Kang Ki-young to Hold Fourth Fan Meeting in Japan: An Exclusive Interview
Actor Kang Ki-young, known for his roles in hit dramas such as "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," "The Uncanny Counter 2," "Love Solution," and most recently, "Merry Kills People," will hold his fourth fan meeting in Japan on December 7th (Sunday) at the Yomiuri Otemachi Hall in Tokyo. Kstyle conducted an interview with Kang Ki-young to hear about his preparations for the fan meeting and his thoughts on his fans. He also shared his honest thoughts on his latest drama, personal life, and Japan.
Fan Meeting in Japan Confirmed! I Ended Up Choosing a Difficult Song Again (laughs)
Last year, you held a fan meeting in Shinagawa, Tokyo, on March 16th. You also showed off your dance skills, which greatly excited the audience. Could you share your impressions and memorable moments from that time?
Kang Ki-young: First of all, I was so happy to meet everyone in person. I was very touched by the warm gazes from the fans, which made it a very happy memory. And as you mentioned, I danced to Jungkook (BTS)’s ‘Standing Next to You’ at that time, and I remember it was really hard to memorize the choreography (laughs).
Are you preparing anything special this year as well?
Kang Ki-young: Just like last year, I’m working hard to prepare dance and songs. I chose a very difficult dance last year, so I was going to choose something a little easier this year, but I think I ended up choosing something difficult again this year (laughs).
That's something to look forward to (laughs)!
Kang Ki-young: It's scary for me, but I'm going to do my best anyway.
In an interview with Kstyle before last year's fan meeting, you said that you became interested in dancing and music because of the fan meeting. Are you still working on your body and stretching to keep dancing?
Kang Ki-young: Yes, I'm taking lessons. And anyway, I want to enjoy it myself this time. Last year, I was so nervous that I didn't even know where I was looking while I was dancing, so I want to enjoy singing and dancing this time.
Did you choose the songs and dances yourself?
Kang Ki-young: I decided on the dance after consulting with my teacher. I thought it would be too easy and boring to just dance to the rhythm, so I chose something a little difficult, but it's not just a little difficult for me (laughs). But I wanted to challenge myself with something difficult, and I chose a song with a slightly higher level of choreography because I have fans who are happy to see me do that. I hope everyone will watch me with warm eyes (laughs). As for the songs, I wanted to sing some nostalgic songs and some recent songs because the age range of my fans is so wide.
Recently Learned Japanese: "Abunai (Dangerous)", "Sugoi (Amazing)"
You chose the songs yourself. Do you sing Japanese songs too?
Kang Ki-young: Yes, I plan to sing them. My hope is that I will sing songs that Japanese fans will like at future fan meetings in Japan.
What is the level of completion of your dance and songs at this stage?
Kang Ki-young: It's not finished at all yet (laughs). I still have a long way to go.
I'm looking forward to seeing it completed at the fan meeting.
Kang Ki-young: (Sighs) But I'll do my best!
What kind of fan meeting do you want to have this time?
Kang Ki-young: I want to communicate with the audience a lot. I hope that many fans will come up on stage and that I can come down from the stage and communicate with them.
Have you learned any new Japanese for the fan meeting?
Kang Ki-young: I memorized 'Minasan aitakatta desu~ (I missed you all)'. Actually, I recently started studying Japanese.
How are you studying?
Kang Ki-young: I had a lesson with my teacher yesterday. I've only just started, but I'm going to study hard until the fan meeting, and I'm going to keep studying after that.
What other Japanese words have you memorized?
Kang Ki-young: 'Asa (morning)', 'hiru (noon)', 'yoru (night)', 'haiyu desu (I'm an actor)', 'Kankoku no haiyu desu (I'm a Korean actor)'. It's fun to remember and understand even little by little. And I also memorized 'Daebak!'. I heard that it's a Korean expression that's close to 'michida = crazy' or 'daebak = amazing'.
