Nayeon is the centre of the universe, and we’re all just revolving around her. With her sophomore mini-album, ‘Na’, Nayeon makes sure we don’t pay attention to anyone else: after all, the word “na” means “I” in Korean. But more than getting a bit of attention, the TWICE member is determined to make everyone “fall deeper” in love with her, as she sings on the project’s addictive title track ‘ABCD’, which powers through with even more zest than her viral TikTok hit, ‘Pop!’.
That single, and its accompanying mini-album ‘Im Nayeon’, was a testament to Nayeon’s individual talents beyond TWICE, and laid the groundwork for a promising future as an artist in her own right. With ‘Na’, Nayeon returns for an even more authentic celebration of herself. “I know it’s not a must to try new things and challenge myself,” she tells NME over a Zoom call from Seoul just weeks ahead of the release. “But I think it’s more interesting to show different sides of me”.
Nayeon gives us an early soundtrack for the summer with the seven-track collection, which navigates through a mix of Y2K pop (‘ABCD’), alluring R&B (‘Heaven’, ‘Magic’), UK garage beats (‘Something’) and more. “In the process of selecting songs, ‘ABCD’ really stood out to me,” the K-pop star says. “I loved it, and I thought it was suitable for the title track as well. I selected [each song] in different periods, but I remember picking ‘Butterflies’ and ‘ABCD’ as my favourites from the get go.”
‘Na’ also features collaborations with Sam Kim, AKMU’s Lee Chan-hyuk and KISS OF LIFE’s Julie – all artists that Nayeon adores. “I have always loved [Sam Kim’s] music, but it was my label that suggested the collaboration,” she shares. “For Julie, we needed a rapper for ‘Magic’, and she was the first one that came into my mind, so I told my label that I wanted to work with her. And for Chanhyuk, I’ve always admired his music as well, so I asked him to work with me on this album.”
Notably, though, Nayeon’s new release also features three songs that are fully sung in English – namely ‘Butterflies’, ‘Heaven’, and ‘Magic’ – but it was a quest that the K-pop star gladly accepted in order to reach wider audiences. “Having a diversity of experiences is the ground for growth”, she says. “I think it’s a great opportunity that K-pop is receiving so much love globally, and it’s also a chance for us to meet fans around the world”.
While Nayeon has tried her hand at songwriting before, contributing to TWICE album cuts such as ‘Make Me Go’ and ‘F.I.L.A’, the singer reveals that she “decided not to” this time around because she “aimed for this album to be beyond perfect”. And to reach that level of perfection, she recruited a first-class team of producers and writers, from BTS collaborators Pdogg and Adora, to JYP Entertainment co-founder J.Y. Park, to R&B singer-songwriter SOLE. “As much as it is fun and rewarding to work on my own songs, I am not 100 per cent satisfied with [the ones] I worked on previously.”
With almost 10 years under her belt as a K-pop idol, Nayeon says she feels more relaxed compared to when she first made her debut. She adds that nowadays she has “enough space to find joy and fun in my profession”, revealing how the most fun, yet challenging part of working on ‘Na’ was learning the dance moves for ‘ABCD’. “I had to learn a new [style] of choreography, so that was something I struggled with,” she says.
Bursting with powerful shifts, the choreography for ‘ABCD’ is an entire cardio workout, rarely waning down or stopping to catch a breath, much like the perky, plucky melody of the track. Not to mention the thrilling dance break that’s featured in the song’s music video and live performances. “Sometimes my confidence dropped while I was learning, but every time my members raised me up again,” she says, before stopping for a moment to reminisce, softly laughing to herself. “I loved when the members commented that I looked cool.”
Fans might have to wait until the next TWICE tour to see how cool Nayeon indeed looks live, with the singer revealing that there is currently “no plan” for any “solo tour or concerts”. At the same time, she’s pretty sure that new music will be just around the corner. “The concept for this album came after I released the first album, so I think the same will happen with this time well,” she reveals. “After I wrap up promotions, maybe we will start discussing plans for the next one.”
Though, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to fans who have been following Nayeon since the beginning. She is always keeping busy, whether it’s on new TWICE music, her solo career, with fashion and beauty brands or connecting with fans over social media. “I’m a very passionate person and I’m very hard working, and I also know how to claim what is mine. I have pretty strong opinions as an artist,” she says when asked to describe herself.
“I’ve been in this business for so long as a TWICE member and also as a solo artist, and fans have come to know me really well over the years,” Nayeon adds, saying that she believes what fans see of her is a true reflection of who she actually is. “And these days my daily life, not as an artist but as an individual, is also on TV a lot, so I think what you see is exactly who I am. Not all of it, but most of myself is pretty public right now.”
When she’s not dazzling audiences onstage, Nayeon likes to take some time away from her busy idol life. “I think resting well is really important. I try to do that in my own way,” she says. “I recharge myself, and use the energy that I get from resting on my professional life.” But most of all, Nayeon likes to lay down in bed (or, as TikTok would call it, #bedrot) and pet Kookeu, her Pomeranian dog. “That’s how I balance it out.”
Nayeon’s second mini-album, ‘Na’, is out now on Spotify, Apple Music and more.