This interview transcript has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Gabb (@tegomass): Congratulations on your Junior Worlds medal! How do you feel about the whole experience?
Hannah: I feel really happy about it. Going into this competition, there was a bit of pressure because we set goals for ourselves. But while we were performing we were just thinking "This is just a performance. It's like a show, we're not here to get results. We're here to perform."
Ye: We kept our minds off of the technical parts and just really enjoyed ourselves and performed as much as we could. It's been a great journey and I feel really grateful for everything that happened to us til now.
So you've had a pretty successful season overall. Do you have any favorite memories from this season?
Ye: [JGP] Courchevel has a special place in my heart because we'd done it before and then we came back again for this second year, so that takes up a special spot. And also Junior Worlds, we got a medal this time so I'm super happy about it. But also the Grand Prix Final, that was a big event for me. I really enjoyed the experience over there.
Hannah: I would say the Grand Prix Final was really exciting because there was actually a pretty big crowd there. [Ye: Also with the Seniors] Yeah, we were with the Seniors and it was really exciting to see how they handle stress and how they compete. Nationals was also really cool because there were Korean fans there to watch us and it was in our home country. It was really fun performing there.
Ye: There were so many people at Korean Nationals, it was actually kind of crazy.
Overall you've had a really strong Junior career representing Korea. Looking back, what stands out the most?
Hannah: Looking back, a big highlight would be Worlds 2022 in Tallinn, Estonia, when we did our "Cats" [FD]. I think it was one of our best performances we've done and I was really proud about that because it was a very long season and we had to overcome a lot of mental obstacles. Being able to do one final performance of "Cats" was really memorable for me.
Ye: Same for me, that first experience at Worlds. Because of COVID, everything was pushed back, so it was very hard during training - both physically and mentally. But I'm really glad that we managed to push through and do a really good performance.
Like you said before, it was the first time in your career that there was an audience at Korean Nationals this season. How did that feel, performing for the crowd in your home country?
Hannah: It felt really exciting to be in front all of the Korean fans. First, they don't know much about Ice Dance so it was the first time many of them had actually watched Ice Dance live. It's really fun to show the charisma of Ice Dance. Ice Dance live is the best, obviously.
Ye: They were so welcoming. I don't speak much Korean yet but, even though I couldn't understand everything they were saying, I could feel that everyone was so welcoming to me and I don't feel that often anywhere else. They were a really great crowd.
And you even had a fanmeeting. How was that?
Ye: I was shocked! I was like "They're doing a fanmeeting for us?" I was so surprised.
Hannah: It was really shocking to have a fanmeeting and I didn't have any expectations going into it but when we were there - at first it was a bit awkward because we didn't really know what to do. But once everyone started coming up to us and giving us gifts and we started signing autographs, we got to have real conversations with the fans and that was really exciting.
Ye: It was nice to hear everyone's story of how they saw us.
Hannah: Yeah, exactly. And they would say like "Oh my god, I'm so nervous to see you!" or like I would just touch their hand and they would be like "Oh my god, you touched my hand!" I was like wow, they're nervous to see me!
Ye: I'm just a normal person!
Hannah: I know right!
Did you enjoy your time in Korea? Did you make any fun memories there?
Ye: We wore traditional clothing. That was very fun, we did that last year as well. This year we also did a photoshoot, that was very fun.
Hannah: We were able to do a lot of interviews and photoshoots there.
Ye: That was a first for me, the photoshoots. It was so different.
Hannah: Oh yeah, [the photographer] kept saying "Another pose! Another pose!" and we ran out of poses! We went through the whole choreography of our Free Dance and then we were out of ideas. That was really fun. And eating together with family is always the best and having home-cooked meals.
Ye: Her Aunt's cooking is the best.
Hannah: (laughing) Yeah.
What was your favourite meal that you had there?
Ye: Samgyeopsal (grilled pork belly).
Hannah: Korean meat, when we would have it at home, it was so good. Actually, when my cousins child turned 100 days old they had a celebration there and the food - they just ordered it from outside - was so amazing. It was a variety of so many different things.
Ye: And your little cousin was so cute!
Hannah: I know!
Do you have any recommendations for places to visit in Korea?
Hannah: I would say a fun place - everyone goes there but - in Gangnam, there was an underground shopping place and there's so much stuff. I would say that it's almost overwhelming in a good way.
Ye: It was so cheap!
Hannah: Or even street foods that you can get there.
Ye: For how cheap it was, it was so good!
Hannah: Yeah, we had rice cakes and fish cake. And those are also only like one Canadian dollar. So yummy!
