We had a chance to correspond with B.A.P prior to KCON this weekend, and despite their hectic schedule, they took out some time to answer some questions we had for them. We wanted to share what the members had to say about their music, international fans and of course about individual members’ quirks. Without a further ado, see below for our Q&A session.
All about music
1) Since your debut song, “Warrior” to latest single, “Crash,” you gained a lot of popularity. What do you think is the biggest indication of your fame? Are there any other memorable events that you’d like to share?
Himchan: Getting a lot more members to our fan cafe? I believe there are about 65,000 members registered to the cafe. I try to log in to the cafe as often as I can and it’s great to see that they like us more than we anticipated.
Zelo: For me, I have a lot more twitter followers. Thankfully, there are more than 20,000 followers.
Young-jae: I’ll never forget our first showcase at Jangchung Gymnasium. It was the first time we were meeting our fans and I remember being so anxious yet excited to hear the fans scream for us.
Yong-guk: Just to add on to Young-jae’s comment, we want to make sure that we want to remember our first showcase so that we always remember how we started our careers.
2) Compared to other groups that have debuted this year, what are you most confident about?
Yong-guk: Our team prides on being passionate challengers. We are not afraid to attempt something new, in fact, we enjoy it. For instance, we tried mixing traditional music with hip hop for “No Mercy” and we were glad to see positive responses. I plan on challenging not only music but other aspects of my musical career to continue discovering something new.
Dae-hyun: We are also very interested in societal issues and we think it’s a blessing that we are able to express our thoughts through our music, which in turn may influence the listeners of our music to think twice about the issues we address with our music.
Jong-up: The six of us all have distinct traits, which I believe is our biggest advantages. And we all have hidden traits and I think it will be fun for fans to slowly discover new sides of us.
3) Who do you aspire to be like? Why?
Jong-up: For me, it’s Chris Brown. I always listen to his music and make sure to watch all the music videos. I feel like no matter how many times I watch them, there’s something that I can always learn. I want to become as great of a performer as Chris Brown down the road.
Yong-guk: I respect all hip hop artists. They’ve all survived from tribulations, which is something that I want to learn from. Among foreign artists, I enjoy Nas and Korn‘s music.
Zelo: Among American rappers, I like Will.i.am from Black Eyed Peas.
4) Are there other members, other than Yong-guk, who are studying music? If so, when can we hear your work?
Himchan: It was actually my idea to mix folk music with hip hop for “No Mercy.” The end product came out better than expected, which was a pleasant surprise. Next, I want to try mixing New Age and hip hop. I’m currently studying producing but I can’t say for sure when I’ll be able to share my music.
Zelo: I want to be like the hyungs and am currently writing lyrics every chance I get.
International Fans
1) What are you looking forward to the best during your time in California?
Himchan: This is our first time performing in the states, so just the fact that I’m meeting international fans is very nerve racking.
Young-jae: Frankly, I’ll be thankful if they recognize us.
2) Your international fanbase is especially strong: why do you think that’s the case?
Young-jae: We have a lot of international fans? Haha. Maybe it’s because we have a distinct and strong hip hop sound? Also, I believe we are reaping the benefit from our reality show “Ta-dah,” which was aired in eight countries.
3) Do you have any questions for your international fans?
Yong-guk: Actually we do. I’m curious to learn about their expectations of us in terms of our music and performances.
Dae-hyun: And how they want to communicate with us. Currently, we do as much as we can online (going to our fan cafe and using Twitter), given that showcases in different countries are limited, but please do let us know how you prefer to connect with us.
4) Are there any B.A.P pros and/or cons that you want your fans to know about?
Himchan: We are like the boys next door — while we try to be powerful on stage, we are actually very playful.
Yong-guk: Our biggest weakness is probably the fact that we just debuted and don’t have as much experience and a lot of things are new to us. As a result, we may look unprepared or incompetent at times but hopefully that’ll get better with time.
Let’s get personal
1) What is your favorite B.A.P song?
Dae-hyun: I like “What My Heart Tells Me to Do” (마음이 시키는 일). I love the lyrics and it shows another dimension of B.A.P. We performed this during our showcase in Taiwan and I was glad to see the fans enjoying this song as well.
Jong-up: “No Mercy” for me. I have a lot of affection towards this song because we put in a lot of effort from start to finish.
Yong-guk: “Voice Message” (음성 메시지) is my favorite, well also because I worked hard producing this track.
Young-jae: I also like “Voice Message.”
Himchan: I like the light hardheartedness of “Crash,” which is different from other B.A.P songs, which tend to be on the heavier on the side. I feel like I’m just playing with the members on stage while performing this song.
Zelo: I also like “No Mercy” because I tried to rap in satoori for the first time.
2) What’s your favorite color?
Yong-guk: I like black. When I look at black, it calms me down.
Himchan: Red – it’s passionate, just like me.
Young-jae: Sky blue – when I’m looking at it, it makes me feel good.
Dae-hyun: I like black and white.
Jong-up: Green because it’s an innocent and healthy color.
Zelo: White – because it can match with everything.
3) Who would win a rap battle: Zelo or Yong-guk?
Zelo: Yong-guk hyung of course. He’s like my teacher, so there’s no way I can beat him.
Yong-guk: Zelo is like a sponge and he absorbs new things really quickly, so you can never tell with him.
4) Who gets up the earliest in the morning? Who always sleeps in?
Himchan: Dae-hyun is always the first one up and runs around in the morning to wake up the other members. I’m trying my best to be a morning person as well, but it’s not working out as expected.
Young-jae: Zelo tends to sleep a lot and as a result, he’s growing a lot as well.
5) If you were deserted in an island, which member would you want to be with and why?
Himchan: Young-jae because he’s the brain of the team. I’m sure he’ll use his brain to help us survive.
Zelo: Yong-guk because just being with him is reassuring.
Young-jae: I’ll be happy with anyone on the team.
