1Verse
1Verse | |
|---|---|
| Genres | K-pop |
| Years active | 2025–present |
| Labels | Singing Beetle |
| Members |
|
1Verse (Korean: 유니버스; pronounced 'universe' and stylized in all caps) is a South Korean boy band. The group consists of five members: Hyuk, Seok, Aito, Kenny and Nathan. Two members of the group (Hyuk and Seok) are from North Korea. They are the first K-pop boy band with North Korean defectors.
History
[edit]Pre-debut
[edit]Two of the five members of the band are North Korean defectors.[1] Yu Hyuk, one of the members, is from North Hamgyong Province and grew up with his father and grandmother, after his parents separated and his mother defected to South Korea.[1] His family was poor and as a child he worked odd jobs, begged on the streets and sometimes stole food to survive.[2][3] He said that he usually ate only one meal a day and he never heard of K-pop music while in North Korea.[3] Hyuk was contacted by his mother who requested he join her in South Korea, and he undertook a six-month journey through several countries to escape, arriving in Seoul, South Korea, at age 13, in 2013.[1][2] After arriving in South Korea, he became interested in K-pop, joining a music club in his first year of high school and writing rap lyrics.[4]
The other North Korean member, Kim Seok, grew up in a region near China and was from a "relatively better-off family."[1] He was able to listen to K-pop and watch South Korean television shows that were smuggled in with USBs and SD cards.[1] He defected to South Korea in 2019 after several of his uncles had done so.[5] He had been a football player in North Korea, but gave up the sport after defecting.[5]
In 2020, Hyuk met Michelle Cho, a former representative at SM Entertainment and the founder of independent label Singing Beetle.[2] She offered to provide rap lessons and Hyuk left his job as a factory worker to enter music full-time in 2021.[2] He thus became the first member of the boy group SB Boyz under the Singing Beetle label, later renamed to 1Verse (pronounced "universe").[2][5] A year and a half later, Seok was added to the group.[3] Cho, their trainer, described the two as "blank canvases" and complete beginners, noting "they had absolutely no grasp of pop culture," but praised their development and ability to "endure physical challenges."[1]
In 2024, Hyuk released a rap song, titled "Ordinary Person", as part of a pre-debut project.[1] By early 2024, the group had added two more members: Aito, who is Japanese, and Kenny, who is Chinese-American.[6] A fifth member, Nathan, an American of Lao and Thai descent, joined by the end of the year.[1]
1Verse is set to debut on July 18, 2025, with a pre-release on July 4.[7] They are the first K-pop boy band with North Korean defectors.[1]
Members
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Ku, Yuna (February 10, 2025). "How a North Korean went from begging to K-pop". BBC News. Archived from the original on February 15, 2025. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Sohn, Jiyoung; Yoon, Dasl (November 15, 2023). "North Korean Escapee Who Begged on the Streets Chases K-Pop Stardom". The Wall Street Journal – via archive.today.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c "'탈북 아이돌' 탄생할까...'거리의 꽃제비'가 무대 위에 서기까지" [Will a 'North Korean Idol' Be Born?... Until the 'Flower Swallow of the Streets' Stands on Stage] (in Korean). BBC. September 23, 2024. Archived from the original on October 7, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ Hye-seung, Choi (September 25, 2024). "쉰밥 훔쳐 먹던 꽃제비서 래퍼로… 탈북민 출신 아이돌 연말 美서 데뷔" [A North Korean defector-turned-rapper who stole rice from a flower shop… Idol to debut in the US at the end of the year]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 25, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ a b c Jung-youn, Lee (November 28, 2024). "Meet 1VERSE, first K-pop boy band to feature North Korean defectors". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on February 14, 2025. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ Mi-geon, Kim (October 28, 2024). ""Won't people's perception of N. Korean defectors change through us?"". The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on February 14, 2025. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ Lee, Jung-youn (2025-06-20). "1Verse, K-pop group with North Korean defectors, to debut in July". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2025-06-25.