LDN Noise, hidden heroes behind K-pop success

LDN Noise Courtesy of artist

By Kim Jae-heun

Grammy-nominated British duo "LDN Noise" may not be well known in Korea but they have produced several successful K-pop songs that many Koreans have heard at least once on TV, radio or in the street.

Songwriter Greg Bonnick and DJ Hayden Chapman began their musical collaboration in Korea with their first K-pop song "Sniper," produced for Shinhwa last year. The song brought the group huge popularity on music broadcast shows and its music video reached more than a million views on YouTube in only two weeks after its release.

LDN Noise also worked with S.M. Entertainment's idol bands, such as SHINee, Red Velvet and F(x), in the same year and produced title songs that instantly topped the real-time online music charts.

SHINee's "View," co-produced by the band leader Jonghyun, was No. 1 on Billboard's World Albums chart and named the world's most-watched K-pop music video for one month.

The duo wrote Red Velvet's title song "Dumb Dumb" for their first full album, "The Red," which debuted at No. 1 on Korea's Gaon Album Chart, with the song ranking No. 2 on the Gaon Digital Chart. The girl band's album also swept international charts, topping Billboard's World Album Chart, with "Dumb Dumb" peaking at No. 3 on Billboard's World Digital Songs chart.

Before the duo's work in Korea, LDN Noise wrote hit songs for popular singers like Chris Brown, Cheryl Cole and Skepta -- their biggest achievement is with Chris Brown, whose song "Turn Up The Music," released in 2012, sold more than 2.7 million copies worldwide.

Bonnick and Chapman said in an interview with The Korea Times they will return to Korea in summer to work with K-pop artists, preferably with hip-hop group Big Bang, or rappers CL and Zico.

Q. How did you start producing music? And how did you two come to form a music-producing team?

A. Greg: Hayden and I both studied at college learning music but we actually went to different schools. We later met through mutual friends, got on well and decided to start writing and producing together. We both had success writing with others (the duo co-wrote Chris Brown's "Turn Up The Music"), so decided to form LDN Noise.

Q. You produce all styles of music, such as deep house. Please tell us more specifically what kind of music you pursue.

A. Hayden: We have a lot of musical influences, from house music to funk, hip-hop and soul, etc. So when we are creating records, we draw on influences from all over the musical spectrum.

Greg: Yeah, it depends on the artist and direction they want to take. It's natural, not something that's overly considered. But in the U.K. dance music is huge, so that will always be a major part of our sound and lives.

Q. You have worked with many K-pop artists, especially those of S.M. Entertainment. How did you come to work with Korean record labels and what are some reasons you work mostly with S.M. Entertainment?

A. Greg: A songwriter friend of ours, Andrew Jackson, actually introduced us to K-pop and the amazing artists in Korea. We wrote some records for Shinhwa together, which was our first K-pop placements.

Hayden: We then met with S.M. Entertainment A&R's on a songwriting trip to Sweden mid-2014. Shortly after that we began working closely with the label.

Q. You have written hit songs for both American pop stars and popular Korean musicians. When you produce songs for each group, do you consider their audience?

A. Hayden: There are some differences. For example, the groups have a lot of harmonies in their songs and a lot of different sections for the members. Western records don't consider that as much.

Greg: The gap between the two markets is shrinking. I think there's plenty of American top 40 records that would have been great K-pop songs and vice versa.

Q. You also wrote songs for K-pop artists like Girls' Generation, Red Velvet, Got7, TVXQ, F(x) and SHINee. Which song that you have written for the Korean artists was your most favorite and which group did you enjoy working with the most?

A. Hayden: Hmmm, that's a tough one because each song is our baby, so it's like choosing between your kids, ha-ha. Working on the F(x) album was great because it was an important time for them and I think "4 walls" was perfect.

Greg: "View" for SHINee is a very special song to us, too, because we just had so much fun making it. We actually should have gone to a nightclub with friends that night but we stayed in the studio because we had such a vibe going and I think that came through in the record. The response for that record was incredible.

Q. Is there other K-pop artist that you have not worked with yet but wish to?

A. Greg: We were really close to getting some songs with Psy. They were great but I guess the timing wasn't right. Some other rappers would be cool: Big Bang, CL, Zico, etc.

Hayden: SM Rookies have some amazing talent lined up. These groups are amazing, so hopefully we will get to work with them.

Q. K-pop's popularity is big mainly in Asia and in some European countries but not America. As you grew up listening to British pop and American music, what do you think the major obstacle is and how can K-pop overcome that obstacle to become successful in Western markets?

A. Hayden: I think the right song can cross over, even with the language barrier. "Gangnam Style" was a worldwide hit because it's infectious and had a great online presence. Something like that will come along again soon.

Greg: The fans make K-pop what it is. Music is only a small part of it. Without the fans streaming/buying/sharing, the music is nothing. We need to find fans around the world with the same passion/enthusiasm for the music as the fans in Asia.

Q. What is your next plan in Korea?

A. Greg: We are really excited about the upcoming releases we have. This year is going to be huge.

Hayden: We will be back in the summer to write some more songs and hopefully to DJ in Seoul.