NCT 127
SM Entertainment
South Korean superstars NCT 127 has undergone many changes over the past 10 years since their debut in July 2015. Several members came and went, especially within the past three years, which really defined the remaining members – Johnny, Taeyong, Yuta, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Jungwoo, and Haechan. The team has had to adapt to the changes, including Doyoung and Jungwoo currently serving in the military (both set to be discharged next summer). The group has now released their seventh studio album, BLINGY.
It has been two years since the group released an album and performed together as five (Taeyong was discharged from military service in December 2025 and Jaehyun in May 2026) as headliners for this year’s KCON LA. The group headlined Night 1 of M Countdown, performing their popular hits like “Lemonade,” “2 Baddies,” “Kick It,” “Summer 127,” “TOUCH,” “Fact Check,” “Walk,” and the live debut of their pre-release song, “Piñata.” Taeyong performed his solo set during Night 2 of KCON LA’s M Countdown, performing several songs, including from his recent album, “WYLD.”
Yuta recalls practicing their performance of “Piñata,” torn between focusing on the intense choreography and the live performance aspect, calling the song “Explosive energy.” When told the choreography looked tiring, he laughs, “Yeah, for me too.”
The team spent a long time preparing
The team spent a long time preparing for their performance – andtheir upcoming World Tour – distributing the vocal assignments, allowing many of the members to showcase their vocal talents. Taeyong says what audiences heard at KCON LA was what they can expect from their new album.
“Because we’re now missing two members, we try to fill that void with different sounds,” Taeyong explains during the album’s press day in Downtown Los Angeles. “And what we did try was put the stronger sounds and more intense songs, but we don’t want to fill up the album with just intense songs. We try to put in a little bit of other vibe songs as well in the album.”
NCT 127’s BLINGYincludes the group’s signature confident and strong “NEO” performance tracks like “Piñata,” their title track, “Blingy,” and the hip-hop-heavy song, “Legacy.” It also features rock, pop, indie pop, and ballads, like “Day After Day” and the sweet “127 Million Miles.” For the members, the album celebrates their pride and evolution over the past decade.
Haechan and Jaehyun, both powerful vocalists, have had
Haechan and Jaehyun, both powerful vocalists, have had to adapt to changing positions and vocal registers across past songs and the recent album. It’s part of the job, and they do it well, working hard to make it work.
“In the past, we tried to add in little elements of powerful vocals in between the songs because we had more members,” Haechan shares. “But now, we’re trying to fill up one song with just five members. We go with the flow to make the entire product.”
Jaehyun adds, “I’m an artist who has a wide spectrum of vocals, so I try to show different sides in individual songs. When I worked on each song, I tried to deeply understand each concept, whether it be an energetic song or whether I’m trying to convey a message.”
The group agrees that the songs represent them
The group agrees that the songs represent them pretty well at this moment in their lives, especially with “Legacy” defining who NCT 127 is right now, and “Step Up” and “Piñata” helping them break free from limitations. This confidence and resilience were 10 years in the making, which helped them grow as a group and as individual artists.
“The mission this time around was to really showcase what kind of person we are individually,” says Johnny. “Even in ‘Piñata,’ each person has a character. In the end, we’re one team, but each person has their own character and their own way to handle certain situations. The whole album in general – each song – each person has their own character, and that’s what makes this album really interesting and fun to listen to.”
Johnny, best known as a rapper, sang more on the album, learning more about his voice type. He proudly reveals, “Well, you could say that I am a person with a deeper voice, and what that means is your vocal cords are thicker. For this album, and personally, if you have a deeper voice, everything is a lot slower, duller, deeper voice. Vocally, it’s very dull. It’s not sharp, but working on this album I noticed I have that kind of voice. To keep up with the beats and to make sure my voice stands out a bit, I had to train myself to make my vocal cords a bit sharper and thinner. That’s what I went through with this album, because the [vocal cords] are a muscle.”
Taeyong also found himself training his voice, especially
Taeyong also found himself training his voice, especially during a moment in “Legacy.” He shares, ”There’s a part in the song ‘Legacy’ where I’m screaming my lungs out. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to hit it, but I think I pulled it off pretty well.”
