Aspiring Cat

A musician said this once on a music program: “once you become popular, you become lazy. You realize how you can earn lots of money and fame. At that point, your career is over as a singer.”  In the end, band FTISLAND gave up a path “to earn lots of money and fame.” The success of ‘Love Sick’ (2007), ‘Thunder’ (2007), ‘I Hope’ (2009) clearly showed what the public wants from FTISLAND. FTISLAND, however, did not give into what the public wants. Starting with ‘I WILL’ (2015), they went their own path. Their advice: “Go the way you want to go. Experience failures and unexpected successes.” 

Q. The album title stands out. What does ‘Where’s The Truth?’ mean? 

Choi Minhwan: It means we will find our own way. We debuted with a popular ballad and promoted similar songs. At the time, vocal-focused ballad song were popular and the company thought we needed to do popular-style songs to become popular quickly. That put us in a category but we realized, that’s not our color. Starting with ‘I WILL,’ we are trying to do what we want to do.  

Q. With songs like ‘Love Sick,’ ‘After Love,’ and ‘I Hope,’ there was a code that the public clearly liked. Will you be abandoning that color? Lee Hongki: We won’t abandon it completely. We are trying to personalize the standard style. Melodical but with emphasis on band sound, an arrangement where instruments can communicate with a vocal. IT’s just that we consider right now as our turning point. So we are trying to do the music that we are the best at, and wanted to do the most.  

Q. Do you want to do well on music charts? Lee Hongki: We gave up! Song Seunghyun: We didn’t give up Lee Hongki: It’s out of our hands Song Seunghyun: It’s not out of our hands. (Everyone laughs) Honestly, we aren’t too greedy. Wouldn’t making it into the top 50 a success?

Q. ‘Take Me Now’ Music Video has a public burning scene. Shooting it must haven’t been easy.  Everyone: We thought we were going to die Song Seunghyun: A light exploded in the middle of the shoot. I thought there was going to be a real fire. Hongki was farther away from the light than I was. He quickly covered his face. Choi Minhwan: You~! You asked me to switch places with you. Chicken! (Everybody laughs) The fire was really hot and shooting it was really hard so it took us a long time. The gas smell was very strong so we had to go out to get fresh air. It was really hard. 

Q. Why did you add the public burning scene if it was that hard? Song Seunghyun: CG effect was too expensive. Ha Ha Ha.  Lee Hongki: We wanted to show a strong visual. We worked hard on our album jacket too. Because we are all good looking, we want to show them clearly. (Laughs)

Q. How do you work on an album? Choi Minhwan: We each write a song and once we decide on a direction, we share them with members. After that, we work on them together by rearranging them and fixing melodies. One person may write a song but we finish it together. That helps us really understand the song and makes recording easy. 

Q. What do you talk about the most while working on an album? Choi Minhwan: “What should our title song be?”

Q. You must’ve had strong candidates for the title song Lee Hongki: We couldn’t decide between ‘Out Of Love’ and ‘Take Me Now.’ But considering the season, we picked energetic ‘Take Me Now.’ Jonghun suggested more popular style ‘Fade Into You’ since we did a strong music last time. We had finally changed a perception on us with ‘Pray.’ So I was worried that if we do another soft song, people may think we are back to where we started. We decided to go with a strong song because we thought we needed to really drive it in. 

Q. You said ‘Take Me Now’ comes with a message about finding your own answer. Please elaborate.  Lee Hongki: I often see people trying to find their way by listening to others. I don’t think you can find the answer without facing it and experiencing it yourself. Lyrics in the middle of the song go ‘I don’t need you.’ That means, ‘I don’t need you all telling me the same truth. I will find the truth on my own.’ People suggest you to go the given path. But we hope you get out of your given frame and go the way you want to go. Experience failures and unexpected successes. 

Almost in their 10th year, FTISLAND continues to sketch out their future as a successful band. They say they hope to stay as a band even after they get older and get married. As they dream to become a band loved for long time, we look forward to how they will showcase their own color.

