K.Will releases new album to celebrate 10th anniversary
K.Will performs his new song “Nonfiction” during a press conference at Ilchi Art Hall in Gangnam, Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
By Kim Jae-heun
Ballad singer K.Will returned to the K-pop scene after two and a half years, releasing his fourth studio album “Part.1 Nonfiction,” Tuesday.
During his hiatus, the singer was active as a radio DJ. He also performed in the Korean edition of popular French musical “Notre Dame de Paris” and received a “Rookie of the Year” award for his performance. But he said he missed his main job _ being a singer.
“As my hiatus was getting longer, I became nervous. I was worried people could forget me if I didn’t make a comeback soon,” K.Will said during a showcase for his new album release at Ilchi Art Hall in Gangnam, Seoul. “Still, I achieved something by receiving a rookie award with a musical performance. It is my first rookie award since my debut as a singer 10 years ago.”
K.Will is a well-known ballad singer and he has been sweeping charts with many hit songs like “Left Heart” and “Missing You.” But he is unsure of his musical identity, now that he has tried so many genres and proven he can digest them all.
“I have tried various music styles and enlarged my spectrum in the scene, be it a bright song, medium tempo or sad song. But it became unclear what I should pursue in the long run and what I want to do, whether I should penetrate the mainstream, etc. To be honest, I was never sure of my music,” K.Will said.
The singer changed his vocal style by emphasizing a low-key voice in the new album. He also used less vibration for his new songs.
The new album “Nonfiction” consists of eight tracks. K.Will got together with his old producer Chans Line again, who wrote his previous hit song “Missing You” as well as R&B singer Crush’s “Beautiful.”
“Nonfiction” conveys the heartbroken emotions of a lover who denies his breakup.
The new album is more meaningful to K.Will as this year celebrates the 10-year anniversary of his debut.
K.Will picks “Left Heart” as his most meaningful song as it is his debut single.
“Every year, my best song is different. This year, I want to say Left Heart is the most meaningful. I am grateful I’ve made it this far,” K.Will said.
The singer will reveal a part-two version of “Nonfiction” after he is done promoting part one. He hated to release all 20 songs in one album, since many of them are likely get ignored except the title track in the fast-moving music industry.
“I felt sad imagining my precious songs going unheard. I’ve put much effort into recording them and they are like my children. So I decided to release my songs divided in two albums,” K.Will said.
The singer revealed his hope that the new songs become popular but they don’t have to be everyone’s favorite.
“I used to have the nickname music chart killer but that title does not belong to me anymore. Still I am curious what people think about my new songs,” K.Will said.