160428 IZE MAGAZINE MAY 2016

Have you gotten requests for song compositions?

Jinyoung: I've heard that there are requests, but B1A4's album comes first so I'm concentrating on working on that. In any case, the best thing to have come out of me going on Produce 101 is that B1A4 is more known to the public now, with us even appearing on real time search ranking. As 'At The Same Place' took off, so did 'B1A4'. I thought to myself, this is not something that I do alone - if I work hard at doing it, it would help the team too.

What image did you want 'At The Same Place' to have?

Jinyoung: When I looked at the Produce 101 trainees, I felt that they met in a reality that at times was cold, and at other times was warm. They practice and make memories together at the same place, but depending on the final results they would eventually be separated too. I used those feelings to write the song.

The lyrics are obviously sad, but the melody is strangely powerful.

Jinyoung: When I looked at the trainees, I didn't only feel like they were simply weak. I thought about how I would have done if I went on the program myself, and it really wouldn't have been easy. They worked hard and did well at everything, and dreamt big dreams. That's why I hoped that this song would not just be a sad one to them. It contains the sad stories, but at the same time shows the strength of their aspirations in the chorus. I wondered if I should slow down the tempo, since it would be young girls singing, or whether I should go softer on the drum kicks. But in the end I didn't feel like that was necessary.

It also sounds like a girl group song from the 90s.

Jinyoung: I made the intro so as to make those listening recall their memories. I used the electronic organ for its unusual vibes. Many adults tell me that when they listen to the song, they think of their first loves. It doesn't end at whether I made a good or bad song - I always hope that the listeners can smell the same kind of perfume I hope they can smell. I always think that there is a scent for every person. It may sound a little outdated, but I don't feel like I need to change it into something more modern. My parents love music, so I grew up listening to many songs from the past and followed them to live cafes. I guess the feelings from back then kinda stuck with me. (laugh)

The song made a huge impact on the survival and elimination of the trainees. Did you feel the burden?

Jinyoung: I try not to think of the burden when I compose a song. The burden is there even when I'm composing songs for B1A4's album but I consciously try not to think about it. Otherwise even the good things might turn out bad. Similarly, I tried not to think of it this time but watching Produce 101 made me learn about how earnest the trainees were. I thought to myself, "If I make a mistake here, it might ruin someone's entire life". With those thoughts, I tried to be even more meticulous when directing them (during recording). The recording started in the evening, and ended at almost 5 or 6am for 'At The Same Place'. For 'When The Cherry Blossoms Fade', we ended at 8 in the morning. I was meticulous, but I wasn't strict! (laughs) There were many of them who never recorded in the studio before, so I felt like if I had shown my unhappiness they would have become nervous and cause a delay in the recording. There are many times that I've been much stricter when directing our members.

Just exactly how strict?

Jinyoung: I wouldn't say anything overboard, but more like I wouldn't let them out of the recording booth for long periods of time once they enter. There are times where one person took almost 2 to 3 hours each. To be honest, instead of correcting them with words, I let them listen to what has been recorded so that they can realize for themselves what needs improving. I feel like it's a much better method to do so rather than to tell them off. We've been together so long that they themselves realize what needs to be changed.

B1A4's 'Sweet Girl' and 'Lonely' feel very much like the songs you have made for the girl groups recently, maybe due to their vague moods.

Jinyoung: In terms of music that I listen to, I don't really have a particular type I only listen to. I like music that's totally hip-hop, and I also like girl group songs. Even when I go back and listen to the tracks I composed long time, the genres are all different. But I do think I like some kind of a... vague vibe to my songs. I want a song to not just end when it ends, but to leave an afterglow. That's why when I compose a song, I try to make it so that it evokes memories. I also like the term 'memories' very much.

Specifically, how do you do that?

Jinyoung: 'Solo Day' starts with a whistle, while 'Tried To Walk' starts with the sounds of wind. If you listen to the tracks on the Tried To Walk album, the intro starts with a very gloomy guitar melody, and then the sound of footsteps, after which 'Tried To Walk' starts. As for Lonely, there were noise effects - it contains a little bit of the sounds of children playing at the playground. I try many different things to try touching certain emotions. 

Perhaps it's because of these emotions in your songs that you receive the appraisal that even though you're young you seem like you know it all. (laugh)

Jinyoung: There are really many people who say so. The mixing director and producers that I'm close with are all in their 40s. (laugh) When we have a drink together, they say that they do not feel any sense of discomfort with me, and ask if I lied about my age. That's not true but... Hmm I'm curious why people say that of me. Since I'm not very sure about myself either..

You gained a significant amount of experience as a producer in a relatively short period of time. Have you ever thought of composing for other groups as well?

