Canadian viral music sensation Yung Kai remixes hit with Minnie from (G)I-DLE

Chinese Canadian singer Yung Kai, right, poses with G-(I)DLE member Minnie. Courtesy of Flood Division & Hong Seokzoo

Rising Chinese Canadian artist Max Zhang, aka Yung Kai, has released a highly anticipated remix of his breakout song “Blue,” featuring vocals from Minnie, a Thai member of K-pop group (G)I-DLE.

Kai found recognition and success on a global level when he released “Blue” last August. The song has since amassed over 300 million streams on Spotify, 100 million views on YouTube and is approaching 1 billion streams across platforms, cementing Kai’s status as one of the most compelling voices in indie pop.

The remix of “Blue,” which came out on April 18, marks Kai's first crossover with the K-pop industry. The track weaves in Minnie's honey-toned vocals in the middle, adding a new dimension of softness and longing that goes well with Kai’s versatile vocals. The remix has had more than 250,000 views since it was uploaded on YouTube, with glowing comments from fans worldwide.

“I just really wanted to get someone on a remix of 'Blue,'” Kai told The Korea Times, as he explained how the collaboration came about. “I used to watch (G)I-DLE a lot, like back in high school. They are one of my favourite groups. I gave the idea, what if we try to get someone from (G)I-DLE? I told my manager and my team, and they were like, who’s your favourite from (G)I-DLE? I told them my faves are Minnie and Yuqi — if we could get one of those two, that would be so crazy. The fact that Minnie’s team reached back to us saying 'she’s down to do it!' was crazy. I couldn’t believe it.”

Chinese Canadian singer Yung Kai / Courtesy of Matt Solie

Based out of his hometown of Burnaby, British Columbia, Kai said he took a flight to Korea from Canada to work on the remix.

“I love Korea’s vibe,” he said, noting that it was his second time visiting Korea. “The day that I was there for the Minnie collab, it was scheduled sometime in the evening, so during the afternoon and the morning, I had time to walk around and stuff. I did a lot of shopping, so that was one of the highlights, I guess. Honestly, just walking down the little streets and stuff, I think everyone’s fashion was really good.”

Kai also elaborated on how he was suprised by his rise to stardom, going viral at the age of 21. “When I was in high school, I was just making beats and putting them on YouTube. It wasn’t really taking off, it wasn’t doing as good. But for me, I knew I wanted to do something creative, and I just leaned a lot towards music," he said. "It does feel unreal, I’m just meeting so many people I used to listen to back in high school, back in elementary school. Now I can just have their contact info on my phone? It’s so crazy.”

Kai has performed at major stages across Asia, including the Wanderland Festival in the Philippines and a special guest appearance on "Indonesia’s Got Talent." He will also be performing at 88rising’s Head in the Clouds Festival in Los Angeles next month, where he’ll share the stage with artists like G-Dragon, 2NE1, Dean and Rich Brian.

When asked whom he would like to collaborate with next, Kai replied Chaewon from LE SSERAFIM as well as NewJeans and ENHYPEN.

Kai also cited Sik-K, Zico and Colde as some of his favorite Korean artists.

“I love Korean R&B, Korean hip-hop. I used to listen to them so much, and I still do,” he said.

Visit linktr.ee/yungkaiboy for more information.

Alice Hong is a freelance writer and comedian based in Seoul. Follow @hippohong on Instagram.