[Exclusive] YG’s YANG, “iKON? Aiming to Debut Early Next Year”
[OSEN=손남원 기자] YG’s sensation continues on in 2015. Actually, it is expected to grow even bigger. Starting with 2NE1’s comeback early this year to AKDONG MUSICIAN, TAEYANG, PSY, WINNER, EPIK HIGH, HI SUHYUN and GD X TAEYANG, every artist swept across all music charts. Whether they were YG’s representing artists or newbies, all of them stood at the top. So who will be the ones to cut the ribbon next year?
YG’s executive producer YANG HYUN SUK refused to be interviewed as he was “too busy preparing for iKON’s debut.” He added, “We are not looking back. We don’t even have time to prepare things for the future. Stay tuned for iKON.”
According to YG, YANG is devoting every second of his time for iKON’s debut album, except for filming SBS’s audition program “K-Pop Star.” He lets experienced artists like PSY, BIGBANG, 2NE1, and EPIK HIGH to do their own thing, and only gives them advice from time to time.
But it is a different story when it comes to newbies. LEE HI, AKMU, WINNER—he was 100% in charge of the album production and training. This applied to BIGBANG and 2NE1 when they just made a debut. YANG is known for fully supporting, even going to TV studios with them, when JinuSean, Whee Sung and BIGBANG made a debut.
And now his radar is on iKON. In an interview, YANG once mentioned, “Since iKON has already tasted the bitterness of failure, they are more competitive and passionate. They do traditional hip-hop and they are perfectly equipped with the ability to produce songs.” This shows that he is not holding back on giving compliments. Thus it is only natural to have iKON as the front-runner of 2015, where artists like PSY, WINNER, new girl group and BIGBANG as a whole will be making a comeback.
In terms of iKON, they already secured a solid fan base through “MIX & MATCH” when they competed against WINNER. They also proved their amazing musical talents. BOBBY and B.I already appeared on “Show Me the Money 3” while also featuring in EPIK HIGH’s “BORN HATER.” Rising to stardom, for them, is nothing new.
Their popularity is borderless. Starting from Dec 15 and 16, iKON opened BIGBANG’s 5 Japan Dome Tour, being spotlighted by local fans and media.
2014. 12. 29.