Now that this season is finished, you're planning on moving up to Seniors. How do you feel about that?
Ye: I'm nervous and looking forward to it at the same time. We're nervous because it's a whole new category, and we see everyone skating at I.AM [the Ice Academy of Montreal] and how good they are and how mature they look. For sure I'm a little bit stressed but I'm really looking forward to it. I feel like we've competed well in our Junior seasons and I feel like we're ready to move onto Seniors to gain more experience and get better at our sport.
Hannah: I agree. I guess I am a bit stressed to move to Senior because it's a whole different field but I do feel ready and complete with this Junior season. I'm excited to move to Senior to see what we can show to more people and competing with more couples from I.AM and outside of it as well. We always look up to those couples and being able to compete with them is a scary feeling but exciting at the same time. It's motivating.
You mentioned that, since you competed at the Junior Grand Prix Final, you could see the Senior teams from I.AM there. Did it inspire you to see them compete there?
Ye: A lot, yes. You see how they prepare and warm up, how they just get in their own bubble before they compete, and I feel like it's very different from Juniors.
Hannah: I would say that before they skate, on the bus and stuff, they're so in their own space but, as Juniors, we're about to compete but we're always talking with each other! The Seniors are all in their own bubble - even if they're friends - and I think it's cause they want to keep that focus and mental strength to perform well. Seeing that was really different for us and watching their official practices as well.
Ye: Like how they manage it, the spacing and the time.
Hannah: When we were watching the official practice, they were a bit shaky but I thought "Wow, they're shaky just like us!" It's not like they're perfect all the time.
Ye: But they still managed to stay calm. I feel like, in Junior, we're stressed during the warm up and we're clashing a bit. But [the Seniors] always manage to go through it really fluidly.
Hannah: Could also be because they always skate with each so they know their programs. (laughs)
Ye: That's true!
So the off-season is starting for you. Do you have any fun plans?
Hannah: We're going to Banff on Monday, actually, with friends.
Ye: Yeah, we're taking the shuttle to get there to take a small vacation and then we're going back home to Montreal.
Hannah: Usually, if I take a vacation, I just end up going to Toronto to visit my family because it would kind of be pointless if I went on a vacation by myself.
After you've taken your vacation, you're going to start preparing your programs for next season. Have you started thinking about the music?
Ye: We have a few ideas.
Hannah: I think by the end of the season, coming close to this competition, I was ready to move on and find new music and it's always exciting. I find that it's the most exciting part [of the process]. We were looking at some music, we were thinking about maybe a ballet for the Free would be cool. But we haven't discussed it a lot yet because we've still been in competition. For [the 80s Rhythm Dance theme], I had an idea but I think it's illegal [according to the rules.] So we're still figuring it out, we have to check the rules again but I really hope it's not illegal because I think it would be really fun to do.
What is the process usually like for you in creating a program? How involved are you both?
Hannah: I would say that we're pretty involved. We put out ideas and the coaches also put out ideas.
Ye: We discuss what we want to use, what we don't want to use, what type of dance we want to perform.
Hannah: The coaches also list our strengths and we say what we would like to do. We're pretty involved in that aspect. For choreography, we're obviously not that experienced, so the coaches make it for us.
Ye: They often make us try different stuff first and then we experiment a lot before actually putting it in the program. So it's pretty fun, the off season, we just learn a lot of new stuff.
Hannah: Or they say like "Make something! You choose!" and I'm like "I don't know..."
Ye: Yeah, we try to figure out something.
Is there anything that you want to skate to in the future that you don't feel ready to do so now?
Ye: I haven't thought about that, I'm not sure.
Hannah: I really want to do this classical piece. It's a really nice one and I haven't seen any Ice Dancers do it yet so I really want to try that. We haven't portrayed anything super romantic like that yet, except for the tango. Every time I listen to it, I get chills. So maybe in the future, but I'm for sure not ready for it now. I think if we did it now, it would look kind of sloppy.
Hannah, you have a YouTube channel. How did that start? What inspired you to make it?
Hannah: It was actually my mom that kept poking me like "Hannah, do a YouTube channel!" That was a couple of years ago and I didn't really want to because I didn't have time. But when I was at the competition in Courchevel, I was filming a bit and was like "This is actually kind of fun to film!" I would edit it roughly and watch it and think "Oh this is so nice, I feel like I'm rewatching my memories." So I put it out and everyone was like "Wow, it's so cool to see behind the scenes or what you do in your daily life." After that, I've kept it going because a lot of fans like to watch it.
Do you have any plans for a Junior Worlds or off season vlog?
