Here is the story of Park Hyoshin the sergeant, not the singer…
Sergeant Park Hyoshin earned many nicknames including ‘Earnest Park,’ and ‘Live Park’ while serving at DEMA.
The blog keeper met with Sergeant Park Hyoshin who will be discharged on September 24 and asked him about his military life and the questions his fans wanted to ask.
Keep your curser here!!
I first asked about Sergeant Park Hyoshin’s military life.
(I kept it brief because I thought it would be better to ask him more questions his fans asked~ ^ ^)
O You’re about to be discharged. Many things happened to you while you were in the military. How do you feel right now?
I thought I’d feel really happy when I got discharged. I didn’t believe the others who said they didn’t feel all that happy when they got discharged, but now that I am being discharged, I feel like if I’m leaving home. I also have lots of thoughts about what to do in the future.
O Whenever soldiers go on vacation, their families treat them differently. Some say, especially towards the end, ‘how come they give you so many vacation days?’ Did the same thing happen to you, too? Did you see any changes in your mother whenever you went home on vacation?
I heard about that (laugh). But in my case, my mother was always the same. I was rather busy during my vacations, and sometimes things just came up, so I didn’t get to spend that much time with my mother. My mother was extremely caring every time I went home.
(Sergeant Park Hyoshin’s voice filled with love when he said ‘mother.’ I could see how much love he has for her.)
O (Doing research for this interview) I found out that you made your fans very happy by posting twitter messages and pictures when you were out on vacation. You made many soldiers very happy whenever you performed at Consolation Train. Do you have a secret weapon or a special trick you use to make others happy?
I don’t really have any special trick or secret weapon. I think the most important thing is to “communicate with fellow soldiers, with my comrades.” So I did my best and poured my heart into it. I performed thinking I must put up the best performance possible, wherever I am.
To be honest, soldiers don’t get many chances to attend Consolation Train. I’m not sure how the soldiers who watched me perform remember my performances, but I did my best because I thought by giving them a great performance, it might give them a nice memory to look back on and give them strength.
And my comrades… I actually felt more strength from the soldiers than they did from me, which I am very grateful. I went to perform for them, but instead of giving them strength, I got it from them. I sometimes felt like I didn’t know what I was doing, but being on the stage and seeing the soldiers gave me the answers I needed.
(Watching Sergeant Park Hyoshin say he was never negligent or careless whenever he performed despite the fact he was never once paid for performing in the military, I realized he is a true professional. I feel very sad that I won’t get to see him perform at Consolation Train anymore… ㅠ.ㅠ)
O There were articles about your military life. They said “Park Hyoshin = Macho.” Are you happy with that transformation? And what changed after your military service?
I am happy. ^^;;; The image of the army is manly and powerful, and, although I didn’t act on that, whenever I put on the military uniform I felt responsible. I was performing, but things like that (responsibility) were always in my heart. And I think that was a good thing for me. People around me told me that I used to be meticulous and careful but now I am easy-going.
(Now that he is macho and easy-going, he will be more charming and amazing! ^^)
O What was the best thing about serving in DEMA?
There were many, but most of all, it was meeting the other members. The ones who already got discharged and the ones I am leaving behind. They are very valuable. They are like my family.
And I’ve done a lot of things serving in DEMA, and I am very thankful for that. I did some really amazing things, including performing in the U.S.
I used to sell tickets and perform for those who bought the tickets…
But being able to sing for the people who made sacrifices for the country… It was something that I had never imagined… And I think it was possible because I am a soldier.
(It felt like this question brought back those memories for him. I’m sure those who attended the performance were as happy as Sergeant Park Hyoshin was.)
O Finally, fill in the blank. “Military for me is _____.”
“Military for me is my second life.”
I imagined about it (the military) a lot and heard stories. But when I started my military service, nothing I had imagined or heard from others helped me. It was a process of me experiencing it for myself and learning from it. I actually did something that is similar to what I was doing before, but it wasn’t an extension. It was like an entirely different life.
But what was good was that because I was able to live such a different life, it will help me in the future when I got back to being a civilian.
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Next segment is for answering questions you left.
(Sergeant Park Hyoshin picked the questions himself.)
Let’s find out which questions were chosen and what Sergeant Park Hyoshin’s answers were!
1. (Saying he/she was very happy because he/she was able to see Hyoshin perform more than ever, since his debut) Many people said you are a born soldier. Any plans of becoming a professional soldier?
I don’t like this question. ^^;; I did ponder on it (but not very seriously… ㅜ.ㅜ) because I wanted to stay with the other members. But I don’t think I am a born soldier. I shouldn’t have picked this question. Haha.
2. What did your mother cook for you when you came home on vacation? When was the happiest moment of your military life?
I think she cooked all of my favorite foods in order. One by one… I’m not a picky eater, and I love everything my mother makes, and when I went home on vacation, for example, if I went home for three days, she cooked different dishes for three days and fed me full course meals.(What was the dish she cooked for you on your first vacation?) My mother makes kick-ass Galbi-jjim (short-rib stew), (and I really wanted to eat that) and she made that for me.