In June, 2007, FTSLAND debuted as a rather interesting group. They were called a band but were more known for their visuals. They were more of idol stars and were even nicknamed an ‘idol band.’ However, they didn’t settle as the flower boy band and continued to grow. Now, they are back with an album with their own color, 6th official album ‘Where’s The Truth?’ FTISLAND is approaching their first decade in the music scene. Their 10th anniversary is next year. Lee Hongki says they are planning something special for that time. Lee Hongki: “Maybe it’s because we debuted really young, I still feel like I’m 22. Looking back, it’s been a long time. But I don’t think it’s been a long time. So I really like it. I never cared about the 5-year and 7-year jinx but when we think ‘so they’ve been active for 7 years already? Then how old are we?’”

Looking back at their 10 years together, Lee Jaejin says the most memorable moment was when new member Song Senghyun joined the team.

Lee Jaejin: “Seunghyun wasn’t with us when we were really doing well and when we crashed hard. But when we talk about those moments, Seunghyun says he watched it on TV. He is so cute.”

Lee Hongki: “Seunghyun said he was really excited about joining FTISLAND because we watched us at our prime. But he joined during our worst time. He told us a few years later that it was completely different from what he had imagined.”

In the past 10 years, FTISLAND also saw a shift among their fans: many of them left. At the same time, the members grew closer to those who remain loyal.

Song Senghyun: I enjoyed watching fans leave. I think we are only left with fans who like our music,”

Lee Hongki: “Because we have many maniac fans now, we have more people who look forward to our music. It feel like those who had to leave left and only the core remained.”

To express their love for their fans, the new album includes a fan song. ‘We Are,’ sang by all five members, comes with messages that FTISLAND want to share with fans.

Lee Hongki: “We have released several fan songs but they were all sounded like songs for your significant other. This time, it’s obviously a fan song. It’s about we know how much they had to endure and wait. Thank you for believing in us and waiting for us.”

Fans are also responding with unchanged lover and support. Their most frequent response is “thank you for singing.”

Lee Hongki: “I feel happy that they treat as musically. Before, they only talked about our clothes, hair, and members’ moods but lately, I’m so proud to see their concert reviews focus more on performance, sound, condition and teamwork.”

They are a band, but they were also an idol. Unlike other indie groups, they were in front of the general public often. FTISLAND definitely has wants and a sense of responsibility from their position.

Lee Hongki: “We have our wants and a sense of responsibility. We didn’t do the music we wanted to do but we are grateful for the fame we earned that time. I think that allowed us to survive by promoting our music now and move forward. So I think we have to work harder.”

FTISLAND members say they aren’t worried about music chart rankings. Lee Hongki says he “pretty much gave up” but Song Seunghyun says “we didn’t give up. It’d be great if we succeed but we don’t expect it. If it succeeds and gets in the top 50, that’d be awesome. It’s already awesome that we are listening to such songs at this time.”

They are definitely different, but FTISLAND can remind you of Wonder Girls. The two groups both debuted in 2007. Much like FTISLAND, Wonder Girls also released an album with self-composed songs and recently transformed into a band. FTISLAND say they want to have a collaboration stage with Wonder Girls.

Cho Jonghun: “Wonder Girls is the only girl group that I’m not close to at all. I usually know at least one member from each group but I don’t know anyone from Wonder Girls. I want to collaborate with them and become friends.”

**

- Why Did You Pick ‘Take Me Now’ As Title?

Lee Hongki: “Choi Jonghun made ‘Pray’ for our previous album ‘I WILL.’ It’s a super powerful song. So we picked it to solidify our image. Because it’s Summer, we wanted to a smashing music.” 

- The Title’s Genre Is Hard Rock Lee Hongki: "We threw away what’s popular. We showed you a popular rock for the past 8 years. In our 9th year last year, we started to slowly show you the music that we want to do with ‘I WILL.’ Lately, it’s hard to find band music on music charts. We wanted to show how we change based on the fame we earned through popular music.”

