For those who might not know, J.Fla is best known for her YouTube channel, “JFlaMusic” where she currently has 17.6M subscribers. She is one of the most highly subscribed YouTubers in South Korea and recently celebrated the channel’s 10-year anniversary. With this channel, J.Fla became popular all over the world for her exceptional covers and unique musicality. Before starting her YouTube channel, J.Fla was a songwriter and producer for Sony Music Publishing Japan. In an effort to make her art known in a space that was solely hers, J.Fla created “JFlaMusic”. After over ten years of experience, J.Fla is ready to take over the world as a soloist. Prior to the release of J.Fla’s first full album, Kpopmap had the incredible opportunity of catching up with the legend herself for a conversation on all things “J.Fla”. The conversation that followed was not only insightful and refreshing but also exciting on more levels than one. Keep reading until the end for a very special message from J.Fla to Gardeners all over the world! First of all, a very warm welcome to Kpopmap and congratulations on the incredible success of ‘Bedroom Singer’! How do you feel, now that you’ve initiated the start of something grand and larger than life? May I firstly say that I am extremely thankful that you have invited me to this interview. What a delightful surprise! You asked me how I feel now? Well, I must confess that it didn’t come to me as a reality straight away, as I have been totally snowed under with my next single which is expected to be out next month. But being with you here for this interview, I do start to realise the ‘start of something grand’ is definitely on, and I am very much loved indeed. Your pre-release single ‘Bedroom Singer’ tells the heartfelt story of YouTuber ‘J.Fla’ and how she turned her dreams into reality. Do you have any advice for Gardeners who aspire to follow in your footsteps? ‘Advice’ is a big word for me. Let me make a comment rather than giving a piece of advice. There is a sentence written in bold text in my diary, “Don’t give too much ado or worries about tomorrow that is yet to come but cherish today that you are having now” and there is another sentence written in a small font next to it, “Are you doing your very best atm (at the moment)? Ask that question over and over again until you can say ‘yes, I am sure I am’.” ‘Bedroom Singer’ is your first album under your own label GOODSEN ENTERTAINMENT. What motivated you to set up your own label, and what is your vision for the future? In my 20s, I was very fortunate to be involved in various projects in Japan, South Korea, and in the U.K. as a singer-songwriter. Back then, I worked with Sony Music Japan as a composer where I sold my songs to other artists rather than keeping them as my own. When I returned to South Korea, I faced the harsh reality of what I was lacking in in terms of positing myself as a singer and it made me think a lot about how I could find my place as a singer. Around that time, a British label got in touch with me which opened a new door for me. My time with the British label gave me abundant opportunities for me to see, feel, and have so many invaluable lessons. Some were good and others weren’t. But it clearly made me think vigorously about what kind of music I wanted to pursue, how I could show who truly I am to the world, and finally what I need to do to make that happen. This was the fundamental motivation for me to consider having my own label. I thought if I had my own label, I would be able to do all these things which I had in my mind. But I also sensed that it wouldn’t be easy to have my own label and there would be many struggles which may make me feel of almost wanting to give up or collapse even. But here I was. I was already working on establishing Goodsen Entertainment and viewing the property. Looking back, the decision-making of having my own label carried as much gravity as I carried when I was inviting music into my life. That’s why Goodsen Entertainment’s vision is, in fact, spectacular. Everyone deserves to dream high, right?! Two simple philosophies I hold on to are, 1) “Everything is possible if you put your everything into it” and 2) “Whatever I do, I give my very best to it”. And here I am with you, celebrating my first album. It’s a superb moment! You’ve been in the music industry for longer than a decade now, so you have the experience of a veteran in this field. Still, was there anything new, exciting, or nerve-wracking about the experience of making this album that you’ve never felt before? Creating my own piece of music is always thrilling for me, not necessarily only for my original songs. For me, music is like searching for an answer to a quiz that has no definite answer to it. Having said that, this original album is more of a candid narrative of my own story, so yes, it was like finding an answer to a quiz which has a correct answer. The nerve-wracking bit was keeping each lyric in full as they are the narrative of my own story. In other words, there was a limitation in terms of how much I could play around to add or delete. Arranging each melody to fit into each lyric of my story was also very tricky. I ended up discarding a song which I worked on for an entire week and there were numerous times where I felt some kind of restrictions which I had hardly came across