Traveling to learn about the world
Not long after James Lee celebrated his 27th birthday, the Royal Pirates bassist was involved in a freak accident in Seoul, South Korea, that nearly severed his hand and left it permanently damaged. No longer able to feel the strings of his bass, he quit his band and returned home to California, where he was born and raised.
Lee, 30, is celebrating his burgeoning solo career, which includes performances at KCON LA, a premiere party for his EP “The Light” and an acoustic duet of “Let’s Get Away” with his good friend Sooyoung (of Girls’ Generation). Though based in Los Angeles, Lee is on the road as much as he’s at home and called from Hong Kong for this interview.
An edited version of our conversation follows.
QA: I heard from a professor that if you really want to gain wisdom, you need to read and to travel. I would say that’s true. I feel I’ve learned more from traveling than I ever did in university or in high school. My hometown is identical to how it was when I was growing up. That’s part of the reason I originally left for Korea. I wanted to make sure I didn’t get too comfortable. the Wiener schnitzel was so good. It was also one of the first times I had beer with friends, because it was legal (to drink beer at my age) there.
A: I love Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The food is insanely good. I love the convenience stores, because you can get everything you need. Tokyo has the best ones! Bangkok is amazing. I also really liked being in Italy. Beijing and Hong Kong are great, too.