Shownu and Hyungwon held a round interview on the morning of the 19th at the Starship Entertainment building in Gangnam, Seoul, sharing how they’ve developed their own “narrative” and a deep “connection” over the past three years.
Following ‘THE UNSEEN’, their second mini-album ‘LOVE ME’ also centers on the theme of love. In this album, where they discuss love more delicately and multi-dimensionally than before, Shownu and Hyungwon focused on the keywords “maturity” and “restraint.”
Shownu mentioned, “I think I tried to show a more mature, developed, and diverse side than last time,” while Hyungwon added, “It’s an album that contains more of the maturity and emotions we’ve felt over the past three years.”
The title track is ‘Do You Love Me’, a rich-textured song about the emotional tug-of-war of demanding answers while pushing and pulling in an uncertain love. When asked if the song’s strong hook follows a recent trend at Starship Entertainment, Shownu described it as having “more tempo and a stronger hook.”
Hyungwon clarified, “I don’t think we matched the direction the company wanted to go. We actually just focus on our own album during the work process.” However, he noted, “I think hook songs are very important for being remembered, so that part might have come out similarly.”
While ‘Do You Love Me’ was a candidate from the start, it was finalized after some “competition” (as Shownu put it). The second track, ‘Superstitious’, was also a candidate. Hyungwon, who participated in the lyrics, composition, and arrangement, explained, “Since the first album was heavy and intense, I wanted ‘Superstitious’ to be easier to listen to, focusing more on the music than the performance.”
He continued, “The two songs took very different paths from the start. ‘Do You Love Me’ focused on performance, while ‘Superstitious’ was for listening. After discussing it with the company, we agreed that now is the time to further imprint Shownu and Hyungwon’s strengths, so ‘Do You Love Me’ became the title track.”
When asked about the difference between being in MONSTA X and the unit Shownu X Hyungwon, Shownu said, “Since the group has six members, there’s a more diverse kind of intensity. The unit is more about selection and focus, an intensity that has a color unique to just the two of us.”
Hyungwon added, “This time, we wanted to show a more restrained feeling. In the team, Shownu and I are in charge of mid-to-low range vocals and restrained performances. We focused on those aspects when structuring the stage.”
Shownu participated in the choreography. He shared, “We discussed the parts that felt lacking beforehand. At first, the choreography was very restrained. I edited reference videos I personally liked and shared them with the choreographer, received revised versions, and gave feedback like wanting the beats to be more divided.” He added that the final chorus was revised significantly.
In the ‘Do You Love Me’ music video, the two are often seen being conscious of and checking each other. When jokingly asked if they were fighting or in love, Shownu laughed and said, “We’re not in love. Just imagine that Monbebe (the official fandom name) is missing from between us. It’s a story about tug-of-war, nerve wars, fighting, and then making up.”
Shownu revealed that he and Hyungwon “connected a lot” during the MV shoot. He reflected, “We talked, acted, and bonded more while working on this music video and album than we have in the last 10 years. It felt unfamiliar, but it was also a fun process.”
Hyungwon laughed, saying, “I’ve never seen Shownu hyung get angry once in over ten years, but I saw him angry during the MV shoot. It was a special experience to see, ‘Oh, this is how he gets angry.’ I think fans will see that side of him for the first time too.”
Shownu replied shyly, “I do get angry, but I think I expressed it through actions rather than my face.” He continued, “Since I had to act, I tried getting angry while looking into his eyes, or lightly hitting his cheek during fighting scenes. I thought bumping into each other while wearing rugby clothes was also part of that connection. It was awkward but fresh and fun. It’s a feeling I haven’t had in a very long time.”
The second mini-album ‘LOVE ME’ features a total of 7 tracks: ‘Do You Love Me’, ‘Superstitious’, ‘In My Head’, ‘Breathe’, ‘Accelerator’, and Shownu’s solo songs ‘Around & Go’ and ‘NO AIR’. Hyungwon participated in the lyrics, composition, and arrangement of ‘Superstitious’, ‘In My Head’, and ‘Accelerator’, as well as the lyrics and composition of ‘NO AIR’. Hyungwon joked, “I think I sent over more than 10 songs,” adding, “I think they got rejected,” which caused laughter.
Hyungwon, who works with specific goals for each song, introduced them: “‘Superstitious’ was written with our voices in mind, ‘In My Head’ is a song I want to do together at a festival, and ‘Accelerator’ is a song where I want to deliver a message to the fans, telling them to trust us and follow along.”
When asked if he wanted one of his self-composed songs to be the title track, Hyungwon replied, “I don’t put much significance on the title track when working. Ultimately, the public needs to listen to it, but I work with the fans who love us in mind. I believe I can sufficiently show my charms and strengths even in the B-side tracks. I think completeness is the most important thing, and I have a strong desire to increase that completeness through my strengths.”
Regarding their satisfaction with the album, Hyungwon stated, “My measure of satisfaction is whether the fans like it. If the fans say they love it when it comes out, I’ll be more than satisfied.” Shownu laughed and added, “Personally, I like Hyungwon’s songs, so I’m satisfied.”
When asked if his satisfaction is directly tied to the fans’ reaction, Hyungwon explained, “I feel a great thrill when the people who love me are satisfied with my work. I think that’s for me, and that’s what becomes my driving force. While they can’t always be satisfied, my mood depends on those reactions.”
Hyungwon shared that he prepared the album hoping people would say, “I didn’t know Shownu and Hyungwon could do this too!” Shownu added, “I hope they first like the vocals and the stage, and then are satisfied with the concept.”
When asked about expected chart performance, Hyungwon confessed, “I think the top two things in life that don’t go my way are grades (charts) and money. I live my life believing that if I chase those two, I’ll be consumed by them. I prefer to walk my own path without being obsessed with those things.”
Shownu caused a burst of laughter by saying, “I think that comment comes from a place of leisure.” He added, “It would be nice if the results were good, but I stopped expecting things a while ago. The line between a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ result has become blurred, so right now, it’s more important to be active for a long time and have opportunities to be with the fans.”
Shownu and Hyungwon’s second mini-album ‘LOVE ME’ will be released today (21st) at 6 PM on various music sites.
