JAY loves Oasis, so I asked him what their song “Wonderwall” means to him. Everyone who hears the song has their own interpretation, but for JAY, the title of the song meant “support.” Read on to learn who he relies on for support more than anyone—and who he feels compelled to look after for the same reason.
You visited your hometown, Seattle, for the first time in eight years during your world tour earlier this year. How did it feel to go back as an artist?
JAY: It felt great. It felt like I was being welcomed back on home soil. There was even an article about it in The Seattle Times. (laughs)
You threw the first pitch at a Seattle Mariners home game with the group and received a surprise video message from player Jay Buhner.
JAY: My dad was thrilled. (laughs) He talked about how he absolutely loved baseball even when he was a kid. I was happy because it felt like it wasn’t just my dream coming true, but my dad’s dream, too. I visited the Mariners’ home ballpark when I was really little, so I can’t remember it too clearly, but I made lots of new memories this time. Getting to throw that first pitch for the team that represents my hometown felt like a reward for all the hard work I’ve done up to now.
Quite the triumphant return. (laughs) You also filmed a vlog for ENGENE while there. What were you hoping to show them?
JAY: People these days are really into vibes and aesthetic, and there’s something uniquely chill about the ambience in Seattle. There are tons of famous jazz houses and old theaters, so it gives off a chill, antique vibe, which I wanted to give ENGENE a chance to share in, even if indirectly. I tried to show as much as I could within the time constraints, but there’s still so much I couldn’t show off.
In a live episode of JAY-FASHION with SUNOO focused on fragrances, you mentioned one you’d like to wear if you ended up going to Seattle. Did you actually wear it in the end?
JAY: That was the plan, but I started using all sorts of different fragrances in the meantime. (laughs) I used a different one that I bought when I was in Europe. It’s a rose and leather scent. Since Seattle gets a lot of rain, there’s lots of roses growing there, and during the rainy season, it seriously rains nearly five days out of the week. Anyway, that’s why roses remind me of Seattle. I don’t usually like the artificial rose smell, but I love perfumes that put their own spin on the smell of roses. I prefer fragrances with a hint of earthiness and a certain weight of natural smells.
Most of the fragrances you’ve introduced from your collection have heavy scents. Is there any reason for that?
JAY: I feel like a fragrance should bring out the positive qualities of the person wearing it, so I buy mine hoping they’ll give me an image as someone who’s deep. I tend to have fairly heavy, serious conversations, but when I’m with the group, we’re so close that it usually doesn’t end up that way. (laughs)
But you do always seem serious about performing. You talked about how you picked up the electric guitar for fun in your interview last year, and it seems like you’ve been practicing really hard, seeing as you played it onstage a number of times.
JAY: I’m still just a beginner, honestly. Lots of people reach their goals step by step as they learn something new, and I’m the same way, making my way toward the goals I set out for myself as I learn and experience a lot through guitar. I watch my old guitar videos to better understand where I’ve improved and what I still need to work on. I’m not good enough at guitar to make it my main thing, so I think I need to improve technically and as far as stage presence goes.
What gives you the motivation to keep practicing guitar despite your busy schedule?
JAY: I see it as a clear-cut goal that I want to personally achieve. When I practice, I look at guitarists I love and respect and who inspired me to play, like Stevie Ray Vaughan, and even though I know I’ll never reach their level, I’m going to at least learn to imitate them. I just try and make sure there’s always at least one guitar in my line of sight wherever I go. It’s important to put in the effort to keep up with something continuously, but having a guitar always within arm’s reach is the key. Plus, playing is the best way for me to deal with my emotions. I’ve always been the kind of person who needs to vent emotionally. Before I started learning guitar, I tried working out, and one time I even tried just shouting. (laughs) Playing electric guitar feels similar to screaming “aaah!” at the top of my lungs, both in the sound it makes and how I make the sound, just it doesn’t hurt my throat.
You really seem to love rock music. Has rock shaped your values in any way?
JAY: I think rock is among the genres of music that have changed the world. I feel it’s shifted listeners’ attitudes to create a more liberated world—one where more people can freely express themselves with dignity. People still have to be careful not to hurt others’ feelings when expressing themselves, of course.
As a fan of guitar and bands, being part of GLAY’s 30th-anniversary concert must have been very significant for you.
JAY: It made me realize that my passion for what I’ve loved for so long has gotten through to someone and that I have to hold onto that passion in the future, too. Even though I don’t play in a band, the mere fact that I said I like rock made this great band want to nurture my passion and teach me. Seeing artists respect other people’s music has been an invaluable experience for me. It was clear to me there was something to be learned from GLAY that could only be learned from them, and I wanted to do that so I could improve more. Not only did my passion never wane, but it eventually got through to some else, too, and that made me confident enough not to be afraid of pursuing my passion further.
What influence has that experience had on your musical tastes and what you’ve been trying to do since?
JAY: I love guitar in and of itself, and I’m really interested in rock music and different bands, so I’m trying to work in as many different styles as I can. I have a ton of ideas, but there’s a limit to what I can do with my hands and with my voice, so I’m working on the countless ideas I get from listening to different kinds of music one by one at the speed I’m able to.
