Boo Seungkwan, main vocalist of the 13-member group SEVENTEEN, doesn’t have a lot of struggles when it comes to abilities and talents. Singing skills? Top-notch. Variety sense? Natural. Comedic timing? Perfect.
English language? Now, there’s a concern there.
Mr. Boo’s struggles with the English language have been well-documented, and here are five moments that chronicle his battles, which can be considered as victories for us, his amused fans and the Carat fandom.
When in Starbucks LA, Ordering in English is a Must
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW2q35PY5MU
On an episode of GOING SEVENTEEN, the members took a tour of Los Angeles and somehow found a Starbucks. Which should be okay, considering Vernon and Joshua were there to make ordering a breeze.
Except they were not there.
Instead, English “experts” Jeonghan, DK, and Seungkwan bravely went inside the store to order two hot and three iced Americanos. But it doesn’t end there. DK gave Mr. Boo the task of inquiring about the unicorn frappuccino, a limited drink available only in selected stores.
Seungkwan started out okay, telling the barista of the Americano orders. When it came to the 3rd item, our main vocalist, said the now-classic inquiry:
“Excuse me, um. Can I? Uhh.. I have a question. In U.S… only… America. Starbucks…limited beverage… 있어요? Unicorn…”
– Boo, 2017
Luckily, the cashier read between the lines and informed the three giggling customers that the beverage is not available in their store. Boo Diva struggled for nothing, but I dare say, earned the respect of the English-speaking world.
Seungkwan, culinary language barrier conqueror
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF15YZM9mB8
This is an absolute classic. This moment came from Seungkwan’s livestream with Hoshi called Andromeda, where a kimbap-making competition was staged between Jun and Hoshi versus Seungkwan and Joshua. When Joshua poured a healthy amount of seasoning into his hand, Seungkwan thought he was going to put all of it into the kimbap they were making, prompting him to ask his partner in panic,
“Oh my gosh. Your mistake? Oh my gosh what zyoo doing now… are you kidding me? Kimbap kidding?”
To which Joshua in his trademark calmness, apologized and said he was going to just “spray a little” of the seasoning into their dish. Upon realizing his partner’s intention, the usually high-strung Boo backpedaled, praising his partner with exclamations of “Oh, so… so genius!“
The pair won with their iconic “kimbap kidding” creation.
Seungkwan, the standard of English quality
Here is one for the books. In footage from Seventeen TV, where the future members were still trainees, Mingming (one of the final SVT trainees who opted to leave Pledis in 2014, months before the boys were slated to debut) held an impromptu interview with star-shaped sunglasses-wearing Seungkwan, asking him to show everyone his English skills. Not one to stand down from a challenge, Seungkwan goes,
“May I take two orders? I kkk… I work… “
To which Vernon reacted by saying, “Oh gawd. What are you doing?”
Baby SK eggs him on, asking, “What are you talking about?”
To which the native English speaker answers, “I’m talking about your very low quality English.”
Boo Diva was not having any of it, aggressively asking, “Low quality? Low quality???” Then in Korean, asserts, “I’m the best quality. I’m the best quality.” End of story.
Seungkwan and Joshua strike again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn246C30Mfs
In behind-the-scenes footage of the Mansae music video filming, Seungkwan was caught reading an English book in front of the camera. After reading the title of a chapter without a hitch, he got stuck with what sounded like instructions for an activity. Joshua then swoops in, reading the entire passage without even blinking, to which our variety ace can only stare at him in mock disdain.
After Joshua’s display of impeccable English reading skills, Our Boo can only comment with, “I envy kids with good pronunciation but don’t tease us who aren’t good.“
Woozi, who watched the entire interaction, can only laugh non-stop. And so did we.
The nightmare of an English interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOHL1mNfFuM
As one of the hosts of the variety quiz show Unexpected Q in 2018, Seungkwan subjected himself to one of the show’s trademark portions, an interview in English. He couldn’t understand the first question which was, “What’s it like being an idol in Korea,” so he answered,
“Another… many… many mathematics.”
The next question was, “What did you do yesterday,” to which he answered,
“I… I…” pointing to his head, “My hair… shampoo. Shampooed.”
Next question, “Have you ever been abroad?”
BSK: “This year… March… I went to Jeju Isand. Jeju is my hometown.”
Then, quickly realizing his mistake, he apologized and continued with, “Two days ago, I went… to L.A.“
Last set of questions: “What did you like most about L.A.?”
BSK: “I like L.A.’s weather.”
Prodded on with what he likes about the weather, he answered,
“No cold… no hot… so so,” with matching gestures.
Totally nailed that one, for sure.
With his active participation in variety shows, we are sure to witness more struggles of our variety ace with the English language in the future.
