COMEBACK YOON “I’d be happy with the description, ‘VOCALIST’”

[서울경제=추승현 기자] YOON from group WINNER will be making a comeback as a solo artist. 

YOON will be releasing his new solo-song ‘BORN TO LOVE YOU’ at 6PM on the 14th. 

‘BORN TO LOVE YOU’ draws on the emotions of someone having to accept a breakup and the feelings of hardship while going through the process. YOON had previously portrayed his own stories in his songs, but this time, he turned into the main character of a sad love story. 

YOON said “I tried a different music style compared to the ones I previously released. I’ll show everyone a different side of me, so please look forward to it”. 

▲ The following is the interview we held with YOON.

Q. You’re releasing a solo-song in about a year. How do you feel about your comeback?

A. I’m very happy I can gift my fans a surprise before WINNER makes a comeback. I really wanted to do activities with my new song and show it to INNER CIRCLES. I am showing different sides of me, but I guess fans like seeing me doing my main job, which is singing. 

Q. What was your first impression on ‘BORN TO LOVE YOU’?

A. I fell in love with it as soon as I heard it. If I had to put a genre to it, it would be a mellow R&B song which has YG’s own distinctive trendy sounds. It’s different to the rock or fork-based songs I released before, and I wanted to present a different tone this time. YE DAM from TREASURE who took part in the lyrics and composition process, along with other producers told me it suits me, so I started preparing my solo with this song.

Q. How was your chemistry with producer BANG YE DAM? 

I’ve been working with YE DAM when it comes to music for a while now. We both know each other’s strengths of our voices and that’s why I thought we could create good synergy. Above all, YE DAM is really talented. I’ve always thought he was a good composer, but I was shocked at his ability to write lyrics this time. The dept of emotions he portrays in the lyrics was absolutely astonishing. There’s a part where the person starts off the conversation dry to his ex-partner, and suddenly pours out all his emotions. I was amazed by his simple yet such detailed lyrics. So I left the whole lyrics up to him. 

Q. You always made your own songs as a producer and singer-song writer

A. It was really fresh. There aren’t that many times where I receive music from other people apart from original sound tracks. With the songs I produce myself, I get to find out the answer while I’m making it, but the direction of this song was already set. The process of reaching the conclusion as a vocalist felt very new. I tried to not lose my color while trying to maintain the original vibe of the song. I did make some changes to the melody of the chorus track, ad-libs, and bridge parts, according to my vocal expressions. 

Q. What’s the story of the M/V?

A. I played a guy who broke up with his girlfriend. It was my first time acting such a story with a female actress and there were a lot of intense emotional scenes. It felt really different because I don’t usually get angry that much, and I felt a sense of release because I hadn’t done such acting before. Acting for M/V actually isn’t an easy job. There’s no script and there are a lot of parts that have to be filled with ad-libs. I made sure to work those parts with the female actor. I want to thank her for her hard work. 

Q. How is it different to your first full album ‘PAGE’? 

A. ‘PAGE’ was my first solo album so the concept was ‘YOON as a person’. I focused on telling my own story. In contrast, I decided to be an actor that tells a story for this new song. ‘BORN TO LOVE YOU’ draws on the story of two people who were madly in love for a long time breaking up. I thought of it as a short movie or a drama. I did my best to focus and brought out a different side of me, and created this character. It was only natural for me to give changes to my visuals and concept. I want people to become curious about my next music, and also wanted to show a different side of me, apart from the soft side.                         

Q. The visual concept is really different from before 

A. I gave changes to my hair style. Rather than it being bright and calm, I wanted to stress the cynical side of me. Even with the outfit, rather than going something extravagant, I wanted to loosen it up a bit and bring out that dark side of me. I drew in a tattoo from the jacket shooting to the M/V, and it was difficult to draw it on the exact location every time. We created this concept with the staff member by actively exchanging ideas. 

Q. If you were to express this solo activity in one word…

A. Vocalist YOON. If I could hear that one title, I’d be satisfied and thankful. I really wanted to check out my own spectrum of my voice. With ‘PAGE’, I tried thinking about the overall flow of the album, so I went with one tone. But with ‘BORN TO LOVE YOU’, I sang it in different styles in a freer way. I really hope you listen to the part ‘I WAS BORN TO LOVE YOU’ where I sing it in falsetto, and also the last humming part. I really want to show different sides of myself as a vocalist. 

Q. I assume you’d be really busy with your solo comeback, and WINNER concert…

A. I am really busy, but I’m actually enjoying it. I get excited when I think about fans being happy looking at content related to my solo activities and concerts. 

Q. Can you give us a small concert spoiler for fans waiting for WINNER’s performance? 

A. There will be a lot of stages that haven’t been unveiled before. From WINNER songs to solo-songs…I hope fans can come themselves and check them out. It’s been a while since we held a concert, so there’s a lot of energy and we’re sharing many ideas. It’s different to when I prepared for my solo concert last year. It feels so reassuring to prepare it with my members and I feel like there’s so much energy. I can also rely on them more as I’m not the only one on stage. 

2022. 3. 14.