A basement in south-west London has been converted into a bright white-lit dance rehearsal space, with nine Kixikars The 10 members (Jonghoon is in Seoul for vacation) are wearing sweats and sneakers. They had their first British meal, traditional fish and chips. This day is the day before their first UK performance, and from here they will depart on their first European tour. The xikers, Minjae, Junmin, Soomin, Jinsik, Hyunwoo, Shieun, Yujun, Hunter, and Yechan, are less than a year old, but they are currently experiencing many firsts.
“I grew up watching idols and dreamed of becoming one,” says Yujun. “But there is a difference in perspective between seeing and becoming. When you stand on stage and meet your fans, it’s a completely different experience. There’s a form of joy that comes from communicating with them.”
Seeun, whose high cheekbones constantly disappear and reappear under his gray hoodie, clearly remembers his first encounter with “roadY,” as he is known as a fan. “It was very interesting to watch them. You spend all your time [pre-debut] There were some difficult moments in the practice room, but when I saw them for the first time… it was all worth it. There’s a sense of pride in being able to finally show off everything we’ve prepared for them. ”
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xikers broke into the K-pop world in March last year with their fun, ambitious, and fiery meteoric song “도깨비집 (TRICKY HOUSE).” The second single, the chunky “ROCKSTAR,” was also released less than a month after her debut mini-album, “House of Tricky: Doorbell Ringing.” That summer, Xikers released their second record, “House of Tricky: How to Play,” which included two singles (“DO or DIE” and “HOMEBOY”), and then began touring, starting in the United States. .
Hunter, the only Thai and non-Korean member of Xiker, says the first show was a little awkward. “I was worried about my stamina because I was dancing to every song on the setlist,” he says. “The choreography is difficult, and when you dance while singing, you have to control your breathing, so it’s easy to get nervous.” Before their debut, they practiced breathing techniques by running on a treadmill while singing, but they rarely learned them directly. After a few shows, Hunter added: The awkwardness caused by my nervousness disappeared and I was able to truly enjoy the show. ”
It’s rare for a new idol to bypass overseas club shows and go straight to over 1,500 theaters, but perhaps that’s to be expected from a sibling group. Aties, whose gigantic sonic thunder packed international arenas long before it did so on home soil. “KQ is here.” [Entertainment] There’s blood in our system,” leader and rapper Minjae jokes about the label and its music production team “Eden-ary,” which boasts a frenetic pace, traditional Middle Eastern and Korean influences, It features terrace chants and a rock-meets-EDM instrumental at plenty of volume. Rearrange the internal organs.
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While there are certainly similarities between the creative output of ATEEZ and xikers, the latter’s small but mighty discography extends and plays with what is now called the “KQ sound.” And like the upper group, they too have a story and worldview, but as opposed to the gritty dystopia of ATEEZ, they’re rooted in supernatural science fiction, and more about youth than system-destroying. I’m drawing.
“Our world is big, but honestly, we’re just getting started,” says Minjae. “Our first and second mini-albums are like a trailer for us as a group. I think we’ll see more.”
The Xikers’ initial themes of fun, freedom, and fearlessness reflect their Gen Z selves, even if bigger, more cinematic ideas have yet to emerge. According to Min-jae, they “come from a desire to focus on the present moment. In the grand scheme of things, there is nothing we know for sure. There is nothing we can truly know. The only thing we can do is when we are together, and here and now. That’s why encouragement to be fearless and take on challenges is one of the messages we believe, especially for our generation. It’s a club.”
This spirit can be found in the nonchalance of “XIKEY,” the pop-punk of “Skater,” and the heaviness of “DO or DIE,” but for Junmin and Yujun, “ROCKSTAR” is at its purest. It’s an expression. It emphasizes letting go of worries and everything else and doing your best at what’s in front of you,” Yujun says.
There are three rappers in Xikers – Minjae, Sumin, and the youngest, 18-year-old Yechan, who first appeared in the idol world at the age of 12 on the survival show “Under Nineteen.” Each has a unique voice and has been writing tracks for the band since the beginning. They have a bit of a routine: “We like to get together in one room and listen to a guide track, and then we break up the verses and start writing our own lyrics,” says Minjae. -Sumin estimates that the process will take the following time on average: 4 hours.
