I have received much shock from what Jaebum wrote 4 years ago to his friend. Could it have been another celebrity, I myself would have felt much anger, resentment, and abandonment at his words. But I have known Jaebum for so long that those words are not surprising to me.
I already knew Jaebum was that kind of child.
When Jaebum first came to Korea 4 years ago, he was very rebellious and out of line. He laughed at Korea and belittled his fellow trainees, even going so far as to see me as ‘easy.’ I believe he thought that being a Korean celebrity was something to laugh at. He was a boy that wanted to b-boy in the streets. He fought with company employees, his dance instructors, and made threatening statements.
At times, he even said that he did not like JYP Ent., and would name another rival company, wishing to be sent there instead.
But what made us surprised even more was that when asked whether he had the guts to succeed, he said “We could succeed if we don’t receive JYP’s music.”
At this point, employees wondered why we were keeping such a rebellious boy.
This is why his words 4 years ago are not suprising.
Then why would we keep such a kid?
I love rebellious children. Rather than children that are nice up front but are calculating and evil behind my back, I love children that are rebellious up to my face. I loved the fact that he showed his emotions straight up. It gave me hope. Who would have the guts to utter such words to my face? To say that his failure depended on my bad music? I thought that it was funny.
I believed that rebellious children had too much energy, just no place to express that energy. Or they never met someone that would trust them enough to show them the correct path. I wanted to help this person go on stage and feel the energy and joy. As long as I could instill within him trust and love.
To Jaebum, there are only two types of people. His family, and those that are not his family. He loves his family more than I could ever know. The reason he talks about money in interviews is not to buy nice clothes, it is to pay back his family, who always works hard for him. That’s why he ran the path of becoming a singer.
He was rebellious, but he excelled in training.
I saw this and thought, if only I could make him think of my company, his fellow trainees, this company as his family. if only.
So one day, I told him “Jaebum, someone is not a family only because they share the same blood. Please open your heart to them first. Then others can be your family too.”
Through these efforts, he began to change.. He began to hug his fellow trainees, start conversations with company employees, and began enjoying his time on the stage.
He finally began to express his energy on stage and began to shine through singing and dancing.
I chose him as the team’s leader. The rest of the 6 really believed in him and followed his lead.
He always trained with them and always thought of his younger members before him..
After his debut, he felt a change in his heart at the news reporters and attentions that showed him in a positive light and began showing affection.
He was touched at by the hearts of his fans.
Good people, good friends, good fans… good music.. through all this, he began to change.
But as things began to go up, like a sad movie scene, his entry from 4 years ago was released.
He was so sorry. To his 2PM brothers, to me, to his company employees, to his fans.. and to nobody more than to his Koreans.
He thought to himself that if he stayed any longer, his brothers would only get more hurt. He told me he did not have the confidence to get up on stage.
I knew what he was saying too well to hold him back.
If I were him, I would have made the same decision.
And so he left.
His last email to me said “I’VE BEEN A LITTLE PUNK IN THE PAST. I JUST WANT TO LET YO UKNOW THAT IT WAS A LIFE CHANGING EXPERIENCE. IT MADE ME A MUCH BETTER MUCH STRONGER PERSON AND I’M THANKFUL FOR EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE FOR ME. REAL TALK.”
My heart was ripping. It hurt. But knowing what Koreans would feel at his words, an immense sense of betrayal, I could not say anything.
But what I can do for him is to tell everyone that he showed on TV is not fake. He might have been rebellious but never fake. He never hid his true emotions. He was always up front, straight up… and that is something that can never change.
I know the public and the fans and I am listening to your opinions. But the most important thing is that Jaebum is not 2PM’s Park Jaebum but a child, a teenager Jaebum.
I genuinely wish for you all to hold his decision true.
I apologize once more.
JYP