His members begin egging him on to perform that part live. Johnny shouts, “You gotta do it live!” Taeyong smiles, nodding in agreement. Throughout the interview, the five joked with each other, commenting on each other’s answers. At one point, Yuta calls Taeyong out for lying. Taeyong responds, “You’re right,” before they both giggle among themselves. Despite their long days and sleepless, jetlagged nights, the members remain in good spirits with each other, showing each other the drawings they thought the press wouldn’t notice them doodling throughout the interview.
Though the album represents the group’s close relationship and evolution, it also reflects NCT 127’s connection with their fans, NCTzen. The group is thankful for the fans’ support throughout their journey. Jaehyun says, “I just wanted to make [the new album] feel like a present or gift for the fans that have been with us – even the newcomers too. This was more of my perspective while preparing the album. The message for me was the relationship with the fans and the time and energy that I wanted them to feel as NCTzens from this album.”
Fans can hear that emotional connection with NCT
Fans can hear that emotional connection with NCT 127 through the sweet pop-rock ballad, “127 Million Miles.” 127 is a playful motif for the group, with the lyrics promising always to stay connected – no matter the distance. The song also features all seven members, which makes the track even more heartfelt.
Haechan was the last of the seven members to record his part, which meant he heard the entire thing in full, including Doyoung and Jungwoo’s parts. It left him a bit moved to hear them all together again.
“It was very touching,” Haechan notes. “It wasn’t really about whether the song was good or bad, but I did listen to it a lot. I got a little bit teary-eyed. You know, trying to fill the void of the two members – Doyoung and Jungwoo – and all the strength that they have, I tried to work on it and put effort into it so that you couldn’t feel that void.”
Yuta hopes fans don’t just feel emotional when
Yuta hopes fans don’t just feel emotional when listening to the song, but also take it as uplifting. While he was recording the track, the director kept telling him to sound brighter and more uplifting.
“I tried my best to do it,” says Yuta. “Then the director came to me and said, ‘Oh, you should listen to the recording by Jungwoo. When I did, it hit me – this is what an uplifting vibe is. We’ve been working on songs that have a deeper vibe, so it definitely hit differently this time.”
Taeyong says that song resonated with him as well, calling it “127 Miles,” which caused the members to jump in to correct him hilariously. He then emphasizes “127 Million Miles,” explaining that it hit him the most because all seven members participated in it.
So not only for myself, but all
“So not only for myself, but all the members will resonate with the song as this represents – not only the past journey that we’ve gone through with our fans – but it also represents the path forward as well,” Taeyong reasoned. “It’s a song that has a crisp vibe, and it also represents our bright future.”
Yuta admits that because he’s not Korean, it takes him a while to understand the messages from each song, but he felt a connection with “I mean, it’s about time.” The heartfelt pop track reflects on the group’s memories over the past decade together, with Taeyoung and Johnny leading the sincere rap with lyrics about letting go of expectations and moving forward through change.
“When I heard Taeyong’s part in ‘I mean, it’s about time,’ it hit me right away,” Yuta praised. “The message really resonated.”
Johnny related to Getaway because he liked
Johnny related to “Getaway” because he liked the idea of dropping everything and going on vacation. He laughs, “That’s a dream. The whole song really gets you to relax in moments when it’s really tense. It’s a song that I go to when I need some uplifting during the day. It helps me relax. It’s a song that you’re not dancing too hard, but nodding your head and enjoying the vibe.”
Haechan and Jaehyun both say the song they connected with the most was “Legacy.” Haechan finds it a really enjoyable song to listen to, saying, “It’s my cup of tea.”
For Jaehyun, the song made him reflect on his own legacy as part of NCT 127. After 10 years with the group, he thought, “What would our legacy be in the future?”
When asked if he figured it out yet,
When asked if he figured it out yet, Jaehyun paused for a moment before answering, “I’m still on the journey.”
NCT 127’s BLINGYis available now on all streaming platforms. Physical copies are available at select retailers.
Source: www.forbes.com
