K-pop boy band TOMORROW X TOGETHER (TXT) describe their latest EP as a teen account of how the pandemic shattered their world, and they hope it resonates with young people everywhere.
The EP contains the singles "Blue Hour" and "We Lost the Summer", which both reflect the impact of the health crisis. The video for "We Lost the Summer" was released on Thursday.
"We wanted to tell a story only we could tell in these times. It's a teen narrative on how the pandemic has impacted the world, in our relationships with our friends and loved ones," band-member Yeonjun told Reuters.
"These are hard times for everyone. We wanted to share music that people can relate to and find comfort from," said Heuningkai.
The band, whose members are aged between 18 and 21, made their debut just one year ago and have won fans around the world. Their debut single "Crown" was viewed online over 15 million times in 24 hours.
K-pop is reaching an wider global audience as Korean bands use more English in their lyrics.
Korean Boy band BTS, signed to the same label Big Hit Entertainment as TXT, picked up four prizes at the MTV Europe Music Awards last Sunday, including best song and best group, capping a year in which they underlined their status as a major global act.
BTS is also the first K-Pop band to have a number one in the U.S. charts.
The young men of TXT say they are delighted to have reached people outside Korea.
"We can't express in words how much it means to us that so many people relate to and support our music. We are Gen-Z artists and I think that speaking about subjects that are important to us, like dreams and youth, has helped us to reach people of our age."
(Reporting by Mindy Burrows; Writing by Alexandra Hudson; Editing by Mike Collett-White)
