231103 GQ: ‘It was so tiring my soul almost left my body’ – Jung Kook on the highs and lows of making his solo album, Golden

People underestimate the difficulties of recording in a different language (eta: JK just talked a bit abt this in his [album live](https://twitter.com/haruharu_w_bts/status/1720427486113304814?t=PcyR_Ai2RyViANqXbPeDhw&s=19))

>Q: I wondered if there were any particular challenges you found in producing a full record in a different language?

>A: Compared to recording a song in Korean, there was definitely [some] exhaustion, yes. But I don’t think fatigue is important [to me]. I have noticed how my pronunciation is getting better, but still, I’m learning a lot from that process, so it’s definitely fun and I want to continue challenging myself.

Let’s try to understand his goals (a.k.a why I don’t understand criticisms of him not writing his own songs)

>Q:You once said in an interview with your BTS bandmate J-Hope that, when it came to your future as an artist, you wanted to make music for characters as a way to span genres. Is Golden about you trying out different personas?

>A: I just wanted to try diverse genres and styles and work on my own sound. As of now, that is still my goal. I want to work on different stories. On the other hand, when the moment comes when I do want to share my story, I do think it’ll be a song with honest lyrics that I want to share [with my fans].

His own definition of success, and I am glad he ended by saying he is satisfied with the album (not copied).

>Q: You’ve experienced such monumental success with BTS. What does success look like for you as a solo artist?

>A: I don’t think success is determined by other people’s perspectives. Just experiencing self-satisfaction, being happy, experiencing difficulties, being frustrated – I think in all those moments, “success” is always mixed in with it. For me, instead of chasing success, it’s enough to be satisfied.