Highlight’s Yang Yo Seop revealed his feelings about making his presence on MBC’s King of Mask Singer as the ‘Fireplace Cat.’ Yang Yo Seop proved his singing skills as he was crowned as the 137th masked king as the ‘Fireplace Cat’ and was chosen as the 138th-144th king.
Q1. Many people anticipated your appearance on ‘King of Mask Singer‘, but it took you 5 years to be on the show.
The show became a sort of homework for me, as everyone around me encouraged me to appear on the program I thank the production team who came to me without forgetting about me while I was in the army. Even though I’ve been rejecting the offer for a while, I was also curious whether people could guess my voice.
Q2. You could have achieved 9 consecutive wins if you won just one more round. Are you disappointed?
To be honest, I wanted that record of 9 wins. However, I did not have enough time to prepare for the stage as the shoot for the show was brought forward from the original schedule due to year-end award ceremonies. So I chose the song with the consideration that it could be my last stage. I was happy to get to reminisce the past 5 months which I spent as the ‘Fireplace Cat’ while singing “First Snow,” and I think that’s also why the judge panels also got teary.
Q3. Your first greeting after the identity reveal was memorable.
I didn’t know I’d be on the king’s seat for such a long time. When I decided to appear on the show, I didn’t have a goal to be crowned, and even if I lost from the very first round, I thought it would be alright as long as I performed satisfactorily. I didn’t know that I would greet everyone so late. However, I wanted to greet viewers properly with a salute as it was my first program after discharge. I had such complex feelings at the moment.
Q4. You received great support from the judges while you were on the throne, especially from idol members.
It was refreshing and delightful to see younger idols enthusiastically supporting me. I especially felt proud when VICTON’s Heo Chan and MONSTA X’s Minhyuk confessed that I was their role-model. I keep in touch with Heo Chan through SNS since the day my elimination episode was aired, and he now calls me Hyung (T/N: Hyung is an affectionate title for an older brother). I’m thinking of planning a meal for all three of us, sooner or later.
Q5. What are your most memorable, and most regretful stages?
The most memorable would be singing Sondia’s “Adult.” It’s a thankful stage that made me the ‘Healing Masked Singer,’ and it has been so comforting for me as well. There are no stages I regret. Of course, there are parts I am not fully satisfied with, and I felt that I still lack a lot as I went along with multiple performances, I tried my best so there are no regrets.
Q6. This is your 12th year since debut! Is ‘King of Mask Singer’ especially more meaningful to you?
During my five months of being on King of Mask Singer, I celebrated the 11th anniversary of my debut, my birthday, Korean Thanksgiving, Christmas, the end of the year, and the New Year with them. That’s especially why I won’t be able to forget about it. I lacked a lot of confidence while I was in the military, but it seems like King of Mask Singer has been the turning point for me as I regained my confidence.
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