Lee Chan-hyuk of K-pop duo AKMU told a love story behind the duo's mega-hit track 'How Can I Love the Heartbreak, You're the One I love'.
On August 21, Lee Chan-hyuk and AKMU's another member Lee Su-hyun featured in popular YouTuber Calm Down Man's live broadcast.
During their talk, Lee Chan-hyuk shared why he volunteered to serve his national mandatory military service in the Marine Corps.
"I enlisted in the military in 2017. Back then, I still had this 'that boy from the audition show' image. I wanted to produce various genres of music, but there was a limit to that due to my image. I also wanted to become more mature and stuff, so I was like, 'Let's do it. I'm going to give myself a hard time. It's something that I need right now.'"
Calm Down Man commented, "In that case, it wasn't because your agency pushed you to serve in the Marine Corps, right?"
Lee Chan-hyuk answered following a pause, "Well, if I'm being one hundred percent honest with you... It wasn't because of the agency at all. I decided to join the Marine Corps after a breakup."
His pure honesty made his little sister Lee Su-hyun gasp in shock; she exclaimed while covering her mouth with her hand, "I honestly didn't think that you would say that in public anywhere!"
Lee Chan-hyuk chuckled, then went on, "In fact, 'How Can I Love the Heartbreak, You're the One I Love' was released right after I discharged from the military. I made the song when I was in the military, going through a tough time after a breakup. I mean, I made a bunch of breakup songs there, but... That was one of them."
He continued, "In the military, I thought to myself, 'I'm going to get over a breakup with these songs. With the upcoming album consisting of these songs, I will become a person who can be more mature about a breakup in the future.'"
Then, Calm Down Man asked, "Did your ex reach you after you dropped 'How Can I Love the Heartbreak, You're the One I Love'?"
Lee Chan-hyuk laughingly responded, "No, actually. I don't even know my ex's number. It had been too long, so..."
After that, Lee Chan-hyuk shared that there were many other soldiers who enlisted in the military for the same reason as him, "You may be surprised, but there were a lot of other soldiers who decided to fulfill their military duty after breaking up with their lover."
He did begin his time in the army for that reason, but he said he was glad that he joined it then, "Being in the military was not easy. That was the fun part of it though. I learned so much that I still get a great amount of positive energy from the experiences from then."
(Credit= '침착맨 원본 박물관' YouTube, YG Entertainment)