A few days ago, we reported how the hip-hop duo Leessang's seventh album, "AsuRA BalBalTa", has been absolutely dominating the charts, taking over the entire Top Ten ranking for two days (and counting). Recently, Gil and Gary sat down with OSEN and talked about their amazing experience with their album.
On the promotional single, "Turned Off the TV...", Gary spoke out about the calming and witty song featuring Tasha. "It's a more common story than simple farewells or love. Just like how lovers need to be honest with each other, we wrote the song as honest as we could and we think the audience is welcoming that honesty."
"Indie artists used to write many songs like this," Gil added. "I think the time has come for recognized artists like ourselves to try these kinds of songs, too. Without deliberating, and without focusing on the young fans we gained through variety programs, we kept our own color."
The duo has gained many fans through variety programs, on which both members are currently shooting as fixed cast members. Gil is part of the MBC 'Infinity Challenge' crew, while Gary is a rising star on SBS 'Running Man'.
"Leessang's music and lyrics appeal mainly to males, but thanks to their variety appearances they've brought along many female fans as well," said a hip-hop industry expert. "Moreover, both of the programs they are on are both recognized as 'trendy'. I think there was a big synergy effect from the variety skills of the two people."
However, it is not always the case that a variety artist manages to make their album a hit. "We didn't want to hear that our music became lighter because of variety, so we worked even harder. Last year, we threw away about twenty songs that were completely finished." Leessang said.
A representative for Jungle Entertainment, Leessang's company, analyzed their success. "Because of the variety appearances, many viewers thought to themselves, 'Leessang's album is out? I should give it a listen'. It's a fact that Leessang's name became well-known through the variety shows. But this success was also the result of good music as well. They usually only show their funny sides, but their music is very serious, and their songs have that 'my story' relatable effect... so that may be the reason why we saw a reversal effect."
Timing may also have had something to do with Leessang's rise. On the heels of the torrential rains that flooded Korea, which tempered the music scene, and the upcoming girl group rush in September, Leessang picked a particularly beneficial time to come back, taking advantage of the cracks in the market.
Whatever the reason, Leessang has solidified their place as one of the best hip-hop artists in Korea, and it appears that artists will have to re-think their excuses for poor album sales - such as the oft-repeated "they only listen to the title track and nothing else" as well as "thanks to variety, they don't listen to our music seriously".
Source: OSEN via Naver
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