ELLE KOREA
엘르 코리아
via www.jungjihoon.wordpress.com
translated by prlttr @ Rain’s Scent
Rain meets Armani!
Mr. Armani didn’t conceal his good impression of Rain by saying ‘Nice Smile.’ For, Rain who had a handsome boy image and a white face with single-eyelid small eyes was different from the existent image of a oriental young man they might previously have thought. Rain who was startled himself at the passionate reaction made a joke out. “I guess I will live on in Milan.”
It wasn’t clear until all the bustling stood still. It was when at lease 3~4 days passed after 6~7 days of Milan schedule.
As long as I get access to much-misreported too-imaginative articles from ‘To Rain, Armani himself presented a dress’ up to ‘Rain bring light to Armani show,’ I thought what was more important was not the enumeration of the facts( that was not facts.) Of course, Armani would have drawn a blueprint of this project as a kind of marketing for Armani to approach to the Asian Market, and so did Rain so that he may counterbalance the existent casual image by borrowing Armani’s luxury image.
Yet the biggest crop from the itinerary is, there was found an intersection between Armani and Rain, rather than what the result of meeting had been and what plans would be carried out in the future.
Although the two were each different in age, in nationality, in the realm of activities, in tendency and in the magnitude of self-discipline, they resembled each other in many aspects like the process from bottom to top on one’s own efforts without any background (Armani being the top designer first from Mr. unknown buyer, and Rain being the top singer first from Mr. unknown dancer), like intensive tenacity and belief toward oneself, like self-esteem of one’s being the best, like concern toward others which can only be done by the wealthy, and above all like self-marketing technique of controlling one’s image up to gruesome perfection.
It would have been because of his elaborate devotion of controlling oneself up to the image exposed to the press that Armani succeeded as a both designer and businessman showing off his vigorous energy that exceeds his still young staff even at Armani’s over 70. Armani knew well that the image as a designer is closely connected with the image as a brand, which has been indeed the power of brand that never declines even in passing of time.
Rain, who had the following concept ‘too foppish externals don’t last long and make people easily fed up, but sexiness is the weapon that could be applied without distinction of age or sex regardless of time and tide,’has also been building up his own self-discipline by cultivating his mind in refinement no less than Armani.
Compared with more interesting ‘finding’ of this above, Armani’s fin-fastened back sight(He pulled at his clothes to be fastened with pins for the highlight more of his solid muscles built through work-out), Rain’s tantalizing Italians like cheese by showing off sexy dance after jumping on the table in a restaurant or something like those are just no more than an episode in that no one had a previous idea.
From early morning, Rain is doing his hair and makeup to participate in the Emporio Armani Show, exchanging inconsequential jokes with the staff there to help Rain’s entry(?) such as ‘There are many islands whose owner is Armani’ and ‘Why don’t you get one by acting cute.’
Somebody there said ‘Armani is an Andre Kim in Italy,’ and still another said alike ‘Between the two, there are many points of likenesses like both being over 70, like both wearing the same suit every day, like both keeping close relationship with stars, like both conducting a unique showmanship performance of finale in fashion shows.’No matter whatsoever, the atmosphere there was still calm without commotion, while we were exchanging these inconsequential scraps of conversation.
Between him and his staff whom he has been with since debut, it didn’t seem to be, if relatively friendly, comfortable. It seemed far different from other ordinary stars who had intimate relationship with their staff members with whom they shared sweets and bitters of life. He would ask coldly for responsibility for his subordinates’ role having failed to be done, and was not swung around though he listened to their voice. Later I knew that he was the type that consults only with oneself as far as a significant and grave concern is concerned.
At last, he dressed his first suit up before he stood opposite the mirror. The pants with the lowest part expanding like a skirt and the jacket that highlighted tightness of the upper body was a combination, with which one may fit in with a formal place and show some chic gorgeousness. Meanwhile, he looks like being rather reluctant despite women staff members’ sympathizing with exclamations.
What he chose against expectation of the staff full of experimental spirit was Armani’s black suit and his habitual hair style, like his usual. “If Rain had been a student back in the school, all that he know would have been non other than school-home and home-school.” witnesses his manager to ‘Rain’ being a ‘man of upright life.’ To that remark, Rain adds “If I had been living in a very rich man’s house, I might have been like a perfect hoodlum by now. For, my character is both extreme ends, namely, either a man of perfect hoodlumism or a man of high fidelity.”
