Suzy, Higher Than Dreams
From her debut in 2010 until now, everyone calls her the "Nation's First Love", but she has transformed long ago. From her very own hands, a solo mini album with her own songs and "While You Were Sleeping"'s clever Nam Hongjoo, each and every step that is closer to herself lets her dreams fly even higher.
The first sight of Suzy in person, she was wearing the glamorous clothes we had prepared on the upper half of her body and had conveniently wore her own sneakers on the lower half. The atmosphere around her also became especially lively the moment she appeared, every single person was infected with that breath of overflowing youthfulness.
Many people all call her the "Nation's First Love" because at that time in 'Dream High' and 'Uncontrollably Fond' and other dramas, or even in many large advertising surveys, she was the best interpretation of the girlfriend in all the boys' hearts; the dream lover. Lively without losing gentleness, delicate skin, gracefully flowing long hair, it's almost as if you could smell the sweet fragrance of fruit on from her hair. Everyone had a girl wearing a student's skirt like this in their high school years and she was definitely the most beautiful person on campus, all the boys wanted to hold hand.
Tired, But Never Giving Up
However, Suzy is not just a girl like this.
She, a Libra, actually has some eagerness in her disposition. Underneath her meek appearance, she loves to dance and sing and also tries create. It's natural talent together with acquired efforts that allowed Suzy to distinguish herself from among numerous trainees and ultimately appear as the female lead in dramas too.
During our interview on the day of the shoot, her heart looked like it was completely unguarded and her eyes still had the look of a teenage girl who had just entered society. She mentioned, “As for me, if you actually compare me to others, I didn’t have a long period of training - only about a year. I remember now how it was especially tiring as a result of travelling back and forth to Seoul since I lived in Gwangju.”
“I learnt a lot during the time I was a trainee. There was an evaluation every month so I had to constantly practice and attend all sorts of classes. I’d have to start practicing from about 10am to 8pm. If I started at 8am, then I’d practice until about 10pm. But it wasn’t constant training, I’d also rest in the middle. Through this kind of way I kept accumulating my skills. There were a lot of trainees at the time, we were all each other’s rivals and it was also a really good stimulant. It was in this kind of environment that we fostered our dreams.”
The Dreams Being Fulfilled Now
Seven years have passed in the twinkling of an eye. From 2010 until now, Suzy has changed a lot. Her young and mellow face before has gradually emerged with a more beautiful appearance, and she knows more now about what she wants. The day of the cover shoot was the fastest shoot we had ever completed. She couldn’t be clearer about her every movement, grasping onto exactly which angles of her were beautiful, cute or even mischievous. Her charms were set in between that of a girl and a woman.
You could see her great leaps in acting in last year’s ‘While You Were Sleeping’ and her better ability to master her emotions and throw herself into the ups and downs of her character’s life.
“‘Dream High’ was when I still didn’t really know much about acting. It was filmed right at the beginning [of my career] so there were many shortcomings. But filming each drama like this, I slowly grew and learnt many things so that this time, ‘While You Were Sleeping’ was an opportunity for me to grow a lot. I acted as a high school student in ‘Dream High’ but this time in ‘While You Were Sleeping’ I had a job (laughs). I acted as a journalist, displaying a mature side of me. And through this drama ‘WYWS’, I showed a different appearance.”
Not just in dramas, in fact Suzy’s new album that she released this year further demonstrates her determination in singing and dancing. Even the photo book that comes with the album is full of her sincerity. Her eyes were filled with light, saying “Firstly, the album this time is called ‘Faces of Love’, it’s an album that expresses the different sides of love. Even before, I wanted to show the different aspects of love in an album. So in the album this time, I’ve tried to show various emotions and different appearances of love.”
“The album this time was created together with many musicians that I like. First of all I collaborated with Armadillo, who had written 'Pretend' for me last time, for the song 'In Love With Someone Else'. And I worked on 'HOLIDAY' (Feat DPR Live) with 'Full8loom'. A musician I like is Jung Key, and I really like Bam Haneul so I especially asked him to write a song for me so that's how I got 'Midnight'. Andrew Choi etc. helped write 'SObeR' for me, and I also worked with Peterpan complex. I wrote 'Bxatxh' myself and it's also a song I cherish very much. I really hoped to have such a song in this album so I added it in. I also participated in lyric writing for 'SObeR' and 'Sleeplessness'". It's called a mini album but contains seven songs, and furthermore are almost all personally sought out and directed by Suzy.
Indeed, it seems we're seeing a girl turn into a woman, fulfilling her dreams one by one.