before. On the bright side, there is a song that I completed within an hour – it was a rainy day and it was pouring down - my favourite weather really. The music video for ‘Bedroom Singer’ ends with you unlocking the door to a whole new world. In reality, have you unlocked any new qualities recently that even you were surprised by? I have actually. I believe I have unlocked a new quality in me while I was working on this album. That is to say, I learned that I am a human being who never gives up, no matter how long it takes for me to get what I really love. It doesn’t really matter how long it takes for me to overcome my limit. Also, I have discovered a new me who moves onto the next chapter without putting too much thought about what I have just overcome. With this song, you are inspiring innumerable artists to take their art to the next level. Was there anyone who inspired you like this? Literally uncountable - almost impossible for me to count how many artists have inspired me. If I have to name one, one person I can think of in my head right now is a person who has always been there for me and lifted me up whenever I was about to fall down, carried me to move on the next journey, that has got to be JungHwa Kim. Is there a title that you want to be known by? What is it, and why? Not really. All I wish for is, the news of my original album being released to spread smiles and spring great expectations to my beloved fans and all the people in the world, that’s what I am hoping for. Now that you will begin a new journey as a singer-songwriter in your own right, what new content can fans expect from your YouTube channel? Perhaps a reality show? With my YouTube channel, I have solely focused on delivering my cover songs rather than promoting myself by adding too many various contents. It has always been my intention to wait until my original album is launched. Now, the original album is out, I am hoping to get closer to my fans via various social media channels (including YouTube), live, Vlogs, and concerts. Obviously, I want to continue to have dynamic interactions with my fans to learn and find out what they want me to share and present. Your upcoming full-length album is highly anticipated all over the world. What kind of stories would you say the album contains? As I have mentioned earlier in this interview, this album is ‘J.Fla’ herself. The songs carry narrative stories of my own story (i.e., things that happened to me in my real life, heart-breaking memories, yet the days where I had a genuine laugh in happiness). You will listen to these episodic songs but at the same time, listeners will find it much easier to visualise each story the songs carry as I put lots of effort to help that visualisation. Vibrant and more enliven music to take in – these are the key themes of my album. Alongside the release of your upcoming album, you are set to collaborate with The Recording Academy - GRAMMYs. Can you tell us a little bit about this collaboration? I know, right?! It is my privilege to collaborate with GRAMMYs as it is a recording academy with an unbeatable history of awarded songs that are all diamond-like brilliant and exceptional. Nailing this collaboration was a must and I believed the best way of making that happen was for me to be simply who I am. Bearing that in my mind, I focused on being myself and delivered what I would say as best I could – I loved every single minute of the collaboration. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my special thanks to the artist who was not only kind to allow me to present my own interpretation of his original song but also informed me that he knows who I am. I was in total shock as you can imagine, and felt my right ear (I had a bit of trouble with my right ear recently) was straight back on the right track. So thrilled I was. Looking back, I still can’t believe it, lol. Finally, do you have anything you want to say to Gardeners all over the world who have supported you and loved you endlessly? It’s so easy to make me cry. All you need to utter is ‘Gardeners’. My dearest Gardeners, you have been right next to me for all those times just like a good old friend. You have loved me as if I can take your love for granted, you have been excited for every small news I shared with you, you have never abandoned me no matter how difficult the times were for us. There is no word I can use to express how grateful I am for all your love and support. This album took forever to be out as I spent so long trying to do everything on my own and the delay was inevitable- you are allowed to blame my clumsiness and stubbornness. There is a special song that I have put in this album and this song is dedicated to my Gardeners. I remember sobbing pretty badly when I was working on this song and I can’t help myself crying as I am writing this now. I better wipe off those silly tears and put myself together as I am about to see you all! Here I go, No Tears but Dazzling Smiles! We’re unbelievably excited for the future of J.Fla and cannot wait for the extraordinary surprises she has in store for us with her upcoming full-album. Are you a Gardener? Share your thoughts with Kpopmap in the comments section down below! J.Fla Blooms Into A Singer-Songwriter With Her Pre-Release Single “Bedroom Singer” KPOP STORIES|Oct 21, 2022 좋은 인터뷰 해주신 kpopmap 제작자 분들도 감사해요