The happiest moment of my military life was… Oh! There were many moments… But if I had to pick just one, I was performing at Consolation Train on my birthday, and the team threw a surprise birthday party for me on the stage. The soldiers in the audience sang me ‘Happy Birthday.’ It felt different. Before that, women fans sang me ‘Happy Birthday,’ but hearing the soldiers sing it, it felt different.
3. You received 3~4 awards. What were they? And how did it feel to receive a commendation from the Ministry of National Defense?
I received many awards, and it was kind of embarrassing… I did what I was supposed to do as a soldier… I am very grateful for that. I received over 20 awards and commendations, and among them are the Minister of Health and Welfare Award, the Army Chief of Staff Award, appreciation plaques… And recently, I received the Minister of National Defense Award. It wasn’t a secret, but I kept it quiet because it wasn’t really me who received that award. It was the entire team, but I received it as a representative of the team. But still, I was very happy. I thought I worked really hard, and it was like they knew about it. I felt appreciated.
(Which one was the best one?) ^^ It was the Minister of National Defense Award. I heard I was the first soldier to receive such an award, and it’s not an easy award to get. I felt like I must have worked really hard.
4. When did you experience strong ‘comradeship?’ What do you plan on doing on the night before your discharge?
The word ‘comrade’ isn’t a word that should be taken lightly. I believe the word binds people together when you use it, even if they have never met before. I felt it whenever I was on the stage. I felt it on the stage, even if I didn’t speak with the soldiers, and I felt it with my team members.
(The most memorable ‘comradeship’ moment with the DEMA members was?) There was one time when I was in a very tough situation, and the DEMA members and those who got discharged already called me and gave me strength. I felt it back then.
(What do you do on the night before the discharge?) We get together and talk.
(Which of your lower ranking soldiers do you want to talk to the most?) We’ve been talking a lot already… We’re the same age, but Private Kang Changmo, we talked a lot. I don’t think I’ll have anything special to say to him.
(Don’t you ‘mopomari’ (it’s some sort of hazing which involves wrapping up the person who is going to be discharged in a blanket (mopo in Korean) and beating him senseless. I had to google it to find out. Appalling.)?) You shouldn’t do that. You’re not supposed to do that. ^^;;
5. Who was the person who answered your calls the most? Who came to visit you the most?(Outside my mother and fans? ^^) Nobody, then. ^^ I had no time to call anyone. Like any other soldiers, I had a pretty tight schedule every day. My friends came to visit me in the beginning, the people from my agency and my parents came… But after that, because I was so busy, they couldn’t come. Even if they planned on visiting me on a weekend, I was often called to do something, so they couldn’t.
(So was it your mother who visited you and called you the most?) Yes. It was my mother. She couldn’t come when I was in the boot camp, but when I got transferred to DEMA, she came to visit me, and she brought lots of food for me and the other members.
He picked five questions and answered them, as I announced before. But Sergeant Park Hyoshin begged me to let him pick more questions, so I said yes. ^^;;;
6. (Extra question no. 1) Was there a present one of the other members received that you wanted for yourself? For example, carp soup?
I did not want anything like carp soup. My fans sent me lots of healthy stuff. Next question!
(He was very grateful that his fans took such great care of him!)
7. (Extra question no. 2) You became younger and more amazing after you joined the military. How did you take care of your skin?
I think I look younger because my hair got shorter. I don’t have any special secrets. I was actually in a tough environment, and I think maintaining a positive mindset helped. But my fans sent me special facial masks, so I used them with the other members whenever I had to perform, and that I think improved my skin.
8. (Extra question no. 3) I heard one man yelled “Take me!!!” out of excitement during one of your Consolation Train performances. How did you feel to hear that?
It wasn’t easy ^^.. But I couldn’t say yes. (I’m joking.) I was grateful. It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman. Expressing your feelings is difficult, so I felt really great. It was very moving.
(Do the soldiers and your fans react differently?)
What I share with my fans can’t be expressed with words. They are very special to me in a different way. Being comrades, it feels different. It’s the best.
Questions 1~4 Video Clip
Questions 5~8 Video Clip
Did you enjoy the videos? Preparing for this interview, I thought the fans of Park Hyoshin are very similar to Park Hyoshin himself. He may not be colorful, but he is very stylish. And just like him, I thought his fans are beautiful because they showed great manners in sending their questions and waiting for their questions to be chosen. I think the support from these fans enabled Sergeant Park Hyoshin to finish his military service in such success.
I hope Sergeant Park Hyoshin’s future is as bright as his smile. I hope he becomes a world star, just like Psy.
Go Sergeant Park Hyoshin!
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(Ta-dah!)
Aren’t you curious about the signed CD?
Here it is…. Sergeant Park Hyoshin was very happy with this. ^^ (I felt very proud myself~ Haha.)
How do you like it?
The songs in the CD are listed in the back. ^^
(The winners of the CD must be very happy)
Here is the end of the interview with Sergeant Park Hyoshin…
“Take care, comrade! ^^;;;”
credits English translation: sandbox
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