After being the first member of LOONA to be revealed through "ViViD'' and its distinctive debut strategy seven years prior, HeeJin has kickstarted her solo career under Modhaus, home to the girl group project ARTMS, with her much-awaited solo musical project, ‘K.’ This momentous return of the artist displays her talent not only in terms of performance but also in her creativity shown in the album by her active involvement in the album making.
‘K’ is HeeJin’s first solo album, and the letter is a reference to Korea — a celebration of the country and its culture, including music and beauty, among others. The record consists of six new tracks: “Kehwa,” “Algorithm,” “Sad Girls Club,” “Video Game,” “Nokia,” and “Addiction.”
The narrative of a failed relationship that still lingers in your mind even after it has ended is told in the title song, “Algorithm.” Additionally, it alludes to an algorithmic feed that keeps showing reminders of that love even when you choose not to see them anymore. In the music video, HeeJin portrays the role of a princess, drawing inspiration from her own real-life experiences, who escapes her life in a traditional Korean palace to pursue her dream of becoming a K-Pop idol.
In commemoration of her awaited solo comeback, allkpop had the pleasure of chatting with HeeJin about ‘K,’ her participation in the album making, her personal story, and more. Continue reading to learn more about the all-rounder artist!
Shout-out video from Heejin to allkpop readers:
allkpop: First of all, you recently celebrated your birthday, so happy birthday! I want to start this interview by asking you how you celebrated it. It's around your comeback preparations so you might be so busy, but did you have a great time nonetheless? Do you have any stories to share with us with your ARTMS/LOONA members?
HeeJin: My birthday was a very eventful day. It was my first time going to my birthday cafe event that my fans prepared — it was great. Also, the members all contacted me and sent me gifts. It was very thoughtful. Overall, I was very busy but I had a great time nonetheless.
allkpop: The album title is 'K,' which is a reference to Korea, its culture, beauty, and music, among others. Why did you decide to highlight Korea for this album? What do you love most about the country, be it a place, culture, or something?
HeeJin: I want to emphasize the Korean culture for this album at a time when K-Pop is becoming more global and becoming a genre on its own. I want to show the audience some freshness with this album while being able to experience Korean culture. Something I really love about Korea is the convenient services. For example, in the middle of the night, you can get so many foods through delivery services. In my case, I love eating chicken feet or tteokbokki in the middle of the night. So, whenever I want to eat something I can get it delivered — that's one of the things I like about Korea.
allkpop: The album's lead single, "Algorithm," is a powerful message of love. Why did you choose to focus on the message that describes a failed relationship that you continue to think about despite the fact that it is over? Could you go into more detail about that and what thoughts you hope the listeners will draw from it?
HeeJin: Algorithm, in a way, recommends something that you're interested in. Sometimes you get reminded of old songs that you have forgotten about because of algorithms. Algorithms reflect your interests and what you're into, and with this song, I use it to talk about love. If you want to forget something, it comes back to you in your thoughts. I think many people are aware of algorithms since they are everywhere these days. Using that for a love song… I hope that people can listen to it and be like, "Oh, I understand what this person's point of view is."
allkpop: You said that this music release might be a continuation of your solo debut single "ViViD." Could you expand on that — what kind of connection are we expected to see? And how did you feel about thinking that "ViViD" was actually released 7 years ago? That's a long time! What changes or developments do you see from yourself while working on 'K'?
HeeJin: Regarding "ViViD," I can't really say that is a direct continuation because in a way it's not. This is why it feels like a continuation: when we worked on “ViViD,” it was with the producer Jaden Jeong. He's someone who knows me so well and I feel like this album is my collaboration with him. Jaden who showed me to the world is once again showing me to the world, so in that way, I guess you can say it is somewhat of a continuation of “ViViD.” As you were saying, it's been seven years… Wow! It's been a long time, but I still feel that I can do so much more. I feel like I'm still young and have a lot of energy to take on more things. Because I’m still young, there are still a lot of things for me to learn. Comparing myself when I was working on “ViViD” and ‘K,’ I feel like I matured a lot personally. In terms of my personality, I think I now have less fear, and I'm now way more active.
allkpop: The music video synopsis is that you play the role of a princess who escaped her life in a traditional Korean palace to become a K-pop star because of your love for music. I think it's really similar to your story, as I heard that you lived in the countryside, and it took you 4 hours to get to the practice room in Seoul back then... Looking back to where it all started, what was really the root and main reason why you chased this dream? What was it that made you realize that this job is really for you?
HeeJin: I've always loved music and dancing from a very young age. I'm always interested in performing on stage, but I think the main thing about me as a person is that if I want something, I really go for it until I make it. I feel like that's the reason why I pursued this career. Since my parents were against this, it became a weird motivation to want even more to pursue this. I think that's one of the main reasons that made me pursue this type of life. With this job, there are times I get tired and times when my schedule gets so hectic. Ironically, through this work, I also get energy. I get this kind of satisfaction from my job. Even if I look back, I don’t think I want to do anything else than be an idol. Even if I think of it right now, I don't think I want to do anything else other than pursue this career as an idol. I don’t think I have any regrets.
allkpop: You said that your parents were against you becoming an idol. I'm happy to see that you didn't let that take you down and that you were able to go through that phase of life.
HeeJin: If I could name one thing that helped me get my motivation, support, and love from, it's the support from my older sisters. They supported and cheered me on. Since my parents were against this, I was actually going to auditions secretly, but with my older sisters' part-time jobs, they secretly gave me money to pay for my transportation, so I really feel thankful to them.
allkpop: You were involved in the creative process of this album! Is there something new that you realized or found out during the process and preparations? You debuted solo back in 2016, then you had several comebacks with LOONA, what do you think was the biggest difference between those and this particular comeback with 'K'?
