Something Fresh, But YG-Like
[더팩트=정병근 기자] Idol groups from YG Entertainment(hereby YG) receive some sort of positive bias, regardless of gender. That is, fierce music and glamorous styling. YG’s rookie group TREASURE is different. It feels like they’ve added boyishness to YG’s fierceness.
TREASURE was formed through the survival program ‘YG TREASURE BOX’, aired from November 2018 until January 2019. They are YG’s idol group launched in 4 years since BLACKPINK and are the fourth boy group following BIGBANG·WINNER·iKON, formed to target the global market.
The size is different from existing groups of YG. The group is composed of 12 members, CHOI HYUN SUK, JIHOON, YOSHI, JUNKYU, MASHIHO, YOON JAE HYUK, ASAHI, BANG YE DAM, DOYOUNG, HARUTO, PARK JEONG WOO, and SO JUNG HWAN. They have the biggest number of members among all groups of YG. Their pre-release contents emphasized freshness more than that of senior artists groups in YG.
The fresh feeling got richer on the round interview held on the 10th. The 12 members were calmly styled in clean outfits such as shirts, sweaters, and jackets, and only their hair colors were different from each other. They looked like natural teenagers, which made them feel more intimate and familiar.
That is also TREASURE’s direction. Regarding their differentiated factors compared to existing groups of YG, leader CHOI HYUN SUK stated, “We also pursue something close to Hip-hop, but we are currently preparing to get closer to the public”. BANG YE DAM stated, “We are trying to approach them with looks that match our age”.
Their first step was the release of their debut single, ‘THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER ONE’, on August 7.
The title song ‘BOY’ sounds fierce with its synthesizer, bass, and drum sounds. However, the lyrics state emotions of a boy. The song presents a boy’s pure yet passionate love story, as he rushes towards an attraction which he feels for the first time, contrasting with the dynamically transforming track.
TREASURE had their music broadcast debut on the 9th through SBS ‘Inkigayo’. Many things have changed for the first 3 days until then, since the group has made debut.
‘BOY’ topped iTunes Top Song charts in 19 different regions and Japan’s Line Music Song Top 100 chart. Their MV surpassed 14M views as of August 10 at 3 PM, while their official YouTube channel has added approximately 300 thousand subscribers since making debut, adding up to a total of 1.72M subscribers.
JIHOON revealed his feelings on making debut by stating, “I feel because it’s my dream come true moment”, while Japanese member YOSHI stated, “The dream I’ve dreamt of since listening to K-Pop in elementary school finally became reality. I now have bigger ambitions to present myself in various ways”.
CHOI HYUN SUK stated, “I feel like I have to work harder since we are achieving good results, thanks to the fans. It gives me motivation rather than pressure”. JIHOON also shared his determination by stating, “I did not expect this. It’s a miracle that we’ve made debut, and that we’ve achieved great results. I’m grateful and I will work harder”.
However, they weren’t overly excited. CHOI HYUN SUK explained, “The senior artists did an amazing job in growing the K-Pop influence in the global market. We are trying to think and find a way on how we can also do well, in TREASURE’s own way”.
It has been only 4 days since TREASURE has made debut and they’ve only performed once on a music broadcast, but the group delivered their thoughts calm and clearly. The two leaders, JIHOON and CHOI HYUN SUK, answered most of the questions since there were a lot of members, but everyone listened attentively to every word as if they were united as one.
BANG YE DAM’s words, “Each member is a jewel carrying different charms, and we are TREASURE only if we are together”, really hit home. TREASURE has finally made their glamorous first step. It feels like they will be much higher up when we meet again next time.
2020. 8. 17.
