{"id":4777,"date":"2025-07-18T06:22:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T06:22:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/4777\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T06:22:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T06:22:09","slug":"north-korean-defectors-make-debut-in-new-k-pop-boy-band","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/4777\/","title":{"rendered":"North Korean defectors make debut in new K-pop boy band"},"content":{"rendered":"

SEOUL \u2013 A new K-pop boy band made their global debut on July 18 with <\/p>\n

two members who defected from North Korea<\/p>\n

<\/a> and an album that includes a song about the consequences of escaping one of the world\u2019s most repressive states. <\/p>\n

1VERSE, pronounced \u201cuniverse\u201d, is made up of five men in their 20s from North Korea, Japan and the United States, who go by their first names, Hyuk, Seok, Aito, Nathan and Kenny.<\/p>\n

At midnight, the group performed a live-streamed showcase of their first EP The 1st Verse featuring three tracks, including the debut single Shattered.<\/p>\n

A video to accompany the song will drop later on July 18. Recorded earlier in 2025, it shows the group sporting make-up and slick hairstyles, dancing against a stroboscopic background.<\/p>\n

Yu Hyuk, originally from the north-eastern county of Kyongsong in North Korea, has been living in South Korea since 2013.<\/p>\n

As well as enjoying the freedom to show off his talent to the world, the 25-year-old also appreciates being able to eat three meals a day.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hyuk, who defected from North Korea, filming a scene for 1VERSE\u2019s new music video in Seoul, South Korea, on May 21.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: REUTERS<\/p>\n

In North Korea, he started working at the age of nine and said he was sometimes forced into desperate measures to get food, eating spoiled rice or worse, and resorting to theft.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter I was caught stealing, I was beaten hard until I was bleeding. I was really hungry and instinctively I was thinking about survival,\u201d he told Reuters at the group\u2019s studio in the South Korean capital.<\/p>\n

North Korea has stepped up control over people\u2019s lives since the Covid-19 pandemic when all borders were sealed, and abuses such as executions, forced labour and reports of starvation continue, a United Nations official investigating rights in the isolated state told Reuters in June.<\/p>\n

Hyuk escaped North Korea as a child \u2013 fleeing to China and then across other international borders with the help of a broker arranged by his mother, who was already in South Korea.<\/p>\n

While he is happy with his new life, he recalls that it was a wrench to leave his home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was hungry and tired, but I was happy surrounded by the people I like which made it tougher for me to want to come here at first,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The song Shattered encapsulates his feelings when he learnt about the death of his father in North Korea, he said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Members of K-pop boy band 1VERSE performing their new single in front of a camera in Seoul, South Korea, on May 21.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: REUTERS<\/p>\n

Kim Seok, the other North Korean defector in the group and also 25, used to live in a border town near China. He was exposed to K-pop by a friend who shared music videos on a portable media player, including South Korean rapper Psy\u2019s 2012 smash hit Gangnam Style.<\/p>\n

Seok escaped with his father and grandmother when he was 20.<\/p>\n

Recent reports have suggested that Pyongyang is stepping up its crackdown on the consumption of South Korean culture, including a case where teenagers were sentenced to hard labour for watching K-pop, as well as suppressing South Korean speaking styles.<\/p>\n

Ms Michelle Cho, producer and chief executive of 1VERSE\u2019s label Singing Beetle, said she wanted to create a more authentic group in an industry often seen as picture-perfect.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho doesn\u2019t love the story of someone from a humble background chasing his dreams, especially K-pop,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Despite their diverse backgrounds, the bandmates said they had plenty in common.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, isn\u2019t it fun? Like our group is just a unique type of global,\u201d said Kenny, who is Chinese American.<\/p>\n

While the group has drawn attention for having North Korean defectors, Hyuk hopes they will be judged by the quality of their work.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to become an idol that brings energy and the message that cheers up many people, that they aren\u2019t alone and there are even people like me.\u201d REUTERS<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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