HeeJin: Firstly, when I was working on “ViViD” for example, quite often the company would give me the plan and I'd be the one doing and executing it. However, now, I'm involved in everything and it has given me a new perspective and appreciation because it made me realize that in every album, there are so many people involved and it really makes me motivated to even do that much better. All these different staff members from both the company and elsewhere are all working hard for this album, and that's a really big source of support and energy for me. Regarding the difference between working as a solo and as part of LOONA… As a solo artist, there's definitely a short wait time, which I do like, but when I have a lot of members with me, it is always very loud. We’re all chatty. Even when things are very low energy or when the mood is kind of subdued, someone will say something funny and we will eventually become high energy and very lively again. Now that I’m alone, there's a slight feeling of quiet emptiness sometimes.
allkpop: You took part and came up with ideas for the lyrics, album design, outfits, and such. How did the preparations go for 'K'? How was it working with different teams and giving out your ideas to them?
HeeJin: The whole process of making this album, 'K,' was very busy. I feel like in such a short time, it had me leveling up so much. I had a lot of sleepless nights, but all these experiences have become a part of me, helping me progress even more, so I'm very grateful for it. Another thing is working with different people. I had numerous discussions with all the people working on this album and we were sharing our ideas. Every idea was a piece of the puzzle that became a part of the final picture - this album. I am grateful and I want to thank every individual staff member who was a part of this. You know what, I'm very proud of what we have accomplished.
allkpop: What do you think was the most difficult and fun part of preparing for the album, recording the songs, and shooting the music video? Since you were involved in almost everything, were you satisfied with the results? Do you think because of your experience working on this as well as all the effort you put in, you now know how and what else you can improve for your next solo release?
HeeJin: There were so many edits and changes in the lyrics, especially with the title song. There were so many different recordings. If you think about it, this title song is very easy to listen to, almost like background music. You can not be bored by this. Just because it's an easy-listening song, doesn't mean it's boring. I tried so many things to emphasize nuances and different accents. It went through a lot of trial and error, but that made the final product even much better. I'm happy that it came out well. If I do a solo album again, I feel like I will be the type of artist to focus and deep dive into the songs — that's what I would want.
allkpop: You've been preparing alongside your members for years. But now, you're set to return as a solo and perform on music show stages as a solo. I know you may be anxious and nervous but what do you do to overcome the tension and pressure now that you're doing these kinds of activities as a solo artist?
HeeJin: All LOONA members sent me a lot of messages, cheering me on, which I really enjoy. Even when I’m having a concern about something, or if I feel a bit down, I write about it, and my unnies (older members) in the ARTMS group chat will give me a lot of support. That's a big thing to me. Also, there's this app for us to communicate with our fans, and they, too, have been giving me so much support and messages, especially for this album. Every little thing, word by word, in the end, changes into a big support for me. I feel like with this support and love, I will overcome any trials.
allkpop: I read somewhere that you're someone who remembers the smallest things in other members, is that right? I wanted to ask you, if you want to be remembered by people, even for the smallest detail of you, what would you want that thing to be?
HeeJin: To be very honest with you, I actually hope the fans won't remember the little details about me (laughs). I hope that they will just remember me as a whole, as HeeJin. And when they think of me, I want it to be like, "Oh, HeeJin! That girl…she was born to be an idol." The fans see me as the type of person who likes to take on challenges as well as for my passion. I get strength from it, and that really means a lot. So, I do hope that when they think of me and see every little action and word of mine, they also get the energy and motivation to progress even further.
allkpop: What kind of comments are you most happy with reading? Is there a comment from someone, maybe your fan, that has got you and stuck with you until now?
HeeJin: The type of comments that stuck with me is when they say, “HeeJin, you're doing well! Just continue to do what you want to do.” Those little cheers eventually became my energy to strive more. If I must talk about one specific comment, the message was, "When I see or when I'm looking at the moon, I think of you." Wow! I exist in the lives of my fans! That really motivates me and helps me strive to do better and pick up the energy.
allkpop: You're the type of person who likes to challenge herself in many ways. I read your motto back in 2020 that says, "There's no such thing as a meaningless try, nor a wasted experience." Do you have any other things on your bucket list that you would like to try or challenge yourself with? It can be something that you just want to explore in or out of music!
HeeJin: Yeah, that is my life motto. I don't remember where exactly but I read it somewhere and I thought, “This is my life philosophy.” One of the things on my bucket list that is unrelated to music is scuba diving. I have a fear of the sea, but the moment I watched these YouTube videos of people traveling and doing scuba diving made me really think that I want to overcome this fear and challenge myself. In terms of an item on my bucket list for me as an idol, I just want to have a long career. I want to be remembered. In South Korea, there are a lot of artists who were active before but are now coming back and performing their songs. 10 or 20 years later, I want to be remembered by fans and have this long-lasting career.
allkpop: Just to wrap up this interview, what else do you want to say? Be it goals you want to achieve or just a final message to everyone who is going to read this interview!
HeeJin: Using my title track as a reference, I hope my songs will also be in your algorithm feed on whatever platforms you use. This was a long interview, but I really want to thank the people who read it until the end. I was so happy that I was able to share my honest and raw thoughts through this interview. I really appreciate that. Lastly, please look forward to what's coming up with my releases!
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