On November 30, a video titled “[Let’s Eat] Solo Singer Irene vs. GGondaehee Washing His Face with Alcohol” was published on the YouTube channel “GGondaehee”.
The video featured Irene as a guest, engaging in conversation with the channel owner, GGondaehee. When asked about her debut story, Irene confessed that she followed a friend to an audition and ended up getting selected.
In particular, Irene explained, “My friend wanted to be a celebrity, but going alone felt a bit… She felt scared and lonely, so she asked me to come along, and I went. But while I was there, I ended up auditioning too, and I made it to the finals.”
According to Irene, her friend got eliminated earlier, to which GGondaehee commented, “That’s how it usually goes”, referring to other similar audition stories of fellow celebrities.
Meanwhile, Irene added, “Even though I’m shy and get embarrassed easily…. In school talent shows, I would always step up to perform. Most people wouldn’t even if pushed, but singing and dancing was fun for me”, surprising the host.
However, despite making it to the finals of the SM audition, Irene got eliminated there.
“I cried my heart out”, she confessed, adding that she couldn’t stop her tears right there, on the spot.
“At that moment, I realized something. Up until then, I thought I was just doing it for fun, but that’s when I knew how much I loved it and how badly I wanted to do it. That’s when it hit me”, Irene continued, revealing that she basically discovered herself at the time.
Then, the female idol also shared that she kept in touch with the company afterwards, and eventually became a trainee before debuting with Red Velvet after 5 years.
Later on, when asked if there were any memorable moments or rebellious experiences during her trainee days, Irene shared, “Since I’m from Daegu, I stayed in the living quarters. While living in the quarters, on the way from the company to the dorm,I would stop by every convenience store.”
“You know how when you’re on a diet, you keep opening and closing the fridge door?”, she said, adding, “I bought things and ate them. I stopped by every convenience store and bought a little of whatever I felt like eating. Then I’d bring it all back to the living quarters and eat it there.That was my little escape.”
According to Irene, SM normally doesn’t let trainees eat much and manage their weight, but Irene just ate everything and gained weight, indulging herself.
She also loved playing pranks while in the living quarters, such as drawing a cockroach and scaring fellow trainees.
Source: Daum
