This article is by Shin Ha-nee and read by an artificial voice.



JYP Entertainment's rookie boy band NEXZ is the latest to blur the lines of what defines K-pop today as the genre continues to expand beyond its birthplace. While carrying the torch from 2PM, GOT7 and Stray Kids, NEXZ is forging its own way as an up-and-coming performance powerhouse.

The seven-member group is made up almost entirely of Japanese members except for So Geon, a Korean national born and raised in Japan. But for NEXZ, nationality is beside the point, as what matters most is not whether it is a K-pop or J-pop act - but that it has a stage to perform on, a story to tell.

"Our goal and dream is to show our performance wherever we can and connect with fans there, and that is more than enough to make us truly happy," said member Hyui during a roundtable interview on Thursday ahead of the release of NEXZ's third EP, "Beat-Boxer."



"What drives us is the idea of being on stage and performing - that is at the core of our identity," Hyui added.

Formed through JYP Entertainment and Sony Music Japan's joint audition program "Nizi Project Season 2" (2023), NEXZ, short for "Next Zeneration," debuted in May last year as JYP's first boy band in six years since Stray Kids. The group consists of Tomoya, So, Yu, Seita, Hyui, Haru and Yuki.

Its third and latest EP, "Beat-Boxer," comes six months after its second EP, "O-RLY?"



The new album consists of six tracks, including the title "Beat-Boxer" and B-sides "Legacy," "I'm Him," "Co-Star," "Next To Me" and CD-exclusive track "Z Side_250823." "Beat-Boxer" is a dance track inspired by 2000s hip-hop, with its title representing NEXZ's confidence to "beat the beat" on stage.

Taking a note from Stray Kids, known for its self-producing approach, NEXZ ramped up its creative involvement for the latest album to craft an album that truly reflects the group's identity.

Tomoya, Yu and Haru contributed to choreographing "Beat-Boxer" and the prereleased "I'm Him." Tomoya and Haru also took part in producing "Next To Me," and all seven members wrote lyrics for the song.

"Up to this point, we focused on delivering the demos that we were given to the best of our ability," noted Tomoya. "But with this album, we've been involved in creating it from the start, which makes it more NEXZ-y, and something only we can deliver."



NEXZ also follows the footsteps of performance-oriented predecessors of JYP, such as 2PM, which is known for its acrobatic performances. NEXZ has been building a reputation for its powerful and complex choreography, regularly sharing performance videos online and incorporating challenging moves such as a "human tower" formation featured in its "O-RLY?" stages.

With "Beat-Boxer," NEXZ says the members pushed their performance and live vocals even further. After wrapping its first Japan tour "One Bite" in August, spanning 15 cities, and holding a two-day special concert "One Beat" in southern Seoul over the weekend, the group feels stronger than ever.

Though initially launched primarily targeting the Japanese market, NEXZ is equally active in both Japan and Korea. All seven members spoke fluent Korean during the interview, eagerly answering questions with enthusiasm, politeness and a touch of humor.

"When the members began to respond in Korean instinctively, that's when I realized we've really gotten settled in here," said Hyui, who has been in Korea for six years now.

Yuki learned Korean by watching the romance drama "King the Land" (2023) and Tomoya through the variety series "Green Bean, Red Bean: Reap What You Sow" (2023), they shared.



And So - a Tokyo-born Korean who once went silent for a minute when JYP founder Park Jin-young asked him to speak Korean during an audition - now says that he's even making up Korean slang of his own.

"The kind of praise I want to hear with our new album is, for me, 'tta-bong juice,'" he said with a straight face.

"Tta-bong juice," meaning "thumbs-up juice," is a made-up phrase So coi...