Singer Kim min-seok hones acting skill for bigger role

Sep 4, 2019

Kim Min-seok, a member of male music duo MeloMance, has not had much media exposure.

Striving to get out of his comfort zone, the singer has been exploring the world of acting in the online-streaming series "I Asked 'Is it Love?' and Was Told 'It's Love'."

"This drama got me to think about how I'm reflected through the camera. I've learned to become familiar standing in front of a camera and seeing myself in the frame," said Kim in an interview with The Korea Times in Sinsa-dong, southern Seoul, Friday. "I came to realize that how I am seen by audiences is important because it will help them discover me and give them the opportunity to immerse themselves in my music,"

Making his debut in 2015 as the vocalist of MeloMance, Kim was more familiar to the public with his soft vocals and sweet melodies. The duet has had multiple hit songs, including "Gift" and the soundtrack of the megahit TV series "Mr. Sunshine."

But in this new series, Kim plays a singer-songwriter named Kim Suk-young who hones his musical talent to become a singer and composer and shows dedicated love for his college sweetheart.

He said that taking on the lead role in his first on-screen acting job brought a lot of pressure, which made him question whether or not he wanted to take on the role.

"Before accepting the offer, I was scared because it was the lead role. So for a few weeks, I asked people around me whether I should take it or not," said Kim. He said he finally committed to taking the offer after he was inspired by his brother Kim Woo-seok, the actor who recently starred in the TV crime drama "Voice 3."

"I found acting attractive so I decided to take the job," Kim said. "I've always wondered how far I could push myself (through new challenges), and working on this piece has helped me to answer that question."

Singer Kim min-seok hones acting skill for bigger role

Kim Min-seok in a scene from the series "I Asked 'Is it Love?' and Was Told 'It's Love'" with the co-star Jung Ye-seo.

Despite this eagerness to take on a new challenge, Kim sees room for improvement.

"I can't fully be satisfied with my acting……I kept seeing the flaws and things that I need to improve," he added as he rated his acting 10 out of a 100, but believes that he will finally reach his full potential through future projects.
"I'm a bit of a perfectionist who needs to do well in everything I do. So I'm in the process of getting feedback from viewers and taking them in to make improvements."

He said the hardest part of playing his character was when he went on stage to perform, which was completely different from how he actually is on stage.

"There were scenes where I go on stage to perform or go to an audition in which I have to be visibly seen as nervous and as if I have butterflies in my stomach. But in reality, when I go on stage, I try my best to hide and suppress that feeling."

He added that this drama allowed him to grasp how fascinating it is to play someone else.

"If I get the chance, I would like to challenge myself with an intricate role such as playing a cold and insensitive psychopath ― something that is completely the opposite of my image as someone who sings sweet and serene ballads."

Audiences will have to wait for a while to see him on the big or small screen because the singer-actor will be drafted later this year or early next year to serve his mandatory military service.

Kim has vowed to make the most of his time before his military service. "For the time being, I'm working with the artists I've wanted to collaborate with. I also have a solo album and MeloMance album to be released before I join the army."

The web-drama has been running since Aug. 9 through Stone Music Entertainment's social media accounts including on Naver TV and YouTube. New episodes are released every Friday at 6 p.m.

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