The Most Reliable Support
I asked her if she felt that she had become more mature.
She smiled shyly, "I often wanted to behave a little more maturely when I was younger before but now I want to be younger and cuter so I'll think, "Ah, does that mean I'm no longer a child now?" If you say that I was cute and cheerful before, then passing along with time, I've slowly become gentler and quieter now."
There's a line of lyrics in 'Bxatxh' that says: 'If I sway, will you hold me? If I’m screaming and miserable, can you quietly be by my side?'. Although she always looks like a sweet and pleasant person, but how many thorns and struggles need to be experienced on the road to change? How much solitude and loneliness? Many times there is no way to truly say it out to someone else.
"It's not easy for me to believe in people, there's always a bit of suspicion and caution. But once I believe in them, then I'll believe them firmly and without a doubt". Fortunately, she's always had her family by her side, that lets her have a little more peace of mind. "My mother really likes what I do now. She often works really hard to promote and really support me, whether it be when she's volunteering with friends or when she's working. My other family members, my older sister and younger brother, have also always been supporting me in their hearts. They've always been looking after me and protecting me".
"Although I'm very close to my family, I often feel sorry because I'm unable to take care of them. They always stand by my side unconditionally but because of this, I don't know how to express it. Their existence is just like the most reliable support in my heart. However, don't take this kind of existence for granted, that is very important. Problems will arise if you take anything for granted. You need to be thankful when you should be thankful, you need to cherish when you should cherish. The more you treasure a relationship, the more carefully you should pay attention to this point. As for me, I'm not the type of person who is very close with just anybody, maybe it's because of this that I feel this is very important. "
She posed with us and we took a photo together after the interview was finished.
This girl appears to be a silly girl, but she embraces the revolutionary feelings of being with JYP Entertainment for many years, she embraces her mother's expectations and also wears her own desires for drama, music and dance. Her dream is already that heavy but yet she is flying so very high.
Suzy's Q&A
Have you been reading any books/films/songs lately?
Recent books, yes, I've been reading 'Love's Montage', it's a book by author Choi Woosu. This book doesn't have much writing, they're all short articles. I gained a lot of inspiration for the album from here, there are many good words [in the book].
What secret that no one else knows yet would you like to share with Taiwanese fans?
There's a mole under my chin, but this mole is only visible when I gain weight. You might not really be able to see it when I lose weight.
Have you been learning dancing recently?
The first time I started to learn to dance was in elementary school. Not so much learning, actually it was a club at school. I joined because I thought it was really interesting. I became really interested in it at the beginning of junior high and even joined a hip-hop group that danced on the street. I formally learnt to dance after entering JYP. Dancing is difficult, really difficult. I was very physically tired when I started learning hip-hop dancing. I actually learnt to dance very quickly, but after a long time my ankles and bones would start to ache. But still, lately I've been learning dance again because I want to grab onto that kind of feeling.
March is 'Marie Claire''s 25th anniversary, what does Suzy think is the greatest beauty that a 25 year old has?
25 years old, it's not very appropriate to say you're young but you can't say you've fully matured either. The age of 25 is not like 30, there may be some confusion but it's also a new beginning. There's hopes you can still set off on, it's an age with lots of possibility. Taiwan 'Marie Claire' is also 25 years old? Wow, so happy.
How have you been passing your days lately?
I've been watching a few dramas lately, and then I also went on a trip. Here and there, that kind of thinking. You can say it's been a time for recharging.
What do you like to do when travelling?
Usually, the thing I like best when travelling is not doing anything at all, hahaha. I like to do nothing, to just go for a walk, feel the breeze and look at animals.
Is there a travel location that has left a deep impression?
Because I like penguins, I went to Philip Island near the Yarra River [T/N: in Australia] in order to see the penguins. I thought it was really nice so I went two or three times, just to see the penguins, haha.
Your skin looks really good, what are your skin care secrets?
I don't usually put on much makeup, I use very little. I also wash my face seriously and then I basically just soothe my skin. My skin is more sensitive, it's easily irritated if I wear a lot of makeup. In order to let my skin rest, I sometimes don't wash my face and let my skin rest. When the weather is dry I have to apply more products for hydration. Like during this season now, I have to moisturize my skin more.
What plans do you have for the future?
There might be an opportunity to meet with fans, I'm not sure yet.
What are your future dreams?
My future dreams, I often think that I want to be happier, healthier, to make more good music and good projects to show everyone.
Translation by JYPwhispers
Sign up here with your email
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon