Se7en - 120118 Oricon Style Interview (Part 1)
Q: You have released new album “Somebody Else” in Japan after about 4 years. There should be lots of fans and people waiting for you.
A: I have also been waiting for this moment! My thankful heart for everyone who waited for me for so long has been put into each and every song and I think this album shows the Se7en that I am now.
Q: Over these 4 years, you lived and faced many challenges in the US.
A: In the US, because it was the first time I was alone, there were times when I felt lonely. But because I was able to think about various things, learn dance and song, as well as upgrade myself in terms of an artist and as a person, I think I spent some quality time there.
Q: So were there not times when you were homesick and thought that you wanted to go home?
A: Of course there were (laughs)
Q: At such times, how did you overcome it?
A: I slept (laughs). Usually, I am not the type of person who worries alot or has dilemmas.
Q: So you’re optimistic.
A: But right after I got to the US, although I was enjoying spending time by myself, I didnt know anyone there and that’s why I felt loneliness. Actually there were times when I became weak [mentally]
Q: Just like the lyrics to Somebody Else, did you ring or discuss with your friends in Korea?
A: No I didnt. I have always been the type of person that solves his own problems. I usually find places to go, or I’m moving about. I dont just sit around and do nothing. Thanks to that, I now many friends over there and also in Japan. Just yesterday I met up with a friend.
Q: I see. So can we say that Somebody Else is an album which sums up how Se7en has been over the past 4 years?
A: Out of 50 songs, I chose the songs which were right for me and also showed the various sides of Se7en.
Q: It’s been so long since you’ve recorded in Japanese, did you experience any difficulties?
A: It was okay (laughs). [T/N: I’m not exactly sure of the next sentence] But there were times when I would be lost in the song and my natural thoughts would come out. Especially for Somebody Else, it has a bright sound and fast tempo, but its lyrics in contrast were sad. I was thrown off at the beginning but in actual fast, this contrast made it very interesting
Q: ‘Angel’ was released last year on 9th November as a digital single and revealed in advance at your fan meeting, creating a good atmosphere.
A: ‘Angel’ is a song which was released on my birthday and used it as a metaphor describing my fans. It was a present to everyone who waited for me to come back. Although it was the first song I sang in Japanese in 4 years, it didn’t feel wrong and recording went smoothly.
Q: And I would like to say that the masterpiece of this album is ‘Understand’
A: I love it too! I think that both melody and the lyrics are excellent!
Q: The intro already makes you want to cry and your voice makes the song even sadder.
A: I cried as well when I recorded the song. Because it’s important to express the sadness in this song, I dont think I sang it well, but just that I expressed honestly what I felt. In order not to let the emotions in the song to be overwhelming, I recorded it in one go, with the same voice.
Q: So that’s why the sadness was delivered well…
A: I like emotional ballads and listening to them myself. Although of course I like dance songs as well, in contrast to dance tracks where I’m trying to show my ability, I like ballads because you can immerse yourself into the song.
Q: Through ballads, we get to appreciate Se7en attraction as a singer as well as enjoy the song. So dance tracks Better Together and I’m going crazy are included too.
A: Although these two songs were released in Korea last year, because there were requests from fans and others that they wanted to hear the songs in Japanese, they’ve been included with Japanese lyrics. Because I didnt want to change the atmosphere of the song, the lyrics were written in Japanese with the same meaning/contents. I think this album can be listened to (?) in the morning, during the day, in the evening, throughout the whole day.
Source: Oricon Style
Translated by: ceciliase7en