- Did You Give Up On What The General Public Wants? Lee Hongki: “It’s easy for us too to do what the general public wants. But that’s very different from the music we want to do so it was hard to do it with sincerity.” - How Did You Hold It In All This Time? Lee Hongki: We had lots of disagreements with the company. We got popular and that continued on with our albums. One point, we told the company that we want to the music that we want. So we started to change our music. We started the change in our 2012 album with ‘Severely.’ When we had to renew our contracts 2 years ago, we demanded the company to let us do what we want. The company asked us to do one more popular rock but it didn’t do well. So we got a reason to get what we want.” - If You Were To Guess Music Chart Ranking? Lee Hongki: “It’s not even going to be in top 100 because it’s so far from popular music. I don’t even want to win.” - When Did You Start Working On The Album? Lee Hongki: “We started last year. We feel especially attached to this album. We produced it and even decided on the music video, jacket and concept. Last year’s album and this album are FTISLAND’s new chapter. I want to call them chapter 1 and chapter 2.”

Lee Jaejin: “Working on this album was meaningful. Before, I didn’t know the charm and positives of a band. I only studied. While doing a popular rock, we studied abroad in Japan. I wanted to say we can also do music like this in Korea.” - Did You Add Anything To This Album? Lee Hongki: “I was satisfied with our last album. So this time, I tried at album sound. I mixed band and dubstep and used synthesizer and keyboard. The album includes various genres including traditional rock. I also tried Jazz for the first time. “ - What Do You Want To Clearly Express With This Album? Lee Hongki: The title song is a powerful rock but has various genres. With this album, I want to show our wish to do band music. To solidify our powerful image, we brought even more modern sound.”

- Did You Have To Think About What The General Public Would Want? Lee Hongki: I thought about what popularity is. Rock is a popular music in other countries. Korea tend to be too shifted to one side. I wanted to bring in a variety.”

-  Explain What You Mean By ‘To Find The Truth Against Prejudice and Misunderstandings’ Lee Hongki: “When you are young, we get many advices as you live your life. Each time, people give you the same answer. But unlike their advice, I want to live the life I want to. That’s why I expressed I will find the truth.”

- That’s Complicated Lee Hongki: “(Laughs) If you read the lyrics, it won’t be that difficult. It’s somewhat rebellious.” - For Example? Song Seunghyun: “Everyone asks why we go down the difficult path when we can easily do the music that the general public wants. We really wanted to shed that prejudice. We wanted to tell them, ‘we will go our own way so don’t worry about it.’”

- If You Were To Guess Fans’ Response? Lee Hongki: “The fans we still have want powerful sound. I think they’d be satisfied. We have to satisfy them. (Laughs)” - Any Stress From Composing? Lee Hongki: “I was totally stressed! I don’t know many codes like other members so I hit my limit pretty often. That’s why I made a producing team. I’m best at writing lyrics, brainstorming melody and sketching out the rough draft.” - Please Explain Composer HONG’S TOWER Lee Hongki: They are musician friends. There used to be 8=7, including me. Lee Jaejin was also part of it but he left and now we are down to 4 - Why Did Jaejin Leave The Team? Lee Jaejin: “The rent was too high. (Laughs). I just left to work at home.”

- Does The Company Support HONG’S TOWER? Lee Hongki: “Not even 1%. There is a space to work on music at the company. Jonghun uses the studio in the building but I didn’t want to write music there. I thought I’d get watched and I don’t like staying too long at the company. It’s like not wanting to stay long at a school or work. I like being in my own space. I also wanted to do it with friends. The company’s studio is not big enough for a group.” - Any Disagreements Among Members? Lee Hongki: “Bands usually work on writing songs together but we write them individually. Once I finish roughly sketching it out, I asked them to play it. From the moment we start making it, we listen to it together and fix it together. If it’s weird, we say it.” Choi Jonghun: “Since Hongki is the vocal, he really cares a lot about lyrics and melody. He fixes it so that it’s easier for him to sing and understand for recording. “ - When Was Your Biggest Argument? Lee Hongki: “We fought the most when we were in middle school Now, we are each too busy on our own. We just go for a drink before we fight. Everyone is free. Because they each enjoy themselves with boundaries, we never clash.” - Fans Seem To Think FTISLAND Is Being Treated Poorly By The Company Lee Hongki: They may think that because we didn’t have a showcase. But a showcase wasn’t going to be appropriate. We need to explain that to our fans. We planned to tell them anyway.”

