In recent times, it seems like the very suave Choi Siwon is just popping up everywhere we look.
He’s on tour with his band, the ever-popular Super Junior (having just completed the Hong Kong leg of the Super Show 5), shows up for fashion shows (like the latest Chanel Cruise show that was held here) and even appears up on our TV screens with his latest role as mobile messenger service LINE’s ambassador.
With his head-turning good looks and irresistible charm, we’re definitely not complaining.
We managed to sneak in a little time with the K-pop idol and got him to spill about his addiction to LINE, his guilty pleasures in life and what he thinks of Singapore.
herworldPLUS: Hi Siwon, so tell us who do you usually have LINE conversations with?
Choi Siwon: With my very busy schedule, I don’t always have time to meet my friends, so LINE is the best way to keep in touch with them. When I chat, I use the LINE stickers all the time. I think it depicts your emotions better than just writing in words. I can be a bit shy in expressing my feelings so the stickers have been helpful in expressing some of the things I’ve been holding from my friends and family like how much I love and how grateful I am to them.
Super Junior has also recently launched our LINE official account. Through our account, news on Super Junior is provided in real time. The best part of it is that we can have one-on-one conversations with our when we are in “On-Air” mode. We’re really looking forward to having more conversations with Singaporean fans!
hwp: Are you in any group chats on LINE?
Siwon: I use the group chat function with other Super Junior members. It’s especially useful because once you open a group chat, you won’t need to recreate it every time you need it. In our group chats, we often send each other funny voice messages and pictures we take with the LINE camera, and it’s really fun.
hwp: Is there anyone you wish would get on LINE so you can chat with them?
Siwon: I would like to get the LINE ID of my future girlfriend. While shooting the recent commercial for LINE, I really wished that I had a girlfriend to actually send these cute stickers to. LINE has so many stickers, and I think it will be very romantic and fun to chat using the stickers.
hwp: Which is your favourite LINE sticker?
Siwon: My favorite LINE Character is Brown, a chubby brown bear. In my recent LINE commercial, I used Brown to represent my character while Cony was my co-stars’ sticker of choice, so I feel some form of attachment to Brown. Another character that I’ve taken a liking to is James (the blonde guy). Some of my friends even told me that he resembles me. [Laughs]
Sometimes I even nag my friends to buy them for me. Just the other day, there was a LINE JELLY competition between the Super Junior members and the person with the highest score wins LINE stickers. Luckily I won and was rewarded with Brown’s special sticker series.
hwp: After your many visits to Singapore, what’s your impression of it?
Siwon: Every time I visit Singapore, I find it really beautiful and it’s a very friendly country. I feel very grateful that many Singapore fans have shown so much love to me and other Super Junior members.
hwp: What’s your secret to keeping yourself in shape?
Siwon: The most important thing is to doing it regularly and consistently. Considering my busy schedule, it’s not easy to exercise consistently but, I try by best, to squeeze in a workout whenever I have the time.
hwp: Do you have any secret talents?
Siwon: It’s hard to call it a talent, but if it’s something that fans don’t know about me it’s that I have many different facial expressions. In fact, I have many funny expressions up my sleeve, but I don’t think I had many chances to share the playful side of me with my fans. Although, I believe that they have recently started to notice the more humourous side of me
Siwon's LINE Avatar
hwp: What do you do for fun when you’re not working or touring?
Siwon: I enjoy spending my free time with my family and friends since I don’t see them often. I usually don’t have time to chat with my friends and families face-to-face, so whenever we meet, I can easily spend an entire day just talking to them and catching up. I also enjoy watching movies or going on short trips with them as well. When I want to do something exciting and fun between schedules, I play a series of LINE games.
hwp: With all the demands on your time, how do you relieve stress?
Siwon: As I am travelling a lot, I miss my friends and family in Korea all the time. Whenever I feel homesick, I use LINE free voice calling to talk to them. After chatting with them and sending funny pictures to each other, I can somewhat relieve my stress for the day. Also, I like listening to music, and playing sports. My worries seem to disappear after being drenched in sweat, that’s why playing sports is one of the best ways to re-energise yourself.
hwp: what’s your guilty pleasure?
Siwon: These days, I’m addicted to playing LINE games. Once I start, it’s really hard to stop. So I guess I can call it my guilty pleasure. I’m especially into LINE Jelly. LINE Jelly has just been released recently and is very similar to LINE Pop, but I find it more thrilling and exciting.
hwp: If you weren’t a singer, what would you be doing now?
Siwon: I can’t even imagine what I would be doing if I wasn’t a singer, because what I’m doing now is my dream and what I’ve always wanted to be.
LINE is the latest mobile messenger service that offers free text , voice messaging, voice calling and group chat with up to 100 people, integrated with various interactive elements such as stickers, home, timeline and official accounts of your favourite celebrities.
For more information visit: http://line.naver.jp/en/