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[INTERVIEW] 150304 The Presence of the Male Solo Artist with the Unique Voice, KIXS(키스)'s Interview

There are very few solo male artists active in the K-POP industry. It seems everyone is aware of this reality, but the truth is, the listener’s frustration just increases because there aren’t many alternatives (something all music listeners can understand). And this is why we are pleased to see KIXS’ debut. He knows how to have fun with music. He’s able to write his own songs making him well deserving of the title ‘singer-songwriter.’ And in addition to that, he captures your attention as a solo artist with the ability to fill up an entire stage just on his own. Let’s listen to the story of KIXS who is starting his career with ‘비율A+.’

Q. First, please introduce yourself. Hello. I am the rookie singer KIXS.

Q. 키스(KIXS) is a really unique stage name. What does it mean? It means to become person who can rise high enough to kiss the stars. Producer Kim Taewoo personally chose this name for me. I admit I was really shocked at first. It’s a provocative name and I was worried whether or not the name would even suit me. However, I realized that as long as I had my voice and was able to do the music I wanted, the name would be sufficient enough. So now I’m completely satisfied with it and I feel confident.

Q. Could you explain the ‘key listening point' in your title song? First off, a lot of thought was put into carefully dividing out each part of the song’s composition. The English stylized title of the song is “Beautiful” but the Korean title, “비율 A+” (“A+ Proportions”), is a play on words that is pronounced similarly to the word “beautiful.” The lyrics are also written in a similar style using puns. I personally think the playful/interesting aspects of the song would be the key point. I also consider the parts where I exclaim ‘WOW’ to be key points, although these sort of things depend on the listener. The line, ‘You’re short but you have perfect proportions,’ in the lyrics is another point of the song. It’s not really only referring to girls’ figures -- I didn’t think of it like that. It’s not just about her perfect figure or body proportions. But also about her perfect personality and behavior as well. I hope people will consider all those points while listening to the the song.

Q. You personally took part in the production of your song, was there anything in particular that served as your inspiration? I think it’s the same for all artists -- you just find inspiration in the moment. I really enjoy “neo soul*” and American music. However, I was really worried about not being able to do the kind of music that I love. While “비율A+” was in the production stage, I worried if this this the kind of music that I should be doing or if I should be doing music that was more appealing to the public. One crucial source of inspiration was definitely my parents. A song that my parents could enjoy. I wanted to make music they could have fun listening to even as adults and be able to say that it was good. Originally while we were composing the song, it was supposed to be a slow track. Even the arrangement itself and the initial guide track was slow. But as we continued to work on it and thought about how it would sound on stage, we increased the BPM (beats per minute), and the song gradually became more cheerful.

* Neo soul is a genre of popular music in the late 1990s. It describes a style of music that emerged from soul and contemporary R&B. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from jazz, funk, and hip hop to pop, fusion, and African music. Some popular neo soul artists include Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, John Legend, Maxwell, Musiq Soulchild and Alicia Keys.

Q. Was it difficult filming the music video in one-take? Or do you have any funny stories from when you were filming the MV? It was my first time filming using the one-take technique, but this was also my first production as “KIXS.” The idea was proposed by Taewoo-hyung and I thought it would be pretty fun so that’s how we filmed it. I also needed to be completely in sync with Goo Hara-sunbae. Originally there wasn’t even supposed to be a kiss scene. However, Taewoo-hyung asked that since my stage name was “KIXS” if we could include a kiss scene. Thankfully even with my limited acting experience, I was given an ‘okay’ sign for the kiss scene. While we were filming that part, there was a time when my shoelaces came undone and I fell over in a really funny way. I had hoped for Goo Hara-sunbaenim to leave with a good impression of me, but unfortunately that had to happen. She’ll probably only remember me as “the dude that fell” (LOL). It was also extremely cold outside the night that we were filming and even Goo Hara-sunbaenim was shivering. But I think since the way I fell over was so refreshing, causing everyone to laugh, that it cut through and eased a lot of the tension. But even when I think about it now, I still want to curl up into a ball and die(laughs).

Q. How is the producer Kim Taewoo different from the singer Kim Taewoo? He’s completely different. Usually he’s really easy to talk to. Even while producing he’s still easy to talk to. But when it comes to recording, he’s really different. You can forget the main vocalist of GOD, Kim Taewoo, that you’re used to seeing. While recording it was the first time that I’ve seen him like that. I was really surprised at how he was completely thorough and sought out every single detail of my song and pointed out all the things I could improve on. I really felt a professional aura coming from him during that time. I came to understand that the influence of a producer is really different. I don’t think it’s a lesson even money can buy. I think you just have to be born lucky to be able to work with such a famous person.

Q. You made your debut as a solo male artist in an industry that doesn’t have very many, how do you feel about this? I was actually unsure about it. Taewoo-hyung was the one who selected me and I was really unsure if I even had the ability to live up to that degree. It was actually a burden for the company and me. The possibility that I wouldn’t work out well was a huge risk for the company. If I were to fail as a solo artist, there’s no group for me to just return to. So I just kept on practicing and built up my confidence through what I learned from Taewoo-hyung. That’s why I feel like I have to repay him for all he’s done for me. Actually a lot of group members recently have the skills to go solo and there are many people who would do really well. So I don’t feel like I’m particularly special in that regard, but I do feel like my voice is one that stands out. It’s something my parents passed down to me. It’s the one thing I’m confident about and feel I have an advantage in, so I like to think that in the face of the public I could win based on my voice alone.