- Are You Communicating Well With The Company? Lee Hongki: “Yes, we are. Of course, sometimes it doesn’t work out but it’s fine.” - Why Did You Renew Your Contract? Lee Hongki: “Because of loyalty. We don’t plan to disband.” Choi Jonghun: “We didn’t think there would be another company to keep us. We thought FNC was the only one able to do lead us. So we decided to renew it but the term is too long. It’s 5 years! (Laughs)” Lee Jaejin: “I regret not changing any terms in the contract.”

- Many Bands Make Labels Lee Hongki: “I don’t think now is the time to discuss labels. It’s just not the time. We’ll think about it maybe next year. (Laughs)”

- FNC Was Recently Caught In Stock Manipulation Case. Any Episodes? Lee Hongki: “None. We really found out about Yoo Jaesuk joining the company through news articles. We only say the truth.” - The Entertainment Scene Is Noisy Choi Jonghun: “Hongki looks like he’d make the most trouble but he is queit” Lee Hongki: “I call for a driver after having just one drink. Isn’t that just logical? I don’t want to do anything illegal.” - It’s Already Been 9 Years Since Debut Lee Hongki: “We even had a party because we were happy. But 9 seems lacking compared to 10. So it felt weird.”

- Do  You Have Special Plans For 10th Anniversary? Lee Hongki: “We are planning something with our members. For our 7th or 6th anniversary, we rented a club and promised a free concert for our fans with drinks. We also have a plan to get a DJ and party like a real club. It’s not 100% certain but we also thought about having a concert for a week with different songs each day.” Choi Jonghun: “We are also thinking about performing songs requested by fans. We have so many ideas.”

- If You Were To Imagine 10 Years Later Lee Hongki: “I hope we are eating well and living well. (Laughs). Just like Hip Hop right now, I wish bands succeed too. I became close with Simon D when I first debuted. The Hip Hop scene was growing at that time and now it’s huge! I’m so jealous. BewhY is so cool I’m a fan!

- Which Song Do You Feel The Most Attached To? Lee Hongki: “I feel attached to all of them but if I had to pick one, I like ‘We Are.’ It’s a sweet song from members to fans. We made many ‘fan song’s. ‘We Are’ is about how much you love the other to the point you can even sing it at a wedding. The lyrics cheer up fans.”

- There Are My Bands In The Company. If You were To Evaluate Them? Song Seunghyun:

“CNBLUE is doing so well so I got nothing to say but other teams have a long way to go.”

Lee Hongki:

It feels like watching our younger selves. When we were trainees, we did a band without any help. But these kids learn everything. I’m jealous too. But if they are going to do it in a luxurious setting, I hope they do even better. Sometimes I ask trainees if they want to be a celebrity or a band. If they say both, then it’s goodbye forever. But if they say they want to be a band, I really cherish them. I feel closer to them.”

- There Aren’t Many Students Wanting To Play Instruments… Lee Jaejin: “It’s disappointing to see people prioritize convenience lately. There are many people who study instruments and they are so much better than me. But I don’t think they enjoy it. It’s sad to see them play with a computer and not knowing about band’s teamwork.”

Lee Hongki: “I think this is happening because our performance scene isn’t active.” - You Aren’t Active As An Actor Lately… Lee Hongki: “Right now, I want to do music than acting. I became crazy about music since making ‘I WILL’ album last year so I didn’t leave the studio for about a year. I don’t think I can act anymore.” - You Start A Musical In August Lee Hongki: “To be honest, I’m just really into music lately. So I decided to do music and acting together. (Laughs)” - Come Back Over Lapses With Rehearsals

Lee Hongki: “I’m trying to practice when it doesn’t. So I’m practicing for musical fast.” - Lee Hongki Is Very Busy. What Do Other Members Thikn? Choi Jonghun: “We tend to understand when other things overlap with band activities. But it’s really hard on the person who has to do both. It’s sad to see that he can’t focus on one thing but we can’t just do band all the time.” Lee Jaejin: “Sometimes I don’t like Hongki because he is too busy. He has to sing all the songs since he is a vocal. I’m worried he might hurt his throat.”

