NCT WISH sings of first love in ‘poppop’

On Thursday, at a studio in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, SM Entertainment's six-member boy group NCT WISH (members: Sion, Riku, Yushi, Jaehee, Ryo, Sakuya) discussed their second mini album, poppop, which was released at 6 p.m. Monday. They described the title track, "poppop," as a dance-pop song filled with bright and refreshing emotions, capturing the excitement of first love that bubbles with energy.

NCT WISH debuted in February last year as a multinational group localized for the Japanese market. Of the six members, four (Riku, Yushi, Ryo, Sakuya) are Japanese, and two are South Korean. They are also the "youngest" unit within SM's NCT umbrella, which includes groups like NCT U and NCT 127 that debuted earlier.

The group continues to uphold NCT's signature "neo" style while embracing "refreshing charm" as their core concept. "This is our second mini album, released on our one-year anniversary, so I'm especially excited," leader Sion said. "Among the members, we often say, 'With everything we learned last year, we can do even better this year.'"

The members, born between 2002 and 2007, said they imagined their fan club, "NCTzen," while trying to capture the feelings of first love in their songs. "When we perform, I really feel the love of our fans from the way our 'Czennies' (nickname for NCTzen) look at us. Seeing touching slogans like 'Thank you for singing for us' always makes me want to work even harder," Jaehee said.

The album includes six tracks that portray first love in various ways, such as "Melt Inside My Pocket," which uses the metaphor of chocolate that melted before it could be given to someone special, and the confession song "1000," which expresses affection through the image of folding 1,000 paper cranes.

The Japanese members have also made notable progress in their Korean language skills as they continue activities across South Korea and Japan. "After debut, I've had many more conversations with the members, and I can definitely feel my Korean getting better," Ryo said.

Including their debut single, WISH, NCT WISH has now surpassed two million cumulative album sales across three albums. As of Sunday, their new album poppop had already received 1.21 million pre-orders, setting a new personal record. "Last year, our goal was to perform at the Tokyo Dome. This year, I'd love for us to try a world stadium tour," Jaehee said, smiling.

"If we keep working hard, maybe that world tour dream will come true. We'll give it our all!" Sakuya added.


사지원 기자 4g1@donga.com