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MLD Entertainment is known as the home to powerhouse girl group MOMOLAND and rookie girl group Lapullus, but did you know they are also home to Korean-Japanese boy group T1419 who have been gaining the love of international fans, particularly in Latin America? Well today we’re going to introduce you to this elusive boy group and tell you what makes them so special!
T1419 is a boy group consisting of 9 members, Noa, Sian, Kevin, Gunwoo, Leo, On, Zero, Kairi and Kio, and their name refers to teens aged 14 to 19 who met through their passion for music and wish to express their youthfulness through this medium. The group is also meant to embody the current passions, dreams and hardships that teenagers in the 21st century may face.
T1419 released their pre-debut single, ‘Dracula’ on the 27th October 2020, and then on the 11th January 2021, they made their official debut with the 1st single album "BEFORE SUNRISE Part.1," with the title track ‘ASURABALBALTA’.
[From left to right, top row: Zero, Kairi, NOA, Sian. Bottom: LEO, Kevin, Gun Woo, ON & KIO | Group concept photo from their 2nd Digital Single]
NOA, the leader of T1419 also serves as the main rapper and dancer, and is a very creative person who enjoys poetry and music. Sian, the group's lead vocalist, is an athletic guy who also plays soccer. Kevin, the group's other lead vocalist, also happens to be an ace in fencing. Gunwoo, the lead dancer, rapper, and the center, is known to always approach everything with passion and joy. LEO, is an Osaka-born rapper who is also proficient in English. ON is the group's face, a rapper and vocalist who enjoys writing and working out. Zero is a vocalist, rapper, and dancer from Japan who also participated in the 30th Junon Superboy Another’s Team Midwest. Kairi is a vocalist and dancer from Osaka who enjoys performing and playing video games. And last but not least, maknae KIO, is a K-pop lover determined to conquer the world one step at a time.
As a group, T1419 want to show off their unique and youthful concept to the public, thus they pay careful attention to every detail of their image, actively taking part in the decisions on their stage outfits, make-up and choreography. As a result this also allows the individuality of each member to shine through, and the effort they put in clearly paid off, as they won the category of ‘Potential Singer Award’ at the Asia Artist Awards in 2021 - this is an award given to artists believed to have lots of future potential.
Some of you may wonder how they managed to win such an award despite being relatively inconspicuous in the K-Pop scene in Korea, but the truth is the group are widely popular in the Latin American K-Pop scene - which we covered in depth in a previous article. They have a number of EDELWEISS, the group’s fandom name, based all around Latin America and other Hispanic countries and thus, on countless occasions the group have shown affection and admiration for Latin music.
In the past the group has covered Latin songs such as Daddy Yankee’s ‘Problem’ and ‘Campeón’, and as a result Daddy Yankee and other well-known Latin artists, like Maluma and Natti Natasha have praised T1419, further bolstering their popularity in the Latin American K-Pop community. As a result of their unceasing rise in popularity, they were given the opportunity to perform at the 'Monitor Music Awards' in 2021, and this year, they attended the 'Los Premios Juventud' award ceremony.
However, thee love and appreciation that T1419 shows their Latin fans would not end there; on the 3rd July 2022, they released the single ‘When the sun goes down’ or ‘El sol se va an apagar’, which is totally recorded in Spanish and has a lot of Latin flavor, which was very well received by the Latin public. Many K-Pop artists have used Latin or Spanish elements in their songs before, but T1419 are one of the few K-Pop artists to commit all the way and release a song entirely in Spanish!
The group went on a Latin American tour to promote the song, taking part in numerous interviews, TV appearances, and live performances. Despite the difficulty of singing a song in a completely different language, the group made and continues to make a big effort to show their love for Latin music and its fans.
T1419 is rapidly winning over the hearts of people all across the world despite still being rookies, by stepping off the beaten track and following a route that is more organic to them. We look forward to what they have in store for us in the upcoming years, as it will undoubtedly be something amazing.
Let us know down below if you think you may become an EDELWEISS now?
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Writer: Valeria Vilez
Editor: Han (O.L)