a lot by hearing this.

Thank you so much for this.