iKON, “Almost Cried After Listening to ‘Why Why Why’, Puts You Immersed in Emotions”

[뉴스엔=김명미 기자] iKON, the ‘music chart influencers’, will finally make comeback. The people are looking forward to their leap, as the group is expected to fill up 2021 full of new activities.

The digital single ‘Why Why Why’ being released on March 3 at 6 PM is the beginning. The song is about ended love, like a flower that beautifully blooms and eventually fades away. iKON’s matured vocals and emotional expressions are expected to stand out, in addition to the lyrical melody of the song.

Although the song has sad breakup vibes, iKON is excited more than ever. iKON revealed, “We were longing for album activities and performances while we were on break. We are determined to spread and imprint out our name this year. We will leave highlights on every stage we perform”. Below is a question and answer interview with iKON.

-You’re making comeback in approximately a year. What are your thoughts on making comeback as a group?

▲JAY : I feel sorry to my fans. We’ve met each other through platforms such as YouTube, but it always feels like it’s been a while. We wanted to repay with good music. We are determined to spread out and imprint the name of iKON in the year 2021.

▲BOBBY : Since it’s been a while since we made comeback, the preparation process was fun. One thing we’re frustrated about is that we can’t connect with our fans at a close distance. But we’ll work hard, so please look forward to our upcoming activities.

▲SONG : We feel sorry and grateful for our fans. They’ve waited for us although we’ve been on a break for quite some time. We will revisit you matured, unlike iKON’s existing image. We will work hard to fill in this year with iKON.

▲JU-NE : I feel happy. I longed for album activities and performances during our break. I went through the times with our fans’ love and support. I would like to meet our fans with gratefulness. I also want to engage in our upcoming activities with a happy feeling.

▲DK : (Before making comeback) I searched for our fans’ reactions. Many people were looking forward to our comeback. We prepared hard to meet their expectations. I’m nervous and excited.

▲CHAN : I felt happy because I can feel the fans loving even the teaser clips. We are trying to present our better and matured selves. Please enjoy together.

-What kind of song is ‘Why Why Why’.

▲DK : It’s about lovers breaking up. It’s a sad song about a person who cannot accept nor understand the breakup, so he keeps on asking questions to himself as he eventually accepts. All of us members worked hard to pass on the emotions contained within the lyrics.

-What was your first feeling when you heard ‘Why Why Why’?

▲SONG : It’s the title track!! (Laughter) The compositions is unique. Most songs have an outro after the bridge section, but ‘Why Why Why’ ends after maximizing the listeners’ emotions. It makes you want to replay the song. There’s a section where DK howls in grief, and I can’t forget his face when he recorded that part. I think that is the killing point of the track.

▲DK : The producers emphasized emotions when we recorded the song. That’s why I recorded as if I’m crying out. I even had a bit of tears in my eyes after we recorded. We put in a lot of effort, and recorded for 3 separate days.

▲JAY : Yes. We put in a lot of effort. We packed in our emotions in every word. I really like the title as well. Repetition gives a lasting impression. By repeating ‘Why’ 3 times, the title expresses the tingling feeling of not being able to accept a breakup.

▲BOBBY : The song includes the members’ emotions, so it sounds sad. I almost cried while listening to DK’s last part when we were practicing the dance.

-BOBBY participated in the writing and composing of the song. Any behind stories?

▲BOBBY : I participated in the rap making, and discussed a lot about the concept of the song while talking to the producers. We delicately discussed the mood, melody, and the flow of the song. We made many attempts and changed a lot of things. Eventually, we decided that we should go ‘calm and indifferently’, which led to the mood we currently expressed.

-What are the point moves.

▲JU-NE : When we sing, ‘White ashes are all that remain’, we express the white ashes falling from the sky. I was personally impressed.

▲SONG : In my opinion, it’s the part when JU-NE sings while lying down at the first chorus. It’s a move we’ve never tried before. He lays down as he sings, ‘Why does laughter turn to cries’. The lyrics and the dance move go well with each other, escalating the viewers’ emotions. It has an appealing feeling.

▲JAY : You can discover iKON’s new attempts. This can be a spoiler but BOBBY doesn’t come out in the first verse, but appears in the second verse. The composition of the song will be unique and interesting.

▲CHAN : We had many meetings while preparing for the album. It was among the members only, and with the staff from our agency, when we proposed our ideas. The performance is one of the parts where we put in our everything. We didn’t just use the choreography made by the choreographers, but made many detailed corrections. We really worked hard.

-Is there any new aspect of yourselves which you wanted to show?

▲DK : We became more mature. One can even feel it through the individual album photos, which is what we wanted to emphasize in our comeback. As CHAN previously discussed, we put in the most of our opinions ever since making debut. What images we wanted to show, what styles we wanted to present, what challenges we wanted to make. We actively participated. Please look forward to it.

▲SONG : We also paid attention to the visuals. I changed my hair color. I have white hair now, but I’ll make more changes. As much as the fans have waited for us, we thought of many different styles we’ve never presented before. We will present new performances while alternating our styles.

-Any memorable behind stories while shooting for the MV?

▲SONG : It was very windy when we were shooting outside for the group dance. Since it was a rooftop of the high building, the wind felt even stronger. We were proud to complete the filming despite the tremendous amount of wind.

▲JU-NE : I agree. We were holding still, but our bodies were being pushed away from the wind. It became a funny episode now. (Laughter)

▲BOBBY : I don’t appear in the first verse. So I watched the members dance from a distance. I felt, ‘iKON is so cool’. (Laughter)

2021. 3. 3.