- How’s Your Schedule After Comeback? Lee Hongki: “After comeback, we have a concert and I begin my musical. After one month, we go on a tour in Japan. After that, I’ll do musical for another month. I’m happy that I have so much to do.”

FTISLAND is strengthening their image as a band. They released their 6th official album 1 year and 4 months since the previous one. Their title song is a hard rock genre. We met with FTISLAND at a cafe on July 15th. Choi Jonghun, Lee Hongki, Lee JAejin, Song Seunghyun and Choi Minhwan looked tired from working on their album for a long time. Main vocal Lee Hongki had a slightly scratchy throat. Their aspiration for the new album, however, was nothing like how they looked. Lee Hongki spoke the most during the interview. As K-Pop scene’s ‘free soul,’ Lee Hongki led us to make some strange facial expressions with his risky responses.

First, we asked about how they felt about the comeback. Lee Hongki said, “I feel like it’s time for another war.” Then he added,  “Because I have to wake up super early in the morning.” He was talking about the pressure of appearing on music shows. That was close. “We are also worried about how to sing our new song on music shows. But it’s the style we wanted and we think our album came out well.” FTISLAND said their goal with the new album is to “solidify their existence as a band.” Then how did the public see FTISLAND until now? Lee Hongki responded. “FNC made FTISLAND’s image until now. I don’t think that’s our true selves.” Lee Hongki’s bold statement made several people laugh. Lee Hongki confessed, “our first music and image were already decided by what was popular and we had no choice but to follow. Through promotions, we found the music that we wanted to do and started to look for our own color.”

The public’s perception is FTISLAND’s ongoing challenge. It’s difficult for a rock band to win both the music and public’s demand. Not only that, FTISLAND is categorized as an idol, making them vulnerable to criticisms by indie bands. FTISLAND members acknowledge that they can mocked about doing real band music. “Our challenge is to find the middle ground between the music that the public wants and the music that we want. I’m not saying our new album has the answer to that question. I think now is our time to show what our music is. I think the right order is for us to keep coming before the general public with various genres.”

Lee Hongki’s comment suddenly made us listen carefully.

“I don’t think Korea’s music style is all that dynamic. It’s set to one side. That’s why we wanted to ask, ‘how about FTISLAND’s version of rock?’”

The new title song ‘Take Me Now’ is a powerful and energetic hard rock song with synth and band sound. Ahead of the interview, FTISLAND released their new MV and showed off their never-before-seen charisma. Each member’s body language when playing their instruments, camera movements and members’ fashion style were definitely powerful. FTISLAND admitted there were disagreements over choosing the title song. But they say they wanted to “continue on the strength from the previous album and drive home hard rock with ‘Take Me Now.’” Since releasing their first album, FTISLAND continued to train themselves as a band in Japan.  Their definition of study abroad was to “promote in Japan as a band active in Japan. We wanted to keep the distinction clear between K-Pop and J-Pop.” That naturally led us to questions about activities in Korea. We especially wanted to know their thoughts on rock festivals in Korea. Rock festivals in Korea must mean so much to FTISLAND.

“Of course we want to take the stage. But I don’t think we have enough songs to perform at a rock festival. Our songs in Japan are in Japanese and we’d have to change the lyrics to perform them in Korea but we don’t want to do that. We want to make many songs that we can perform at a rock festival and then take the stage. We have to get better.”

FTISLAND confessed they had some kind of an argument with the company over the album.

“We have always told the company that we want to make our own music but the company wanted us to showcase change. So we made our music as the company asked but the result wasn’t great. So we told the company, ‘That’s enough. Please let us go. We will go our own way.’ The CEO was cool with letting us go.” (Laughs) We also asked them about titles ‘boyband’ and ‘idol band.’ To rather sensitive questions about ‘pretending to play’ on music programs, FTISLAND answered with ease.

“To be honest,  performing on music shows can be boring. It’s really hard to sing so early in the morning. Handysnc? We try to laugh about it now. Sometimes we ignore it. We think there are indie bands who see us in a negative light. So we hope show something  on stage one day that can change their perception.” FTISLAND celebrates their 10th anniversary next year. Perhaps that’s why. FTISLAND say they don’t have any special plans this year. “We will carry out all of our special plans when we celebrate our 10th anniversary.”

