{"id":614702,"date":"2026-09-04T22:14:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T22:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/614702\/"},"modified":"2026-09-04T22:14:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T22:14:14","slug":"nct-127-talk-contract-renewals-neo-sound-on-blingy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/614702\/","title":{"rendered":"NCT 127 Talk Contract Renewals, ‘Neo’ Sound on ‘Blingy’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tSomeone has given NCT 127<\/a> notepads. The five bandmates are parked along one side of a wide conference room table, each with hotel stationery and a pen sitting in front of them. It immediately feels like a mistake. When not reflecting on what\u2019s changed for the group in the decade since debut \u2014 or heckling each other for misspeaking like they\u2019re still bratty kids living on top of each other in dorms \u2014 they\u2019re hunched over, doodling.<\/p>\n

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\n\tJust over 10 years ago, the world was introduced to NCT<\/a>\u2019s first fixed subgroup (NCT DREAM, WayV and NCT WISH would soon follow) as teenagers getting aggro<\/a> in science class. In real life, that rowdy energy has dispersed into a mellower campus crush vibe \u2014 if you squint, the drawing could almost be confused for diligent note-taking \u2014 but the septet\u2019s seventh studio album, Blingy, is just as loud as ever. \u201cI wanted to make a statement,\u201d Chicago native Johnny says: \u201cNCT 127 is back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tK-pop<\/a>\u2019s noisiest mavericks have had a relatively quiet couple of years. In 2024, group leader Taeyong enlisted in the South Korean military for compulsory service; deep-voiced, dimpled Jaehyun was next to go. By the end of 2025, they were almost done, while two more \u2014 Doyoung and Jungwoo \u2014 cycled in, leaving five members (a head count rounded out by Johnny, Yuta and Haechan) to shoulder the weight of this comeback.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen they sit down with Billboard, the rollout is still in progress. Across the table, Taeyong is making scribbles that look plucked straight out of the mind of Bart Simpson: a disembodied robot head; messy stars; a stick-figure animal being beamed up by a UFO; a bird-man with abs and pecs \u2014 and, in a nod to Blingy\u2019s raucous lead single, \u201cPi\u00f1ata,\u201d live debuted<\/a> at KCON LA the previous Friday (Aug. 14), a donkey with stumpy little legs.<\/p>\n

\n\tA few days later, the headlining set is still on their minds. There\u2019s good reason for it to be: \u201cIt\u2019s one of the hardest performances we\u2019d ever had to get ready for,\u201d Johnny says. To offset lineup changes, the guys ultimately had to redistribute lines for nearly every song on the setlist.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis is to say nothing of all the work that went into Blingy\u2019s title track, which was only briefly teased at KCON. Taeyong, who co-created its choreo, recalls the first \u201cfull power\u201d run-through: \u201cI wasn\u2019t even dripping sweat. I was just soaked,\u201d he says. \u201cLike some exercise\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cCrossFit,\u201d Johnny says, then spells out: \u201cH-I-I-T.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cA bit like CrossFit,\u201d Taeyong laughs. \u201cMaybe even harder.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the leader had proposed a few cuts, his teammates rejected them outright. \u201cI felt it then,\u201d Taeyong says. \u201cThe members really don\u2019t change when it comes to ambition about performance and being uncompromising with what we show. We all have this desire.\u201d He chuckles to himself: \u201cI have it a bit less. But with everyone\u2019s help, I was able to do it, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tNow in his thirties, Taeyong acts like his stamina has fallen off a cliff, but his post-military activities suggest otherwise: within six months of discharging, he released his debut solo studio album WYLD<\/a>. Granted, it was \u201ceasier to make music in the military,\u201d he admits. He had a hand in every track on his own project \u2014 but after returning to his group, Taeyong says he barely has time to listen to music, let alone produce it.<\/p>\n

