[On feeling a sense of responsibility with their international success]

Jin: “Whenever I try to embrace an unintended success, in my mind I’m always like… It’s like half happiness, half a feeling that makes me think seriously about what I accomplished.”

Jin: "I’m usually a really hard-working person. It’s chaos when all seven members wake up at the same time so I feel more comfortable waking up earlier than the others to start getting ready. A while ago, I woke up two hours earlier (as usual) and ate a bowl of cereal for breakfast and felt very happy. The quietness and relaxing feeling."

Jin: “I really want us to live in a world where all of those songs are heard and get recognition they deserve. I know there are some negative ways to do this, but music should be done in an honest way. I look forward to living in a world where music is produced in good faith, and heard in good faith.”

Jin: "I like playing Super Mario and Maple Story. I started Super Mario when I was five years old and Maple Story in seven grade and still faithfully play them. I feel at ease when I see Super Mario characters and the monsters in Maple Story are extremely cute."

[On three things that he feels "thanks for your existence"]

Jin: "Bed, rice, and entertainment. Because I am a simple person, even just eating something, I will feel happy. Although I feel full, I still want to eat some. But I think it’s not something good. If I’m not hungry I want sleep all day, this is how I really love sleep. I really like rolling around on the bed."

Jin: "When I get old, I want to move to the countryside, build a house and live there. There are challenges at different ages. If there is a challenge that I can take, then I want to challenge it."

[On the difference between his work in BTS and solo work]

Jin: "Because BTS’ tracks are made by seven people coming together as one, we can’t adjust the key or interpretation of a song to suit just one member. But it’s possible in a solo track. The production and style are tailored to me. For example, we can choose a key that would best accommodate my vocal range and sweet spot. It’s the same with the lyrics and melody."

[On his favorite part of his room]

Jin: "I like my entire room, so I can’t decide. Playing on the bed, playing games and wasting time makes me feel blessed."

[On feeling less stress recently]

Jin: “I’m pretty sure I am doing better than then. I’m keeping a pretty regular routine now that I’m getting accustomed to commuting life, even though my schedule is sometimes a bit erratic.”

Jin: "I want to try skydiving. But I'm just saying it, I don't think I'll actually do it because it's too dangerous. You've got to have big dreams, right? Since I've already done bungee jumping, I'll try skydiving next time!"

Jin: “I felt a kind of relief. I want my fans to picture me as being happy and I don’t actually want them to know that I feel that way, but now and then I feel the need to talk about what’s inside me. It’s been a few years since I expressed it in a song or explained anything about it so I feel a tiny bit relieved.”

Jin: "Yes, it is a burden. After all, we can’t do the same thing every time. We often talk amongst ourselves, saying, 'I have no idea what to write about these days,' 'Our experiences are limited and what we do is pretty much the same, so what can we write about?' or 'I wonder if what I experienced is actually right.' When I talk to the other members, I realize we’re all shouldering a level of burden."

Jin: "Being off the road for a year gave me a chance to really reflect on what I want and who I am, and sort of learn to love myself. I got a chance to sleep more, and that makes me a lot more satisfied. I tried exercising, and I realized that’s something that I like. And everyday things like playing games, watching movies, singing, those kinds of things."

Jin: "To be honest, I’m a bit cautious. I hesitate to write about things I can’t completely relate to. Let’s take environmental issues as an example. Even if I want to write a song about the environment, there’s a part of me that can’t help wondering, “Do I have the right to write about this? Am I someone who truly embodies, and lives out, this topic?” It’s something I have to consider deeply."

[On if he feels that he has achieved mastery in singing]

Jin: "I haven’t mastered singing. But a singer has a duty and an obligation to bring joy to the audience. As we went on tour, I began to see the audience liking what I was doing. We were sharing the same emotions and what I was doing was resonating with them more and more. So whether it was my singing or my performance or whatever it might be, I began to realize that I am able to communicate with the audience."

[On not being able to go on tour]

Jin: "Not just myself, but other members really felt that. When we couldn’t go on tour, everybody felt really a sense of loss, a sense of powerlessness, and we were all sad. And it actually took us a while to get over those feelings."

Jin: "I lack in many areas. For example, a lot of the other members will learn a dance once and they’ll be able to dance right away to the music. But I can’t do that, so I do try to work harder so I don’t hold the other members back or be a burden. So I would come to dance practice an hour early, or after the practice was over, I would stay behind another hour or so, and ask the teacher to go over the choreography one more time."

[On if he could've ever imagined the success he reached]

Jin: "I think at that time, I felt that if I could bring together an audience of 1,000 people, that’s what I wanted to do. That was my goal back in those days."

Jin: "I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, but when I retire far, far in the future, I think it would be nice to live in a quiet country village. I’d have a BBQ on the rooftop to host gatherings now and then, as well as a tent in the garden. I’ve been wondering what that would be like."

Jin: "I’m not sure if I can say this, but as we approach the new year, I’d like to tell all the young people that they’ve done a good job and that they’re still doing a good job. That if they’re carrying some burden about new beginnings, it’s okay for them to put down that burden for a bit, and that I hope they can learn to enjoy themselves as they start out on this new path. I would like to cheer them on in this way."

[On if BTS would be open to record rock songs]

Jin: "I don’t think I’ll refuse any rock-style songs that come our way. It’d be good if we can do more of them, but they have to be feel appropriate and match the style of our team."

Jin: "Just because others are having difficulties it doesn't mean yours get any less difficult. Whenever you're having a hard time, tell others you're struggling, ask them to understand and comfort you."

[On if he would ever consider doing acting again]

Jin: "Nothing’s carved in stone. I sort of like to go with the flow and do what I feel. Right now I really love music, so I think I’m obviously more oriented to doing music."

Jin: "I tried to recall a lot of my sweetly melancholy memories so that I could translate it into the overall feeling. For example, you’re thinking about a friend that you may have lost touch with, and drawing from that sadness."

[On what genre of music he would consider himself]

Jin: "Considering my personality, I’d probably be a genre that’s light-hearted and lively. Disco, perhaps? I think I resemble disco the most."

Jin: "But at every moment where I felt that we were at the peak of our fame, after that we reached another peak, and another peak. And so as I continued to become older, and again, it’s kind of embarrassing to say this, we were able to hit more and more peaks. So I feel my age! I feel that I’m 29."

Jin: "My first solo track “Awake” was the first time I felt the desire to attempt something new as a musician. My label gave me the chance to try my hand at writing music. Until then, I hadn’t dared to try anything with our group songs. There were so many outstanding, talented people working on our music that it didn’t even cross my mind to get involved. But when the opportunity came to work on my solo track, I thought I would give it a go too. As I watched more and more members from our group work on their own music, I thought I should at least try."

*NOTE: Some of the quotes listed on this page are translated*