[10 LINE] Nichkhun

Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul
Nichkhun’s Thai name. He is cute. And he’s friendly. Plus he has a nice body. And he’s tall. He also speaks four different languages. He has been famous for his pretty looks since he was in kindergarten, earning the nickname ‘prince’ amongst his friends. But his parents were strict towards him, always telling him to 'think and act as you would if you were two years older than you are' and to take action to earn what he wants. His grandmother taught Nichkhun and his also good-looking older brother manners. Thanks to such upbringing, Nichkhun cultivated a will strong enough to help him live alone in New Zealand and the United States but at the same time be tenderhearted enough to kiss his parents on the cheek without feeling awkward about it. He became more independent and learned to overcome his loneliness especially after his brother left for the U.S., joining the badminton team at school and getting hooked onto music and drawing. It may be this childhood background that allowed him to become a singer in Korea, a country which spoke a language he did not understand a word of.

Park Jin-young
The head of JYP Entertainment. Nichkhun recently revealed on a TV show that Park eats rice cakes while scolding him and his boy band 2PM. JYP approached Nichkhun at GOD’s concert in the U.S., asking him to audition for them. The casting director persuaded Nichkhun to join the agency by telling him that he was the only person he liked amongst the 11 people who tried out from overseas. The agency even invited Nichkhun to Korea saying that they will take care of everything for him. They even said it does not matter, when Nichkhun said he is not a good singer nor dancer. At the time, Nichkhun had also been approached by another agency.

Rain
The top star that used to be under the same agency as Nichkhun. Nichkhun became known in Thailand even before his debut due to the fact that he was in the same agency as Rain and soon after appeared in a TV commercial alongside the superstar in Thailand. At the time, Rain told Nichkhun over dinner to work hard and play hard. Nichkhun became popular in Thailand after that, appearing in commercials alone and singing on TV shows. Nichkhun often bought dinner for his group members since he was the only group member making money ahead of their debut. His relatives in Thailand who share the same last name as Nichkhun are said to be careful of their actions and words in case they might damage his reputation.

Hwang Chan-sung and the boys
A group formed around 2PM member Hwang Chan-sung in sitcom “High Kick”. Nichkhun and Ok Taec-yeon were also part of the group. Nichhkun appeared in a couple other gigs on TV before debuting as 2PM. While a trainee, Nichkhun along with other trainees were not able to drink alcohol, had to be at the living quarters by 10:30 p.m., were not allowed to date girls and received evaluation on their dancing and singing skills at the end of every month. Nichkhun said that at the time, he felt lonely being in a country where he could not understand the language properly but figured he would be able to pull through since he had lived alone in New Zealand when he was younger. Member Ok, fluent in both English and Korean is said to have taught Nichkhun Korean.

2PM
The boy band Nichkhun is a member of. They are a group known for performing acrobatics on stage, eating huge portions of food and acting silly and pulling jokes. Nichkhun said their house is “very naturally messy and dirty” and 2PM is a group which “even if someone is tired, they’ll follow you all the way to bed and bother you”. Nichkhun is the only member considered to be ‘superior’ amongst the group. He has the proportions of a model and was also smart believing “I thought I wasn’t allowed to let my GPA fall below 3.5”. His group members say his shortcomings are that “his head is so small that he can’t find a hat that fits” or “his legs are too long that his pants are always short”.

Kang Ho-dong
One of South Korea’s top emcees whom Nichkhun worked with in TV shows “Ya Shim Man Man’ and ‘Star King”. “Ya Shim” was Nichkhun’s first appearance on a Korean entertainment program. He said he was stressed on the show not knowing when to catch the right timing to talk but settled in with “Star King”, gaining high popularity amongst the female celebrities who also appeared on the show in which he could do more through his actions than words. He recently appeared as a guest on “Ya Shim” and said he finally understands what the entertainment industry is about and made jokes.

Kim Min-sun
Nichkhun’s make-believe girlfriend in music channel MNet’s “Scandal”. Naturally, his fans displayed fury, posting up video clips of the show on the web with Kim deleted, but the show proved Nichkhun is a real man. His Korean had improved greatly from the “Ya Shim” days and he showed the attentive side to him, tying Kim’s shoelaces when the two went on a date to the ice skating rink. Nichkhun believes that “speaking before you speak, acting upon ‘lady first’ and not lying but being honest” is what defines a real man. He says he does not want his future girlfriend to go through any hardships, would love her and wants to treat her well. And he is famous for being extremely sweet to his younger sisters.

Kim Hyun-chul
Comedian. Kim was publicly criticized after appearing on a TV show and jokingly said police should look into whether Nickhun is an illegal immigrant. Kim’s words were probably not easy on Nichkhun who has said that he is of Chinese descent but believes he is Thai and that he should not confuse his identity for another nationality. While in the U.S. he was discriminated by Americans who called him ‘fried rice’. That is why this guy, who seems ideal since he is a good-looking foreigner who has yet to improve on his English, faces a dilemma at times because it is difficult for him to express everything he thinks. Nichkun once said “I am not your son” to a man two years older who spoke carelessly to him, and when a member of his group loses concentration during an interview he will tell him to focus.

Daniel Henney
The perfect guy who we can only see in Hollywood these days. It may not be correct to compare the two on equal terms but it could be said Nichkhun is a younger version of Henney. He is a foreigner, he is good-looking, well-mannered and knows how to make a favorable impression on Koreans. Nichkhun too wants to act in Hollywood someday. Of course, as he once said on a talk show, he became a singer even though he was not a good singer. To become more than the just the ‘nice guy’ from Thailand, the time will come when he himself will have to prove his talent. But improving his musical capability starting now may be less of a challenge for this Thai guy who worked hard so to be loved by Koreans.

Senior Reporter : Kang Myoung-Seok two@10asia.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr, Lee Ji-Hye seven@10asia.co.kr