Exclusive interview with Taeyang by...

Exclusive interview with Taeyang by Noonchi:

ENTERTAINMENT
INTERVIEW: TAEYANG TALKS RISE, BIGBANG, AND THE K-POP EXPLOSION
ON THE EVE OF HIS NEW ALBUM RELEASE, BIGBANG’S R&B KING DISCUSSES HIS MIXTAPE DREAMS, FIRST LOVES, AND THE DOWNSIDE OF K-POP.

In the early aughts, YG Entertainment opened its doors to two 13-year-old boys aspiring to become pop stars. The teens would study together as trainees for over five years before officially debuting in 2006 as members of K-pop group BIGBANG.

One of them, known as G-Dragon, became celebrated as much for his music as his fashion sense1, splashed on blogs and magazine pages around the world.

The other, Taeyang, took a slightly different path. Though a style trendsetter in his own right—you couldn’t wave a camera at Paris Fashion Week this year without catching him and GD mingling somewhere—the singer born Dong Young-bae has earned most of his accolades as a result of his musical output. Taeyang is the closest Korea has to a true R&B star.

His boss, YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun-suk describes Taeyang as “the type whose understanding of music and dance are really deep.” The proof is in the 25-year-old’s output: Among the five BIGBANG members, Taeyang was the first to release a solo effort (the mini-album Hot in 2008). Since then, he has released a string of hits, from his initial solo release, “Only Look At Me,” to the singles (“Where U At,” “Wedding Dress,” and “I Need a Girl”) off his debut full-length album, Solar (2010).

Whereas G-Dragon’s solo music is a hybrid of different genres, Taeyang’s catalog focuses solely on American-style R&B—and all that comes with it. On stage and in videos, Taeyang’s limber moves have earned him a rep as K-pop’s best natural dancer2.

Taeyang broke his four-year solo hiatus last November, wresting the spotlight back with the aggressive “Ringa Linga,” which quickly soared to the top of the charts across Asia. As he finally drops his oft-delayed Rise album, Taeyang candidly shared his thoughts on the K-pop explosion to reconciling his solo dreams with his BIGBANG obligations in this Noonchi exclusive interview.

How did you first get into music?
Taeyang: I started playing the piano at a young age. It didn’t matter what genre, I always knew I would become some sort of musician. I kept playing the piano until I was about 13 years old. Then I met members of Jinusean, who introduced me to hip-hop music. But even before then, I loved Michael Jackson. I remember the first time he came to Korea3. I started to like him not because of his music, but because of his stage presence. I remember seeing him dance and thinking, “Man, I wish I could do that.” I would watch Michael Jackson on television and imitate his moves. And whenever there were opportunities to dance at school I would participate.

Back then, who were some artists you enjoyed listening to?
Taeyang: For hip-hop, I listened to Jay Z’s Blueprint repeatedly. I also listened to a lot of R&B music, like Boyz II Men, Stevie Wonder, and others.

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