Jamie Park exclusive interview: the K-pop star formerly Jimin Park spent 2020 working on new single Numbers, starring on TV show Good Girl and quarantining for Covid-19

K-pop star Jamie Park is difficult to miss thanks to her eccentric style, alluring voice and amusing personality that can get anyone to laugh – or stan – almost immediately. As she starts anew with Warner Music Korea, shedding her former professional name Park Ji-min in favour of Jamie Park, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter has a lot more in store. STYLE sat down with Park to get to know more about her quarantine lifestyle, how she prepared for her latest single Numbers, and her love for her fans, aka her Baby Js. This year, I really want to put out music as ‘Jamie’. I’m no longer Jimin Park – I’m not gonna sleep, I’m gonna keep making music View this post on Instagram #numbers A post shared by (@jiminxjamie) on Aug 27, 2020 at 8:00am PDT Park revealed that, like many of us, she’s been stuck at home quarantining – and watching dramas on Netflix. She’s finished all the seasons of several shows, in fact. “I finished so many episodes and seasons that I didn’t know I could finish,” she said. “One of the biggest dramas that I just finished was How To Get Away with Murder, and they have four seasons packed with 18 episodes. Whoever finishes this drama is legit a queen, and I just did it!” She has also dabbled in popular mobile game Among Us, but eventually settled for cooking at home as she didn’t feel video games were her strong suit. In her five years of living alone, she’s mostly ordered in her meals, but she made herself learn how to cook because, “I might get married to someone in the future, so I have to learn.” There’s her creative work, too, of course. “This year, I really want to put out music as ‘Jamie’. I’m no longer Jimin Park,” she confessed. “Album, album, solo, solo, solo, single, single, will be my projects. I’m not gonna sleep, I’m gonna keep making music.” While staying at home, Park has been preparing for a new album and single with an artist she’s wanted to collaborate with. Her recent single Numbers featuring rapper Changmo brought fans the ultimate summer vibes along with a fresh collaboration between both artists. “When this song came, it had a really bright, summery vibe, and me and all of the company members who worked with me on the album were like ‘Oh, this needs to be out like right now’,” Park said. Although she usually spends a long time on preparing songs and needs to be accurate with what she’s doing, Numbers was an exception. As soon as she and Changmo nailed the beat, creating the entire rest of the collaborative song was quick work. Idols finishing military service and sasaeng fans – STYLE’s top K-pop scoops She also appeared in several episodes of MNet’s competition show Good Girl, which marked the beginning of her fresh start as Jamie, as it was the first time she openly acknowledged the switch. But she admitted the show was an on-and-off project because she didn’t want to focus on a programme where contestants battle each other. “I don’t want to call it a trauma, but it’s one of the things that I’m really tired of,” she explains, “because the whole [of my] 14 to 15 years [old] was like a competition for me.” View this post on Instagram 사 랑 해! A post shared by (@jiminxjamie) on Jul 2, 2020 at 8:28am PDT Good Girl wasn’t all bad, though. Park also showcased her personal style on the series with amazing outfits. Unlike many celebrities who have a coterie of stylists, Park styles most of her outfits and hair herself. Long-time followers of the singer will know that her fashion sense is the real deal, whether her ensembles for TV appearances or statement pieces that she posts to her Instagram. She even mixes and matches her clothes according to her hair. View this post on Instagram 굿걸이니까 A post shared by (@jiminxjamie) on Jun 18, 2020 at 7:45am PDT “If I have short and bright colour[ed hair] like blue or purple, I go for something very street, very casual – baggy clothes and baggy jeans,” she explained. “If I have long hair, I go for more ... fitting, like a miniskirt dress or a very tight black leather outfit.” When asked about her favourite hairstyle, she mentioned the first hair colour she sported on Good Girl – purple with white highlights – but she rarely sticks with the same colour for very long. “I’ve been changing a lot, so all my hairs are dead right now,” she joked. “I bleached my hair three times [for the purple and white Good Girl style] and it was burning, but it still came out really nice.” View this post on Instagram 내 미래보다 빛나는 신발 A post shared by (@jiminxjamie) on Jul 5, 2020 at 9:22am PDT When asked which other members of the Good Girl cast she’d collaborate with if given the opportunity, she said she’d like to work with Lee Young-ji, rapper Queen Wasabi, or Kard’s Jiwoo. Due to her variety of projects, Park’s personal circle has grown, including several other idols such as Day6’s Jae, F(x)’s Amber, Eric Nam, and more. With such busy careers, they might not see each other as often as they might want, but Park said the key to their friendship is understanding and looking out for each other. Her friends recently introduced her to a new pastime – searching herself up online and watching fan-made video compilations of herself on YouTube. “Watching my fans react to ... something that I’ve made – it was a different hit for me,” she said. “When I see them happy when they see those videos ... I feel like I earned so much hugs from them. When you prepare an album, it’s really hard and stressful and you don’t get too much sleep. All of that goes away now I’ve started to watch [the fan videos].” BTS vs BigBang – which K-pop boy band has the most educated members? Most K-pop fans celebrate their idols’ birthdays – often with great extravagance – but Park’s Baby Js included the rest of her team in the festivities this year, too. “They sent in cakes and flowers to my make-up artists, hair stylists, everyone,” she said. “I really appreciated that, it was a big thanks from my fans.” Covid-19 might mean that Park can’t see her beloved fans in person, but she makes up for it by FaceTiming with them and looking up fans’ social media accounts for feedback on what they’d like to see from her next. It makes them feel connected, Park said. “I always tell my fans that I miss them and love them,” Park revealed, “and now that I need to stay in my house and I can’t go anywhere, I really do miss them. As soon as this quarantine and Covid-19 goes away, I’m going to travel to their countries as I’m so excited to meet them in person.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by (@jiminxjamie) on Sep 4, 2020 at 2:19am PDT She encourages her fans to stay safe and think about themselves as well as everyone around them. “Spending time with your family is the biggest thing that I recommend,” she said. “Talk to your parents and have a conversation about your life or something that you’re into.” Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter .