NCT Dream talks about impact of K-pop culture in L.A. and forthcoming ‘futuristic’ album

Last week, Los Angeles witnessed history as the K-pop community came together to celebrate 30 years of SM Entertainment with some of the biggest K-pop acts gracing the stage at Dignity Health Sports Park.

As one of the leading entertainment companies in Asia, SM Entertainment helped lay the foundations for the global takeover of K-pop in recent years even as it continues to be a dominant force in the industry.

Legendary acts such as EXO, SHINee and TVXQ joined the stellar lineup alongside modern sensations such as aespa, NCT 127 and NCT Dream — with the latter receiving one of the biggest cheers of the evening with its electrifying performance.

The seven-member unit — consisting of Mark, Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Jaemin, Chenle and Jisung — performed “When I’m With You,” “Smoothie” and “Hot Sauce,” showcasing their talents to the L.A. crowd.

The group achieved critical acclaim with its sixth mini-album, “Dreamscape,” which was released last November. The mini-album reflected the members’ growth and maturity as artists as they took fans on an introspective and vulnerable journey into their subconscious.

Fans will be eagerly anticipating their next album, which is on the way. Details for the upcoming release have not been announced, but Mark confirmed that NCT Dream will perform songs from its upcoming album at the Dream Show 4 concert in July. The “futuristic” album is expected in late summer and will further reflect their growth as individuals and artists. Ahead of their SMTown performance, the bandmates talked about their music and fellow artists.

This is a huge moment of celebration for K-pop and the label. How did it feel to come to L.A. to perform at SMTown?

Haechan: I’m enthusiastic about this whole experience because it is special to celebrate the 30-year anniversary with all my fellow artists and staff that I look up to.

How was the performance in Mexico City with the NCT Nation coming together?

Renjun: We are thankful that a lot of NCTzens came together with all of their passion and we returned that passion. We are excited to see the L.A. NCTzens come together to cheer them with passion.

How did you manage with the altitude while performing in Mexico City?

Chenle: The most important thing was to take care of our condition for the show. Before the show, I focused on sleeping and eating a lot and getting ready.

L.A. has become such a big K-pop hub in recent years. What are your favorite memories of performing here?

Jaemin: I feel that L.A. has a lot of NCTzens that are full of passion and I feel all the energy from the fans. So I’m really excited that I’m here again to perform for the fans.

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There are lots of senior K-pop idols performing at SMTown such as EXO, SHINee and Super Junior. Did you look up to these artists growing up and as you made your way in the industry?

Mark: I look up to all of them and I think we all did. But if I had to pick one it would be TVXQ. He always gave us a lot of advice and growing up he would always give us discipline and a lot of good advice, even to this day.

What was a memorable piece of advice that TVXQ gave you that stuck with you?

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Mark: He would give us accurate details on our dancing and performance, but just as artists he would discipline our minds and remind us that even rehearsals are important and that’s one of the most important pieces of advice [I’ve ever received.]

How important is that discipline as a K-pop artist?

Mark: I think because it’s coming from him and he’s been doing this so long now. Telling us how important rehearsals are is true, you can’t ever deny the truth.

You’ve been in the music industry for a long time and the younger NCT Nation groups might look up to you. Have they ever reached out for advice about navigating the industry?

Haechan: I wish that they would look up to us someday!

Do you remember any standout piece of advice or guidance anyone at SM Entertainment gave you as you were coming into the industry?

Jisung: It’s not really related to SMTown, but one of the sayings that I heard that really spoke to my heart was that the person who has a lot of patience and feels at ease and confident with the things that he does comes from a strong heart.

You have all grown together as part of NCT Dream. The group was originally the teenage unit of NCT so how did you adapt from performing as teenagers to adults? Was this a difficult transition or did it feel natural?

Haechan: I’m very happy that when we were younger, we could only work until 10 p.m. But now, we don’t have any restrictions, so I’m happier about that.

Jeno: It was natural for us to grow older so it was also natural for us to have growth [with our music.]

How do you feel that your sound has matured as you’ve grown older?

Haechan: When it comes to music, we have always sung and produced songs that fit our age the best. As we have gotten older, our sound also adapts to our growth.

How did your recent album, “Dreamscape,” represent that growth?

Mark: It came from our experience because we represented growth but we experienced growth and wanted to put that into the album. We have been through a bad dream. That’s what “Dreamscape” is about, bringing [fans] to our paradise. Even after all of the troubles and all the hardships and bad dreams, there is a paradise and it’s all in the mind. We wanted to create that from our own experiences as well. We are always known for being very positive and sharing good dreams, but you can have bad dreams sometimes as well. However, through music and the love that we have, we get through this world together.

That must create a stronger bond with the fans because they see the human side of NCT Dream.

Mark: We are all human.

As a group, what’s the collaborative process to come up with your latest concepts?

Jeno: When we talked among the members, everyone has different ideas, so usually the company is there to give us direction for the concept and we put our own opinions in there too.

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Are you working on new music? If so, what do you want to express and explore?

Mark: The concept comes from how we are always expressing youth. It’s funny, we always express youth but we are also a very futuristic group at the same time and we meshed all of this together for the album’s concept.

Are you going to be exploring new genres to create this futuristic vibe?

Mark: It comes out in the sound. There are very futuristic and sonic elements in the songs. We are going to have a concert, the Dream Show 4 in July, before our album comes out and we [will perform] a lot of the new stuff.

How does it feel to spread the beauty of Korean culture to the world with big events like this?

Haechan: That’s not the sole purpose of working in this industry, obviously, but I’m very happy and excited that we get to be the ones who are doing what they love and enjoy but also having to relate the culture to everyone around the world. We are thankful that we get to do that!