omonatheydid | Day6 Talk the Meaning of Rock, Career Aspirations & Fusing Dance Music With Their Sound (Reply)

(This interview took place at KCon New York)

Hours before taking the Prudential Center stage for KCON New York, the members of Day6 talk doing rock in a pop-dominated industry and their ultimate career aspirations: "I wish our band could have more influence, not just in Korea but around the world."

The members of Day6 -- guitarists Sungjin and Jae, bassist Young K, synthesist Wonpil, and drummer Dowoon -- whiz by in a cloud of cologne and coordinated black, grey and white outfits. The members look sleek and sophisticated, fashionable descendants of The Killers' Brandon Flowers or Interpol's Paul Banks.

Sonically, though, Day6 has more in common with the arena-ready pop-rock of OneRepublic. JYP Entertainment's first group with a rock concept follows in the footsteps of FNC Entertainment's early rock adopters CNBlue and FTIsland, two of Day6's inspirations. Though they're pushing against the tides of pop, ballads, and coffeehouse indie, Day6 has carved out a place for themselves in the industry, peaking at no. 2 on the Billboard World Charts with their 2015 debut EP The Day and reaching no. 6 with their latest EP Daydream. Their sound has garnered them a loyal international fanbase that avidly listens to all of the band's tracks -- even "Pandora" and "Eyeless," two unreleased, concert-only cuts that circulate on YouTube for the listening pleasure of fans who can't make it to Day6's intimate shows around Korea.

Before setting up their guitars and drums on the Prudential Center stage for KCON USA (presented by Toyota), the five members of Day6, from assertive leader Sungjin to happy-go-lucky Wonpil and talkative Jae, sit down and talk with Billboard about incorporating dance music into their Britpop-inspired sound and the strangest song they've written.

You're the first JYP Entertainment group with a rock concept. What do you hope to accomplish for both the label and the industry?

Sungjin: Super band! [Laughs.]

You wanna just be a super band?

Sungjin: Yup!

What does it mean to be a super band?

Sungjin: A band that has super high-quality music.

What does rock as a genre mean to you?

Wonpil: I wish our band could have more influence, not just in Korea but around the world, and that our music will touch people's hearts and speak to the audiences.

Rock isn't very mainstream in the Korean music industry. What inspires you guys to push forth with your sound in an industry dominated by other genres?

Jae: I think that's also one of our missions; we're from a very mainstream company, right? JYP. And we're doing a very non-mainstream kinda indie sort of music, something that only people like Hyukoh or maybe CNBlue or FTIsland are famous for and popularized in Korea. So I feel like another mission is for us to popularize rock band music, or just music in general, so that just more people are listening, and the more listeners means the more content is produced, more bands and more music.

Read the full article at Billboard

Source: Billboard | Day6 YT Channel

Nice interview. I like how Day6 has never changed their goal of bringing rock music and bands back to the forefront of the Korean music scene as well as gaining influence around the road. It's a tough road, but I know they can make it <3