Korean flower-boy band FT Island raised a wave of extreme popularity on their first visit to Taiwan, and their images during the six-day trip was also constantly changing. Offstage, lead singer Lee Hongki has the most perception of fashion and constantly plays stylist in their dormitory, often helping his members put outfits together.
During their concert, the five-member band put on a good show, emphasizing on FT Island’s real talent, and that they were not just any “idol boyband”. But when it comes to their title of “flower-boys”, all of them had positive reactions to that, stating that it was a compliment of their looks, and there are lots of goodies from being a flower-boy.
Hongki, who had a big popularity rise after his role in [You’re Beautiful], announced proudly that “because of me, Jonghun has gotten lots of good stuff!” Jonghun agreed in response, “It’s true, when you go out with him you don’t usually have to spend any money. You get food and other stuff for free most of the time, so when I go out I have to bring Hongki with me.”
In FT Island, both Hongki and Jonghun admitted that they are the ones who love shopping the most. Hongki likes dark colour schemes, and cannot resist anything with skull designs on them. Jonghun, on the other hand, prefers clean and classic styles.
Jaejin, the one who always gives a treat and is the most knowledgeable about saving up, actually does not spend much on clothes at all. He said, “I just wear whatever I see in front of me when I wake up everyday. So Hongki usually puts together something for me first.”
Seunghyun also exposed that Minhwan always wears the same clothes, because he washes them after he wears them, then wears them and washes them again in a constant cycle. The 4-D boy also said, “I like formal, branded clothing, and looking like a rich bachelor.”
However, Hongki stepped in to remind him: “But there is nothing branded in your closet!”
Despite their busy schedule, the five boys managed to do a photoshoot for this fashion column. With them clad in colourful Brook Brothers menswear, the photoshoot was fun and lighthearted, leading to the boys of FT Island lamenting that they want to go on vacation, after an entire day of accepting interviews in their hotel.
Despite their average age of 18, the members of FT Island were exceptionally conservative when it came to how their girlfriends would dress. When asked whether they would like girls to be dressed in a fresh manner or in a moderately sexy style, Jaejin replied: “I’m really scared of girls who dress really stylishly, because it feels like it’s hard to get close to them. If someone dressed like that confessed to me, I would probably reject her immediately and run away.”
As for their girlfriends, the five boys once again had the same answer: “Nope, definitely no showing of skin!”
FT Island New Year Concert 2009
