♖ROOK DRUMS : HEEJoon

Who are you inside?

PERSONALITY TRAITS :
(+)calm, gentlemanly, intelligent, determined, orderly, optimistic
(-)'fake', too serious, distant, quiet, private, negligent of the present

PERSONALITY :
Many fall for his dreamy looks, but the truth is not many people truly know who Heejoon is on the inside. He's almost always seen with a small, serene smile on his face (unless he's like, rocking out severely on his drums), even when situations get tense. Some people may actually find his 'lack of emotion' creepy - he never appears to be angry or extremely distressed. Hence, some may be distrusting of him and act wary for fear that he may have hidden intentions, especially when he always presents such a warm and relaxed impression. He won't be fazed if people question whether he's secretly a robot without feelings. Rather, he would just chuckle it off and ask back mysteriously: "What if I am?"

The truth is, Heejoon does feel things. It's just that he refuses to let it show on the surface. The way his mind processes troublesome situations is to examine and analyse what's going on from an objective point of view, and then muster all the inner strength he has to move on to a brighter outcome with his unshakable can-do attitude, keeping in mind the factors of reality that might set him back. Over the years, he has learnt to 'fight hate with love' - 'love' meaning to smile back at his enemies just to piss them off again. He is able to possess such amazing resilience due to his utmost need for peace and harmony. On the flip side, this does make him a little 'fake' at times, acting nice in front of others and carefully choosing his words when he doesn't mean it just for the sake of maintaining face.

He has a tendency to keep to himself despite being a very pleasant and balanced person to be around. Despite the kindness he displays, there is a very clear emotional barrier between Heejoon and the others, making him an odd combination of 'cool behind the warmth'. He prefers dealing with problems alone, relying only on self. As a leader, he also restrains himself from getting involved in other people's personal affairs. When conflicts between members occur before his eyes, he watches from afar rather than intervening, holding the belief that "these kids won't learn how to handle problems by themselves one day if people keep doing that for them". Some may accuse him of being an irresponsible leader because of this, but Heejoon strongly believes in tough love. If he is pressured to break up a fight though, he will still remain as composed as ever as he steps in between the two, a peaceful smile and soft eyes in his quiet assertion, which will immediately dissolve any tension.

It seems, rather than being an emotionless robot, Heejoon is just very detached from the present. He spends too much time thinking of the possibilities the future can hold to care about what's troubles are happening right now. 

BACKGROUND :
Being a child of both Japanese and Korean descent in Japan is tough, and Heejoon's parents were aware of it before Heejoon even started school, as his older sister was already struggling at the time. From a young age, it was engrained in his head to never give up on life, no matter how tough things can get. The good and the bad moments are what makes life beautiful. His mother's music is beautiful too. Because of his mother, he started learning piano from her when he was 3. A very bright child, he just kept blossoming in his musical talent since then.

Heejoon was naturally born a quiet boy, but all the bullying and blatant discrimination that he faced during his early elementary years due to his 'impure blood' consolidated that even more. The teachers weren't very helpful in solving things out as they, too, were fearful of the consequences if they reached out, so Heejoon have always felt the need to protect himself alone, in both a physical and psychological sense. At first, young Heejoon would end up reacting violently to those bullies (which is basically the majority of the class, being a collectivist society), but he found that the behaviour continued even more aggressively the more he reacted, so eventually he gave up being angry over his ethnic identity and just learnt to accept everything as it is. This included the slowly dwindling acts of bullying over the years as he began to win the respect of his classmates with his top marks in tests and prodigious talent in music. Inevitably, there were a few who would still pick on him out of jealousy, but it wasn't as bad anymore by the time he got to junior high school.

Puberty treated him well. The girls liked him, the guys were a little grumbly. He was a member of his school's concert band club, playing percussion (he found it easy to pick up). He started taking guitar lessons for leisure after finishing his final piano exams near the end of junior high as a productive way to relax during the upcoming stressful years of senior high. During his 11th grade, he was encouraged by his peers (mainly the girls lol) to get involved in modeling, in which he did for the funs. His mother was proud, his father was a little concerned that this would impact his studies, but nonetheless happy that life's a little brighter for his son. Heejoon initially considered a career pathway in I.T, but both teachers and friends have said to not waste his gift in music. He ended up getting to Tokyo University of the Arts, studying composition.

Through networking with other fellow music students at uni and recommendations, Heejoon quickly found himself becoming more involved with a relatively unknown rock band led by one of his good friends, Fuku. At first, Heejoon gave a hand in composing a few of Uso no Shinjitsu's tracks even before he became a member of the band itself. However, when their original guitarist suddenly announced his departure from the group due to health reasons, Fuku was desperate to get Heejoon in after seeing his guitar skills. They continued to collaborate with UsoShin's songs, despite struggling to gain recognition from the public. Even after managing to sign with a small music company in early 2011, much of their musical freedom had been compromised. With Heejoon's growing curiosity regarding his father's Korean descent and the Hallyu Wave hitting the world hard, Heejoon found himself wanting to 'give it a try' in South Korea and lost focus on UsoShin altogether by 2013. He flew off to the country alone to a new beginning, aiming to 'rediscover his roots' after years of subconsciously battling with his mixed ethnicity.

