MARIE CLAIRE MAY issue 2026 (STRAY KIDS LEE KNOW INTERVIEW)

MARIE CLAIRE MAY ISSUE 2026

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STRAY KIDS (LEE KNOW) INTERVIEW

- Today I worked with a bee-themed Boucheron collection.
It was fun. It felt like a shoot that suited a spring day with cherry blossoms in full bloom.

-  Let me ask a slightly random question. If you were to become a bee, which is the motif of Boucheron, what would you want to convey to people? If bees help with the pollination of flowers, what would Reno do for people?

Hmm… laughter. I’m not confident about making people burst out laughing, but I’d be happy if I could offer moments in daily life where people think, “What is that?” and let out a small chuckle. They say that when you smile, good things happen.

-  I think there must have been many such moments at your recent fan meeting, STAY in Our Little House.

There were a lot. We performed and said a lot of silly things (laughs), and it was a really enjoyable time.

-  Is there any particularly memorable moment?

I think I ended up kissing someone without fail for all four days (laughs). What’s interesting is that STAY (Stray Kids’ fandom) seems to lean strongly toward the “I” (introverted) side in MBTI terms. So at the beginning, they’re always quiet. There’s a bit of a shy, warming-up period. But our Stray Kids members are like that too. We start off a bit awkward, but as it goes on, we let ourselves go and enjoy it more. That flow feels like our characteristic, so it’s funny and enjoyable.

-  I recently heard that the “Chk Chk Boom” music video surpassed 200 million views. Including that, there are already eight music videos that have exceeded 200 million views, and two of them have even gone over 400 million. For me, those are numbers I can’t really grasp—it feels like an unknown figure.

I can’t grasp it either. It’s still amazing to me. Even surpassing 1 million views makes me go “wow,” so 200 million views—it still feels unreal. Anyway, I’m very grateful. It means that there are that many people who are interested in Stray Kids’ music.

-  How do you usually take in such tremendous achievements? Somehow it feels like you wouldn’t get overly excited about it.

I’m not the type to show it much. Still, I try to express my gratitude, but compared to Hyunjin, Seungmin, or Han, my way of expressing it isn’t very big. A simple “thank you” is about the most I can do (laughs). But after about eight years, even if my expressions are brief, STAY understands how I feel. I’m really grateful for that.

-  Out of the 200 million views, how much would you say is your own contribution?

The STAYs who really watch a lot probably watched it 100 or 200 times, don’t you think? But for me, the most I’ve watched is “God’s Menu,” and even that is probably less than 50 times. I tend to watch a bit at the beginning when an album comes out, but after that, I don’t keep watching the same video. My attention keeps shifting to the next album.

-  Do you enjoy Stray Kids’s music and content as an audience member, or do you tend to look for things you wish were better first?

I think I mostly watch while reminiscing, like “Ah, it was like this back then…” I don’t really enjoy it, but I don’t feel regret either. It’s already in the past, and I know it was our best at the time. What I need to think about now is how to work toward creating an even better “best” next time.

-  That’s clear and neat.

It has to be (laughs).

-  Aside from measurable achievements like album sales, views, and rankings, it seems like there are personal ways you feel your growth or accomplishments as well.

Stray Kids has a lot of international fans, and I really feel it when I meet fans who studied Korean just to communicate with me. I also feel that our stage is getting bigger when more and more STAY come to our concerts and fan meetings.

But in terms of growth, I always think I’m lacking. If I become satisfied just because I’m receiving a lot of love, it feels like that would be my limit—and I don’t like that. I’m still taking vocal lessons to improve, even now. When I practice, I sometimes think, “Oh, this works,” but when I try to do it in a real performance, it’s not easy. That’s why I have to keep learning until it becomes completely ingrained in my body.

-  There have been many reactions from fans saying that your vocal skills have improved remarkably. It sounds like that’s built on constant effort.

When I was younger, I was actually told I was tone-deaf. I wasn’t interested in singing, and I never imagined I’d become someone who sings. But I was working as a dancer and then joined JYP Entertainment, and I ended up in a situation where I had to sing. My trainee period was relatively short, and I had never formally studied music, so I thought, “This won’t work—I need to at least reach a basic level.” So I kept practicing. Now… I think I’m maybe at about half a person’s share (0.5 portion) (laughs).

-  Don’t you think you could give yourself a bit more credit? You’re known as someone with a romantic voice, as recognized by Han, one of Stray Kids’s producers.

You know Han said that while he was drunk, right? (laughs) I mentioned it in our own content too—it was nice at first, but he kept repeating it from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m., so I told him, “Stop it and go to sleep.” (laughs) Anyway, I was grateful. It did give me some confidence. But I think I need to be a bit critical of myself. The more people see me positively, the more I feel like I need to keep myself grounded so it balances out.

-  What keeps you moving forward without stopping? Do you have any goals or dreams you want to reach?

I’ve been the same since debut. I’ve never run toward something specific. I just kept going, and at some point, I achieved more than I expected. I didn’t start with a particular achievement in mind. I think it’ll be the same going forward. If I keep doing the music I like, get along well with the members, and create good performances for STAY, I believe I’ll encounter new moments again in a few years. If I had to call it a goal, it would be to do my best with what’s given to me right now.

-  I was curious about your role or presence within Stray Kids, so I watched content you made with the members, and I noticed one characteristic—you’re someone who is very accepting. Bang Chan said you’re the easiest member to direct, and Felix once mentioned that when creating choreography, you tend to say, “If you want to do it, let’s do it.”

I think that’s true. I’m not very stubborn, and I tend to accept things well. But it’s not just me—our members are all like that. For any idea, we first ask, “What do you think?” and try to coordinate. In dance, I may take the lead, but since the other members also have things they want to do, I always ask and try to follow the majority’s opinion. Aside from that, if I understand it, I’m okay with it. If I can’t accept it, I suggest another option. I don’t think I ever insist that I’m absolutely right.

-  Even so, is there anything you stubbornly want to protect? Something you find hard to compromise on?

As long as I’m in Stray Kids, I don’t think there is. Even if it’s part of my innate personality, if the members say, “I think this might cause trouble,” I think I would change myself. Even if it’s just pretending to change, I believe it’s important to sincerely accept their advice and try to change.

-  How is it possible to be that accepting? What kind of love is that? (laughs)

I don’t know. (laughs) We met through work, but now it feels like we’ve become brothers. You can’t just stop seeing your family because you don’t like something. You have to live by adjusting to each other.

-  One of the keywords of this photoshoot is “things you can’t help but love.” From what you said, it seems the members fall into that category of love.

Of course they do. My family, and Soonie, Doongie, and Dori—who are like my younger siblings and also my children (Lee Know’s pet cats). My friends, and STAY as well. It might sound a bit cheesy from my perspective, but they’re all beings I can’t help but love. But I can’t say “I love you.” If I say it, people might find it strange. They’d probably think something big happened. (laughs)