JUNHEE’s Time to Shine

JUNHEE lays out his solo vision while expressing gratitude for A.C.E and the fans who have gotten him this far.

Photo courtesy of H&P Entertainment

How would you summarize The First Day & Night in one sentence? 
“The beginning of a legend.”

How different is the final version of The First Day & Night compared to the original idea for it? Did you have the “times of the day” theme in mind since day one? 
I made this album with [that] theme in mind from the beginning. It all started from the thought that I wanted to create an album people [would] want to listen to all day long. 

What is it about the songs “Supernova (00:00),” “Umbrella (10:00),” and “Too Bad (15:00)” that made them ideal focus tracks? 
When I thought about performing on stage, those three songs gave me the clearest visions for performances. More than anything, I think those tracks give off the most powerful energy and feelings.

If you had to give another song from The First Day & Night a music video, which one would you pick, and what would be the video concept? 
Honestly, I want to make a music video for every single song, but if I had to pick just one… I’d choose “Night (02:00).” I actually already have the whole video concept in my head. It would probably start with me sitting alone on a bed in a small room, looking out the window, and the story would carry on from there!

The First Day & Night is about 24 minutes long, and there are 24 hours in a day! Is that a coincidence or intentional? 
Wow! Is that true? To be honest, I didn’t intend that… Thank you for pointing out such an amazing fact! That just proves that this album has such a clear concept. That’s really interesting!

Photo courtesy of H&P Entertainment

Which of the songs on The First Day & Night has the most interesting backstory? 
I want to say it’s “You should come (21:00).” Actually, the original demo was created for a female singer, but I liked it so much that I ended up working on it in the original key. I felt like if I changed the key, it wouldn’t capture the same feeling I had when I first heard it. I wasn’t sure if I could make it work, but the song turned out better than I expected. That’s why it became one of the songs I had the most fun working on. 

Which of the songs on The First Day & Night took you out of your comfort zone the most? 
I think it was “Sugar (18:00).” Honestly, it was the hardest one for me to really bring out the right mood [in, and] from the tempo to the groove, everything about it just felt like I was trying for the first time. It was one of the songs I paid the most attention to, even [to the] little things like the pronunciation.

Photo courtesy of H&P Entertainment

Did you get any feedback or advice from fellow A.C.E members while working on this album?
The members kept telling me, “Just do whatever you want.” They said they trust me and that I’ll figure it out somehow. I felt so grateful and happy. Isn’t it such a blessing when someone supports you without saying words? In that sense, I’m really thankful to have the members by my side. 

What was your experience like hosting a listening party for fans, and do you plan to host more of them in the future? 
Of course there will be more. It was the first time I hosted that kind of event, so it became such a great memory for me and for the fans. Everyone had so much fun. We shared happiness together through music and got to know and understand each other better. It was such a meaningful time for us in many ways. 

How similar or different are the skills required to be a good group leader and a good label leader? Do you think being A.C.E’s leader prepared you for your newest form of leadership? 
I’d be lying if I said it didn’t help. Going through those times is what made me who I am today. But I also think the skills needed as a team leader and as the owner of a company are completely different. It’s not about what’s better or more impressive. They really are completely different, leading a team versus leading a business, starting from the scope of responsibility. I can definitely say that both positions carry a very heavy burden. 

Have your past concert tours given you ideas for your future solo concerts? What do you want your solo shows to be like? 
I want to create performances where I can connect more closely with the audience and enjoy myself freely. But since the performances with A.C.E were already so full of energy and power, I expect it will be an enormous challenge to go beyond that. Having to surpass my past self and A.C.E, how ironic. But I’m going to try. I think I have to go beyond that in order to move on to the next step. 

Photo courtesy of H&P Entertainment

I’d love to hear about your KPop Demon Hunters covers! Have their popularity and the overall reactions to them surprised you, and do you plan on releasing any more covers anytime soon? 
I didn’t expect [them to get so popular], so it was really, really amazing, and actually a little scary. After sleeping for just one night, the views were already going up by 300 [to] 500 [thousand]. From now on, I’m planning to cover a lot of songs that I personally want to do. Please look forward to them! 

What are your short-term and long-term goals, both for your solo music and for your newly-established label? 
My short-term goal is to start my first solo tour and finish it well, proving my abilities as a solo artist. My long-term goal is to gather a lot of talented people for the company and build a more visionary label. To make good music and make it appealing to the public, you really need a lot of capable people. If that part is solved, I’m sure the potential will explode nonstop. 

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourself or your music? 
In the end, I think it’s a race against time. Either I give up first, or eventually the public sees the vision in my music and wants to listen to it. I can’t guarantee anything, but I’m going to keep building my career in my own way. Please look forward to it.

Check out The First Day & Night here!

View the Substack version of this piece here!

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.