TRIVIA :

▸ Likes:
- Sweet food; he's particularly a er for icecream + chocolate
- Red + black; a surprising choice coming from the calmest member of Checkmate (his reason? he needs colours that fire him up!)
- Driving; unfortunately he doesn't hold a licence in Korea to do so, so the next best thing is racing video games
- Children; they're adorable!
- Rock + metal music; it's hard to believe he's that type of person, but people speculate that because he never gets angry in real life, he secretly vents all the bottled up aggression he has on his drums instead
- Horror houses; they excite him and he loves thrills. when accompanied by other people, it's even more amusing for him when they scream
- Hollywood movies; they inspire him to study English properly
- Fish; his favourite type of meat, as much he depises the stereotype that "all Japanese people love raw swimmers!!1!"
- Learning new instruments; he already knows how to play most percussion instruments at a pro level (including drum kit + piano), guitar, some bass and some saxophone. what next?
- Onsens; if there's one thing Heejoon misses the most in Japan, it is their relaxing hot springs! he loves water

▸ Dislikes:
- K-dramas of the romance genre; it makes him want to barf
- Chaos of any kind; physical mess, social breakdowns, anything that attempts to ruin his mood, you name it
- Natto; NO! THEY STINK.
- Blunt pencils; his weird pet peeve, and the reason why he tries to use pens at all times now
- Skinship without consent; he certainly doesn't want random people touching him, let alone hugs without permission. he won't get overly mad, but he would politely tell the person "quit it please" with a small smile before pulling their hands off. scary.
- Talking about the past; the future's better
- Boiled egg yolk; too dry, he says
- Low quality headphones/earphones; another one of his pet peeves. what's the point in listening to music when it's not even coming out with the best sound quality?

▸ Habits:
- Staring with his usual mysterious smile at a person/camera for far too long; this is particularly evident in fanevents, and he knows that fans die a little on the inside if he does that to them individually (he finds amusement in seeing their reactions)
- "Eh? Ehhhh~?!"; despite the fact he would be speaking Korean most of the time as an idol, Heejoon can't help but retain some features of Japanese speech in his idiolect
- Nodding excessively in conversations; probably just a Japanese thing to do to show the other person that he's attentive
- Spinning a pen/drumstick in his hand; usually evident when bored or impatient

▸ Hobbies:
- Working out; he's a gym junkie, and is currently working on bodybuilding
- Drinking with friends; as an upcoming idol though, this has been limited
- Watching anime; he actually doesn't like anime in general, but he just watches it for the sake of keeping in touch with the Japanese language + the music
- Taking selfies; he knows he's good looking! ;)
- Listening to music; it's a must every day
- Music practice; usually ends up as a jam session instead
- Song composition; likes to team up with a member who can write lyrics to produce songs. he's not really the type to express himself using worded lyrics - he uses music to convey his emotions.
- Cleaning his room; when he really has nothing else left to do before going to bed

▸ Other:
- Claims to be the do-S type ('extreme sadist')
- AB blood type
- Is agnostic
- Fans speculate that if Heejoon was an animated character, he would definitely be the yandere type
- Has a rather soft yet deep, AMSR-inducing voice when speaking normally
- Has a high alcohol tolerance developed from his days in Japan 
- Really, really likes the video game Taiko no Tatsujin, a Japanese drumming game. As expected, he's pretty much expert level at it!
- He becomes extremely casual and more 'normal' (not some mysterious prince anymore!) with the influence of alcohol, which is why he likes drinking to loosen himself up
- His gentle princely image is also completely stripped off when he's performing on stage with his drums, which can shock some people at first
- Tends to take jokes a little too literally, almost as if he doesn't have a sense of humour
- Is surprisingly good at aegyo
- Not particularly active on SNS
- Cannot decide between cats and dogs
- Washes his neck first in the shower
- Had 2 girlfriends in the past
- Ideal type of girl is someone who appears to be cheerful and ditsy on the outside, but is secretly a mature lady on the inside
- Is disgusted by insects, but is not particularly scared of them. Normally, Heejoon will just shoo them away out of the room rather than killing it.
- Somehow, he seems to know everything about ramen + the many different types of ramen in Japan
- Can improvise solos on the many instruments he can play
- Has perfect pitch
- Apple > Android
- Has an interest in sports cars too, due to his dad's involvement in the car industry (he works for Lexus in its Nagoya headquarters)

 Who matters to you?