Q. San-E and Goo Hara made appearances in your music video and even before your debut you received a lot of support from many senior artists. Did it feel like a burden? Also what kind of influence did it have on you as a person? It wasn’t a burden at all. I was proud of being chosen by Taewoo-hyung himself. Rather than a burden, I felt gratitude more. It was really nice that so many seniors gave their support despite the fact that I was just a rookie being introduced for the first time. I felt like I had more confidence during broadcasts because of that. There’s a saying that goes, “a good beginning is half the battle.” Due to all the people who gave their support, I was filled with the strength to create my beginning.

Q. Have you ever met someone with A+ proportions like your song? Yes, of course, but that person is not the reason why we created this song. Taewoo-hyung brought up Goo Hara when he came up with the concept of this song. So I also came to think of someone small in stature with a small face as someone with good proportions. When I saw her first-hand at the music video filming site, I thought of her as someone who really matched well with the lyrics. I was fascinated that she matched so well with the song.

Q. From the time up until you made your debut, is there any particular incident you can recall? Ever since I was my third year of high school, I had my heart set on pursuing music. I didn’t have a set means at the time and just took private classes. Back then there weren’t very many institutions around. A while later I had opportunities to record guide vocals for songs and from there I was able to start doing chorus sessions. It was through that process that I finally was able to become a singer.

Whenever I went to auditions, for no particular reason it somehow felt bitter-sweet and sad. I was confident enough to know I’d get this far but on the other hand, I was also worried about whether or not I could really do this. While I was still training under the company, I’d get an evaluation at the end of every month and I’d have to compete with other trainees who were also my friends. To say it wasn’t difficult would be a lie. Taewoo-hyung continuously gave me missions to complete. He told me that I had only six months. If I couldn’t capture the style that Taewoo-hyung had wanted within those six months, then I would have had to leave the agency. I was under a lot of pressure. But through good luck and desperation, I was able to complete it in just four months. I became a lot stronger while I was preparing to become a singer

That six month period, was an opportunity for me to turn my life around. The chance to become a male solo artist is not one that comes easily so I invested everything into it. When the monthly evaluations started, I bought a chalkboard and completely filled it up with my practice schedule. When I think about it, I can recall exactly two moments in my life where I completely devoted myself to one thing. The first one is the first time I came into contact with music. I remember the times when I was just so fired up with passion I’d just completely bury myself inside the academy. My instructor saw how passionate I was about music and eventually just gave me my own key. The second time would be my monthly evaluations during those six months. Taewoo-hyung probably saw how devoted I was and allowed me to debut.

Q. Is there any particular style you want to challenge in the future? I definitely plan on showing some “neo soul.” I really love Maxwell’s music. In my own way, I incorporated the “neo soul” style into my debut song. But because I wasn’t able to show everything, I tried adding different elements. It’s a dance song, but I wanted to put a special spin on it. I really want to try a “neo soul” style song. Taewoo-hyung keeps telling me to write my own song next time so I am currently working on that. When I’m singing, I want to be able to show various shades of my voice. I don’t want to be held to just one particular genre, but instead tackle various ones.

Q. If there was one aspect you wanted people to focus on when they look at KIXS the artist, what would it be? Honestly speaking, I don’t consider myself to be a visually stunning singer. I hope people can just focus on the music that I make. My voice alone isn’t anything special, but this mediocre voice is all I have. I hope that when you listen to music you’ll just focus on my voice, just once. I’m always working hard to make fun and happy music and I hope that you’ll feel happy when listening to my music. Kind of like a happy virus. I want to become a singer who you’ll want to see over and over again.

Q. I know it was Duble Sidekick who did the arrangements on your debut track. So there were two famous producers, including Kim Tae Woo, helping your album. What did you learn while working in the presence of both producers? I’m close with the Duble Sidekick hyungs. I composed a lot with them since I was young. I arranged [the song] and I went to them. I thought it would be nice if the song was a little better. What surprised me was that I thought they would change the whole arrangement, but they had barely touched it. They gave a little more emphasis in places that had a bright feel to it and other than the brass arrangement they added, they kept a lot of my feel to it. Since they know exactly where to give emphasis and take a little off, they only touched these parts and they kept most of my arrangement alive so I was really thankful. I was somehow acknowledged for my work on the arrangement, so I i as incredibly pleased.

They also gave me a lot of advice. I received a call from Jang Geun-hyung. He always calls me Chief Park. He told me I worked hard, I grew a lot and said a lot of nice things. He is someone who sees me a lot and is someone who has taught me a lot about music. He even thought my music was packaged nicely. I thought it wasn’t a big deal, but I think my music came out nicely because of him, so I am thankful.

Q. You seem to have more producer connections rather than celebrity connections. Is there an advantage? Ever since I was younger, I had a lot of interactions with producer hyungs. I think I was able to start writing songs as I started getting closer to them. When you go in to record a guide, there are many times where you have to wait because the lyrics haven’t been written (because the lyrics don’t come out right away). I learned a lot important points while waiting. I heard a lot of words of wisdom, and since I used what I learned from producers hyungs back then as a base for my title track, I think I received an important lesson. I think the impact of the producer hyungs was quite tremendous. I feel like I owe them a big thank you.

Q. What kind of artist do you want to be remembered as in the future? I want to be a singer who is continuously able to stand on stage and a singer who receives a lot of love. I want be a kind and sincere singer. My heart is set on being a singer who doesn’t lose his roots. If I complete all of my schedules diligently and work hard, I feel that the public will give me a chance. I’ll do my best!

SOURCE: Dizcul TRANSLATIONS: huxshuxs

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