Jenny Kwun ‘21
Hello, Jenny, and welcome to the proverbial Hot Bench! How are you doing?
Oh, it’s 2 a.m. and I’m currently working. How do you think I am? I should add that it’s 2 a.m. on a Sunday night, not even a Saturday or Friday night.
I wanted to catch you in your element.
Thank you, thank you. This is truly my element, because I go to sleep at 4 a.m.
You’re being incredibly productive though.
Yes, I’m working, and I’m eating grapefruit, and I’m doing this interview. So I’m triple-tasking.
Can you tell our readers what you’re working on?
I’m currently translating for a K-pop site. There’s this, I guess you could say, “American Idol” show in Korea that’s really popular, and the news just broke that there might have been fraud in the voting process. I had everything prepared to publish tonight, but now I have to rewrite everything!
That’s pretty intense. Why do you publish everything at night?
I work Korea-time. Or maybe the answer is more that the news cycle is 24/7, and someone has to be on to cover it at any time. The night shift works best for me, because I have to attend classes during the day.
How long have you been at this job and how did you get started?
I’ve had this job since 2011. I had to work during undergrad, and I applied to this company as a translator because I speak fluent Korean. After a year, they promoted me to senior editor. There are some perks because I get to interview my favorite groups.
Is this something you like to do?
Well, yeah, another reason is that it’s K-pop and this is the biggest website catering to that interest. I like the topic and I know what the work is like.
What’s the coolest thing that you’ve done at your job?
Interview people, memorably BTS. I think the interview is still on Youtube. The interview was before they got super big, haha.
At what point did you decide to apply to law school?
OMG, is this OGI? Please don’t ask me this question.
Haha, okay. Are you famous?
Mmmmh, kind of. I’ve gotten death threats, so I guess that’s how you know you made it. Not so much anymore.
How do you do everything at night and still go to class?
I have forty-eight cans of Red Bull in my apartment right now.
Tell me something interesting about yourself.
I was born in Korea, and my first language is Korean. Is that interesting?
Yep! When did you start learning English?
When I was nine. The only thing I remember is that I once pronounced nowhere as “now here” and a girl in class laughed at me.
Let’s do a lightning round!
Favorite place in Charlottesville? Costco.
Anti-Stress Hobby? I write. I’ve kept a diary since fourth grade.
Pet peeve? I really hate it when people are, how do I say this in English, when people don’t own up to their mistakes.
Favorite word? Sluice. [What, why???] I just like the way it sounds and looks!
Favorite food? Ddukbokki (spicy rice cake). I can totally live every day eating just that.
Oh, do you cook?
No. OMG, literally I burned ramen the other week. I had to turn my smoke detector off. I put too little water in. :(
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
New York City.
What’s your favorite movie?
Inception. I like Christopher Nolan movies in general.
If you could pick one song to play in the background of your life, what would it be?
Hang on, I don’t know. I don’t know enough music to answer this, even though I work in the music industry. I’m not sure I want K-pop to play in the background of my life.
What is your least favorite sound?
Bugs skittering up a wall.
What’s your spirit animal?
When I took the Pottermore quiz, I got a dolphin. I guess that, or a jellyfish.
If you won the lottery, what would you do with it?
I would pay off my school debt and then pay off my sister’s medical school debt. And then buy a building.
A building??
Yes, it’s a very Korean thing to do. When people get a lot of money, they buy a building.
Since it’s the start of the year, let’s end by giving the 1Ls some advice. What do you say?
They’ve probably heard this a million times already, and when I heard it I just thought it was terrible advice. But now that I’m a 2L, it really is the best advice you can give. You’ll get the hang of it. Or you won’t, and it’ll still work out. Trust me, I’ve got firsthand experience.
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hk5ek@virginia.edu