In “No Doubt,” the lead single off your repackaged album, you used the same great rough vocals you used in your GLAY collaboration “whodunit” and your cover of the L’Arc~en~Ciel song “HONEY.”
JAY: From the minute I heard the demo version, I knew I had to sing it with rough-sounding vocals like that. Not everyone thinks so, but I feel like my voice sounds better when it’s rougher instead of soft and resonant. That was something I looked into to make my vocals sound a little better, so it was fairly intentional. (laughs)
Both “XO (Only If You Say Yes)” and “No Doubt” are love songs, but your persona in each feels different.
JAY: I come across as a little younger than I really am on “XO (Only If You Say Yes),” while on “No Doubt,” I guess you could say it’s a love that’s a little mature for my real age—liking and yearning for someone, but also having a hard time, and having all these thoughts swimming around in your head. What it’s ultimately about is a love that never changes, even in the face of all those feelings and difficulties. The message of the repackaged album and the mood of the song show what a slightly more emotionally mature ENHYPEN looks like.
How did you seek to express ENHYPEN’s more mature take on love while recording your vocals?
JAY: “No Doubt” is a song filled with complex emotions, I think. Thinking about that other person can feel good but also be difficult, and your head’s swimming with thoughts of desperate longing, but you’re certain in your resolve. What I had in my head when I recorded was, “You’re the one for me.” I ultimately look at recording vocals and performing onstage as forms of acting. That’s why I always immerse myself in songs and performances by placing myself in the story.
In the fan dedication song “Highway 1009,” you wrote the lines, “Just trust me and tag along / Just look at me and come along.”
JAY: We’ve received so much from fans since we debuted by going through the show I-LAND. They give their hearts to us, like, “You’re so amazing. I’m gonna stan you!” So I feel like I need to continue living up to the faith ENGENE has shown in us since then. I feel a sense of responsibility to work hard and not lose these people. I hope one day we surpass expectations and change the order of things so that we prove ourselves first and only then does ENGENE show us love. They’ve followed us and said good things about us back from when we were nothing, so it’s our job to turn ourselves into something.
You mentioned in 2023 ENniversary MAGAZINE about wanting to take the hard path with ENGENE, not the easy path.
JAY: I don’t think there’s anything so easy to lose as hearts you had won over easily. If you get something effortlessly and just say, “I’m happy. The end!” then it becomes easy to lose in any number of ways, like through excessive pride, ignorance, or indifference. What I need to do now is be sure of why ENGENE loves me and keep moving forward, to make what’s happened to me truly mine.
That sounds like exactly what you meant on Weverse when you wrote, “It’s our job to give you that smile, so just believe in us. It’s ENGENE’s job to smile.”
JAY: What keeps the world turning is the countless people on this planet whose lives are all interconnected like pieces of a puzzle. It’s my belief that people fulfilling each other’s needs is what makes the world go round. ENHYPEN is one cog in the machine and I think, when it comes to people who rely on us, our role is to alleviate their negative feelings, like loneliness and anxiety, to whatever degree we’re able. Obviously, as we go through life, unexpected things come up, and no one knows what slip-ups might happen. There are also going to be times when the world, or other people, force us to face our worries and anxieties. And I think, whenever that happens, it’s our job to give ENGENE the courage to live a happy life, and to make them feel better even when misfortune finds them. Whether ENGENE loves us forever, a short time, or leaves and comes back, I just want to make sure they don’t regret the time they spent with us.
What do you do to make sure of that?
JAY: I try to live an upright life, even when no one can see me. If you’re going to really earn people’s trust, you have to have your own rules and clear standards for life and put them into practice, even when no one’s watching. That way, I think I can influence and convince others, too, when I need to sometime in the future. It’s nice that even more people give me love and I become even more famous by working hard, but I think it’s more important to be a good, upright person first. If I can do that, then ENGENE will naturally come to trust and follow me. That’s why I need to lead by example.
Do you think these values you hold are also why you always take such good care of the people around you?
JAY: Oh, I mean, I think taking good care of those around me is a given. My philosophy is, you have to be good to your people, since they’re your people, and if you can’t, then you shouldn’t make them your people at all. And I’ve always been someone who wants to help a lot of people and share what I have. (laughs) And I have to be upright and capable to do that. I work on my self-improvement specifically so I can look after others. My life motto is, “I want to make my people happier. I want to make the world a happier place.” Making the most out of life, working hard, being good to the people around me—these three things come together as a bundle for me.
What kind of happiness do you hope to bring to ENGENE through your efforts?
JAY: I have just one wish. I think our main responsibility is to make sure ENGENE doesn’t come to regret whatever effect we have on them. They might love us forever, or just a short while, or come and go then come back again. I hope everyone who’s been with us, even those who are only with us for a short while, is always happy and has a positive view of the world. That’s exactly what gives my work purpose and why I look on it with pride. (laughs)