\n\tJaehyun took a brief vacation before throwing himself into album preparations. He didn\u2019t have much difficulty settling back in \u2014 that is, if his dry witticisms are to be believed. \u201cMusic is my life,\u201d he says, completely straight-faced. \u201cAlways music. Today music, tomorrow music.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd a lot was riding on that music. So, when it came time to pick the centerpiece for this era, there was a three-way split: management liked \u201cPi\u00f1ata\u201d so much they tried to tip the scales<\/a> in its favor; A&R championed the chest-beating \u201cLegacy\u201d; the members, however, threw their weight behind the impossible-to-ignore \u201cBlingy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s a song that gets your attention,\u201d Johnny says. \u201cI wanted people to stop and listen if they were walking by.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTurning heads is far from a new goal for them. To this day, the title track from NCT 127\u2019s best-selling<\/a> album Sticker (and its cacophonous flute<\/a>) is subject to hot debate: \u201cIt\u2019s one of those songs where either you hate it, or you love it,\u201d Johnny says. \u201cWe try to make people who hate it love it, but sometimes you don\u2019t. We kinda just started to understand that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s this brash, unselfconscious style \u2014 which they call \u201cNeo\u201d \u2014 that\u2019s so successful at bringing fans into the fold, he argues: \u201cBecause they are like, \u2018What the heck is this?\u2019\u201d Jaehyun adds: \u201cFrom the start, we had to be experimental.\u201d And it\u2019s grown into a calling card.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut it would be a mistake to chalk NCT 127\u2019s music up to just noise. Despite the project\u2019s on-the-nose title, Blingy contains multitudes: pinballing hip-hop banger \u201cIKR\u201d conducts its chaos with unexpected minimalism (they recorded early in the day for a morning rasp); the lightweight \u201cDay After Day\u201d has magical drum-n-bass swerves.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt raises the question,\u201d Johnny asks, holding this mixed bag up against the singularity of \u201cSticker,\u201d \u201cWhat is Neo?\u201d For ultra-capable vocalist Haechan, deep cut \u201cMad Dog\u201d<\/a> is the pinnacle of that sound. It\u2019s acidic and abrasive; crucially, the bridge hits like a melodic chaser to its squeaky dubstep drop, making the contrast all the more delicious.<\/p>\n

\n\tPerhaps that\u2019s why, despite the group\u2019s sonic identity having been discussed to death \u2014 \u201cI don\u2019t really know what Neo is anymore,\u201d Yuta huffs a laugh from beneath his black fringe \u2014 Taeyong sums it up rather easily: \u201cThere is no Neo song,\u201d he says. \u201cThe members\u2019 voices are Neo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWith Doyoung and Jungwoo gone, Blingy tends to tread lighter on the crazy vocals. (Though not completely: \u201cPi\u00f1ata,\u201d for one, flexes Yuta\u2019s rock chops.) Yet as a happy surprise for fans \u2014 and their fellow members<\/a> \u2014 the pair of enlisted singers show up on \u201c127 Million Miles,\u201d a heartfelt thank you to the many faces in the crowd and beyond. Taeyong explains of the song: \u201cEven if we\u2019re that far apart, we\u2019re still able to be together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn July, \u201cDid you miss us?<\/a>\u201d billboards went up across two major U.S. cities, leading fans to believe that North American dates would be added to NCT 127\u2019s upcoming REDLINE tour. Johnny took it upon himself to personally dispel<\/a> the rumors. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to get anyone\u2019s hopes up,\u201d he says with a small grimace. \u201cI felt like that would make it worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThere was a big picture,\u201d he hand-waves. \u201cBut let\u2019s not get into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor the time being, the guys will \u201creach out as much as possible,\u201d though Johnny adds that another tour is \u201cdefinitely planned\u201d for next year. \u201cWhen all of the members are able to work together [in 2027], we\u2019ll definitely try to make another album right away,\u201d he says. What lies beyond is up in the air. \u201c2028.. we\u2019ll try, but we don\u2019t know. Let\u2019s just get through 2027.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThis year, meanwhile, finds them in flux. With the sprawling NCT clan turning a decade old, most of the members\u2019 contracts were up for renewal; when April rolled around, SM Entertainment golden boy Mark Lee<\/a> became the first to not move forward with the company \u2014 or the band.<\/p>\n

