One or eight had a pioneer year.
In August, the eight-member Japanese boy band released their debut single, “Don't Tell Anyone” – along with a music video – which was written and produced by OneRepublic. Ryan Tedder. However, the group debuted in June with a performance video for the song “Kawasaki”. The video gained as many as 6 million views in five days. At the beginning of this month, a remix of the song and its music video were released Big Seandecreased. the bounce back Discover the singer One or Eight by watching them perform. NEO opened up to us about what it was like to work with famous musicians, his biggest influences and the type of artist he strives to be.
“We had the opportunity to perform in front of Big Sean…we gave it a shot,” NEO said. Us Weekly In an exclusive interview. “We offered him a verse in our edited version, and he gave us a generous ‘yes,’ and that’s how it all happened.”
While filming the music video in both Los Angeles and Japan, when Big Sean noticed that the group was nervous, he would say to him: “Guys, let's have fun.” “This energy really helped us enjoy the shoot, which turned into a great result like the music video,” NEO said. “The big lesson he taught us through his approach to business is to stay humble.”
NEO also shared a key memory from the set: “There's a scene where Big Sean was in the middle, and the rest of the eight of us were hitting our heads with the helmets, but the helmets were so heavy, our necks started hurting. Three seconds later, we had to listen to the whole song. He said: “It's two minutes in a row of hitting with a huge ball on your head. “It was very difficult for us, but it was fun.”
In addition to NEO, the other members are MIZUKI, REIA, RYOTA, SOUMA, TAKERU, TSUBASA and YUGA.
NEO described the song's success as “baffling” and said we How he and the members of One or Eight want to keep the momentum going.
“There is a lot of pressure on us because we are following the pace that Kawasaki has achieved, but we have to constantly release good music,” he said. “So all the members were always in the studio. We are always rehearsing, always preparing to give a better performance.
NEO said their sound is a mixture of hip-hop and pop we That inspiration comes from those he looks up to in the industry.
“I'm personally really looking forward to it J ColeHe said. “His lyrics literally saved my life and thought-provoking lyrics like that. It's not easy to write. And being able to be a great songwriter and at the same time a great performer is what I really want to achieve… He's my role model.”
He continued to explain how rappers work 2014 Forest Hills Drive It was a “lifesaver” for him: “I've been through really dark times in my life and listening to that really lifted my head.”
NEO now wants to pay his way through One or Eight's fanbase, stating that he hopes the group will be a “safe space for listeners.”