[인터뷰] P1Harmony “The average age is 18.6 years, courage is our strength”

P1 Harmony group (Kiho, Theo, Jiwoong, Intak, Soul, Jongseop) reached another career peak through their fifth mini album ‘HARMONY: SET IN’. According to Hanteo Chart, an album sales aggregation site, “Harmony: Set In” had initial Chodong sales of 132,000 copies, which is the sum of the album’s sales figures for one week from the release date, surpassing the its predecessor “HARMONY: ZERO IN ‘ in Initial Chodong, which achieved about 20% higher sales volume (104,000 copies). P1 Harmony, whom I met in a recent interview, is young and self-confident.

Symbol said: “It takes a lot of strength and effort to prepare an album.

The whole process of unveiling the teaser, track video and music video was both emotional and touching. I’m glad I liked the result as much as I worked hard. It’s an album that I like musically, so I wanted to show that P1 Harmony has grown.”

“Harmony: Set In” is an album about the steps of true harmony to completely become one in different values. The title song “Back Down” contains a message of unity and progress, saying that we shouldn’t be afraid and back down, but move forward together. In particular, Intak and Jongseop participated in writing the lyrics of “Back Down”, adding more meaning to the song.

Intak said, “If the previous title song ‘Doom Du Doom’ had a lot of melodic parts and I tried to give points to that part, in ‘Back Down’ I wanted to show a bit more intense rap. The word ‘pull back’ has the feeling of ‘move away’, so I created the lyrics so that listeners can enjoy it.”

The point of view of the stage is the splendid performance, which is the strength of P1 Harmony. Jiwoong said, “It was the hardest performance I’ve ever done” and Kiho said, “The choreography is difficult, but I tried my best to show a harmonious look on stage. As a result, I think we were able to create a stage that looks like P1 Harmony”.

Additionally, Intak said, “What I definitely felt difficult in this song was turning my head or making facial expressions while falling was freestyling. I think dancing well is about expressing the way you want to express yourself confidently. In that regard, it was a moment where I felt like I grew up because I felt like ‘now we can express a lot in this area’.”

P1 Harmony will hold “2023 P1 Harmony Live Tour – Plus Stage H: Pioneer” in 12 cities across the United States, starting from Seoul on January 14-15 next year. After opening the US performance in Los Angeles on January 20 next year, they will meet fans from all over the world traveling to Oakland, Denver, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta, Redding, New York, Washington DC, Nashville, Austin and Dallas .

When asked why fans around the world seem to like P1 Harmony, Intak said: “I think they like our free image. Even if you turn on live, you can play and talk freely, and you seem to enjoy that part. Furthermore, they are happy with the trivial jokes that come from our proximity”. In response, Ki-ho added, “It’s just showing the chemistry that comes out naturally, but I’m just thankful you love it.”

Debuting in 2020, P1 Harmony is one of the youngest boy groups with an average age of 18.6 this year. When asked if his relatively young age had an impact on his activities, Jong-seop said, “I seem to be quickly exposed to information about music. Since we are trying to find more music trends, I wonder if it will be reflected in the content that can be shown to the public,” he said with a smile.

Asked the same question, Intak said, “I think it’s an advantage that I’m not afraid to try anything. Usually, when we make music or perform, we have to think about many things, but we prioritize “what we want to do”. Showing a stimulating image is the strength of the team”.

After a busy year with three returns in 2022, P1 Harmony were hoping to perform on a bigger stage next year.

“I want to get on a real big stage. I hope the concert ends well and my goal is to draw strength from it and show a great performance on a bigger stage.” (Jiwoong)

“I think we are getting cooler with every comeback, and I hope our team gets even cooler with more comebacks next year. Also, I want to go on a bigger stage than now, and if I can, I want to perform in Japan, where I was born.” (Soul)

“I want to take the stage at the end of year awards ceremony next year. And, as every team wishes, I really want to win first place in a music show.” (Symbol)

[ⓒ 매일경제 & mk.co.kr, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]