\n\tJohnny emphasizes how long the whole process took in reality. Nothing was done in haste. \u201cThe decisions that everybody made weren\u2019t made in a few months,\u201d he says. \u201cIt really did take a lot of time and effort and conversation with each other to come upon the conclusion we came upon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThey kicked off discussions over two years ago, before members began to enlist. \u201cAt the beginning, before I went to the military, we all got together and talked about it,\u201d Taeyong says. \u201cI guess each of us had a direction we were thinking about and we each wanted different things, so I think it was unavoidable that we took a longer time to think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cUltimately, I can\u2019t say that everyone is completely satisfied,\u201d he concedes, while also effectively putting a lid on the conversation: \u201cBut I think we are able to work in a better environment than before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWith this new seniority came greater creative control. Taeyong fiddles with his phone, looking for an unchosen demo version of an album track. It\u2019s a move not without its objections. \u201cDon\u2019t play it,\u201d Johnny cringes. \u201cUgh!\u201d Yuta echoes: \u201cWhat if she likes it too much?\u201d This alternative melody \u2014 by the members\u2019 own estimations \u2014 wasn\u2019t up to par, so it didn\u2019t go to press. \u201cHated [this] other version,\u201d Johnny says. \u201cJust gonna say that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tDo they often find themselves having differences of opinion with their A&R team now? \u201cAlways,\u201d Yuta nods.<\/p>\n

\n\tTaeyong agrees: \u201cI think we have more complaints after renegotiating.\u201d The rest of the members crack up, but Yuta has an amendment to make. \u201cOnly him,\u201d he says, poking a thumb at Taeyong. Was he not as forthcoming with his thoughts in the past? \u201cOh, I complained a lot before,\u201d Taeyong smirks. \u201cAnd now I\u2019m just complaining even more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBut they also recognize they\u2019re in good hands for the most part. \u201cWe tell the company our opinion,\u201d Haechan says, \u201c[and] resolve it by talking it through. When it comes to songs, the A&R team comes to us with a certain vision, so we keep that in mind as we\u2019re thinking about the album.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAlthough Taeyong can be admittedly hard to budge, he\u2019s not closed off to outside information, either. He doesn\u2019t confuse ego for maturity. \u201cWhile signing a contract with [SM subsidiary] KRM, I came to learn some things,\u201d he says. \u201cAt first, I had a lot of complaints about there being so many foreign producers in the credits [of our albums].\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBut time has shifted his perspective on the matter. \u201cJust because they\u2019re foreign producers doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re making songs from a place of ignorance,\u201d he says. \u201cThese individuals have come over to Korea and are doing song camps. They\u2019re learning about Korean culture and K-pop\u2019s origins, and they know more than I expected. It\u2019s within these song camps where their culture and our culture come together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tHis worries about the K-pop industry divesting itself from the \u201cK\u201d<\/a> weren\u2019t unfounded. But whereas some K-pop artists seem to chase after the U.S. pop airwaves, NCT 127 has always utilized creative partnerships between (often Black American) producers from the West \u2014 Dem Jointz<\/a>, Patrick \u201cJ.Que\u201d Smith<\/a>, Harvey Mason Jr.<\/a> \u2014 and SM\u2019s genius home team to enhance their sound rather than strip it of complexity.<\/p>\n

\n\tJohnny offers up a metaphor. \u201cDo you know what an MBTI<\/a> is?\u201d he asks. \u201cIt\u2019s an easy way to explain who you are. But does that define you? I would say no.\u201d The eldest isn\u2019t too hung up on the particulars: \u201cYou can label us however you want,\u201d he says. \u201cBut, in the end, we kind of made a genre.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd that\u2019s something they can call all their own.<\/p>\n

\n\tAdditional translation provided by Gene Kim.<\/p>\n


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