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Korea Herald
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Bringing Bay Area swagger to K-pop: Inside the journey of SM's former hitmaker
From working as an English teacher to founding his own K-pop label, Paul Thompson opens up about his journey, struggles and dreams for his new girl group, VVS Before Paul Thompson became one of K-pop's most prolific songwriters, penning hits such as Exo's 'Love Shot,' NCT U's 'The 7th Sense' and Taeyeon's 'Fine,' his musical roots were planted far from Seoul — in the backseat of his parents' car in the Bay Area, where Motown was the soundtrack of his youth. 'When I was really young, I loved Motown because my parents loved Motown. But eventually, as I got older, hip-hop,' Thompson said in an interview with The Korea Herald, May 15. 'I loved Dr. Dre, I loved The Game, Tupac, all that stuff. I was also from the Bay Area. There's a specific genre of music from the Bay Area called Hyphy music. It's like the most unique style of hip-hop. It influenced all of the southern hip-hop and, like a lot of the slang that you hear to this day, comes from the San Francisco Bay Area,' he added. The spark — K-pop through SAT tutoring Thompson first encountered K-pop while teaching a Korean family in the US that had recently moved from Busan, Korea's second-largest city, for a couple of summers between 2007 and 2008 in his hometown of Stockton. 'Every time they would have a break time, students would watch K-pop and then they would show me what it was. I remember JYP, I remember they showed me 'Nobody' by Wonder Girls,' Thompson recalled. 'But up until that point, I hadn't known anything about K-pop.' His impression of 'Nobody' was that it was a clear homage to American R&B groups like The Supremes and the Temptations — and that curiosity stuck with him. Years later, when he came to Korea to teach English in 2013, because his music career in LA didn't work out and he needed to pay off student loans, he remembered JYP Entertainment and decided to send the agency his demos, just to see if there was still a shot at a music career. Reigniting his passion in Seoul After just eight months of teaching, Thompson realized he couldn't let go of music. He bought a keyboard at Nagwon Sangga, a mall with the largest collection of music-related stores in Korea and began playing in his room. "I got passion again,' Thompson said. He looked up K-pop and started applying to local music labels. His previous experience as a headhunter at a Silicon Valley tech company helped him navigate the industry. 'When I was applying to K-pop agencies, I remembered JYP. I contacted, like, all the top people from JYP on LinkedIn,' Thompson said. One of the JYP songwriters asked for a few tracks. Thompson submitted a demo he had written back in LA, and that track would later be released as 'Once More' on singer-songwriter GSoul's debut EP in 2015. 'This was within a week of me signing (with) JYP,' Thompson said. Frustrations and rejections at JYP Despite the promising start, Thompson's two-year stint at JYP Entertainment proved difficult. Though originally contracted for three years, the company let him go early. 'When they originally signed me, I think they were excited because I had that one song (Once More) that ended up getting placed very quickly. But after that, I got nothing else for two years,' Thompson said. He didn't know much about K-pop at the time — let alone the JYP house style. He submitted many songs for 2PM, Got7 and Miss A, but none made it to the albums. 'They told me, like, 'Paul, why don't you listen to what's on the charts and tell us what you think you can make?' I remember specifically listening to Red Velvet's 'Happiness,' Exo's 'Overdose' and Taeyeon's 'I.' I started to realize 'oh, I can make this stuff,'' Thompson said. He told JYP, but the company said those were songs in SM Entertainment's (SM) style. A few years later, Thompson would get his chance there. Hit after hit — but with compromise At the end of 2015, Thompson joined SM through a deal with its sister publishing company Ekko Music Rights. There, he found a more fitting creative home. Back then, SM's sound was heavily influenced by early '90s R&B, according to Thompson. 