TAEMIN, the SHINee vocalist and solo heavyweight, has spent the better part of two decades building one of K-pop’s most distinctive performance identities – a catalogue of work that spans era-defining choreography, critically recognised albums, and a stage presence that has drawn comparisons to one of his biggest inspirations, Michael Jackson. He’s often labelled the 'Idol's Idol' – a title earned by the sheer number of artists across K-pop's biggest acts who cite him as the reason they wanted to perform. TAEMIN debuted in 2008 as a teenager, but in 2026, he is still expanding what his artistry looks like.

When we meet him backstage at BST Hyde Park, it’s after his biggest UK show to date. It follows a much-discussed run last year for his Ephemeral Gaze World Tour, which saw audience demand soar so high an additional Manchester Arena date was added – making him only the third K-pop act to perform there, after BLACKPINK and ATEEZ. It was a signal, if one was needed, that audiences are as hungry for TAEMIN as he is to satisfy them.

His hunger hasn't waned with his longevity. Some of TAEMIN’s new music debuted at a high-profile slot at Coachella earlier this year, while his latest single "Permission" arrived with a creative confidence that comes from someone who has spent years earning the right to trust his own instincts. What TAEMIN has built, across solo records, world tours, and a performing style that remains genuinely difficult to categorise and must be seen to be believed, is what sustained artistic conviction actually looks like.

In our conversation, he talks about finding peace on stage, about the difference between pressure and excitement, and about what it means to have watched from the inside how K-pop transformed – from an era where performing in London was a dream, to standing on a stage in the middle of Hyde Park and doing exactly that.