Having first graced the K-pop scene in 2020 as a member of the boy band TREASURE, BANG YEDAM is now embarking on a new journey, eager to unveil his multifaceted talents as a singer, producer, and songwriter moving forward as a solo artist. The versatile idol, who is signed under GF Entertainment, made his solo debut on November 23 with the mini-album 'ONLY ONE,' featuring the title track of the same name alongside the pre-released piano ballad "Miss You."

'ONLY ONE' comprises six tracks, and to no surprise, YEDAM participated in the creation of all of them, not only lending his beautiful vocals but also serving as the lyricist and producer of the tracks "Only One," "hebeolle," "Come To Me," "Not At All," the alternative rock version and piano version of "Miss You." 

"There is some pressure and burden because I now have to fill the stage all alone," said YEDAM. Though this new chapter of being a solo artist to YEDAM brings its own set of challenges along with the pressure, it also means that he is now able to control a lot of areas in terms of the music he will be releasing, which the artist considers as a good part of doing it all alone. "It means that there's more responsibility given to me."

To celebrate BANG YEDAM's awaited solo debut, the singer-songwriter sat down with allkpop to talk more about his first album, artistic journey, creative process, and more. Keep reading to learn more about the talented artist!

Shout-out video from BANG YEDAM to allkpop:

allkpop: First, congratulations on your solo debut! Could you share with us the reason why you think this mini-album, 'ONLY ONE,' is the perfect musical project for you to re-introduce BANG YEDAM to the K-Pop scene once again?

YEDAM: Because this is the album that I'll be introducing myself to the public as a solo artist, I consider it to be very important. I've done a lot of preparations for this. I tried to create an album that my fans and the general public would find very impactful. That's what I focused on when I was preparing for this album. Also, I think all the six tracks in this album are like title songs. I regard them all as one.

allkpop: How does it feel to finally show BANG YEDAM's solo music to people? Do you feel pressured or do you have any worries as you're now putting your music out there to the world as a solo? What do you think is the biggest adjustment you had to make?

YEDAM: As a solo artist, I'm really excited and I'm looking forward to the album release and promotions. I can't say that there was no pressure in the process. There is some pressure and burden because I now have to fill the stage all alone.

When writing and producing the songs, there's more than I need to do alone. But if you think of it the other way around, it means that there's more responsibility given to me, that there are a lot of areas that I can actually make my decisions on, which I think is actually a good part of doing it alone. So, I'm trying to set this kind of mindset to regard these things as good ones. I'm trying to be optimistic about it. Some things that I thought and cared about while preparing for this album are the kind of image the public will see me as and the kind of image that I need to portray through this album.

allkpop: What messages do you want the listeners to take away from the tracks? 

YEDAM: Through this album, I really wanted to show to the public who the artist BANG YEDAM is, including the kind of music I make and the kind of preparations I have gone through for this music. I want to show everyone everything. It's something I'm very ambitious about. The album revolves around the message and theme of love, and I believe it's something that the general public can empathize with.

allkpop: Could you share with us where you got the inspiration behind the album in general?

YEDAM: In terms of my inspiration, there is no certain place or time that I get my inspiration from. Whenever I get some sort of ideas or epiphany, I write them all down, so I can look back to them in the future.

allkpop: Are you planning to showcase a signature musical style of yours as you continue to release more solo music in the future, or do you have plans to just explore a lot of musical genres?

YEDAM: I have the ambition to try various and diverse musical genres. But even if I do, I'm always going to try to add my own ideas and thoughts to it, so it will be my way of expressing a certain genre. In that way, the music will still feel kind of new and refreshing to the public.

allkpop: That being said, what kind of music would you like to experiment with?

YEDAM: I want to try different genres like rock, hip-hop, or any other genres that I feel like trying in the future.

allkpop: How did you find the preparations for this debut album, from working in the studio to recording the songs and filming the music video? 

YEDAM: From the writing and recording of the songs to the filming of the music video, I would say that the entire process went very smoothly. The company paid attention to the opinions and thoughts that I gave them, and they reflected them accordingly. When needed, they also give me a piece of advice, which has been very adequate. Combining all those, I would say that the entire production process went very smoothly.

allkpop: How hard was it preparing for this album, and how were you able to overcome the challenges? 

YEDAM: I don't think there was a big challenge. But if I had to pick one, I think it has to be the fact that I had to make a lot of decisions along the way. And because I had to make those decisions, there were a lot of thoughts of mine that were involved, so I really had to ponder and consider a lot of things. In this regard, I asked for a lot of help from people, which I did and I received. 

allkpop: Did working for this solo album give you a new perspective as a musician? 

YEDAM: I came to realize that though I am the artist, there are a lot of efforts that are put into and given in by people, by the staff from different departments that have been also working hard to produce the album together with me.

allkpop: You participated in a series and auditioned at a competition show at a very young age. What was it that made you realize that you wanted to be a musician? 

