Well-received by the critics for their unique style, NINE.i are back with their second mini album [I (Part.1)]. After their debut on March 2022 the ten member boy group under FirstOne Entertainment, consisting of Jewon, Eden, Winnie, Minjun, Vahn, Vari, Seowon, Taehun, Joohyoung, and Jiho is now back and ready to show us their new chapter.
[I (Part.1)] consists of six tracks, including the title track, “Young Boy” which describes how brave the youth are. I.ENIN, the boys’ fandom, should pay particular attention to the song “Love”, which contains a message of love and happiness for those who have been supporting the group since their debut. The album also tackles various precious emotions that can only be felt at a young age, such as thoughts about youth, happiness, loneliness, worries, and love, and depicts the process of each member thinking about and finding their true self with their unique sensibility.
We spoke with them in an exclusive chat for the Italian public.
Nice to meet you, boys. Can you please introduce yourself to the Italian public?
Jewon: Hello, I’m the leader and the vocalist of the group, Jewon.
Eden: Hello, I’m the group’s clear faced member, Eden!
Winnie: Hello, I’m the rapper of the group Winnie, who can speak Korean, English, Thai, and a little bit of Japanese.
Minjun: Hello, I’m Minjun, the vocalist and choreographer of the group.
Vahn: Hello, I’m the group’s producer and vocalist, Vahn.
Vari: Hello, I’m the connector and the vocalist of the group, Vari.
Seowon: Hello, I’m the dancer and the charm of the group, Seowon.
Taehun: Hello, I’m the performance leader of the group, Taehun.
Joohyoung: Hello, I’m NINE.i’s vocalist and the powerful energizer, Joohyoung.
Jiho: Hello, I’m a rapper and the visual of the group, and the youngest member, Jiho.
You all have a data number associated with your name. Can you tell us more about it?
Eden: Yes, each of our members has their own data number, and you will be able to spot relevant hints on our worldview film and scanning film. Not only that, our music video also contains factors involving our worldview, so please check it out. We are planning to tell you more details through various contents, so please show us a lot of love!
Your concept is very unique, and as rookies, you are gaining a lot of attention in the industry. How does it feel?
Jewon: First of all, we are so happy that we are receiving a lot of attention for our originality among many rookie groups, and we want to let more people know about us without losing our own color.
Let’s talk about your second mini album: [I (Part.1)]. How would you describe it?
Joohyoung: If our debut album “New World” was the prologue, the second album “I (Part.1)” talks more about the story of NINE.i, and also shows more improved songs, performances, and visuals overall, so please look forward to it.
The title track, “Young Boy”, describes the braveness of the youth. Does it reflect in your life? When do you feel you acted bravely? You were very brave entering such a competitive world.
Vahn: I was just a hard-working student before I dreamt of becoming an idol. It took me a lot of courage to decide and act on what I really wanted for my life. That’s why I decided to debut as NINE.i.
Then we have other 5 songs: among these, which is your favorite and why?
Taehun: My favorite song is “I AM” because since it is a performance-focused song, it has a beat that makes you want to dance to it, and before you even realize, your body will be grooving to the rhythm.
Jiho: I would choose the song “Paradise” because I personally like that type of beat, and the voices in every part of the song fits my taste.
Vahn, you drew attention thanks to your abilities as a producer. Are you living your dream? What do you want to achieve next?
Vahn: I feel so happy when writing a song as a producer and performing them as NINE.i. I sometimes feel physically exhausted but even so, I enjoy the feeling. In the future, I would like to get involved in writing the lyrics even more.
Joo-hyung, you also participated in the work following the last album, and Winnie and Ji-ho took part in writing the lyrics. How was the process?
위니: I asked Vahn for the concept of the song and the meaning of the first half of the song leading up to the second verse where my lyrics is written. After I know the concept I try to find the most suitable situations that can relate to this song from my past experience and relive that moment, get that feeling, and start writing down the lyrics.
Joohyoung: I had a chance to talk with Vahn about music and share insights with each other during the production process. We constantly thought about how to put what we want to say to our music and how to make the performance look cooler.
Jiho: I wrote the lyrics for our songs this time, and there were no serious issues throughout the process. However, I thought too hard on it that I had some trouble writing down the lyrics, but I am glad that the end result came out well.
Winnie: I asked Vahn for the concept of the song and the meaning of the first half of the song leading up to the second verse where my lyrics is written. After I know the concept I try to find the most suitable situations that can relate to this song from my past experience and relive that moment, get that feeling, and start writing down the lyrics.
If each of you could describe himself with one word, which should it be?
Eden: “Lit”. It’s my favorite word and I thought to myself that I want to become a lit person. I wish people think I’m lit whenever I perform or just live my ordinary life.
Minjun: “Star”. I want to shine on stage as an artist.
Vahn: “Cat”. It’s my nickname and because people call me cat often, I feel like my personality is also changing like a cat.
Vari: “i”. It’s because I’m the connector of NINE.i
Joohyoung: “Brave”
Jiho: “Good”
Winnie: “Hopeful”
Is there some idol you are looking after as a mentor and would love to work with?
Eden: I learn a lot watching NCT’s performances! They try various stage and song concepts and all of them are really good. I will work hard to be able to show a variety of charms like a chameleon, so please send love!
Vari: My mentors are Doyoung and Haechan from NCT. Since I was a trainee, I really liked their songs and I used to practice with their songs. I really want to become a good singer like them.
Minjun: My idol mentor is Rosé from Blackpink. She was my role model since my trainee days and I learn a lot about being natural on stage as well as in terms of vocal from her.
Vahn: I want to collaborate with B.I. He loves music in general, so I believe there is a lot to learn from him.
Joohyoung: I would choose ATEEZ! I always watch them creating extraordinary songs and performances, so I would be thrilled to be able to work with them.
Jiho: I would choose V because, first of all, he’s so handsome!! He also has great facial expressions on stage, so if we get a chance, I would like NINE.i to collaborate with BTS on stage.
What’s next for NINE.i?
Jewon: We are planning to communicate more with our fans compared to our last album, and we are also going to show more NINE.i contents through various media!