'I remember what really sparked my interest was when I discovered SM was working with huge R&B legends and pop writing legends from America such as Teddy Riley and Harvey Mason Jr. — ones that I looked up to,' Thompson said. His first placement at SM was 'Until Today,' a B-side on Taemin's debut solo studio album, 'Press It,' in 2016. That same album included 'Drip Drop,' another track he worked on. 'I started to learn it, specifically SM style. They had a very fusion style (of music) because, at that time, they were the only K-pop company working with Koreans and foreign writers together,' he said. 'I picked that up pretty quickly and then developed that sound with them.' Thompson went on to write some of K-pop's most iconic songs: 'Ko Ko Bop,' 'Tempo' and 'Love Shot' for EXO; 'Fine' for Taeyeon; and tracks for Girls' Generation, Red Velvet, Super Junior and TVXQ. He also helped shape NCT U's debut with 'The 7th Sense,' one of his personal favorites. But not all of his favorites made the cut. 'As a creative person, sometimes your favorite stuff is not what the company wants,' he said. 'Especially when you're working for a company — you've got to give them what they ask for, or what they need.' Launching MZMC and VVS In January 2019, Thompson left Ekko Music Rights to launch MZMC, an independent label and production team with six international songwriters. One of the label's first major projects is VVS, a multinational girl group formed through a global audition in 2020 with members from Korea, Japan and the US. The group officially debuted this month with its first EP, 'D.I.M.M.' 'The reason why I wanted to do my own artist is because I wanted to make stuff I wanted to make. I wanted to make music that I want to hear and like,' Thompson said. He had always wanted to produce a hip-hop, R&B girl group — a concept he believes hasn't been central in K-pop girl groups. He also wanted to do something different with VVS. The group's debut rollout began on April 7 with the '5 C's Debut Trailer,' a 10-part cinematic teaser series introducing the concept and members. The videos featured stylized animations and action-driven visuals, with choreography by Koji Kawamoto, best known for 'John Wick: Chapter 4.' 'I've always loved film and television and I'm an English literature major, so I'm into storytelling. I felt like one thing that used to be a part of K-pop a little bit more was storytelling in idol music.' On the state of K-pop today During his 13 years in Korea, Thompson has witnessed a dramatic evolution of K-pop. He wonders if today's K-pop is chasing global relevance at the cost of its identity. 'I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing,' he said. 'But I don't see a massive group in this new generation yet. When K-pop was just exclusively more Korean, you had legendary groups like BTS, Exo, Blackpink, Twice and Girls' Generation. 'Now, what are the legendary groups that everybody knows their songs? I can think of groups that are big and they sell out arenas and they have strong fandom, but the general public can't name their songs,' Thompson said. 'I think that's what NewJeans brought back ... you could have a fandom, but also the general public knew all the songs and everybody can sing along.' Thompson also worries that in chasing the goal of becoming next BTS or Blackpink, new groups may be losing the very soul that once made K-pop resonate. 'I am interested to see this next generation. Are they catering too much to trying to be the next Blackpink or BTS -- like the western big hit? And are we losing the idea of what K-pop used to be, which I think made bigger artists back in the day,' he said. 'There are more groups. It's more spread out and it's not concentrated, maybe. But where are the iconic groups of the new generation? 'Maybe it has to do with people trying too much to cater to the West or maybe it's just a lull and some of these newer groups are going to end up taking off,' he added. 'I don't know.' jaaykim@
Korea Herald
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Bringing Bay Area swagger to K-pop: Inside the journey of SM's former hitmaker