Finally, we asked what they think is the answer to album title ‘Where’s The Truth?’

FTISLAND is back with a counter strike to once again paint the K-Pop world with their own color.  FTISLAND returned after about a year with their 6th official album ’Where’s The Truth?’ The album comes with  a meaning of finding their truth against prejudice and misunderstands that suppress them. Members composed and wrote all of their songs and even produced them to clearly show off their color as a band. Choi Minhwan: “When we live our lives, we rely on our friends, seniors and parents for advice on how to solve certain problems. But in the end, I don’t think you can find your answer without facing it and experiencing it yourself. The song comes with a message that we hope you go the way you want and experience unexpected successes. It wishes you enjoy your life.” 

Title song ‘Take Me Now’ is written and composed by Lee Hongki. With an explosive energy through synth and band sound, the song gives off a hard rock vibe improved from their last album. The lyrics also contain a will to find one’s own answer.  FTISLAND say they spent the most time discussing which song should be the title song.  Lee Hongki: “We debated the most among ‘Out Of Love,’ ‘Take Me Now,’ and ‘Fade Into You.’ Jonghun suggested we should go with an easier song since we released a strong one last time. But I worried if we did that, our image would go back to how it was before. So we decided to go with a hard song again. We picked ‘Take Me Now’ because it’s energetic and definitely hard rock.” For this album, the members’ main challenge may have been deciding the title song. However, the past 10 years have been an ongoing challenge for FTISLAND.   Lee Hongki: “We debuted as an idol band at a young age and we received every possible criticisms from musicians active in Hongdae’s indie scene. I even questioned f I should keep going like this. But in the end, we had a dream and we were able to keep our band to protect that dream.” FTISLAND debuted in 2007 with ballad ‘Love Sick.’ Since then, they continued to release songs of a similar genre and vibe. Members say they did it partially to stay relevant. The company and other colleagues also pushed them to do songs that people can sing at Noraebangs to become popular fast. Lee Hongki: “That wasn’t our color. I wrote the title song to say, we won’t accept all of the advices but find our own way. Now, we can laugh about criticisms. Fortunately, we have something that every member is holding firmly on to. They say a band shines brightly through the color of their music but we know that we must have the five of us. If we break up, we’ll somehow get by but that will get us farther away from our dream. We don’t want that. As the first idol band, we want to last the longest.” FTISLAND say they hope you look at the album as it is. Through it, Lee Hongki says he hopes the elders in their 70s and 80s remember the golden age of rock and young people to recognize the charm of a band, which they say is the band itself.” 

Lee Hongki: “The fact that we make music with our own hands from start to finish and inspire other people.” Choi Minhwan: “I didn’t understand it when I first started. We each had to do our own thing and somehow harmonize. But we couldn’t communicate and everyone struggled so we couldn’t do any music. It became fun once we started to agree with each other.” Lee Jaejin: “Our communication is what’s charming about a band.When Minhwan starts to drum fast, we all know what’s going to happen next and we adjust to it. I like that we don’t keep seeing new things like a show but just listen and enjoy concerts.” 

Improvisation is also a band’s charm. Lee Jaejin says because band is a real sound, they can’t perform perfectly like robots. Lee Jaejin: “ I enjoy the way we keep going after making a mistake, timing and realizing what needs to be done. When we record for our albums, we do it to the given beat. But when we perform live, we switch up the tempos. I think a band is alive.” 

FTISLAND says their goal is look far ahead into the future and keep performing as FTISLAND even pass the age of 50.  Lee Hongki: “A band gets cooler as it gets older. Fortunately, we really work together. We understand each other’s musical style and make it together. I think the longer we stay together, the better we work together. “

‘Faking Is Forbidden.’ Unstoppable and confident. They don’t even hide their troubles with their agency (FNC Entertainment,) even reveal smoking with black painted nails and freely share dating stories. They are FTISLAND, known as the mutated rebels among Idols. They debuted in 2007 as a 5-member band. As the ‘first idols’ to take the stage with instruments, they quickly rose to fame with debut song ‘Love Sick.’ It was a hot beginning.

But vocal Lee Hongki says, “I really hated being an idol.”

