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K-Pop Spotlight: TWICE

Nine-member girl group TWICE are back with their latest summer hit, “Alcohol-Free,” and a new mini-album, Taste of Love. To celebrate, we caught up with the group to chat about their new music, style and aesthetics, and their dream dinner dates. It’s been nearly six years since TWICE’s debut under JYP Entertainment, and the girls are as busy as ever: between juggling solo performance videos and projects, a reality show, and talk show appearances, there’s never been a better time to be a ONCE. Check out our full interview below!

Can you tell us the inspiration behind your new mini-album, Taste of Love, and what you hope your fans take away from it?

DAHYUN: The taste of love has very diverse charms: sweet, happy, special, etc. I hope our fans can share this warm feeling with each other and build memorable moments with TWICE this summer through Taste of Love.

TZUYU: The title track of Taste of Love, “Alcohol-Free,” is made from J. Y. Park’s inspirations. Other tracks’ lyrics were written by some of the members, which have their own interpretation about what Love tastes like. I hope our fans can experience the different definitions of taste of love through our new album.

The three different versions of your mini-album represent Taste, Fallen, and In Love—what do each of those terms mean to you, outside of your music and fans?

NAYEON: K-food for Taste, because K-food is always tasty. For Fallen, I would say spicy food and ice vanilla latte, and baby blue color for In Love. I’ve fallen in love with baby blue color, which is why the song I wrote the lyrics for in this album is about baby blue love.

CHAEYOUNG: All three terms expressed the feeling of falling in love after tasting. I can relate to this feeling when I eat strawberries. ONCEs know how much I love strawberries.

Who and/or what influences your overall aesthetic—from your music to your style to your fashion sense?

CHAEYOUNG: I think the music I create and the fashion I wear naturally reflect my favorite movie characters, photos, and collectibles. Therefore, I try as much as possible to discover new styles and to love what I already love deeper so that I can broaden my aesthetic.

SANA: My feeling at that exact moment. I try to express my current thoughts, feelings, atmosphere, mood, and interest through my aesthetic, so I guess the answer to this question is my own self.

This year marks six incredible and busy years since your debut—what advice would you give to women who are just starting out in the music industry?

MINA: Instead of copying others, if you really spend time with yourself and find your true self, you’ll be able to shine brighter than any other people. Loving yourself and believing what you think is right is the most important advice I’d like to give to future stars.

JIHYO: There is a saying in Korea, “Well begun is half done.” The courage to start itself can propel you to achieve so many things. Instead of doubting yourself, love yourself more and the work you make for the world. Before you know, you’ll be at the top of your world.

What is your self-care routine?

TZUYU: I always try to stay fit and healthy so that I can be with ONCE as long as I want and deliver the best performances! This motivation helps me take care of myself.

MOMO: Eating a lot and staying healthy by exercising. My self-care tip is to laugh out loud and smile since staying happy is the most powerful and important self-care routine. I try to spread this tip with TWICE’s members and ONCEs by making them laugh.

What’s your favorite lyric from your discography?

JEONGYEON: These days, I’m into “YOU IN MY HEART.” I want to perform this song in front of ONCE and treasure ONCEs’ individual faces and cheer in my heart.

JIHYO: I love the lyrics of “Feel Special.” The overarching storyline behind this song is that I’m able to smile again because of you. I especially like the first part of the song, “There are one of those days. Days when I suddenly feel all alone. When I feel like I don’t belong anywhere and my head is hanging down,” because everyone can relate to this moment. I hope “Feel Special” can energize whoever is experiencing these days out there!

If you could have dinner with one person, living or dead, who would it be and why?

DAHYUN: My dad. Because I wasn’t able to spend a lot of time with my family after debut due to living apart, I would like to have healing moments eating warm and delicious dinner with my family.

MOMO: If it’s just one person, it’s too hard to decide, because there are so many people I like, including our very special fans, ONCE! If I can’t have dinner with each and every one of them, I’d rather have dinner by myself while connecting through livestream, eating all the food for ONCE.