From working as an English teacher to founding his own K-pop label, Paul Thompson opens up about his journey, struggles and dreams for his new girl group, VVS Before Paul Thompson became one of K-pop's most prolific songwriters, penning hits such as Exo's 'Love Shot,' NCT U's 'The 7th Sense' and Taeyeon's 'Fine,' his musical roots were planted far from Seoul — in the backseat of his parents' car in the Bay Area, where Motown was the soundtrack of his youth. 'When I was really young, I loved Motown because my parents loved Motown. But eventually, as I got older, hip-hop,' Thompson said in an interview with The Korea Herald, May 15. 'I loved Dr. Dre, I loved The Game, Tupac, all that stuff. I was also from the Bay Area. There's a specific genre of music from the Bay Area called Hyphy music. It's like the most unique style of hip-hop. It influenced all of the southern hip-hop and, like a lot of the slang that you hear to this day, comes from the San Francisco Bay Area,' he added. The spark — K-pop through SAT tutoring Thompson first encountered K-pop while teaching a Korean family in the US that had recently moved from Busan, Korea's second-largest city, for a couple of summers between 2007 and 2008 in his hometown of Stockton. 'Every time they would have a break time, students would watch K-pop and then they would show me what it was. I remember JYP, I remember they showed me 'Nobody' by Wonder Girls,' Thompson recalled. 'But up until that point, I hadn't known anything about K-pop.' His impression of 'Nobody' was that it was a clear homage to American R&B groups like The Supremes and the Temptations — and that curiosity stuck with him. Years later, when he came to Korea to teach English in 2013, because his music career in LA didn't work out and he needed to pay off student loans, he remembered JYP Entertainment and decided to send the agency his demos, just to see if there was still a shot at a music career. Reigniting his passion in Seoul After just eight months of teaching, Thompson realized he couldn't let go of music. He bought a keyboard at Nagwon Sangga, a mall with the largest collection of music-related stores in Korea and began playing in his room. "I got passion again,' Thompson said. He looked up K-pop and started applying to local music labels. His previous experience as a headhunter at a Silicon Valley tech company helped him navigate the industry. 'When I was applying to K-pop agencies, I remembered JYP. I contacted, like, all the top people from JYP on LinkedIn,' Thompson said. One of the JYP songwriters asked for a few tracks. Thompson submitted a demo he had written back in LA, and that track would later be released as 'Once More' on singer-songwriter GSoul's debut EP in 2015. 'This was within a week of me signing (with) JYP,' Thompson said. Frustrations and rejections at JYP Despite the promising start, Thompson's two-year stint at JYP Entertainment proved difficult. Though originally contracted for three years, the company let him go early. 'When they originally signed me, I think they were excited because I had that one song (Once More) that ended up getting placed very quickly. But after that, I got nothing else for two years,' Thompson said. He didn't know much about K-pop at the time — let alone the JYP house style. He submitted many songs for 2PM, Got7 and Miss A, but none made it to the albums. 'They told me, like, 'Paul, why don't you listen to what's on the charts and tell us what you think you can make?' I remember specifically listening to Red Velvet's 'Happiness,' Exo's 'Overdose' and Taeyeon's 'I.' I started to realize 'oh, I can make this stuff,'' Thompson said. He told JYP, but the company said those were songs in SM Entertainment's (SM) style. A few years later, Thompson would get his chance there. Hit after hit — but with compromise At the end of 2015, Thompson joined SM through a deal with its sister publishing company Ekko Music Rights. There, he found a more fitting creative home. Back then, SM's sound was heavily influenced by early '90s R&B, according to Thompson. 'I remember what really sparked my interest was when I discovered SM was working with huge R&B legends and pop writing legends from America such as Teddy Riley and Harvey Mason Jr. — ones that I looked up to,' Thompson said. His first placement at SM was 'Until Today,' a B-side on Taemin's debut solo studio album, 'Press It,' in 2016. That same album included 'Drip Drop,' another track he worked on. 