YEDAM: Yes, I did make an appearance at a survival program at a very young age! I have also been able to record music since I was young. The motivation behind me choosing this career is, obviously, the amount of influence I received from my parents. When I participated in the survival program, that was the moment when I realized that I wanted to pursue this career, thinking, "I'm going to be a musician in the future."

allkpop: Now that you're building your name in the industry, what do you want to tell your past self for making it this far?

YEDAM: I think there's a lot that I can learn from my past self as well. So, I would really want to engage in a proper conversation with him where I would ask him questions and get some answers. That's what I want to do.

allkpop: You came from a musically-oriented family, what piece of advice did you receive from anyone in your family, or maybe someone outside of your family—perhaps your colleagues—that stuck with you the most and that you’re able to bring with you until this time of your career?

YEDAM: One advice that I got from my parents is to make and sing music that can touch other people's feelings. I don't think I have my decisive or fixed style of music yet. I don't think I have that yet, or maybe that's just part of my personality… But I was told by other artists that because I am an artist, I need to trust myself, my instincts, and my feelings. They told me that those things are what I need to do, and I'm trying to take on this advice. I'm trying to put those into action at the moment.

allkpop: You're a great songwriter and producer. Could you please tell us how you usually work in a studio? Some artists jot down notes whenever something pops up in their mind and they will later use it to write a song. But for you, what is your writing style like? Do you like to work as planned or just whenever you want to do so, spontaneously?

YEDAM: I think I'm spontaneous when it comes to my work. When I get an idea, I try to develop it and make a song from it. I feel like when I'm doing it that way, the result, the music will come out really good. So, what I do is when I get an idea, I try to write it down, put it in the memo, and develop the song from there. After completing a song, I still feel like I need to work a little bit more on that. And that's when I plan everything out.

allkpop: Your fans are wondering if you have any plans on releasing your unreleased songs. Can we expect these songs to be included and released in your future albums?

YEDAM: Definitely! Even in this album, there is an unreleased song that I've included. It’s a song that a lot of my fans might already know. In the future, I would definitely want to include more of my unreleased songs. But I want to develop them first and make them better in terms of quality. I hope my fans can look forward to listening to those songs!

allkpop: Your fans are also asking if the fandom name would still be "Blackswans," or do you have any plans on changing it?

YEDAM: Well, I've been thinking about coining a name for my fans. I'm trying to come up with something really cool, something that my fans will like. I do think the name Blackswans has its own meaning and terms, but I'm thinking of a name that might be cooler and might reflect my new beginning as a solo artist. That's what’s currently on my mind.

allkpop: How would you describe or differentiate the music producer BANG YEDAM, the singer BANG YEDAM, and BANG YEDAM as a normal person? In what ways do you think they’re different from each other, be it in the manner of working on something? How do you set a boundary between being a musician and a human?

YEDAM: I don't think there's much of a big difference between the producer, the singer, and the human being BANG YEDAM. I think the difference may lie in the acuteness or how sensitive I am as one. I think it's the level that makes one distinct from the other. But other than that, I don't think there's a big difference between these three types of BANG YEDAM.

allkpop: You said in an interview that living without regrets is important. Are you somehow doing it right now — living your life without regrets? If you could change anything about your past, what would you want to change?

YEDAM: I would say that there are little regrets. But I try to focus more on the present and the future rather than the past. If you ask me if there's anything I want to change from the past, I don't think I would want to change anything. I just want to accept it as it is, move forward, and go with the flow.

allkpop: This is one of the questions your fans want to know your answer about. Which artists, in and out of K-Pop, would you love to work with in the future, be it for a song release or a special stage collaboration?

YEDAM: There are too many for me to choose from. I think it would be really fun if I could collaborate with anyone with a similar musical style as me or just any other artists like Asian artists. I'm really open to collaborating with any pop singers. I just think that it would be really fun if I could do that.

allkpop: It's almost the end of 2023. What goals do you have, be it for your musical career or just for yourself, that you're planning to work on for the rest of the year and next year? What are you looking forward to the most in 2024?

YEDAM: My goal this year is to finish the promotion for my debut album without any issues in terms of health or anything else. I loved the entire album process for ‘ONLY ONE.’ It was so much fun preparing for this, and I think the album suits me well. So, for next year, after this, I do want to release another album as soon as possible. I'm going to work on that next year. And if I have enough songs, I hope to hold a concert for my fans in the future.

allkpop: To conclude this interview, please tell us your personal favorite track from your album, a TMI, and your final message to everyone who will be reading this interview!

YEDAM: For my favorite song in this album, I personally just love all of them, so I can't choose one. I love the title song, the second track, the third track, and so on… I just love all of them, so I won't be able to choose one even if you ask.

For a TMI, there is actually a song that was written 3 years ago. While I was working on it for this album, I was able to listen to my old voice when I first started working on it. It was a fun experience because I could really feel and sense how my voice changed over time — how my voice right now is different from what it was like back then.

Lastly, this has been artist BANG YEDAM. Thank you so much for waiting for my solo debut. Also, for those who haven't known me before, I hope this is the time for them to get to know me better. I'll be continuing to make great music for you, so please stay tuned. Thank you very much!

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