We arrived at the ‘Armani Theatre’ that was Armani’s main office building constructed newly by the architecture Tadao Ando 2001 where a fashion-show-characterized collection would be held as well. After a little while of waiting in the VIP room, he made an entrance into the show studio under guards’ escort. The show went on for about 12 minutes, before we were able to enter the back stage under the help of the Minako, a public-announcer in charge of the whole Asia.
It was right at this place that there happened the encounter between Rain and Armani. Rain said “Many thanks for your invitation,” handing over an album with autograph, while Armani said “There is nothing I can give but a rich hug,” holding Rain to his warm breast.
Afterwards, Armani encouraged Rain ‘Rain is young, wonderful at singing and versatile in many ways, because of which there seems to be nothing to worry about.’ While there were perfunctory greetings coming and going for formality’s sake through interpretation, Rain, who often gets blushed, didn’t keep off from his smiles to conceal the bosom inside, while Armani was checking the surroundings sensitively like a stern military instructor.
To Armani’s single remark ‘I was told that this would be an interview with the Elle, but why this many cameras here?’ the staff there wrapped the situation up. Even before passing of five minutes, we had to concede the baton to another waiting interviewee.
Meanwhile, Armani told us that it was a kind of his thoughtfulness toward a client from the Orient, in that he had responded to the interview and photographing by assigning this much time after calling Rain separately to the backstage. For, usually one has to wait for him in a row around the stage after show before another wait for one’s turn, until he or she can only barely manage to talk no more than a remark or two to Armani.
I had an opportunity to talk a while with Rain, who had been continually a poker face. It was in the car returning to the hotel. Of him who said that that was the first time chance of viewing a full-scale fashion show, I asked first for any review on today’s show.
“What is overwhelming is the model. First, the physiques of them look superior, you know. Perhaps we wouldn’t have been able to assimilate theirs into ours, if we put on theirs. Design of dresses looked far into detail. And there was a harmony between background musicand walking of the models, in which some tantalizing atmosphere could be drawn out.”
Now then, how would have been Rain’s impression of the first encounter with Armani? “Grandpa Armani was good-mannered, which made me feel warmhearted. Though not perfectly free of pretense, he groomed my face in gladness, which felt friendly like a grandpa treating his grand-son. I am usually on the side of thinking highly of one’s spirit or natural passion, his spirit was really superior. He seems to be gentle in appearance but sturdy in sprit or an iron hand in the velvet glove.
I guess he might have been very busy and nervous preparing a show and all, but still Armani addresses people in smile, which is very difficult for a commoner. As I saw, he looked real great keeping that attitude for his age.”
Compared with the Emporio Armani Show, the Jiorgio Armani Show was being controlled more strictly. It is because it had participation of the sexy Spain dancer Joaquin Cortes who is fairly known even here domestically through Korea performance last year, the soccer player Kaka, many Italian singers and so forth, as well as Armani’s acquaintances who were influential in Europe, America, etc.
Whether on account of one experience, Rain was adapting himself to the atmosphere of the day as fast as surprisingly. His dressing also became more drastic than the day before, and so his silver suit was indeed conspicuous among black suits around. Relatively younger compared with other celebrities, Rain enjoyed the highest popularity in the VIP waiting room.
After hearing Rain’s song contained within MP3 player, Joaquin Cortes showed his interest telling, ‘he would like to see Rain again during his performance in Korea around end of this year.’And the woman singer Alexia, who had known Rain by sight in the Emporio Armani Show, showed her good feeling saying, ‘she wanted to invite Rain as a guest to the Sanremo Festival 2005.’
All the VIP’s lavished their praises on him, telling ‘he is so cute and handsome.’ Considering they were anxious to take a picture with Rain, it didn’t look like a mere greeting.
“For, asked about singers, the people around here think up the artists such as ‘Nana Mouskouri.’But then it feels only mysterious in their eyes, thinking that a young beauty image of Rain is a summit artist for the much lesser age.” Whether she liked Rain, Roberta Armani introduced Rain to other VIP’s diligently in closely adjoining Rain till the end, who was both the team head of PR department in charge of VIP’s celebrities and Armani’s niece.
Even seated on the show studio chair, Rain was conversing through part of beckoning with the VIP’s either next to him all along till end.
“They both are famous singers in Italy. The man can be compared to Seol Woondo and the woman can be compared to Lee Suyoung. They showed such a interest in Oriental musicians. Anyhow, they asked me about which genre I am in, as well as many others of this and that.” After show, I could read that he had his mood elevated a little more than usual.
7:30 in the evening, all schedule was being delayed. PR-responsible Minako told ‘there is Italian Time more awful than Korean Time in there.’ There came the message that as late as now Armani started moving, because the schedule after show was delayed little by little.
