Out of the Blues and Into the Light with the Magic Man
As Asian pop culture has taken the world by storm over recent years, the name Jackson Wang is now a household name in Asia and K-pop fans all over the world. As a member of South Korea boy band Got7 which disbanded in January 2021, Wang was one of the more popular members known for his eccentric character, sense of humor, and friendliness. But what makes millions of fans stay with him after almost a decade is the rapper/dancer’s sincerity and caring attitude toward his band members and fans, as seen in his posts on social media. Let’s be honest, how many artists leave long messages with personal touches in each city after the concert until the very end?
Behind the sunny deposition, however, was an overly sensitive man who takes everything seriously – so seriously that he sank into depression without realizing it.
You must have heard of this saying – “Do what you love, and you will never work another day”, or to be more precise – “Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life”. While there is some truth in it, it can cause huge misunderstanding and struggle in our everyday life.
But it doesn’t make you entirely immune to stress or mental health issues, just because you love your job or that you’re so passionate about it. Emotional and mental exhaustion can break your defense as long as you’re not aware of your condition or refuse to acknowledge it.
Although music is Wang’s happiness and passion, years and years of continuously working and back-to-back travels had taken its toll on his physical health, which in turn drained his mental energy. Coming from the family of athletes, in which his father was a member of Olympic fencing team and his mother a Chinese national team gymnast, Wang was taught to be strong and learn how to manage his emotions since he was little. This upbringing played a major role in shaping his stress and emotional management, particularly after he followed in his father’s footsteps. In 2010, Wang competed in the first Youth Olympic Games in Singapore. Although the young fencer lost to his rival in the round of 16 by a solitary point, he was immensely proud of it.
Shortly after that, a talent scout from JYP, a famous South Korean record label, spotted him while playing basketball with his friends and invited him to an audition. Three years after training, he made a debut as part of GOT7 in 2014. Since then, his life was all about work, work, work. GOT7 had become overwhelmingly successful at home and overseas with millions of fans all over the world.
During his interview, the superstar admitted that he had felt he crashed and burned several times over the years, partly because he was always hard on himself. “I’m thankful for what I have in the moment but I’m nowhere near being satisfied.” Previously, he collapsed during a Japanese fan meet in 2017, was hospitalized for overwork, and then broke down at a Chinese fan meet in 2018.
It was only in 2022 while working on his solo album MAGIC MAN did Wang admit that he had been struggling as a workaholic and felt lost.
“Being in this industry for a while, living as a workaholic, solving multiple problems, a life of constantly figuring out solutions for everything and everyone around me.
I got to a point where I was so lost and the further & longer I went, the more lost & the more negative & the lonelier I got.
Everything felt like a cycle and a loop.
I was lost, not connected with anyone also believing that talking to anyone wouldn’t make any difference.
And for the first time, I do not want to face them anymore. I tried avoiding them.
Got to a point that I was lost without passion & I wasn’t inspired to think, to function, to have a healthy mindset, or to even breathe.”
One day, he was in the studio with his producer. Despite feeling dejected, Wang kept pushing with work as if nothing happened, his mind pre-occupied with “efficiency” as he himself put it. Fortunately, his producer noticed something was off and insisted they stopped recording the album and sat down to talk about everything… anything except work.
His producer’s insistence despite Wang’s refusal to stop working was the moment of truth. Wang finally admitted he needed help, he instantly felt a great relief. From then, the designer and entrepreneur of TEAM WANG, her fashion brand, began opening up about his struggles and learned to communicate more with others around him. “Mental health is so important in this industry, in every industry but especially this industry.”
Today, Wang is still passionate with his music as ever. It was only short of five months after his last leg of concert tour and he seems to be ready for taking on a new endeavor. But no matter how busy he seems to be, Wang never fails to communicate with his fans, always encouraging them to keep their emotional and mental health in check.
In his interview with Variety, Wang said, “I can share my own experience, but it’s not a lecture or anything. I can say being serious in the process of making art is good, but don’t lose the fun of it. When you have fun with it, you’re happy. The second thing is, it’s important to have a circle of positive people around you. No matter how incredible you are as a person, as an artist, if you have all these negative people around you, it’s going to break you down.”
And that also applies to every one of us. Good people and good friends can make a huge difference to your life indeed.
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