-
- [Jackson] I assume you guys talked
about the hardest part being a trainee...
-
- [BM] Oh yeah.
- [Ashley] Ohh.
-
- [Peniel] Really?
-
- [Jackson] I saw that.
I saw that.
-
Oh that was on
another podcast or what?
-
- [Peniel] Oh I don’t know.
I thought…
-
- [BM] That was on ours.
-
- [Peniel] I thought trainee
was pretty fun for me.
-
We had a
pretty fun time.
-
- [Jackson] We had…
-
I had some
hard moments.
-
I had some hard moments
because you know like...
-
You came like—
-
We were in the
same company.
-
- [BM] Yeah yeah yeah.
- [Ashley] Yeah yeah.
-
- [Jackson] And… You came
two years before me or one year?
-
- [Peniel] No no.
I think like…
-
- [Jackson] You came with Mark.
- [Peniel] A year?
-
- [Jackson] With Mark and BamBam.
- [Peniel] Or 6 months before you.
-
- [Peniel] No I came
a little before them too.
-
- [Jackson] Then two years.
-
- [Jackson] Two years before me.
- [Peniel] No no no no.
-
- [Peniel] I got cut
exactly two years.
-
- [Jackson] What?
What do you mean?
-
- [Peniel] So like…
-
I was only a trainee
at JYP for two years.
-
And I got cut.
-
So I think I was there for like
maybe a year before you.
-
- [Jackson] Ohh.
-
- [Peniel] A year? A year
and a half before you.
-
- [Jackson] Bambam and
Mark came in a year before me.
-
- [Peniel] Oh really?
-
Okay maybe like a
year and a half before you?
-
- [Jackson] Yeah so…
-
To me, I didn’t
know Korean.
-
- [Peniel] Ah yeah okay okay.
-
- [Jackson] And…
I was a fencer.
-
Yeah, what do you
expect from a fencer?
-
You expect
them to dance?
-
You expect them
to sing? To rap?
-
Nothing.
-
- [BM] So you
had no musical…
-
Or dancing
background?
-
- [Jackson] I was so happy and…
- [Peniel] But…
-
- [Jackson] Yeah?
-
- [Peniel] Didn’t you audition
with rap or something?
-
- [Jackson] I auditioned with dance.
- [Peniel] Oh dance.
-
- [Jackson] Yeah dance but like...
-
- [Jackson] But just
freestyle and…
-
It was wack.
-
Okay. I knew it.
-
- [Ashley] Noo.
But you got in.
-
- [Jackson] I felt good…
But it was wack.
-
I knew it.
-
- [BM] Did you think
it was wack at the time?
-
- [Jackson] It’s still
on the internet.
-
- [Ashley] Oh really?
-
- [Ashley] I want to see…
-
- [Jackson] People still— Don’t…
-
No please.
-
No, people still laugh.
-
- [Peniel] When did
your mindset change?
-
Because I remember when
you first came into the company…
-
You were like, “Hey hyung…
It's pretty good right?”
-
- [Jackson] I thought…
I felt good.
-
I thought you guys were
going to feel good.
-
But I knew it
was a little wack.
-
For sure.
-
- [BM] Even at the time?
-
- [Jackson] But then the video
is still online and everyone still…
-
- [Peniel] You’re seriously
looking it up right now?
-
- [Jackson] Everyone’s still like,
“Hey it’s cute. It’s cute.”
-
But hey…
What do you expect?
-
- [Peniel] Hey whatever.
-
It got you into
the company right?
-
- [Jackson] Yeah yeah yeah.
-
- [BM] How old were you?
-
At the time of
your audition?
-
- [Jackson] I was 16.
-
- [BM] 16 when you
first came to Korea.
-
- [Jackson] Yeah and then
I didn't know Korean.
-
How to sing.
How to dance.
-
How to do anything.
-
I was pretty buff
back then, right?
-
- [Peniel] Yeah dude.
He had like…
-
It was like…
His triceps…
-
They were like
abnormally huge.
-
I was like, “What the…”
-
- [BM] It’s the fencer triceps huh?
- [Jackson] My thighs.
-
- [Peniel] And his thighs
dude… I was like…
-
- [Jackson] Crazy.
-
- [BM] Girls love a…
Nice pair of thighs bro.
-
- [Jackson] Uhhh…
-
Apparently they didn't.
-
Apparently they didn’t.
-
And then…
-
- [BM] Cultural difference maybe?
-
- [Jackson] I came in
and I was in depression.
-
Since the third
day in Korea.
-
Remember?
I was telling you…
-
I said, “Hyung...
I’m gonna get cut.”
-
Remember?
-
I said I’m
gonna get cut.
-
- [Peniel] Yeah. It was
like the third day.
-
I was like, “Bro.
You just got here.”
-
- [Jackson] And first day…
-
He helped me
carry my luggage.
-
Up the stairs ‘cause
we lived like on the 5th floor.
-
- [Peniel] There was no elevator.
-
- [Jackson] Yeah good days.
And we always hang…
-
Like me, Peniel, Mark,
Bambam… and Don.
-
- [Peniel] And Eugene.
- [Jackson] Yeah and Eugene.
-
- [Peniel] It was like all the
English-speaking people.
-
That’s when my Korean
skills stopped improving.
-
It was like only Korean people
so I was like, “In order to survive…”
-
And all of a sudden like all these
English speakers started coming in…
-
My Korean skills
just went… booooo.
