Co-ed K-Pop group KARD, composed of members J.seph, BM, Somin, and Jiwoo, has made a highly-anticipated comeback one year after releasing the buzzy mini-album ICKY and completing their Playground world tour. Since their 2017 debut with “Hola Hola,” the group has captivated fans worldwide by breaking boundaries with their incredible chemistry, fun choreography, and bold sound. In Where To Now? (Part. 1: Yellow Light), their newest mini-album, KARD is ready to share a new side of themselves.
Where To Now? (Part. 1: Yellow Light), KARD’s seventh mini-album is a refreshing and unexpected departure from their previous releases, which were characterized by their bold and intense sound. In contrast, Where To Now? (Part. 1: Yellow Light) is led by “Tell My Momma,” a warm and romantic R&B-pop song whose accompanying music video sees the members experiencing love in the Italian countryside. The mini-album is opened by “Waste My Time,” a track that blends soft vocals with a muted tropical house beat. The following tracks “Boombox,” “SHIMMY SHIMMY,” and “SPIN,” round out the mini-album with a more laid-back R&B and Latin-inspired sound that still seamlessly blends a heavier hip-hop bass that has been a mainstay in KARD’s music.
While Where To Now (Part. 1: Yellow Light) is certainly different than what fans, known as Hidden KARDs, are used to, its subtle sensuality against catchy beats makes the mini-album undeniably theirs. It also ushers in a new chapter for the group, who recently celebrated the seventh anniversary of their debut. Additionally, KARD is set to embark on their aptly named New Era 2024 North American Tour in October.
Kpopconcerts.com had the opportunity to chat with KARD about their comeback. They got real about their journey so far, their creative process behind the mini-album, and what they hope to share with fans on tour.
This interview has been lightly edited for grammar and clarity.
KPC: First of all, congratulations on seven years since debut and on the new mini-album. Lucky numbers! How are you feeling about these milestones so far?
BM: We feel amazing, first and foremost. Thank you for congratulating us. Lucky number seven! A year and three months [since our last comeback] is a long time, but relative to how long we’ve been active, it’s really showed us a lot of growth, not only as artists, but as human beings as well, and as members that also depend on each other.
KPC: In the past, you’ve experimented with different genres like reggaeton, tropical house, and traditional pop. Where to Now? (Part. 1: Yellow Light) has more of an airy, R&B feel to it. Can you share more about why you guys chose to go in this direction?
BM: For our past albums, a lot of our focus was on “What could we add?” Just adding more layers. But this time around, we wanted to focus on subtraction – how much can we take out but still make it look full? And it kind of creates a space where people can see how well we do our part because each aspect and each element is so distinct now. With that being the motive, it also tested our maturity in our artistry as well and it’s kind of what we tried to go with this time.
KPC: I think that’s so interesting because I’ve been seeing a lot of comments saying, “This isn’t what I expected from KARD, but I really vibe with it.” There are a lot of themes that you explore, new love, freedom, and self-confidence. I noticed that this is Part 1. What kind of story do you guys want to tell for the future iterations?
BM: For part two, we haven’t decided what light we’re going to use, just as long as it’s not red. I feel like it’s going to be green light. The reason it’s yellow light this time is because, like you were just explaining, we wanted to take a turn of direction, and yellow light usually signifies that you need to slow down so that’s kind of what we did. From here we can ask, “Is this the right direction? Is there anywhere that we need to turn?” I think the biggest significance of this album is yet to be seen because it’s gonna dictate where we go for the next one.
KPC: That makes so much sense. The music video for “Tell My Momma” also feels very yellow with a lot of sunlight. I really enjoyed the modern Shakespeare vibes that it had. Were there any memorable moments from shooting?
J.seph: When I was filming my part, I had the role of a painter and something really funny happened while I was in the zone and trying to act it out. I unconsciously just let the paintbrush go [across the canvas]. But for some reason, it only stayed at the nostril of the woman in the painting.
The members erupted in laughter, with Somin and Jiwoo hiding their faces behind BM as they tried to contain themselves.
BM: We shot in Italy and that was really different. Normally, we do a set here in Korea, but we flew out to Italy and worked with a team out there. So that was really interesting. It was very cinema-based, rather than the normal, super K-Pop video vibe with glitter everywhere. We wanted to go with something that just felt like a movie. So this Shakespeare reference felt good for us.
Somin: The weather was very hot in Milan. But we shot the music video in a very old, historic museum sort of place, and they didn’t have AC, so it was just crazy weather.
BM: We were dying. Everyone was dying from the heat.
KPC: You could say that’s the authentic Shakespeare experience! But the music video came out really beautiful, so it seemed worth it.
BM: Oh yeah. A little bit too authentic!
KPC: Most of the mini-album is in English, aside from J.seph’s rap verses. Could you share more about why you chose to go this route?
Somin: When we were preparing for this album after ICKY, we received a lot of songs here in Korea but also from overseas. When we receive songs from overseas, the lyrics are not always 100% there yet because we just hear the instrumental track. But for this album, all the songs that we received were from overseas and the lyrics were complete. The original meaning and all the work that went into them were perfect to us, so we didn’t want to change it a lot. We also didn’t want to change or alter the meaning of the songs for the people who originally worked on them. I think the fans thought the same way, because after the album came out, people said that the lyrics and the meanings were amazing. So we feel very happy about it.
