2PM Haru*Hana Magazine Vol. 2 (All Interviews)

Japan Debut
Special Interview
A preview before their debut! They want to show people a manly and powerful performance

2PM is a boys’ group that boasts overwhelming popularity in Korea. With their powerful performances and overflowing wild charms, they leapt to the top of the Korean music scene right after their debut in September, 2008. In recognition of the group, the term “beastly idols” was also born in Korea. We have asked 2PM, the strongest and brightest group in K-POP, about their thoughts on their Japanese debut.
CHAN: We’re very grateful and fortunate to have this chance. Lots of Korean artistes are active in Japan, so we will do our best not to lose to our seniors.
WOO: I don’t want to forget the feelings we had before our debut. Of course I hope we’ll gain popularity in Japan, but for now, I’m referring to the challenge of how people will view our music.
KHUN: First, I want to learn Japan’s culture and language. After that, I will work hard to let everyone recognize 2PM and every one of our members.
The term “beastly idol” was born for 2PM. What meaning does that nickname hold for the group?
TAEC: It’s a phrase that came up for the first time as a way to describe us, so we’re grateful and very honoured. Originally, the word “beast” seems to be used in negative situations where, for example, a woman screams at a man, “Kya, you beast!” (laughs) But in our case, it’s used in a positive light, and we’re thankful that it helped to spread the name of 2PM, too!
WOO: I think this beastly idol image is one of the reasons why Japanese people are interested in us. So I want to show them a manly, passionate and powerful performance.
This summer, they held their first concert in Seoul and Busan. Extra concerts were also added, before they closed their performances with great success.
JUNSU: We didn’t have much time to prepare, but I think we managed to produce a good concert within that limited time. Many people came to our concert and had fun with us, so it went very well.
JUNHO: It was our first standalone concert and the first time the hall was filled with just our fans, so I was very happy. A lot of Japanese fans came to the concert, too. It strengthened my wish to hold a concert in Japan soon.
KHUN: I also learned that we had a lot of room for improvement. I’ve felt, once again, how truly difficult it is to produce a good concert. But more than that, I was happy to be able to become one with our fans.
Each of them gave ideas for their respective solo pieces, resulting in stage performances shining with individuality. The members told us some backstage stories from the concert.
TAEC: Chansung, you ripped off your clothes, didn’t you? (laughs)
CHAN: I had no idea what to do for my solo corner. The other members were going to sing, some were going to dance, and some were even going to perform with an instrument. So, while I was deciding what to do, I realized that no one was going to expose their body. (laughs) 2PM can’t get away from their manly image, after all. (laughs)
TAEC: So that was your intention. (laughs)
CHAN: I figured someone had to do it, so I sacrificed myself. (laughs)
JUNHO: For this concert, we showed a parody video of “Cinderella’s Sister” , didn’t we? Once we get better at speaking Japanese, it’d be great if we could take a parody video of a drama in Japanese, too.
The boys tried to speak in Japanese by using as many words as they knew in the interview. They appear to be furiously studying Japanese now, in preparation for their debut in Japan.
JUNSU: We can sort of pick up what people are saying in conversations, but speaking is still difficult. I’ve also tweeted in Japanese on Twitter, but I’m still not fluent at all, so I’m learning from a friend in Osaka.
All the members are currently using Twitter. While staying Taiwan, they put up a tweet of the members disappearing with only their clothes left behind, causing a sensation amongst fans.
TAEC: I shared a room with Junsu, but when I returned to the hotel, Junsu was missing with only his clothes left behind. I couldn’t find him no matter how hard I searched, so after I took a picture of his clothes, I called the other members. Then one by one, all of us started this game of taking off our clothes and disappearing somewhere. (laughs) So, it was Junsu who started it. At the time, Wooyoung was so sleepy, he didn’t join us, though. (laughs)
2PM’s closeness with each other is part of their charm. On December 8, you can see these boys with your own eyes at their first live event.
WOO: A lot of people will be meeting us for the first time, so instead of doing something special, we want to show them our natural state in order to let them know what 2PM is like.
KHUN: To everyone in Japan, we’ll see each other very soon! We’ll show you the efforts of our hard work, so please wait a little longer!

Special Cross Talk
All the 2PM members stand out with their individual personalities. We can see their relationships(?) and true nature in these special pair interviews!

JUNHO x JUNSU
We can instantly recognize our Japanese fans. (Junsu)