Kim Hyun Joong sat down for an interview with Sports Seoul, which also happened to be on the day that Nichkhun and Tiffany went public with their relationship, making it inevitable that the veteran idol star would be asked to give his two cents on idols dating.
Kim Hyun Joong shared, "[The competition] was intense during my twenties. Ever since I started as an idol, there was no time to rest, and I wasn't able to date properly... I think the social conditions have changed a lot these days, so it feels new and different."
"I don't regret it even if it means not being able to date properly. Although it felt like an invasion of privacy at times, in order to become a singer, I was the only one selected out of 1 million people who auditioned and made my debut... I endured through it and thought that I should be happy for this very reason."
"If I were to become an idol again, I don't think I would be able to do it... Since idols are not considered as singers, in the U.S you think of *NSYNC as artists, but in our country and Japan, [the general public] does not consider idols as artists and their image is restricting."
"Idols can date too ,but I think at one point, we were brainwashed into thinking that idols can't date... Even if idols act, they have a disadvantage because of their idol background, and even if they buy a car, people make sarcastic remarks. I think there is that stereotype concerning idols... Although they are young, they are also human and should be acknowledged as people of this culture so it's unfortunate."
"I used to like girls who I liked [instead of the other way around], but as I did 'Generation of Youth', I thought for the first time that I can be swayed by a girl who treats me well... I felt it was nice to have a pretty girl who treats me and takes care of me well... Although I am the type to have to like a girl first to like her at all, as I observed Ok Ryun (Jin Se Yeon), I felt that I should marry this kind of girl."
Kim Hyun Joong shared, "[The competition] was intense during my twenties. Ever since I started as an idol, there was no time to rest, and I wasn't able to date properly... I think the social conditions have changed a lot these days, so it feels new and different."
"I don't regret it even if it means not being able to date properly. Although it felt like an invasion of privacy at times, in order to become a singer, I was the only one selected out of 1 million people who auditioned and made my debut... I endured through it and thought that I should be happy for this very reason."
"If I were to become an idol again, I don't think I would be able to do it... Since idols are not considered as singers, in the U.S you think of *NSYNC as artists, but in our country and Japan, [the general public] does not consider idols as artists and their image is restricting."
"Idols can date too ,but I think at one point, we were brainwashed into thinking that idols can't date... Even if idols act, they have a disadvantage because of their idol background, and even if they buy a car, people make sarcastic remarks. I think there is that stereotype concerning idols... Although they are young, they are also human and should be acknowledged as people of this culture so it's unfortunate."
"I used to like girls who I liked [instead of the other way around], but as I did 'Generation of Youth', I thought for the first time that I can be swayed by a girl who treats me well... I felt it was nice to have a pretty girl who treats me and takes care of me well... Although I am the type to have to like a girl first to like her at all, as I observed Ok Ryun (Jin Se Yeon), I felt that I should marry this kind of girl."
