K-pop boy band TO1 on Thursday dropped its 3rd EP “Why Not??,” marking its return to the music scene after eight months.
TO1 is a nine-piece multinational K-pop group consisting of Dong-geon, Chan, Ji-su, Jae-yun, J.You, Kyung-ho, Daigo, Renta and Yeo-jeong.
This is its first album with three new members -- Daigo, Renta and Yeo-jeong -- who joined the group last year.
After dropping the new album, the group conducted a press conference in Seoul on Thursday afternoon to discuss its new music.
Thursday‘s event also marked the rookie group’s first appearance in front of local press since the band debuted into the K-pop scene in April 2020 with the first EP, “Reason for Being: Benevolence.”
“We‘re back following some refurbishments. The changes came through discussions between the company and us, and the decisions were based on the best for our musical growth and future. We’re back with a completely different atmosphere, packed with kitsch and hip energy,” Jae-yun, the band‘s leader, said.
The new album “Why Not??” is the group’s daring take on the world and captures the group‘s expansive and bold sound and energy.
The album’s lead track is “Drummin‘,” a funk-pop tune whose beat resembles a heart’s thumping.
Dressed up as cheeky drummer boys, the nine bandmates donned bright and bold-colored clothes and bounced around the stage as they showcased the song live during the press event.
Member Chan and J. You contributed by writing the rap verses of the song.
“We participated in the rap making to bring more synergy to the album. As the song overflows with a kitsch atmosphere, we tried to use words that could best convey the mood in the lyrics,” Chan said.
“Why Not??” also features four other tracks that portray TO1‘s upgraded musical spectrum -- “Boom Pow,” “What A Beautiful Day,” “Sugar Shock” and “Butterflies.”
TO1 originally debuted as a ten-piece in April 2020 with the name TOO, and in March 2021, changed its name to TO1, which is short for “TOgether as 1.”
“Although we were surprised at having our team name changed, the new name embodies our plan to walk forward together as one -- the members, our fans and the company staff -- and now we really like it. Everyone is trying their best as TO1 now, and we’ll continue striving to spread our name further,” J. You said.
The group faced another big change this year after four of the original members, Chi-hoon, Min-su, Jerome, and Woong-gi, announced their departure from the group. The group was soon joined by two Japanese members, Daigo and Renta, who had competed in the “Produce 101 Japan Season 2” survival program and a Korean member Yeo-jeong.
Following the release of “Why Not??” at 6 p.m. on Thursday, the band will kick off its official album promotion.
The boys are also set to meet their international fans for the first time next month. On Aug. 19, TO1 will hold its first overseas concert at the KCON 2022 LA, taking the stage with several other rookie K-pop bands for the festival‘s “KCON Rookie Stage.”
The boys will then travel around six cities in the US between Aug. 22-Sept. 1, to conduct their first concert series outside of South Korea.
By Choi Ji-won (
jwc@heraldcorp.com)