“The one that took the most time was ‘XIKEY,'” says Min-jae. “It probably took about an hour. The longest one was probably “TRICKY HOUSE.” There were so many different versions of the version, there were probably six or seven versions of her. ”
“There were two versions of the verse for ‘TRICKY HOUSE,’ but the version chosen for this song only took about an hour to write,” Yechan says. Her thick hair is the color of ginger nut biscuit, which fits my idea. His eyes traced it without pause. “In the case of ‘HOMEBOY’, there was only one version of the verse, but it took about four days to edit and revise until it became what it is today.”
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As a band they are perfectionists, tweaking and editing lines in the booth during recording, and “putting a fair amount of thought into not just making it cooler,” says Seeun. says Mr. [than the guide], but it actually has the xikers stamp on it. ” Junmin: “Actually, we recorded “HOMEBOY” twice.” [on two different occasions]. That second version of him was the closest to the standard we set. ”
xikers are already a polished, critically-loved live outfit, a tornado of confidence, energy, and charm. “Usually there’s a dance break near the end, where we go hard, the fans go crazy, and we think, ‘Wow!'” he says of Seeun a little. Grin – But xikers aren’t really used to being interviewed in rehearsal clothes, without hair or make-up. The only thing is that the manager is sitting inconspicuously in the corner.
There are many scenes of wordless, coded glances and twitching of eyebrows – “You answer this,” “No, you accept that” – the platinum-blond, piercing-eyed 20-year-old. The eldest, Min-jae, is telepathically sending encouraging signals. However, once they get used to the rhythm of the conversation, there is a perceptible change in body position and atmosphere. According to Yechan and Hunter, they tease each other — sneering at someone’s thoughtful reaction or yelling whenever their shyness gets the better of them — seven introverts and two extroverts. Yechan and Hunter say the people are like brothers, one loud mass of chaos.
What do you talk about when you’re together and when you’re not working?
“We always joke with each other,” says Min-jae.
Who is the most virulent king of comebacks? Their eyes search the room. “Shiun,” they say in unison.
“At first, it was awkward and I felt like there was a distance between us. Because even though the company and the members are great, I’m very shy when meeting people for the first time, and it’s hard to get to know them.” We’ve been together for a while, so it’s all progressed very naturally. I really feel like we’re a family.”
Yujun calls Minjae his “GOAT” as his leader. Min-jae said with a wry smile, “Thank you, I’m very honored.”
Junmin said, “I think he’s a well-balanced person who sees the big picture and pulls us in the right direction.” Min-jae squirms, mainly because this is unusual for him to talk to the media, but his bandmates are amused and overjoyed.
“He’s a scary person,” Junmin, who leads Pileon, adds, half-jokingly.
“Sometimes,” Sumin says.
Min-jae has a hurried but sweet smile, like a parent with a toddler who just ate a box of crayons. “Yes, I’m not scared,” he protested.
The tall, soft-spoken hunter nodded. [he is] But he softened a little. ”
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The role of an idol leader is to guide, scold, support, defend, comfort, be a unifying spokesperson for the group, be respected but close to the members, and not above anyone else. . It’s a complicated balance to achieve alone. Over the years, Min-jae has found an important confidant in Jun-min. “We always get together in his room and talk about the team and our goals. I think he was very helpful in leading the team and I learned a lot from him.”
Their growth, both personally and professionally, has been exponential and remarkable. “When I’m on stage, I think in my head: ‘I’m doing well. I’m enjoying it. When I think, “I want to keep having fun,” I feel like I’m doing a good job and I’m proud of myself,” Sumin says. Jinsik added: “There are moments on stage when something unexpected happens and I used to feel depressed. Now I look at these moments more positively. I am confident that I will perform better next time and I will try to improve. I’m writing down what I need to do.”
For Hyun-woo, it’s also alchemy, taking away anything that could derail his performance and turning it into gold. Before our debut, we worked hard to give our best performance during our debut. Now our thinking has changed and we start thinking about how much we have grown and how we can grow even more to show it. ”
xikers don’t yet know where this journey will ultimately take them, but they have a strong sense of purpose. “I hope people think of Xikers as a great group,” says Seeun, and his intentions are: Going above and beyond to push boundaries and lead,” says Minjae – which fuels their inner flame. “I didn’t have any specific expectations before my debut,” Min-jae added. “We never expected to be where we are today, but we have worked hard to get here.”
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words: taylor grasby