K-pop band Boynextdoor takes the cover story of Men’s Folio Singapore Magazine‘s November 2023 Digital edition lensed by fashion photographer Song Siyoung. In charge of styling and creative direction was Izwan Abdullah, with hair styling and grooming from Prance Sinsa.
Sungho: Why..? (EP) was all about a boy ‘trying’ to be mature about a situation he’s been put into. It was both challenging and fun to really immerse ourselves in it and express the emotions this boy goes through after his first breakup. We put a lot of thought into expressing it in ways that feel the most genuine to us, and that process is always what I love the most in making music.
Woonhak: I was supposed to not sing our songs in public because they weren’t released yet, but I kept walking around singing them because our songs were too good not to!
Riwoo: Among ourselves, we always talked about how we want BOYNEXTDOOR to tell the stories only we can tell, and these songs really did the job. It was so well-executed that we kept going ‘Oh, this is my story’, ‘This is yours.’ We were all deeply immersed in them.
Taesan: After our debut, I felt like I was seeing a pattern in how I perform and move at certain points and it sometimes felt staged. Breaking out of that was one of the biggest challenges I faced this year on a personal level. We do want to put a lot of planning into how a performance comes together, but at the same time, I want to make sure we are not boxed into anything on stage.
Sungho: I personally think everything we did since our debut, including our first comeback, was a challenge. We’ve learned from every single one of them, and no matter how much we plan ahead to present the perfect performance, we run into different situations outside of our practice rooms. I think that’s when we grow as an artist, and I am very grateful for all the challenges we’ve had.
Jaehyun: In five years, I want to have grown and improved in everything I do now – as an artist, a producer, a host and all. I want to make our fans proud with my growth, all the while always giving love to our fans as much as I can!
Photography © Song Siyoung for Men’s Folio Singapore, read more at mens-folio.com
