[Park Chan-wook's Fog③] "Recorded Without Watching the Movie... Looking Forward to How It Was Written"

Singer Song Chang-sik Q&A
"Voice Changed Due to Vocal Cord Surgery, New Challenge Persuaded by Jung Hoon-hee"
"Continuously Striving to Create a New Voice"

Singer Song Chang-sik sang the OST "Angae" inserted in director Park Chan-wook's film Decision to Leave, which won the Best Director Award at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival, along with Jung Hoon-hee. He said, "Since I recorded it with my current voice, not the voice from 55 years ago, I am curious how this new version of 'Angae,' different from the old song, was used in the film." Photo by Yoon Jin-geun

- You sang "Angae" featured in "Decision to Leave" together with Jeong Hoon-hee.

▲ I have often collaborated with Jeong Hoon-hee since the Saessibong era. Besides, "Angae" is a masterpiece. We used to sing it together quite often back then. When I sang it before, my voice was, how should I say, soft and melancholic, but for this recording, I sang with a voice that had grown much thicker, so it was a new attempt for me. Honestly, I didn’t want to record it. My voice isn’t what it used to be. But Jeong Hoon-hee persuaded me repeatedly. Since we recorded it with our current voices, the feeling would be quite different from before.

- "Decision to Leave" won the Best Director award at the Cannes International Film Festival.

▲ It’s something to celebrate. Actually, before recording, I only saw some scenes of the film, so I didn’t know the overall story. I became curious about the content because it received a good response at the film festival. I thought Director Park might have wanted to hear our old voices, Jeong Hoon-hee’s and mine, but even though we proceeded with new voices on the recording day, he said it was good, which I remember well. Music is also an element of the film, so I guess Director Park utilized it appropriately.

Still cut from the movie 'Decision to Leave'. Photo by CJ ENM

- This is your second time working on film music. The theme song "Waebulleo" for your first film project "March of Fools" was a phenomenal hit.

▲ Both for "Decision to Leave" and "March of Fools," I recorded without watching the films. I think the director’s intention is more important than the singer’s own thoughts in film music. In the case of "Waebulleo," I actually made the song thinking of it as the love song of the protagonist Byung-tae. I wanted to express it with a shocking feeling instead of a sweet and clich? love song, and Director Ha Kil-jong placed it in the scene where Byung-tae and Young-chul escape to avoid the long hair crackdown, which maximized the feeling of the song and the film’s story and left a strong impression on the audience. That’s when I realized that film is the director’s art, and music can sound completely different according to the director’s intention. I’m looking forward to how Director Park Chan-wook wrote the songs for "Decision to Leave."

- Your voice has changed a lot due to two vocal cord nodule surgeries.

▲ I had vocal cord surgery twice, once in 1976 and once in 2017. What this means is that I lost the voice I had developed over the years and had to rebuild it through practice, so the voice I created then inevitably differs from before. When I had surgery in 1976, I wanted to do rock music and shouted for four hours every day, which damaged my throat. But since I was young, I practiced diligently for about three years and rebuilt a decent voice. Now, maybe because I’m older, even six years after the surgery, I can’t produce a good voice. Besides surgery, I changed my vocalization about six or seven times. Step by step, I changed it and painted my values with my voice. A singer should sing with the voice they want, but since my voice doesn’t come out as I want, now I have to sing according to my voice. It’s a bit frustrating, but what can I do? I only have four years left until I turn 70, so I’m just steadily trying to see if my voice will properly return or if my vocalization will be completed within these three years. If not, my singing in my 70s will disappear. But as a singer, I have to keep practicing to be able to sing well somehow, so I continue to work on my voice.

Singer Song Chang-sik sang the OST "Fog," which was included in director Park Chan-wook's film Decision to Leave, awarded Best Director at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival, along with Jung Hoon-hee. He said, "Since I recorded it with my current voice, not the voice from 55 years ago, I am curious how this new version of 'Fog,' different from the original song, was used in the film." Photo by Yoon Jin-geun

- What does music mean to Song Chang-sik?

▲ It’s something to ride. Riding music on the road called life. Actually, I started music dreaming of becoming a conductor in my childhood, but after coming to popular music, I ran with the goal of achieving my own objectives and properly expressing what I intended. Building skills and gaining popularity according to some form and framework was not the path I wanted. I have moved with plans and strategies toward the music and art I think of. My old voice has disappeared, making this path difficult and hard, but it is still ongoing.