Jinyoung: I feel like it's important to be able to compose a lot. But right now, I don't wish for myself to succeed as a producer alone, instead I hope that what I do will eventually be an advantage to the team. The wider my spectrum, the more different B1A4's albums will be - I think that through such ways there will be good synergy demonstrated. Many people ask about a solo album, but I feel that there will be an opportunity for that some time in the future, after the team gets better success. I just want everything to go in its own flow. Just because I am a little more well-known now does not mean that I want to immediately release a solo album.

I guess you don't really tread on air from getting compliments.

Jinyoung: For both positive and negative comments, I only take 50% of it to heart. No matter whose words those are, there's no way it would be 100% right. In the past, when someone said that the songs I composed were just average, I got hurt. But now, I think to myself, "this person thinks of it this way" and just leave it at that. To alternate between joy and grief at one's words may cause everything to come to ruin. The first time my song was chosen to be a title song was 'Baby I'm Sorry', and I did mixing on that song for 7 times because I had no backbone. If someone said it didn't sound good, I'd fix it. Another person says it's just average, I'd fix it again. A mixing engineer told me before, that a producer needs to have his own endurance. At that point, I realized it. That I need to listen to the words of others but also stand my point. Thanks to that experience, I think I learnt more about producing. 

We hear that you did not start composing by learning it professionally.

Jinyoung: That's right. That's why at first, I did not think of arrangements. I would just record a very low-quality selfmade melody, and it got interesting so I started messing around with programs. But when I got it arranged, it was so different from what I imagined it to be. The more I tried my hand at it, the more I wanted to make something that I wanted. So I played around with equipment myself, did research, and eventually learnt to arrange music by myself. I think this is the correct direction. All my thoughts are embedded in my songs - I can't have someone else realize the things that I want in my songs. I usually go and oversee the mixing and mastering of the songs during final production of an album, and I take quite a lot of pride in that. There are many things to learn, and through that I meet many people. I consider all of these 'nutrition' for me to move forward and grow.

As much as you've grown, there is also a significant difference in the character of B1A4's music.

Jinyoung: We don't release music with the mindset that "this is the kind of image we want to show everyone" so it's not really a 'character' persay. I would rather say that our albums simply contains the images of how we grew up. It's the imagery of how we are aging.

True, you're already celebrating your fifth anniversary of your debut.

Jinyoung: I wonder how did 5 years just pass like that. When we first debuted, we looked at seniors in their fifth year of debut and wondered to ourselves when would we build up our seniority like that... But time passes and we're already there. When we were high school students, we felt like we would never turn 20, but now I'm already 26... But I try not to put a lot of meaning into it. I just like to think, "I'm spending my time well, and I will just continue to do so".

When you're with the members, do you feel that it's different from the past, as if everyone is now an adult?

Jinyoung: Honestly I think we are all still kids. When we first met, everyone felt like high school students. Whenever we're together we still play around like the old days so we don't really feel like we've grown up. (laughs) But it does feel a little new when the staff members working around us are younger than us. In the past they were all just noonas and hyungs, but there are lots of people younger than us now so it's quite amazing. 

Has the respect for each other increased with the amount of individual activities?

Jinyoung: Definitely. Last time, I was very nervous as leader. What if he goes on a program somewhere and makes a mistake? What do I do? But now everyone does well on their own. They all do it better than I do now so there's no need to worry about them. I'm even proud of them for being so cool, and there's much to learn. When I see the members like that, they do seem like adults to me. Of course, I also nag less now as compared to when we just debuted. When there's nothing to point out, I don't bother to find one to nitpick. It's nice to be natural. If there's nothing to talk about, it's fine to continue doing as we have been. But when there's something that sticks out, I'll talk to them about it then.

You must also have seen fans grow over the past 5 years.

Jinyoung: Last time, our nickname used to be 'Elementary kids' president'. Even though we haven't been around that long, it isn't that short either. There are many fans that we met when they were in elementary school, but they're coming to see us now after graduating and going to high school. Just like how the fans have watched us grow, it's interesting to see how our fans are growing up too.

So at this point in time, what's the most important thing to you?

Jinyoung: Definitely B1A4's comeback. Even though there's no fixed timeframe that we have to make a comeback by, we are doing our research well. Hitting the milestone of 5 years also means that this album is going to be very important. We're thinking of what we can show everyone after this fifth year. Firstly... A song that I'm fond of needs to appear. I feel that it's a little vague to rush our comeback without anything solid in our hands. But... we're working hard to come back as soon as possible. (laughs)

Source: Ize Magazine (1), (2)

Translation Credits: skipfire.tistory.com

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