Hannah: Yeah, for sure. I was a bit stuck with editing because, before we left, we filmed a reaction video to our old competitions together. But since we were speaking in English, it takes a lot of time to do Korean subtitles for the whole video. I did film here [at JWC] so I have some content here as well. I would like to do a ballet vlog or an off-ice vlog.
Ye: Like a bit of a training vlog.
I always find it interesting when I see the off-ice training you do.
Ye: Cause you never see that in competition, yeah.
Hannah: For sure, without the off-ice stuff, I feel like we wouldn't be as strong on-ice.
For you Ye, I know that we talked about you learning Korean, how's that going?
Ye: To be honest, the past month has been a bit rough for me because - it's kind of an excuse - but I've been pretty busy with training, school and work. I've been trying to juggle everything so, I have to be honest, Korean took a bit of a back seat recently. But, now that we're going into the off season, I plan to put a lot more time into it. I'm still seeing my online tutor to at least keep the pace going but I think I'm going to put a lot more time into it now.
Is there anything that you've learnt recently, like a sentence or a word, that you'd like to share?
Ye: Right now I'm learning - [the tutor] translated it to "marking particles" - it's still a little hard for me to understand so I'm trying to apply it. But it's like how to finish the sentences or when to use which word after a noun or an adjective or a negative...
Hannah: Oh, that kind of particles... I thought you were talking about like science particles. I was like "Wow, that's advanced!" (laughs)
Ye: Another part for me is that I feel like I'm not practicing verbally enough. So remembering the words and learning is sometimes a struggle.
I know that you touched upon it in Hannah's vlogs that you both watch Korean Dramas to make your listening better. What are you watching and do you guys listen to K-Pop as well?
Hannah: We were listening to songs together and he liked some and asked for the name. We don't really watch K-Dramas together, I'm watching more of them since he's pretty busy. As for K-Pop, I only listen to K-Pop. I don't listen to English music anymore and that's a big change for me. It hasn't been recent at all, like 4 or 5 years ago I didn't listen to K-Pop but now I'm like so hooked on it. It's a big world and you can easily get sucked into it.
Final few questions, do you have any goals for next season?
Ye: Gain as much experience as possible. Next year, our goal is to learn as much as we can from our competitions, events and training.
Hannah: I would say it's difficult for us right now to pinpoint an exact result goal, like placement-wise or point-wise, but going into our first Senior year is almost like going into our first year international in Juniors - which was like I wanted to be memorable and put on a good performance that everyone can enjoy. It's a lot of first experiences.
A lot of fans want to know if you have any animal mascot ideas or anything in particular that you'd like to see thrown on the ice as gifts?
Ye: I like bears. I find that they're round and cute, so that's pretty nice. I know a lot of fans in Korea gave me a lot of plushies. I didn't manage to bring everything back, I was a bit sad about that. The luggage has a limit so I couldn't fit everything in, so I had to leave some at her uncle's place. But I really appreciated everything that they gave us.
Hannah: I actually stole one of yours. (Ye: Yeah, you stole mine) Because I brought all of mine - I was so determined to bring them all back - and I took some of his because I was like "Oh my god, so cute! I'm gonna take it."
How did you manage to bring all of them back?
Ye: I know right, I was watching her and was like "How are you fitting everything in?"
Hannah: I squished everything and I also took my mom's suitcase as well and put some in there.
Ye: I only had my own suitcase so... (laughs)
You need to get some vacuum seal airtight bags!
Hannah: That's so true! I think we need to bring those now. But I'm definitely also going to bring everything home this time. I'll just leave some clothes in Banff, or something (laughs).
Last question, do you have any messages for your fans?
Ye: Thank you for all of your support. It's been very inspiring and motivating for us to keep reading your messages and comments online and, even in person, the support you've been giving us is incredible, really.
Hannah: For me it's so shocking that we actually have fans that really enjoy our skating and are really invested in what we do and how we perform. They help us so much, so I'm so glad that they support us through the difficult times as well. I remember like how one performance didn't go so well and then they were all messaging us after like "It's okay! You can do it for Free! Don't worry about results!" and I was so touched. It's so cute that they think of us like that.
Ye: It's also nice that sometimes I recognise fans sitting in the stands and I'm like "Oh, she came!" That's very motivating for us.
Hannah: Yeah, it's really motivating to have our fans.
Okay then, that is all. You guys did it, your first podcast!
Hannah & Ye: Yay!!! Success!
Thanks to Hannah and Ye for taking the time to talk to us! You can follow them both on Instagram at @hanna.hlim and @quanye.1