(JYP Entertainment)

GOT7, a band with many talents, has been making plenty of breakthroughs in the global music scene as far as album sales, tour dates and streaming numbers are concerned.

While it’s clear that the seven-piece act is still in the limelight, the band members said there’s always been ineffable insecurity that distresses them. And instead of trying to avoid it or covering it up, the act decided to respond to such vulnerability with its newest album “Spinning Top: Between Security & Insecurity,” fronted by lead track “Eclipse.”

A few hours ahead of releasing its new album, GOT7 members sat down for an interview to discuss how they tried to project their insecurity in the album and the band’s past and future.


What is the meaning behind “Spinning Top?”

JB: It literally means a top which we play with. The title didn’t come out of nowhere, as we’ve been talking about the issue of insecurity a lot these days. We’d always promised our fans to protect them and keep thanking them, but we recently thought, “Will we really be able to keep all those promises?” From my point of view, life is a repetition of insecurity, like a spinning top. And these days, I felt like I was stuck at some point in my life without any growth.




Is “insecurity” merely a musical concept, or do you actually feel insecure?

Yugyeom: Insecurity is a very common feeling. When we perform on stage in front of fans, we are full of confidence and look cool, but when we are on the move in or at our hotel rooms by ourselves, we feel like we get endlessly smaller. We feel like we are nobodies.

JB: I know that GOT7 has always been growing up, but the anxiety inevitably ensues. When we are by ourselves, we often talk about whether we will keep doing better, or what if we fall down. That’s how our insecurity struck us.

BamBam: There are many kinds of insecurities, and ours isn’t entirely about sadness. With all the world tours and our musical improvements, we don’t agonize over our instability. When you listen to the lyrics of ‘Eclipse,’ it’s more about, “how are we going to keep up our achievements?”


Then how do you tackle insecurity?

JB: In the past, I tried to overcome my dark thoughts by sleeping on it, but one day it struck me that I was only trying to avoid it. So I decided to face it as my reality to fight against. I don’t know whether I lost confidence or self-esteem, or because the song is about insecurity, but I’ve been feeling lost these days, thinking, “Should I keep going or stop here?” And my bandmates here told me not to have such thoughts. So we made our own rule to not talk negative stuff that might bring our mood down.




About not talking about the negative stuff rule, what if your complaints build up?

Jinyoung: We’ve spent so much time together and know each other too well. We are just too close to hide each other’s feelings. All seven of us are somewhat like children, as we easily spill out our inner thoughts and emotions when somebody urges us to talk about it. So there’s no need to worry that our complaints might pile up and explode someday.

JB: While we’ve talked about insecurity a lot, the overall album is about getting over it and pursuing a more hopeful future.


With “Spinning Top,” you’ve talked about insecurity and reflected on your past. At this point of your career, what do you think GOT7 needs the most?

JB: I think we should promote the group to a wider audience. While we’ve been touring the world, I think we should work harder on showing each individual member’s uniqueness.

Yugyeom: I think we should get back to our initial mindset of debut and regroup ourselves. We’ve been talking about it a lot lately.

Youngjae: I know that it would be hard to appeal to all generations with our music, but what we hope is that people in their 50s and 60s can also recognize GOT7 and our image. We would be really grateful.




How much do you think GOT7 has contributed to JYP’s growth in stock value? Feel free to brag about it.

BamBam: I would say, we have a considerable influence. Talking about GOT7, we are the only group under JYP that can go on an arena tour. All members are busy with their individual schedules and their huge roles in the group, and I think we contributed to constructing our company’s new building, from its basement to fourth floor, ha ha.

JB: I think we served as a pillar of JYP. We’ve been constantly working hard since our debut, and I think our hard work did add up to the company’s growth.


As you said earlier, how do you deal with the thought that GOT7’s fame might not last forever?

Jinyoung: I know that our fame won’t last forever. It’s too early to think about it, but I know that we should be more humble and grateful for what we have now. When the time comes, it would be tough. But I believe we can overcome it as we’ll always be together. A trouble shared is a trouble halved.




What are you planning for your upcoming “Keep Spinning” world tour?

Yugyeom: There will be new songs and dance performances. We tried to break out of the conventional concert setting.

JB: We’ve put a lot of efforts into it. Fans will be able to enjoy watching us enjoying the stage.


What do you hope to achieve with your newest record?

Jackson: We hope to receive any kind of award.

JB: I hope our new achievements could help us stage better shows. We are a team that adores, and truly enjoys performing on stage.

BamBam: We want to win the first place on music shows. We don’t release new acts to win 2nd, or 3rd place. We want 1st place. Hope we don’t feel unstable anymore after promoting “Spinning Top.”

GOT7’s “Spinning Top” album will be out Monday evening. The group is set to kick off its world tour in Seoul on June 15-16 and then head to cities in North America, Australia, Asia and Europe through October.

By Hong Dam-young (lotus@heraldcorp.com)