At length, Armani arrived more behind 1 hour than expected. Crowded with a train of attendants including guards, the setting space had no room for feet. As if accustomed to such situation, he hugged Rain, as soon as he came to see Rain. Afterwards, according who the photographer was, he asked for the position adjustment of lighting falling down over the heads.
And he had Rain seated on the sofa by dragging a nearby one, before they took a pose for a picture at the most natural angle.
Leading naturally the Rain still feeling out of place, Armani conducted the atmosphere by passing some jokes through an interpreter at intervals, that might make Rain more feel at home. At the ‘OK’ signal by the photographer, Armani paid greetings of gratitude to all the staff there and hugged Rain again.
In a short while, Armani tried Rain’s suit looking neat and tidy as if adjusting the collar of it Rain wore. One of staff members on the Armani party witnessed, ‘it was for the first time that Armani liked that much in the meeting of VIP.’ Another chimed in, ‘Armani must have been very much pleased to see the Oriental man assimilating Armani’s clothes so wonderfully.’
It was in less than 10 minutes from arrival till picture, but it was now like a calm after a storm at the place where Armani left.
The highlights there turned up during the dinner reception arranged for VIP’s by Mr. Armani. As the atmosphere was toned up, Teocoli a famous M.C. of an Italian TV station started presiding at the meeting with a wine bottle as a mike–like none other than ours with a spoon into the soju bottle, followed by a subsequent talent show(?) among singers.
Catching the flowing airs around ahead of time, Rain slipped into the restroom, but at length had to stand on the central stage, amidst all the attendees’ concern and fuss who shouted ‘Mr. Rain’in unison. Whenever he turns his body around every once in while, the attendees screamed like girl fans occupying the seats in a show program. All the way back from his short performance(?), Rain had to comply with the compliments, autographs, handshaking and phototaking by high status managers of the Armani Group and other attendees.
The highest manager of the Emporio Armani proposed his ‘wish to make a stage costume’ for Rain. And the style team designers as well, who had kept an eye on Rain’s style and physique and song and dance, promised to ‘propose an appropriate costume within soonest days.’There were also a good number of acquaintances who promised to support Rain actively when he had a round tour of performance in Europe and America.
In the meantime, it is said Armani issued an urgent order to search for the recorded tape of Rain’s live show late on this day. And according to hearsay, to a staff member’s complaining ‘who kept the press from entrance, but what on earth is possible how as late as now,’ Armani yet expressed his desire to recheck Rain’s action saying, ‘there must be one taken by anybody.’
A day before leaving Milan, Rain looked around Veroni and the artificial island Venice, one that was the backdrop of while another that was the backdrop of . Alone on the backmost seat of a tourist bus, Rain would keep mini iPod earphones on the ears all along or would talk with somebody over the cellular phone.
“Actually, I am not supposed to be here right now. Because of a concert preparation, I don’t feel at home.” He looked as if his mind were far away into somewhere else, in his looking around of extreme spectacles that might remind one of life and death and moment and eternity.
Watching things over the past few days, he was now into the extreme nervousness like a strained string. “If someone makes a determination in his or her suffering disregard, that determination turns into a poison, and then vice, from which things get frightening. I am always afraid. Descending is not what I am afraid, because if there is up, there is down. Rather, I am afraid of being defeated by myself. That is, I am afraid of such as rhythm to be disconnected and yielding to myself into sleep in sleep or practice, which kind of things are what I am afraid.”
He within screens was always good-hearted and sincere. Sometimes he was a pure boy stimulating protective instinct, or other times he was a youngman with sensuality, through a sleep with whom over a night one might deserve even selling her soul. Yet, even this image of Rain is to have been a result of his ‘self management’ he himself made out.
While lights were out in the ship getting out of Venice and complete darkness come near upon us wriggling itself through sea waves, he said to himself, “How wonderful it would be for me to be here together only with my girlfriend.” I was glad to hear this remark that he himself might have been unaware of, because it was the only ‘unguarded moment’found in him who had maintained a formidably exhaustive control of himself all along.
All others else are only the accounts that make us guess his sensitive and elaborate character like: “(Suppose the condition in which someone reproaches his or her own character badly.) If I get my hair standing on end, I am telling you I get my hair pores of the skin opening and my top of the head glowing, indeed. Then I turn as if in a comic book. Guess what, if you deep your head into water, then you get your ears fuming. Me too, because I am type O.”
