ZE:A’s Heechul Star Diary Part 2: The Reason For His 007 Missions

All 9 ZE:A members were acting shy during their first interview, that is, until a certain topic got them stirred up and talking animatedly. Their own Heechul took the lead as they began talking about their cable TV program, Children of Empire.
Time flew by quickly as each member shared their own take on their filming experiences during the show. “There were two seasons for ‘Children of Empire’. With both of those seasons combined, I was the one who felt the most distressed” Heechul began. The rest of the members agreed that Heechul had the most stories to share from their filming. “During the first season, I was the one who was dropped from the Star Empire training. At that moment, everything went blank for me. When the manager took me to the airport, all the strength I had left in me just vanished and I couldn’t even hold myself up.”

Heechul’s demeanor suddenly became very serious, almost as if going back to that moment.

“I had no idea it was all scripted. After I got to the airport, I got a call from the manager director who told me [it was scripted]. I thought it was weird when the female writers had followed me into the bathroom. When I later asked them why they did that, they said they were worried I was really going back to Jeju.”
Only the top coordinators of the agency and the show’s producers knew that the expulsion of HeeChul and TaeHun as trainees was scripted, all the other agency employees, and of course the members, had no idea. “[Coming] from a dorm bustling full of people, Taehun and I moved into a one room in Kangnam and lived there together. It was a nice environment (laughs).”

Heechul tried his best to playfully tell his heart aching story of when strangers passing by would ask “Why is he walking so carelessly when he was just kicked out of ZE:A?”

“Taehun and I were continuously training, practicing rapping, but of course the place where we trained was right near the agency. While we were going to train, it was like a special 007 mission and we would sweat our butts off in order to accomplish it. Because everyone thought I was back in Jeju, I couldn’t get caught by the employees of the agency, the other members, or the fans.” Secretly living and training so close to the other members, this reporter wondered, did he ever get caught?

“The funny thing is, I got caught not near the agency, but in Kangnam. As I was going to meet up my friends, I ran straight into the members at Kangnam station. Thinking back in that moment, I still feel shaken up. While I was hiding behind an ATM, I completely denied that fact that I was in Seoul while on the phone with Joonyong. But DongJoon wouldn’t buy it, so I confessed that I came to Seoul to take care of some business. I think I was taken aback so much that I got sick with a fever of 40°C (104°F).”
After all that hiding and sneaking around, how was it that they were able to reunite with the rest of the members? “Taehun and I wrote and recorded a rap together, then sent it out to the agency. While the other members gathered around and listened, they were completely surprised when they recognized the voices. At that moment, Taehun and I burst into the practice room.”

That scene was the highlight of Children of Empire, Season 1, as the surprised members hugged Heechul and Taehun, overcome with emotions. Even a clip of leader Joonyoung crying like a baby was shown, saying that he was overwhelmed with emotions when he found out the touching lyrics were written by their own Taehun and Heechul.

“That’s how Season 1 ended and we got started on the second season, which were the Wingca concerts. Everyday we traveled to 3 different locations in the countryside and performed. When we first started in Ilsan, we performed in front of only 20 people, but as the time passed, the number of people who shouted our names and cheered us on increased. I was really thankful for them.”
After sharing their stories from the first season, is there anything in particular that stood out to them from the second season? “After a vote with the members, Kevin, Hyungshik and I were picked to come to work wearing a uniform, they said they picked me because I was the second youngest. At the time, I was upset when they kept making fun of me because I didn’t know it was scripted.”

So many things happened during their Wingca conerts, from the power going out, sand going into their mouths, and having speakers burst. At a performance in Daegu Dongsung Street, 2,000 fans came out only to see ZE:A after there were rumors that DBSK was in town. They say that the emotion they felt that day was an unforgettable memory.

“Thinking back on it, the times we spent on the Wingcar concerts were the most important stepping stones in the making of ZE:A.”

Source: Yoon TaeHee@asiae.co.kr
Translation: Julez@kpoplive.com