'I started to learn it, specifically SM style. They had a very fusion style (of music) because, at that time, they were the only K-pop company working with Koreans and foreign writers together,' he said. 'I picked that up pretty quickly and then developed that sound with them.' Thompson went on to write some of K-pop's most iconic songs: 'Ko Ko Bop,' 'Tempo' and 'Love Shot' for EXO; 'Fine' for Taeyeon; and tracks for Girls' Generation, Red Velvet, Super Junior and TVXQ. He also helped shape NCT U's debut with 'The 7th Sense,' one of his personal favorites. But not all of his favorites made the cut. 'As a creative person, sometimes your favorite stuff is not what the company wants,' he said. 'Especially when you're working for a company — you've got to give them what they ask for, or what they need.' Launching MZMC and VVS In January 2019, Thompson left Ekko Music Rights to launch MZMC, an independent label and production team with six international songwriters. One of the label's first major projects is VVS, a multinational girl group formed through a global audition in 2020 with members from Korea, Japan and the US. The group officially debuted this month with its first EP, 'D.I.M.M.' 'The reason why I wanted to do my own artist is because I wanted to make stuff I wanted to make. I wanted to make music that I want to hear and like,' Thompson said. He had always wanted to produce a hip-hop, R&B girl group — a concept he believes hasn't been central in K-pop girl groups. He also wanted to do something different with VVS. The group's debut rollout began on April 7 with the '5 C's Debut Trailer,' a 10-part cinematic teaser series introducing the concept and members. The videos featured stylized animations and action-driven visuals, with choreography by Koji Kawamoto, best known for 'John Wick: Chapter 4.' 'I've always loved film and television and I'm an English literature major, so I'm into storytelling. I felt like one thing that used to be a part of K-pop a little bit more was storytelling in idol music.' On the state of K-pop today During his 13 years in Korea, Thompson has witnessed a dramatic evolution of K-pop. He wonders if today's K-pop is chasing global relevance at the cost of its identity. 'I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing,' he said. 'But I don't see a massive group in this new generation yet. When K-pop was just exclusively more Korean, you had legendary groups like BTS, Exo, Blackpink, Twice and Girls' Generation. 'Now, what are the legendary groups that everybody knows their songs? I can think of groups that are big and they sell out arenas and they have strong fandom, but the general public can't name their songs,' Thompson said. 'I think that's what NewJeans brought back ... you could have a fandom, but also the general public knew all the songs and everybody can sing along.' Thompson also worries that in chasing the goal of becoming next BTS or Blackpink, new groups may be losing the very soul that once made K-pop resonate. 'I am interested to see this next generation. Are they catering too much to trying to be the next Blackpink or BTS -- like the western big hit? And are we losing the idea of what K-pop used to be, which I think made bigger artists back in the day,' he said. 'There are more groups. It's more spread out and it's not concentrated, maybe. But where are the iconic groups of the new generation? 'Maybe it has to do with people trying too much to cater to the West or maybe it's just a lull and some of these newer groups are going to end up taking off,' he added. 'I don't know.'
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Twice garners 700m views with ‘TT' music video
The music video for Twice's 2016 hit single 'TT' surpassed 700 million views on YouTube as of Thursday, label JYP Entertainment said on Friday. This is the group's second music video to reach the milestone, after 'What Is Love?' 'TT,' the lead single from Twice's third EP, 'Twicecoaster: Lane 1,' portrays a girl in love for the first time. With its catchy hook and cute dance moves, the track swept all the music charts in Korea. The mini album sold over half a million copies and set a slew of sales records for a K-pop girl group at the time. The nine-member group is poised to release new music on July 11 with its fourth LP, 'This Is For.'