Enthusiastic About Studying Japanese! "I Want to Work Hard and Have Deeper Communication"
You've had new experiences, such as participating as a pitcher for the Doosan Bears vs. KT Wiz professional baseball game last year and hosting the '2024 Asia Contents Awards & Global OTT Awards'. What would you like to do if you have more new experiences in the future?
Kang Ki-young: I want to study Japanese hard and communicate more deeply with my fans. I want to communicate directly with them to find out what they want and what I need to do to make them enjoy themselves. So I'm going to study Japanese hard, not just for this fan meeting.
Your latest drama, 'Merry Kills People', has been very well received. You play Choi Dae-hyun, a doctor who helps the doctor played by Lee Bo-young, and your humane performance in relieving the stuffy atmosphere has been highly praised. Please tell us about the charm of your role.
Kang Ki-young: 'Merry Kills People' deals with 'euthanasia', which is not recognized by law, so there may be some unfamiliar and difficult aspects, but Choi Dae-hyun, whom I play, is a humorous character who relieves the stuffy atmosphere, so I think he played a role in making viewers feel comfortable watching the show. When I first met this character, I felt that it was attractive to show two different sides of him, as he has a very serious side and, on the other hand, has fun and witty scenes.
Please tell us about the appeal of the work and the reason why you decided to appear in it.
Kang Ki-young: I was interested in the subject matter of 'euthanasia', which is not often dealt with in dramas, and the script was so interesting. I was attracted to the fact that it deals with the great value of human dignity, and I thought it was an issue that I needed to think about myself.
What kind of work is 'Merry Kills People' for Kang Ki-young?
Kang Ki-young: I think it's a work that allowed me to act more deeply emotionally.
You've been showing various images and charms in each of your works, but what kind of charm do you think you showed in 'Merry Kills People'?
Kang Ki-young: Personally, I wanted to show a more masculine charm. But that's not for me to judge, it's up to the viewers to see.
Has your impression of Lee Bo-young, who plays Woo Seo-jung, changed before and after working together?
Kang Ki-young: I thought she would be a difficult person to approach at first because she has played many chic and urban characters, but in reality, she was not like that at all, and she was a very bright and honest person, so I was able to film very comfortably.
Starred in 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' and 'What's Wrong with Secretary Kim'! I'm Lucky
Kang Ki-young's agency, Namoo Actors, has many talented actors. Are there any people you interact with?
Kang Ki-young: The first work I appeared in after joining Namoo Actors was the drama 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo', and I developed a very good relationship with Park Eun-bin, who starred in the drama with me. Also, I was so happy to be able to star in the upcoming film 'The Man Who Returns' with Koo Kyo-hwan, who I had always wanted to work with. And I went to Lee Joon-gi's fan meeting last year, and I felt that Lee Joon-gi is really sincere to his fans. I thought it was so cool to see Lee Joon-gi sincerely and passionately working hard to create what his fans like, and I wanted to emulate him.
Which of the works you've appeared in so far was the most difficult role and which was the turning point?
Kang Ki-young: After all, 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' is a work that I remember as a very happy work because it was the first time I felt that I could receive so much love. And my next work, 'The Uncanny Counter 2', is a work that I remember as an opportunity to broaden my spectrum as an actor because I played a villain for the first time. The difficult role has always been difficult. I feel a lot after each work is finished, and when I start filming the next work, I feel another difficulty, and that's the repetition. But 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' may have been particularly burdensome. I've played a lot of cheerful and fun roles, but 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' was almost the first time I played a good senior, an ideal boss-like lawyer, so it was a lot of pressure.
In Japan, the role of President Park Yoo-shik in 'What's Wrong with Secretary Kim?' is also steadily popular.
Kang Ki-young: I really enjoyed filming 'What's Wrong with Secretary Kim?' with Park Seo-joon, who played Young-joon. Park Min-young and Park Seo-joon had such great chemistry that I was naturally happy and able to play a cheerful role.
Personally, I was very impressed with your role as a good teacher in 'At Eighteen'.
Kang Ki-young: I think I'm lucky, just like my role as a teacher in 'At Eighteen'. I've been given a lot of good roles, so I hope I'll be lucky in the future (laughs).
