Writer Edward Chun scored an interview with Shinee, the latest and hottest SM Family boy-band to capture hearts and set trends on Korean streets. He wanted to get to know the real kids behind the manufactured magic, but things, however, did not go as planned…


The SM Entertainment building in the trendy neighborhood of Apgujeong was rather less than impressive, considering this was supposedly the K-pop version of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. The drab, faded yellow exterior could easily escape one's attention, and it was hard to believe that behind these walls, some of the hottest bubblegum pop acts were being carefully primped and trained for public consumption.

At promptly 3PM, I was shuffled in to a large practice room, complete with widescreen TV, a few stylists, and five boys who were dressed to the nines and, if I'm not mistaken, wearing base and eyeliner. Something made me feel like this was not to be a live interview, but rather a well-rehearsed promotional commercial.

My list of questions had already been censored by their manager. His reason for cutting out my query into how the band dealt with anti-fans (which he told me with a completely straight face), was that Shinee didn't have any anti-fans…so I knew going in that I wouldn’t be allowed to pull off something like Martin Bashir’s exposé of Michael Jackson’s personal life. Still, the band's ability to reel off rat-a-tat answers, doused with just the right mix of humility and "Awe, shucks, I'm just glad to be here" charm, made my jaw hit the floor.

Shinee masterfully deployed all the responses necessary for a successful interview in which you learn absolutely nothing about the interviewees:

It took hard work to get here – check.

We all get along – check.

I was given thirty minutes to do the interview. Thanks to Shinee's efficiency, we finished in twelve.

My favorite singer, who has also served as an inspiration, is [fill-in-the-blank with appropriate SM star] – check. (One member managed to roll off three groups from SM's roster in his answer.)

An obligatory nod to a recently deceased American pop icon as an incredible artist – check.

These kids were clearly pros.

The most penetrating moment of the interview came when I asked them for the good and bad points of being a K-pop star. At first, they couldn't think of any bad points. Later, one member said he missed his parents and liked to call them. Another member then stated that the worst thing was not being able to call his parents enough. A murmur of agreement rippled through the group. I looked down to see that my hand was writing, "boys next door love their parents," happily independent of my brain.

I had earlier suggested to management that we should try shooting video of the interview (hence the makeup). Shinee's manager agreed, but when I later asked for a few candid shots of the members, he turned me down. At that point, I realized that in this stage play called "An Interview with Shinee," I, too, was playing a role and it sure as hell wasn't journalist. I had become a part of SM Entertainment, if only for a half hour, and my character's name was Staff. I was there to promote Shinee, plain and simple, and while I may have first dismissed the members as little boys, that day they showed me who was really boss.

“An Interview with Shinee” is a section of MTV Iggy's ongoing comprehensive special report "K-Pop Uncovered".

Credits:MTV IGGY