Kai may not remember the first time he was recognised, but he does remember the first time his mum was worried about it. “On my first vacation, I went out to get a meal with my mother,” he reminisces.
“We went out, but my mother was walking 100 meters apart from me. So I asked her what’s wrong and she was worried that someone might recognise me,” he explains. “I remember catching up with her and saying ‘nobody knows!'”
Fresh from releasing his third mini-album ‘Rover’, South Korean singer Kai is reflecting on his musical first times in the latest instalment of NME‘s Firsts series.
In the interview he also reflects on two of the first artists he fell in love with when he was younger, Justin Timberlake and Usher. “The way they’d dance while singing looked really cool. The unique style of that era, and their performances. Everything was so good,” he says, adding: “I especially remember dancing and practising to their songs a lot.”
For his NME Firsts Kai also discusses the first thing he does when he gets off stage, the first CD he bought and his first television appearance. Watch the video in full above.
Check back at NME soon for more Firsts interviews with some of music’s biggest names. For now, though, you can revisit our recent Firsts interviews with the likes of Liam Gallagher, Interpol, Lucy Dacus, Måneskin and NIKI.
Kai’s mini-album ‘Rover’ is out now