JYJ's Jaejoong And Junsu Spill On How Popularity Was Gauged During K-Pop's 2nd-Generation Compared To Today

JYJ‘s Jaejoong and Junsu recently reunited for a joint interview with Cosmopolitan Korea, where they caught up on current trends and discussed their past.

JYJ’s Junsu (left) and Jaejoong (right) | *Cosmopolitan Korea*

Jaejoong and Junsu began their career in the entertainment industry 20 years ago when they debuted with TVXQ under SM Entertainment on December 26, 2003.

After they terminated their contract with SM Entertainment in 2009, they split to form a trio along with fellow former TVXQ member Yoochun, JYJ.

Jaejoong and Junsu have remained active as soloists and actors, with Junsu also starring in many musicals.

During their interview with Cosmopolitan Korea, they filled fans in on what they’ve been up to recently. For Junsu, he had recently wrapped his appearance in the musical West Side Story and was preparing for his role as L in the musical adaptation of Death Note.

Jaejoong shared that he had kept busy interacting with fans through tours, fan meetings, and solo promotions.

While reflecting on the past year, they shared that one of their most memorable moments was reuniting for a performance at an award ceremony in Japan.

Junsu (left) and Jaejoong (right) in December 2022 | *@xiaxiaxia1215/Instagram*

The two shared that they hoped to do something special for their 20th debut anniversary but had nothing solidified at the time of the interview.

While looking back on their two decades together, Junsu spilled on how tiring his schedules were at one point as he went three days without sleep.

He pointed out that it wasn’t much different than idols’ schedules now. Jaejoong could think of a few minor differences between idol promotions in the past and now that one might not expect.

Jaejoong hilariously shared that in the past, idols’ stylists and makeup artists didn’t follow them to concerts, so if they messed up their appearance on the way to the venue, they were stuck with their altered look.

A few of the main differences they’ve noticed is how popularity is gauged, specifically with social media.

When Jaejoong and Junsu debuted, they didn’t have dance challenges, and social media was used in a completely different way to promote idols. Jaejoong hilariously compared today’s dance challenges to UCCs (user-created content), such as dance covers, vocal covers, fan-made videos, and more, from when they promoted in the past, causing Junsu to enthusiastically disagree.

Another way idols could gauge their popularity before social media became what it is today was the annual Dream Concert.

The joint concert gathers K-Pop’s top stars for a fun night of unforgettable performances, and Junsu shared that depending on how large each group or artist’s fan section was showed their popularity.