RELATIONSHIPS : 

▸ father — Park Byungho (62) / product marketing manager / truthful, assertive, hardworking, resilient / 7/10
He's a busy man, but he wishes the best for his son. They may not seem like that have a close father-son relationship now, but Heejoon respects his father. He's not a very soft person, and often Heejoon thought he was a very bossy and distant when he was a child. However, Heejoon's father is a very down-to-earth and genuine person behind his gruff demeanor. His father's strict but encouraging words from his early elementary days continue to ring in his head today: "Do not give up - the future will be better."

▸ mother — Miyamoto Yumiko (57) / piano teacher / self-reliant, image-conscious, encouraging, disciplined / 8/10
As the person who had kickstart Heejoon's life as a young musician, Heejoon greatly admires her and has always been close with her. She was a bit on the strict side when Heejoon was a child, particularly when it came to music and piano. However, she can be the most loving and encouraging mother out there too, which was vital during his childhood. As Heejoon got older, his mother became more playfully 'deredere' with him, often acting clingy to the point where it seemed borderline flirty, much to his father's annoyance. It's quite clear though, that Heejoon's mother is very proud of her son.

▸ older sister  — Park Mijoo (29) / wedding planner / demure, pleasant, people-pleaser, worrywart / 6/10
They used to be relatively close-knit as children, but have sorta drifted apart now with time. Mijoo still loves her little brother from afar though. On the other hand, Heejoon's a little less affectionate with her. Overall, they're not on bad terms.

 ▸ UsoShin's leader, main vocalist + lead guitarist  — Fukuyama "Fuku" Tora (27) / freelancer / passionate, stubborn, loyal, emotionally driven / 5.5/10
They started off as really good buddies when they met at uni, and they clicked well when they were working together in their band, often bouncing ideas off each other. There was even a point in time where they could even consider each other as 'best friends'. However, with the fall of UsoShin and Heejoon's departure to Korea, their friendship has waned. 

▸ UsoShin's bassist  — Masamoto Juri (30) / research student / intimidating, silent, sassy, knowledgeable / 4.5/10
The oldest (age-wise as well as her involvement with UsoShin, minus Fuku) and only female member in the band's history, Heejoon had always looked up to her secretly due to her expertise in the music field and cool badass image. The last time Heejoon has seen her though, Juri was in fits of rage over the state of the band and was completely merciless with her words.

▸ other UsoShin ex-members (include vocalists, drummers, keyboardists, other percussionists, even a violinist once!) / 3/10
Heejoon believes that he wasn't able to form a strong enough connection with the other bandmates who came in and left in the last few years. Added with the disputes and fights amongst members, Heejoon just doesn't want to deal with them. They're strictly his past colleagues, nothing else. 3 is probably even a score too high.

▸ high school friend + drinking buddy — Goto Koutaro (26) / computer engineer / laidback, chatty, open-minded, sleazy / 7.5/10
Kou's like that one really annoying friend who's always attached on you like a leech. Well, not that Heejoon paricularly minds it. He'd probably just roll his eyes back playfully at Kou's usual wordvomit. Despite their opposing personalities at first, their laidback and mellow tempers helped bond them together. Kou was quite supportive of Heejoon's move to Korea, even though he was aware that their contact with each other won't be as frequent anymore.

▸ CHECKMATE Project members / ranges from 6/10 - 8.5/10
As the one who leads not only Rook, but the rest of the CHECKMATE members when they're all together, he has to at least be on neutral terms with all members regardless of their individual closeness with him. As Heejoon is not particularly aggressive or pushy with his leadership, members find him approachable despite the fact his quietness can make him seem mysterious/reserved. Some members are curious about him and want to break through him (with little success), others respectfully admire his talent and 'coolness' as a leader from afar (mainly the Queen girls). With Rook, he's has developed a good bond with all members. and is on friendly terms with them. With King, he considers some of the older members as friends outside of the professional realm. Heejoon does keep some distance from the members of Queen (partly due to his focus on work - he doesn't want to develop overly close relationships with the opposite ), but he reacts fine as his gentlemanly self when the girls approach him first. As CHECKMATE does have quite a few Japanese members, he also gets along with them especially well.

Why do you matter?

SUB-UNIT & POSITION: ♖ Rook's drummer + leader

TALENT TWINS : 

▸ Singing Twin: Hosoya Yoshimasa (if Japanese vocal twins not allowed, then stick with the original CNBLUE'S Minhyuk - I just don't him to be a power vocal high note hitter because his main talent is in his instrumental skills, and I imagine Heejoon's singing to sound low + flat-ish but not a terribly bad singer)
▸ Dancing Twin: Shinhwa's Eric
▸ Rapping Twin: n/a
▸ Instrument Twin: Barry Wilson (drums), V.K (piano), Miyavi (guitar)

TRAINING :

▸ Since getting accepted by KS, Heejoon continued to improve himself in his performance skills and Korean language. He trained for approximately 3 years in basic dancing, vocals, and instrumental music (focusing on drums this time) leading up to debut in 2017. Being one of the older trainees, Heejoon was a little isolated from the younglings who were all busy jumping up and down in their choreography. Some were a little weirded out by his strangely quiet yet smiley demeanour, but due to his age and past experience, most did not dare to talk at him. He bonded easily with Japanese trainees, but he was also at peace (on the surface) with other trainees too. Being an introvert though, he much preferred spending his time practising on his instruments than socialising + gossiping with other trainees.

