Key of the group SHINee expressed his affection for the late Jonghyun and the five members of SHINee.
On the 12th, Key and his mother, Kim Sun-hee, appeared as guests on tvN’s ‘You Quiz on the Block’.
On that day, Kim Sun-hee mentioned that Key had exceptional talent since childhood, saying, “I knew he had talent. He danced to BoA at the middle school festival, and he was so good at it.” When Key said, “I can’t forget the expression on my mom’s face while watching my performance. It was a look of ‘Why are you dancing?’” Kim Sun-hee replied, “I didn’t know it was that good.”
After three years of being a trainee, Key debuted with SHINee. Kim Sun-hee revealed her struggles, saying, “On the day of the first broadcast, I went to the recording studio. Many fans came, but the voices cheering for my son were the quietest. It broke my heart. I was worried he might get hurt.”
In response, Key said, “At first, I said it was a bit hard. It was a job I really wanted, but the results didn’t come right away. My parents said, ‘He must be upset, so let’s not say anything.’”
Kim Sun-hee explained, “I felt like opportunities weren’t coming for my son. We were just watching and it was hard to say anything. The reason I sent him letters was that if I talked to him on the phone, it might sound like nagging, so I think I sent letters filled with my worries.”
Additionally, Key shared the confusion he experienced after Jonghyun's death in 2017 and how he overcame it. Key recalled, “I was very shaken at that time. I even thought, ‘Should we all quit?’”
He continued, “I was very broken, but the concert at Tokyo Dome was a performance where we all decided to get through it together. I thought it would be too hard if there wasn’t a place for us to honor him. We wanted to send him off that way. His short, brilliant youth.”
Now, he has accepted Jonghyun's absence, but the longing remains. Key said, “Every year, when his birthday or memorial day comes, I really miss him and feel nostalgic. When new songs come out that we can’t record together, I think, ‘He would have done well on this.’”
He added, “While practicing, he comes to my dreams a lot. When we have concert meetings, he just sits there. When we practice, he’s sitting there. I feel like he’s always with us. We are always five.”
[Lee Se-bin, Star Today Guest Reporter]