Korea Herald
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
KickFlip returns with new album, personal touch
Rookie boy band captures cheeky vibe of teens JYP Entertainment's youngest pop group, KickFlip is returning with another album full of rebellious charm. "Kick Out, Flip Now!" marks the group's second release, arriving just four months after debut album "Flip it, Kick it!" Following the strong performance of the debut — surpassing 300,000 sold in preorders — the latest album has already exceeded 350,000 sold in preorders, showing the group's steady rise in popularity. 'We wanted this album to be like a stamp that solidifies KickFlip's identity,' said Donghwa. 'That's why we got even more involved in the production, trying to infuse it with our own unique color.' Kyehoon, Amaru, Donghwa, Minje and Donghyeon actively participated in the album's production, helping shape the group's distinctive sound. The youngest in the group, Donghyeon, took part in composing lead track "Freeze," an energetic song that evokes 1990s nostalgia with a twist of glitch and hyperpop synth sounds. The track is highlighted by the weighty rap verses from Minje and Kyehoon, as well as a catchy hook in the latter half that invites listeners to sing along. Kyehoon, Donghwa and Minje wrote the cheeky lyrics, capturing the spirit of youth longing for freedom. 'As we were working on the song, I kept thinking, 'This fits our group so well.' So when it was chosen as the lead track, I was incredibly honored. Collaborating with the older members was a lot of fun, too,' Donghyeon said. Amaru, who had been composing music even before the group's debut, contributed to both the composition and arrangement of the fifth track, "Complicated!!" He also wrote the lyrics, showing potential as a self-producing artist. 'I've been writing songs since before my debut, and at one point, I wrote over 100 songs in a single year. 'Complicated!!' is one of those songs, and I feel especially attached to it. I'm thrilled to perform it with the group,' Amaru shared. Actively participating in production, the bandmates have been deeply reflecting on the image they want for the group. Leader Kyehoon explained, 'In our daily lives, we're just cheerful and lively like any ordinary boys. That's the vibe we wanted to capture — an authentic image of teenagers. I think that really came through in the songs we produced this time. We hope fans will look forward to the narrative KickFlip continues to build.' KickFlip's momentum is expected to grow even stronger with several performances lined up at major international festivals this summer. The rookie septet is scheduled to perform at Lollapalooza Chicago on Aug. 2 and Summer Sonic Bangkok 2025 on Aug. 23 and 24. 'At these festivals, we want to showcase KickFlip's own take on summer and refreshing vibes, something like an explosion of mint-colored energy,' said Donghwa. 'We'd love to earn a reputation as one of the most powerful K-pop performances.'
Korea Herald
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
‘Street Woman Fighter' goes global
JYP Entertainment founder Park Jin-young, Beyonce tour dancer Aliyah Janell and Mike Song to judge popular dance competition The popular dance competition series "Street Woman Fighter" is back for a third season — this time, with only one Korean team. "World of Street Woman Fighter," the show's latest iteration, features competition between dance crews from five countries: South Korea's Bumsup, the United States' Motiv, Japan's Osaka Ojo Gang and RHTokyo, New Zealand's Royal Family and Australia's AG Squad. Series producer Choi Jung-nam said the decision to include crews from other countries was aimed at showcasing more global talent to Korean audiences, building on the success of their introduction in season two. 'When it came to casting global crews for the program, we didn't approach it with the mindset that specific countries had to be represented. We wanted to introduce crews that have a certain level of skill and status, and who could tell compelling stories within the context of our program,' Choi said during a press conference held Tuesday in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Due to the diversity of participants this time around, the production team said it is facing new challenges in the editing process to ensure a seamless viewing experience across languages. 'Since we're trying to show viewers the best version of the footage through editing, many translators are involved. Because we're dealing with multiple languages: Korean, English, Japanese and more. It's taking a lot of time to translate. ... Even if there are some rough or imperfect parts, I hope you'll look forward to the dancers' expressions through the language of their bodies.' Joining the judges' panel this season are three powerful figures from the dance and entertainment industry: JYP Entertainment founder Park Jin-young, Beyonce tour alum Aliyah Janell, and renowned dancer and choreographer Mike Song. Park, who brings perspectives as a performer and a producer, reflected on his approach to judging for the new season. 'In the past, when I was judging singers, there was some connection to my company, so I had to be careful. But this time, I felt I could speak based on what I saw and felt. Some of the contestants this time are dancers I paid to choreograph for me. So while I'm watching as a fellow dancer, I also naturally see things from the perspective of a K-pop producer who commissions choreography," said Park. Despite the nation-versus-nation frame of the competition, producer Choi emphasized the broader mission of the show. 'I found myself returning to the original mindset -- rather than thinking about which country to root for, I saw it as a way to introduce international dancers to fans who loved 'Street Woman Fighter' and to help build a fandom for them.'