KPC: If each of you could choose one song from Where to Now? to define KARD’s growth, which would you choose?
J.seph: Personally, I choose the title song. In my heart, my verse was my favorite. Additionally, me and BM made and recorded it ourselves with BM’s equipment. It felt like when we were trainees, just recording for a monthly evaluation or just for fun, just because we’re rappers, and we should be doing it.
BM: For me, I think “Waste My Time” is a song that shows a lot of growth apart from the title. I think the girls did amazing while recording. I was lucky enough to direct and watch them pull out a different color of their vocals by themselves. The only thing I was really helping with was just pronunciation, but both of them really tried to play around with their tone a little bit. I feel like you can just hear it in the outcome of this song. And a lot of the fans love “Waste My Time” too. That one makes me cry sometimes.
Jiwoo: I think that “SPIN” shows the color of KARD, but “Tell My Momma” really shows the mature side of KARD. Recently I saw a meme photo that a fan posted on social media. She posted a photo of herself having a juice or a soda pop while watching “Hola Hola.” In the next photo she’s having a beer and watching “Tell My Momma.” So it’s like showing the seven years that have been passed [since our debut]. I feel like that photo really sums up the growth of KARD through “Tell My Momma.”
Somin: So ever since “Bomb Bomb,” we worked hard on our current charismatic bass sound with strong songs. But “Tell My Momma” really has a different vibe compared to the past songs that we released. The relaxed vibe that we have on stage for this album is quite different. Through this opportunity, we feel like we now know that we can do a new type of music moving forward, while we previously thought we could only can work on strong, charismatic song choreography. It really opens up a lot of different options for us to prepare for the next album, which is a great thing for an artist.
KPC: So I want to talk a little about the KARDist series on YouTube. It sees all of you covering some of your favorite songs and sharing bits and pieces of your personalities with fans. How would you all say that your artistry has evolved over the years?
BM: I don’t want to say my ears are perfectly tuned, but they’re definitely more tuned than when we first debuted in terms of musical intellect. We’re able to be in a room and have a conversation and explain what we want in a way where people can get it like that. I think we’re more able to do that now. Normally, when you debut in K-Pop, the label has the blueprint set out for you. You don’t do anything, nothing creative. There’s no production feedback you can give. There’s literally zero creative control of anything you do, which essentially makes you into a robot that just sings and dances on stage. But lucky for us, we’ve shown that we want to learn in that aspect, and take the initiative in learning as well. So that kind of brought us to where we’re at right now, to be able to participate in the artistic process.
J.seph: I agree.
Somin and Jiwoo nodded in agreement.
KPC: So you guys are set to go on tour in North America in October. I noticed the venues are a lot more intimate and it’s an 18-plus age-restricted tour. Similarly, BM, your tour this past spring was 21 and up. What was the thought process behind this direction?
BM: Ahh…KARD is not for the kids. We do adult K-Pop.
Somin: We have some performances that are a bit provocative.
Jiwoo: I don’t personally know if it should be 18-plus. I feel like it’s more for everybody.
BM: You do?! Dang, you must have lived a wild youth. We’re still in the process of preparing for the tour as well. So being that it’s 18 and up, I think it creates a space for us to be a little bit more of ourselves.
J.seph: I agree with Jiwoo’s opinion. Everything’s good, everything’s okay!
BM: So J.seph agrees with Jiwoo. Interestingly enough, our first performance was at a theme park in Lotte World here in Korea, and our choreography was…we had twerking in it. What’s wrong with us, right? Why do we do that? Oh my goodness. We’re sorry to the parents. You know what – I’m glad it’s 18 and up now. I just feel more comfortable if it’s not a baby. You feel me?
J.seph: I feel you.
KPC: We do have one last question. What message do you have for Hidden KARDs as they take a listen to this new album, and as they prepare to potentially see you guys on tour?
J.seph: I’m looking forward to meeting you guys! I miss you so and we’re going to be there very soon. I hope to see you guys all there. We’re going to have so much fun together. And thank you so much for your support overseas. We’re receiving all your positive energies, and we’re healthy, so you guys be healthy, and just wait for us. We’ll be there soon.
Somin: Whatever content that we upload on our social media channels, we always see your comments. There are fans saying thanks for the content and leaving positive comments. It really helps us energy-wise. Just wait for us a little bit more, and please listen to our new album that just came out. We’ll be there very soon. Thank you so much.
BM: I think the significance of the destination is never as much as the journey and the people that you’re on the journey with. So while we’re on our journey, I hope your journey is full of happiness and you learn from your struggles. And we’re also on this journey together as KARD, K-A-R-D. ‘D’ is the card that represents the fan base. So let’s see how long we can run this shit, let’s go!
Jiwoo: When we’re here in Korea we receive a lot of support and love from the fans overseas, and when we’re overseas doing a tour, we also receive a lot of love from the Korean fans here in Korea. The balance that we have right now is amazing, and with that love and support, our confidence is growing, and it really shows on stage. We’re really enjoying performing and showing our love and showing everything we’ve got to the fans, both here in Korea and overseas. That’s something that we really appreciate.
Thank you to KARD and Lobeline Communications for the interview opportunity!