What kind of work and what kind of role do you want to play next?
Kang Ki-young: I want to try an action genre. An action film that doesn't use superpowers or CG technology.
Right now, the fan meeting is the biggest burden (laughs)
Then please tell us about your recent activities.
Kang Ki-young: These days, I'm only preparing for the fan meeting. Dancing, singing, and Japanese, which are the most difficult things for me, are being prepared at the same time, so the burden is enormous (laughs), but I'm trying to do my best.
Preparing is a burden, but you must be looking forward to meeting the fans.
Kang Ki-young: My fans are always precious to me because they give me more love than my family, so I'm full of wanting to satisfy them.
What do you feel when you see the fans on stage?
Kang Ki-young: I think, 'There are so many people who look at me like this besides my family'. When I see them looking at me with their eyes sparkling like stars, I feel really energized and grateful.
Please tell us about your future plans.
Kang Ki-young: I don't have any works scheduled yet, but I'm going to focus all my energy on the fan meeting in December. I'm trying to meet you in the most handsome and beautiful way possible.
Listening to you, it seems that the burden of the fan meeting is several times greater than the burden of the work.
Kang Ki-young: That's right (laughs). But I'm slowly getting to enjoy the preparation.
What do you want to eat most on this visit to Japan?
Kang Ki-young: I say this every time I do an interview in Japan, but I still can't forget the taste of the draft beer I drank when I first came to Japan as an adult. So I want to have a glass of draft beer first when I go there.
Has the impression of the taste changed since you first drank it?
Kang Ki-young: The impression is the same. It's always delicious (laughs).
Finally, please give a message to the readers of Kstyle and appeal to them for the fan meeting.
Kang Ki-young: I'm studying Japanese hard because I want to communicate with you a lot, and I want to communicate without relying only on interpretation, even if I'm not fluent. And I'm going to work hard on dancing and singing, so I hope the fans will have a good time. I want to keep looking at you as much as you look at me, so much so that I don't want to blink for a moment. Let's make fun memories together.
(Interview: Yuko Abe)
Performance Overview
'2025 Kang Ki-young Fan Meeting in TOKYO'
Date and time: December 7, 2025 (Sunday)
Part 1: Doors open at 14:30 / Show starts at 15:00
Part 2: Doors open at 18:30 / Show starts at 19:00
Cast: Kang Ki-young / MC Masahiro Furuya
Venue: Tokyo Yomiuri Otemachi Hall (1-7-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo)
Content: Talk, singing, games, etc.
Ticket Information
13,000 yen (tax included)
All seats reserved
*Meet and greet for all attendees after the show
Play Guide Pre-sale: October 18, 2025 (Sat) 11:00 - October 30, 2025 (Thu) 23:59
General Sale: November 8, 2025 (Sat) 11:00~
Ticket Pia / Lawson / eplus / CN Play Guide / Capital Village
Inquiries: Capital Village 03 - 3478-9999
Two-Shot Photo Session
Date and time: December 7, 2025 (Sunday) After the meet and greet at each performance (Meeting place: Lobby)
Ticket Information
3,500 yen (tax included)
General Sale: November 15 (Sat) 12:00~
First-come-first-served sale at Ticket Pia (*50 people for Part 1, 50 people for Part 2, total 100 people)
*Only those who have tickets for each performance can participate. Also, those who have tickets for Part 1 can only participate in the Part 1 two-shot photo session, and those who have tickets for Part 2 can only participate in the Part 2 two-shot photo session.
*Please note that those who do not have a performance ticket will not be allowed to enter the venue. Please note that refunds will not be given for incorrect purchases.
Only one ticket can be applied for per application.
*The two-shot photo session will be held after each part of the fan meeting in Part 1 and Part 2. The start time of the two-shot photo session may be delayed depending on the progress of the performance. Thank you for your understanding in advance.
*The meeting place may be changed. In this case, please follow the instructions of the in-house announcement or staff.
Source :https://blog.naver.com/tmrlahxhdbal/224058427675
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