How EVNNE Showcases the Evolution From ‘Cheeky Rascal’ to ‘Romantic’ Boy Band in Under a Year

Jeff Benjamin
·10 min read

With millions of worldwide viewers tuning in and casting votes for contestants in the K-pop survival show Boys Planet, contestants who didn’t make a place in the final band left the program with fans eager to see their next steps. No group perhaps better embraces such potential than EVNNE, the seven-member boy band quickly ascending the K-pop ranks and proving themselves as far more than just a simple spin-off act.

Noted for an intense collective charisma, the boy band’s debut with hard-hitting singles “Trouble” and “Ugly” spoke to a viewpoint as the convention-defying underdogs ready to prove themselves to the world. The group scored number-one hit songs and awards on Korea’s competitive music programs, and this summer, they embarked on their first U.S. tour to expand their international fanbase and showcase their dynamic performances across multiple cities.

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“We didn’t expect it, but we really wanted it,” EVNNE’s leader Keita says of the group’s ability to break out beyond Korea and tour the States. “We felt that there were a lot of fans all over the world cheering for us while we were doing such a program like Boys Planet…it’s really a dream come true.”

But it’s not just the awards and accolades that define EVNNE’s success. In less than a year, the group has shown remarkable evolution in their musical style, transitioning from the rebellious anthems of their debut to a softer, more romantic sound with their third EP, RIDE or DIE from June. The lead single, “Badder Love,” a soothing rock-pop track recorded in Korean and English, marks a new chapter for the group.

“The reason we came out with the concept of bad guys when we made our debut was because we wanted to show the public what we can do best,” Ji Yunseo says. “But we released a refreshing album like this because we wanted to show a new side of us.”

With accomplishments both in awards and artistry, the septet of Keita, Park Hanbin, Lee Jeonghyeon, Ji Yunseo, Yoo Seungeon, Mun Junghyun, and Park Jihoo have managed to carve their place in the industry and show lasting potential even if the group’s time together may be short. Read on for why EVNNE is a group to watch as Billboard‘s K-Pop Rookie of the Month for August 2024.

Congratulations on your success so far and on being named Billboard‘s Rookie of the Month! How do you feel about your achievements over the past few months?

JI YUNSEO: We’ve been through a lot with our members and together we’ve achieved a lot of things, but time is really flying by so fast — faster than I thought. It feels surreal that we’ve been spending so much time together and able experience a lot of things in such a short time, but it also has been very short. Even so, we have realized that there are more fans and more people really supporting us, giving us so much love, so we are just very happy and grateful for everything.

YOO SEUNGEON: I want to add that I’m so happy to be able to come to the U. S. tour following the Asia tour and so excited to meet people from different places. We truly believe that winning on the music shows and being able to go on tours in different countries is all thanks to our fans’ love and support for us. So, we are very thankful for that. We are also very happy and excited to be named as the Rookie of the Month on Billboard. We have been really wanting this so thank you so much.

While you didn’t earn a place in the final group for Boys Planet, you are here now, winning awards and going on tour. Did you guys expect all these things to happen?

KEITA: We didn’t expect it, but we really wanted it. We felt that there were a lot of fans all over the world cheering for us while we were doing such a program, so we always dreamed that we wanted to go to many cities, perform for many fans, share our energy and communicate with them. It’s really a dream come true.

How is touring North America?

PARK JIHOO: So, we were really happy that the crowd cheers were so much bigger than we expected. From what I understand, there are about 500 people per venue for this tour, but from what we felt on stage, it really felt like the cheer was coming from 5,000 or even 50,000 people — it was really loud. I feel like we’ve been really eager to share our energy with the audience, but in return, I think we got even more energy and motivation from them.

MUN JUNGHYUN: We were able to sing the English version of “Badder Love” for the first time, and I think the response was good because the fans sang along to the whole song which made us really happy. Also, we were able to show “XO” with its choreography in full for the first time on this U.S. tour and it felt like they were cheering so much for that song.