PRE-DEBUT :

▸ (2007) Runner-up in the 20th Junon Superboy Contest
▸ (2007 - 2008) Involved in some modeling for a few fashion magazines in Japan
▸ (2009 - 2013) Rhythm guitarist for indie J-rock band Uso no Shinjitsu, replacing former member who was diagnosed with a terminal illness

SCANDALS :

▸ November, 2013 - Uso no Shinjitsu's guitarist to leave the band | TRUE | Heejoon honestly did feel a little guilty for ditching his band whilst they were going through a rough patch due to issues regarding their music label. But with the way things were panning out (members coming in and out,  disputes over where their music's going, etc.), Uso no Shinjitsu will inevitably disband by the next year anyway (in which they did on March 2014). It was not due to issues regarding racism.

▸ Japanese and Korean netizens with strong political views may also deliberately create a negative light on Heejoon due to his mixed heritage and strained relationships between the two countries (e.g. "Heejoon left Uso no Shinjitsu to fly off to Korea to become a K-pop idol, how despicable!")

Questions from the CEO

WHY DID YOU PICK KS ENT.-OR TO BE AN IDOL AT ALL? : 

▸ Being a haafu and someone who takes great passion in music, I was interested in experiencing what the industry is like for both Japan and South Korea. I am now fulfilling the Korean side of me. *chuckles quietly* KS Entertainment accepts trainees who aim to be instrumental musicians alongside the usual dance-vocal talent, so I much appreciate that. *smiles softly*

IF YOU COULD PICK ANOTHER SUB-UNIT, WHICH WOULD IT BE AND WHY? : 

▸ Of course I would be in Kings, since I am a male, right? *lets out a short chuckle* I am not fully trained in dancing, but with the right guidance, I think I could make it. *nods slightly*

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE CEO HAND SELECTING KNIGHT'S MEMBERS? : 

▸ *nods once, almost solemnly* I trust in the CEO's wisdom to select the best members for Knight. As I am not a member of Kings nor Queens, I am uninvolved in this project.

CHECKMATE WILL BE KS' FIRST GROUP, YOUR THOUGHTS AND/OR FEELINGS? : 

▸ It is exciting and a humbling experience to be a part of KS' first group. *nods slowly* I will be sure to continue to work hard, and I hope for future success with Checkmate.

ANY OTHER ACTIVITIES YOU'D LIKE TO DO IN THE FUTURE (ACTING, VARIETY, MUSICALS, ETC.)? : 

▸ I have some prior experience in modeling. It would be nice to get back into that again one day. Aside from that, I've recently been taking an interest in acting. It would be an interesting experience I believe, but I am not 100% sure whether this is the area for me yet. *crosses his legs and tilts his head a little* On the more musical side of things, I really would like to continue with song production and composition.

HOW WOULD YOU TREAT YOUR HOOBAE/KOHAI? : 

▸ Of course, I will treat them well as a senior. *smiles softly* I believe in a two-way relationship - we'll learn off each other.

ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SAY? : 

▸ *shakes head with a gentle smile* I have nothing more to say, thank you.

J4N1C3 : JANICE

LAST WORDS : EDITED FOR THE NTH TIME...OTL JFC LMAO thanks for bringing this back up again after a whole freaking year! xD
PASSWORD : "Hello." He bows politely with a calm smile. "I'm Rook's drummer and leader, Park Heejoon."
=> Solo/collab song (I CHANGED THE SONG IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE KOREAN, RIGHT?? ;;)

=> MY NAME IS MINHOE

SCENE REQUESTS : Scene requests? More like song requests, LMAO! I have no imagination to come up with potential scenes.

▸ UVERworld's 'Impact' sounds like an amazing anthem for Rook to play at the start of a concert to hype up the audience omg--
▸ Seeing as you've got a co-ed unit in plan and KOREA DOESN'T HAVE ANY MIXED GENDER GROUPS STILL ALIVE TODAY, PLS PLS PLS INCLUDE JAPAN'S LOL + AAA SONGS FOR KNIGHT'S TRACKLIST (even tho songs are in Japanese LMAO). lol's 'ladi dadi' + AAA's 'Party It Up' could pass as typical K-pop tracks. lol's choreography is pretty impressive too - suits Knight well.

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