“(He answers to the question of purpose of the orange leather-bound handmade note, his only buy in Venice.) I am to write whatever one by one, because I lose memory often. I am also to keep a diary because there will be many to do.”
“(He responds to someone’s compliments, ‘he is a good shopper.’) My taste for things is meticulous on its own way. Unless a thing is my taste, I get it to another person, no matter how expensive it is.”
Full-scale interview was taken during the flight to Seoul.
I began with an idle remark, ‘why so hard to address you.’ He said, “It’s true I have people tend to be afraid of me. Maybe it’s because I have fought a lot since childhood. For, I look the opponent sharply in the face during fight. Do I still maintain the glaring eye, I don’t know?”
At length, I felt as though I was released from under any feeling of oppression. I wished to even shout with the sense of homogeneitythat anybody might fear him, anybody who has passed the 20ies like a crumpled can without being recycled in the middle of hopeless plans like cheese diamond.
It is that I felt him, if praiseworthy, scaring me, as concerns his hungry desire even in this accomplishment at the age of 23 and his ego to have known the world too early. It gets clearer, to see just how Rain’s meeting with Armani impressed him in the wake like, “One of my maxims is ‘there is no gain, without pain,’ but Mr. Armani seemed like a person enjoying even pain.
And he is quite a perfectionist. He is a public figure and I am too. In fact, there is times when it is hard public figure give another a smile. It is hard as well to offer another a helping of food, or to open a door to another person or to do such trivial doings. Still the same, Armani showed such trivial forms of care to me, or the manner that is not easy as a public figure, as well as quite a leadership and charisma.
Of course, there might have been any dictatorship within the republic of Armani, but it was great he was respected in either side as a designer or businessman. To be frank, what made me think after meeting Armani was ‘I am still young,’ as he is over 70 while I am, you know, 24. It is not just that I felt traces of time from him. Rather, I have at least an opportunity to sink or succeed, since I still have 50 years longer time than he does. It is that I have a much better chance to outdo him, and much more time as well.”
A remaining fruit of this project for Rain was indeed this very kind of stimulation, neither any hospitality by Mr. Armani nor any promise of support by powerful figures. He was amidst constant competition. He was continuously looking for something which might stimulate him to fight on.
“On the stage, I subject myself into the mind control, ‘I am the best.’ Even a tiny bit away from the stage, however, I feel as though I am still on the lowest bottom. Like, ‘why should I meet Armani,’ ‘whether whom I am, why on earth do I have to take CF receiving the very expensive sum of money…?’ I feel like I am still a budding face. That seems like why I get more zealous.”
What technique he gained from this fierce battle was keep cool so that he might not be hurt easily. It is in order that he might make it within 3 years, which took other 10 years or less. He told his long-term plan was neither album nor acting. “It is my character that does not start at all if I am not confident. Next goal is Asia. I am expecting a year or a year and a half is the time to goal.
I would like to be exhaustive to the point of being afraid of myself. I mean I should like to retire when I am the most elegant, if I get to the point of my satisfaction by doing my best. Actually rather than retirement, I might be doing another job 10 years from now, which might be more correct”
Even if so, because life is short, one needs his or her own discipline to live what one really wishes, and if one is consumed badly by appearing in a flippant talk show program or in the CF gnawing at one’s image, it could make his or her fans feel disappointed. This I said to Rain because he asked me back ‘if he has been too much exposed.’ Fortunately, he kept his ears and mind open to the rightful voice from others.
“I know I appear too often. For, years ago I was an anonymous new face, but now I am up to this much. So much the more, I think I intend to remain well-mannered according to my age. For, an old frog must have notion that he used to be a tadpole. In my early days, I appeared in many show programs, you know, and there might have been some people who might have seen my charm though those programs. It doesn’t seem I get to stop completely, even though getting more famous.”
Keeping ambition behind and remaining in modesty is so difficult as if you try to push an enormously big ad balloon into your pocket. In this sense, he seems to manage to carry on well.
“After off from the airport, I have to deal with an enormous volume of schedule. Like, I have to prepare for my concert, I have to participate in the MTV Asia Award 2005, and I have to go to La Vagas with a view to taking a picture album and a photo book.”
Included among those are the schedule by which Rain is expected to attend an Armani fashion show to be held in Japan late March, before returning to Korea with Mr. Armani, before participating in the party held in the Cheongdam-dong outlet.
“Still, I am happy 99%. As matter of course, it is difficult to be 99% happy, because 1% of the rest gives me an ever-afflicting stress. To overcome the 1%, it might take me ten years or more of time.”
End.
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