“Idol means teens’ mentor. That means I have to be proper, cool and pretty. I can’t do that. They didn’t let me smoke even in a smoking area and stopped me from taking pictures while drinking. Those were controversial even though I was a legal adult. I don’t reject the popularity and fame I got through the idol title but I always wondered why can’t I be free? Why do I have to live in that box? Why can’t I express my everything?”

In the end, they shed the idol image. They ignored all of the idol rules and orders and marched straight forward as ‘rule breakers’ with instruments. This doesn’t mean they are bad seeds or trouble makers. Lee Hongki says they “promised each other to not do anything illegal.” Song Seunghyun also credits some good luck.

With hard rock that began with their album ‘I WILL’ released last year, FTISLAND is facing off against idol’s rule that you have to promote music that sells. Choi Jonghun called it “FTISLAND’s real beginning.” Choi Jonghun: “Because we started to make our own music with ‘I WILL,’ I consider that our real beginning.” Lee Hongki: “I consider ‘I WILL’ as FTISLAND’s biggest turning point. It’s the first chapter in FTISLAND’s new history.”

FTISLAND’s 6th official album ‘Where’s The Truth?’ is the second chapter in FTISLAND’s turning point.

It’s hard rock again this time. Title song ‘Take Me Now’ centers on synth sound and then explodes with band sound. The previously released MV teaser is powerful. Passionate guitar, bass and drum performances among flames, and images that remind of the public burning are creating all the buzz.

Lee Hongki:

“It’s the summer. It’s time to smash it all. Since our previous album was very strong, we wanted to drive it home again. If we do another soft, popular music, people who saw us in a different light last year would be disappointed. We couldn’t lose the fans that we want.”

“1st place? I don’t care!” They say this now but at one point, they won 1st place with every song they released. That was the time when they were advised, according to Choi Minhwan, “to only do popular songs like ‘Love Sick,’ ‘After Love,’ ‘Thunder’ to quickly rise to fame.” Choi Minhwan: “They weren’t all that great. We wanted to be a band with our own color but we only did those songs because we were told that’s how we can succeed. This time, we named the title to find what we want.”

Lee Hongki:

“We were getting farther away from the direction we wanted to go. I think we first said it while preparing our 4th official album. That we will do our own music instead of these. The company said let’s change slowly so we agreed and released ‘Madly.’ That didn’t do well. So we demanded they let us go. We held back a lot. We were waiting for the right time.”

Lee Hongki calls their agency FNC, which he openly disses, as “a giver with a love, hate relationship and a supporter.” Lee Hongki says he is only “expressing a few grievances” but those who watch are always nervous.

Lee Hongki: “I said everything since when I first auditioned for them. I needed the company to accomplish my dream and the company also called me to reap profit. I want to discuss and decide what we both want but I explode when that doesn’t work out.”

Lee Jaejin: “I often feel better. When we want to speak our mind after disputes over music with the company, Hongki had already done so on SNS. Sometimes, I think he did a good job. Other times, I wonder if he really had to go this far.”

Choi Jonghun: “We just think he had a bad day. That’s after we calmed him down. If we hadn’t, it’d be really bad. It’s most effective for Hongki to talk anyway.

Even so, FTISLAND renewed their contract with FNC in 2014. The reason? Lee Hongki says it’s because “we didn’t think there was another company who would take us. Aren’t we somewhat free? We are the only ones acting like this in the company.” About to celebrate their 10th anniversary, FTISLAND’s goal is their 50s. Lee Hongki says that’s because “a band is cool when they perform together at an old age.” They also plan to enlist in the army together because “it’s cool to go as all 5.”

Choi Minhwan: “We talked about it a lot over drinks.” Choi Jonghun: “I am so happy to be born into a band. As long as we stick together, I think we can stay together for a long time. We fought too much as trainees so now we don’t even fight.” Lee Jaejin: “I think it’d break our hearts to not enlist in the army together. Because we are a band, we can’t perform without someone. If we go individually, that’s 4-years of break. That’d be too much of a loss for us as a band and musicians.” The closer goal of new album ‘Where’s The Truth?’ is diversifying music charts taken over by pop songs.