We hear all about the long awaited return of South Korean megagroup NCT.
It’s been over four years since Korean megagroup NCT first banded together as a colossal collective, and this year’s NCT 2020 release took the industry by storm as their album Resonance Pt. 1 quickly became one of few million-selling albums worldwide. NCT 2020 is made up of 23 members who also belong to their own smaller subgroups – NCT127, WayV, and NCT Dream. In the midst of a week of promotions for their latest release, tmrw sat down with some of the members of the group to have a chat about this highly anticipated comeback.
When asked about what has changed since NCT 2018’s release, member Doyoung ruminates on the ways each individual member has personally grown since then. “Compared to the 2018 release, the members have matured a lot. All of our groups, NCT 127, WayV, NCT Dream, they’ve all promoted separately and had their individual releases, so we have had the chance to mature through those experiences, and I think there’s a greater synergy that comes with that when we are all together again,” he shares.
While NCT has conquered new territory this year, there are still many new connections that the members themselves would like to explore. Resonance Pt. 1 presents multiple new units with combinations of voices that have never been heard together before, but some members are still hoping for the chance to work together in the future. Lucas mentions that he one day hopes to share the stage with a “charming and mature” Jeno, while Jaehyun is hoping to collaborate with the only NCT member who shares his birth year, Winwin.
The eagerly awaited 2020 release also brought to the stage new members – two members entirely new to the greater NCT universe, Shotaro and Sungchan, as well as three members of Chinese subunit WayV who have become members of the larger collaborative for the first time, Xiaojun, Hendery, and Yangyang. For some new members, being a part of the group is a dream come true. “I have always loved NCT. It’s a great honor for me to be a part of this group, and I just love being here,” Shotaro says as the older members high five him and pat him on the back. Xiaojun shares similar sentiments – “I feel honored and excited all the time. At first, I was a bit worried about being a fish out of water, but the members give me a lot of strength, warmth, and encouragement, so I really feel so comfortable with them.” As he finishes his sentence, cheers erupt from the members around him.
At their debut in 2016, NCT was introduced as the group with “infinite members,” and with infinite members comes infinite possibilities for what can be created. Resonance Pt.1 blesses listeners with everything from a swelling ballad with “From Home,” to an ode to 1990s hip hop with “Misfit.” “Because this is a new united, collaborative group, we’re able to try out different music styles which really brings out all the different charms of each of us.” On the subject of being part of such a large group, Jaehyun shares how special it feels to reunite as one unit once again. “It’s great to have so many familiar faces around all the time. Especially if we haven’t been together in a long time, it is really great to see the members all together like this again,” he says.
Above all, it is this collaborative energy of camaraderie, lighthearted fun, and the charm that they share with fans that carries NCT as a whole. As it neared midnight on a busy Tuesday in Seoul, the members were continuously giggling, singing, and joking with one another as if there were nowhere else they would rather be than here, with each other, sharing their music with the world. And with Pt. 2 of NCT 2020 on the horizon, fans will continue to happily receive all that the group has to offer.