SEUNGEON: You know, the global fans who don’t necessarily speak Korean tend to hum to our songs, instead of like singing along to the actual lyrics, which is still really cute, but we always had a little bit of regret that and wish everyone could really sing along together from start to finish. But with the English version [of “Badder Love”], they were really able to do it and were singing along to the song while we were performing, so it was really a great experience. It really motivated us and, one day, we would love to release more songs in different, various languages in the future.

Any languages you might want to record in next?

PARK HANBIN: We go to Japan a lot and there are a lot of our fans and people who support us in Japan so, I think it would be nice to make a version that can be done in Japanese.

Going back to “Badder Love,” it feels like this album centers around a softer image and less intense than the concepts for your singles like “Trouble” or Ugly.” What does EVNNE want to prove this time around?

PARK JIHOO: Our main focus was to really show a different side of ourselves compared to our first two albums. For our first and second mini albums, we really wanted to show that “cheeky rascal” side, which is more powerful and very straightforward. But with the third album, we wanted to show more of a romantic, a softer side of us.

YUNSEO: Actually, the reason we came out with the concept of bad guys when we made our debut was because we wanted to show the public what we can do best while talking to the company. That’s how we made our debut. We released a refreshing album like this because we wanted to show a new side of us. We’ve always been able to do this, but we’ve shown you a little bit of a bad boy and a strong image, but this time, we’re going to show you a bit of a different image.

LEE JEONGHYOEN: We have some all-white outfits in the music video that are very fitting for summer. There are also no really bright hair colors. Actually, this is my first time dying my hair in brown, so we really focused on showing the right styling for the concept through this album. A lot of the backgrounds in the music video are set in the ocean, so in my opinion, that really emphasizes on the refreshing, cool side of the song and the music video.

I saw you guys compete in the Idol Star Athletic Championship and reunite even with some of the Boys Planet contestants. How was that after all you went through?

HANBIN: We participated in two of the events during the program and we really prepared ourselves to do our best in it while preparing for this tour. We had to find little moments here and there to really prepare for ISAC, but I think it was a great opportunity for us to promote who we are and what we can do to even more people. So, it was a really great experience overall and, like you mentioned, we were able to talk and chat with many other artists as well including ZEROBASEONE. It’s actually been a while since we got to chat and reunite with them, so it was really fun to be reconnecting.

YUNSEO: Our schedules don’t really leave us a lot of time to meet in person or privately, but I was so happy to meet my friends that were at Idol Star Athletics Championships, talk, and play sports and games together.

KEITA: I met Matthew and I told him, “Hey Matt, I’m studying English!” and he said, “Hey, your pronunciation is not as bad as I thought!” but in Korean. So, I got a compliment from him.

SEUNGEON: I think fans who watched the show were really waiting to see us all again and a Boys Planet reunion one day. This was actually our first opportunity for all the Boys Planet groups and artists to come together, really reunite, talk to each other and just have a good time in general. I felt like it was a school event in some ways because there are a lot of idol seniors, juniors and colleagues, but we all have the same dream and passion for music and artistry, so it really felt like we were at a school event all together. So, overall it was a very, very fun event.

HANBIN: I actually ran into some friends whom I trained with, so while it felt really very new, and it also really reminded me like we were back in school all together and we were at a school event together rather a TV show program.

Do you have a message you’d like to share with international fans waiting to see you?

YUNSEO: First of all, we were selected as the Rookie of the Month, so I’d like to say thank you so much. It’s a great honor, and beginning with this, we’d like to show you all more and promote our name to an even bigger audience around the world so we can really share our artistry and who we are to everyone around the world. And in the future, we really hope we can someday have our song chart on the Billboard charts. We will work hard for that, so it would be great if the American fans and international fans know about us and send us your continued love, support, and attention.

SEUNGEON: We’ve been really eager to share incredible performances through this tour and please, please look forward to all our activities and performances in the future as well. It’s a great honor, again, to be selected as the Rookie of the Month with Billboard.

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