Singers Baek Ji-young, Kangta, Gill and Shin Seung-hun have returned to the second round of “The Voice of Korea 2” live showcase showdowns. The coaches and their remaining trainees got together during a round interview held at the Goyang Sports Complex in Ilsan on Friday and shared their thoughts on coaching the young hopefuls.

The nerves on the faces of all of the contestants were transparent, and the thought of elimination was daunting: Young Song Poo-reum couldn’t hold back her tears as she looked to her coach for support.

“It’ll be very difficult for you to understand why she is crying right now,” said coach Baek. “But it’s a big struggle for her both professionally and personally to be here because she has been through so much.”

“When you get up on the stage, it’s not just about singing,” Baek went on to explain. “All your personal situations and struggles come with you because it’s not something that you can just ignore and push aside just because you’re singing.”

One of the key messages that the popular ballad singer tries to convey to her trainees is the importance of not just running around trying to take command of the stage, but being able to express genuine emotions while performing.

“It’s not just about getting onto the stage and bellowing out,” she said. “No matter how good you think you are, if you don’t sing from the heart, it has no meaning; and these are some of the things that I try to teach them.”

Gill is known by many for his comedic antics from the popular reality program “Infinite Challenge.” Although he may be seen by most as a fun TV personality, when it comes to his responsibilities as a singing coach, he takes a more serious approach.

“For me, I think I can be a bit of an ass to my trainees,” he said with a big smile. “I assign them very difficult tasks and give them a very short time in which I want them to complete them.”

His trainees revealed that they too were surprised to learn of their coach’s serious demeanor, but also assured that when they are not training, he is just as fun and light-hearted as he appears on TV.

“They have (trainees) made so much progress since they’ve been here. I am very grateful when they say that they have grown and learned musically because of me,” he said.

Coach Shin and coach Kangta admitted that they tend to take the “friend” approach by assuring their trainees that no matter the results of the show, there are still plenty of opportunities for talented people such as themselves to pursue their musical dreams.

“These are very talented people so I think they do have a lot of other chances ahead of them with regards to their future,” said Shin. “Even those contestants who failed in the past season, they still went on to do great things with their careers.”

“I am a supporter and to me coaching is like a partnership,” said former H.O.T star Kangta. “I think it’s important not to come across as dictating what I think they have to do and think of them as a sort of friend.”

Four contestants were eliminated during last’s week’s quarterfinals, leaving eight contestants remaining. The semifinal round will be held this Friday, where four more contenders will be dropped before the season finale on May 31.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)