Choi Suho “First Album is like a child... I want to show masculinity like Park Jihyun hyung” [DA: Interview ①]
Trot singer Choi Su-ho (22), who started out as a traditional Korean musician, has finally released his first album after a long wait. His first mini-album ‘ONE’ is the result of three trot competitions. He has released several remake songs in the past, but this is his first album under his own name.
In an interview with Donga.com held at a cafe in Eonju-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul on the 4th, Choi Su-ho said, “I am grateful to the fans who have waited for the album, but I feel more sorry. It must have been hard for me to appear in competitions again, wait for promotions, and vote for them,” and “I hope this album will be a great strength to the fans.”
Choi Su-ho said, “‘Mr. Trot 2 - The Beginning of a New Legend’ (hereafter ‘Mr. Trot 2’), but because I took on another challenge (‘Current King of Singers 2’), it took a long time for the album to come out. I prepared it when I was really busy, but I prepared it with a really happy heart”. He confessed that he only saw the completed album a few days ago, “I couldn‘t believe it, but I looked at it for a while because I thought, ‘My album has really come out”. It’s like my child, and I feel a sense of responsibility”.
Regarding the album, he said, “I‘m still young, but I want to be seen as a man, so I was recommended a masculine song as the title track and prepared it. After two competitions, I thought the fans might be tired, so I included the fan song ‘We Did It Together’. He introduced the album as “a comprehensive gift set”.”.
Choi Su-ho said about ‘Going All the Way’, “When I read the lyrics, I felt like I was seeing myself during the competition. There are lyrics about going all the way, not giving up, and making the impossible happen. I think it will be a source of strength and comfort to the listeners,” and added, “At first, the song didn’t really resonate with me. It was a Latin genre that I hadn‘t listened to before, so it felt unfamiliar. I was worried if it would get a positive response in Korea, but as time passed, I liked it because it felt like the song contained my appearance during the competition. I guess life is a challenge.” Regarding the traditional Korean music vocalization, “Since my strength is traditional Korean music, I tried to add the vocalization in the intro as a challenge. We discussed our opinions and added it, and the composer responded positively. He said, ”It also feels like a fusion of Korean traditional music and Latin.“ He added, ”There were elements similar to the oral tradition in the interlude, but I took them out because I thought they distracted from the song, and only put them in the intro.“
He also introduced a track filled with affection. The second track, ”Walking in a Dream,“ is a song by Jeon Hae-seong, who created Yoon Do-hyun’s ”Maybe I Was in Love“ and Lee Seung-chul‘s ”My Love.“ It is a song where you can feel Choi Su-ho’s soft vocals, like the warm afternoon sunlight of a spring day. In addition to this, the album also includes ‘We Were Together’ by composer Choi Go-ya, which features the gentle sound of the flugelhorn and the beautiful harmony of strings, ‘Mother‘s Song’ a remake that sings of a mother’s longing for her mother in the time that has passed, ‘The Man of Joseon’ 2025 version that showcases Choi Su-ho‘s more mature and powerful vocals, and the instrumental track of the title song ‘We Will Go All the Way’.
First, regarding ‘Walk in a Dream’, he said, “It’s a soft ballad genre, and I thought that it would suit me well if I sang it at this age. I felt that it suited me so well that I even wanted to choose it as the title song,” and emphasized that ‘We Were Together’ is a fan song. ‘Joseon Man’ was released as a 2025 version because it received a good response in the competition.
He also explained about ‘Mom‘s Song’, “I like trot songs about my mother, so I begged the CEO to let me have it.” When asked about his family’s reaction, he said that he hasn‘t released the album or song to his family yet in order to keep it confidential, and laughed, saying, “My family sincerely supports me no matter what song I release. Since it’s my first album, I think my mother and grandmother will like it, and they‘ll change their ringtones and listen to it all day long.”
Choi Su-ho, who has taken on various genres rather than focusing on trot, said, “I’ve been competing since my early 20s, and I developed a spirit of challenge in the process. I‘m no longer afraid of challenging myself with different genres. My seniors also told me, ’You have to try everything,‘” and added, “I’ve also heard that these days, you can‘t be good at just one genre, and I feel the same way. It’s not that I don‘t like and dislike trot and sing ballads; I love trot too. I want to be a versatile singer in many genres,” he said.
Choi Su-ho suddenly appealed to masculinity(?) by saying that he wanted to show his masculinity through ‘ONE’. He said that because of his young appearance, there are many fans who see him as a ‘baby’, and “Even when I prepare a sexy stage, they say, ‘Oh, you’re cute’Our baby is doing well‘ and treat me cutely. I want to be recognized like my hyungs and show a manly side. I‘m on the sociable side so I get along well with my hyungs, but I especially like Park Ji-hyun and I’m learning a lot from her. She was so cool in videos and on stage. When I see Park Ji-hyun, she gives off a manly and sexy vibe. I wish I could have that kind of charm too,“ he said, expressing his hopes.
The black leather jacket was also a choice to show off his masculinity. Choi Su-ho smiled with satisfaction, saying, ”I‘m 100% satisfied because I feel manly.“ He said, ”When I was on ’Mr. Trot 2,‘ I let my bangs down and my clothes were cute, but on ’Current King of Singers,‘ I tried to show my forehead and wear clothes that were a little more mature. I challenged a bold concept on the ’Nabuldo Yeonga‘ stage and I was glad to hear that I looked more manly. I practiced a lot while preparing for the competition and built up my self-resistance. I think it helped a lot. I also enjoyed filming the music video for ’I‘ll Go All the Way.’“
When does Choi Su-ho think the ‘era of success’ mentioned in the lyrics truly represents success? He said, ”I think it‘s successful if I can hold a concert in a large venue,“ and expressed his desire to become a singer who holds a solo concert at Olympic Hall. His goal of buying his parents a house still feels far away, but he expressed his determination, saying, ”I definitely want to buy it for myself.“
Choi Su-ho said, ”I shouldn’t be in a hurry, so I‘ll do it step by step,“ and added, ”I hope many people like it. For now, I think that just releasing my album is a success and I’m already satisfied.“ He then added, ”I‘ve heard people say that I smile like a baby, so I want to show my charisma. I hope you see me as a man,“ emphasizing his masculinity once again and making people laugh.
Jung Hee-yeon, Donga.com reporter shine2562@donga.com
Photo courtesy of Pogo Entertainment
This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.
