Interview with YG Producers PK and Bigtone

This 2013 October interview from defunked Cuvis Magazine can be found with wayback machine.

YG Producer Choi Pil-kang, Developing His Own Style Through Music

Choi Pil-kang, a YG producer who has been gradually establishing his own style through numerous hit songs like SE7EN’s "Digital Bounce," G-DRAGON’s "Missing You," and Seungri’s "What Can I Do."

Hello, could you please introduce yourself?
Nice to meet you. I’m composer Choi Pil-kang, currently working as an exclusive composer at YG.

Can you tell us when you first started music?
Honestly, it’s surprising that I’m making music now, considering how little I listened to music as a child. My father is a pastor and was very strict, so I barely listened to pop music until elementary school. But one day, I heard a song through a phone service where you could press a button to listen to popular songs at the time. That’s when I heard Shin Hae-chul’s You in the Deep of My Heart, and I was instantly captivated by it. I think that’s when my longing for music began. Then, with the emergence of Seo Taiji and Boys and Hyun Jin-young, I got into dancing, and through dancing, I started my journey with music.

You’re now a producer at YG. How did your connection with YG come about?
It was in 2006 when I was preparing for “IM.” I was friends with lyricist Kim Eana, who had a connection with YG’s A&R team. She introduced my music to them, and CEO Yang Hyun-suk ended up hearing it. He reached out, saying he wanted to meet me. At that time, I was signed with another company, so I politely declined. But he told me to contact him if I ever had the opportunity later. When I eventually left that company, I naturally reached out to Yang Hyun-suk, explained my situation, and he warmly welcomed me. That’s how I started working as a composer at YG.

What was the first song you worked on at YG?
In 2010, the first song I worked on was SE7EN’s Digital Bounce. Oh, before that, there was also BigBang’s I Don’t Understand, but that was before I officially joined YG. It was a song I worked on during my early acquaintance with the CEO.

You seem to have a particularly close connection with Seungri from BigBang.
Yes, that’s right. Seungri is a very sociable guy. When I first joined YG, everything felt unfamiliar. But Seungri came to my room, introduced himself, and said, “Hyung! You’re new here, right? Let’s work together!” (laughs) His friendliness made it easy for us to become close.

Did that lead to your involvement in Seungri’s solo album?
Not exactly because of that, but when the CEO gives an order, you have to do it. (laughs) He told me, "We’re releasing Seungri’s album, so write a song." That’s how I started working on What Can I Do. Initially, we were going to release it as a single, but Seungri and I clicked so well that he wanted to create more music. We ended up making a few more songs, and the CEO heard them and suggested, “Why not make it a mini-album instead of just a single?” So, within about two weeks, we completed four songs, and that’s how Seungri’s first solo album came about.

What is Seungri like as a musical partner?
I was really surprised. I thought he was the kind of artist who just follows instructions, but it turns out he’s full of his own ideas. When I’d play the piano or give him a chord, he’d come up with melodies on the spot, and they were really good. Many of the songs we worked on were created in this way.

The Seungri-Choi Pil-kang duo became a thing after Seungri’s first solo album.
It wasn’t intentional, but I guess it turned out that way. I was just working hard, that’s all.

Can you describe your musical style? What kind of music do you typically pursue?
Honestly, I think I’m a bit of an omnivore when it comes to music. I tend to get really into a particular genre for a while. For two years, I was obsessed with hip-hop, then I moved on to electronic music, and recently, I’ve gotten a bit tired of digital sounds and am hooked on old pop. So, instead of pursuing a specific genre, I think it’s more accurate to say that I just pursue music itself. For instance, CEO Yang really likes my sound and source materials, and I realize that I tend to pay a lot of attention to the sounds when I’m creating music. Because I’m sensitive to sources, I naturally focus on the sound.

You mentioned being into old pop, and I’ve noticed more analog sounds in your recent work.
Exactly. For example, G-DRAGON’s Missing You was like that. The beat is hip-hop, but the sound is vintage, combined with GD’s modern rap style. Epik High’s It’s Cold and BigBang’s Monster also have that mix of analog and electronic elements. After SE7EN’s Digital Bounce and 2NE1’s I’m Busy, which were very electronic, I started experimenting with blending analog and electronic sounds around the time of Monster.

Many of your collaborations feature female vocalists, such as Missing You with Kim Yuna and It’s Cold with Lee Hi. Was there a specific reason for that?
There wasn’t a particular reason. It just happened naturally during the production process. For instance, Seungri’s I Know was a song we made as a side project while working on What Can I Do over a two-week period. It was a song co-composed with Seungri, and we thought it would work well as a duet. Seungri suggested bringing in IU, and even though it was hard to reach her at the time, Seungri managed to make it happen. That’s how that collaboration came about.

I heard you’ve been working on new music with Taeyang. Can you give us any hints about the direction?
I’ve contributed to Taeyang’s upcoming solo album, which should be out soon. Right now, my focus is mostly on working with new artists since YG is developing a lot of rookies. I’m brainstorming what kind of songs to create next.

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YG’s Anticipated Producer with Versatile Talent: Bigtone

So far, Cuvism has introduced YG producers Lydia Baek and P.K. These interviews were highly acclaimed by music fans as opportunities to hear their in-depth stories were rare. The artist we're introducing this time is Bigtone, currently active as a rapper and songwriter at YG. True to his name, Bigtone has a big voice, or rather, a unique voice. He has participated in numerous Korean pop songs as a rap feature and showcased his distinctive rap style in Taeyang’s "Connection." Recently, he appeared as a rap trainer for Team A on Mnet’s new rookie battle program, "WIN," which is currently a hot topic in the entertainment industry. Today is also the day when the rappers of Team A, whom Bigtone trained, compete against the rival team. Isn’t it worth the anticipation?

Hello. Please introduce yourself. : Hello. I’m Bigtone, active as a rapper, singer-songwriter, and producer. Currently, I’m working at YG.

Can you tell us when you started music from your early days? : I think I dreamt about music since I was young. Then, when Seo Taiji and Boys' music came out, I thought, ‘I need to do this! I’m going to do this!’ I liked rapping, singing, and dancing. At that time, there was no method, so I followed along with TV and memorized choreography. Around when I was 20, I met P.K for the first time in New York while doing part-time work. (laughs) We talked, and he was composing while I was rapping and writing lyrics. I even added melodies to the tracks he made. We also recorded at his house. I think that’s when I first developed a concrete idea about music.

It seems like you seriously started with P.K. : Yes. Meeting P.K made me feel, ‘Oh, I can do this.’ After that, P.K received an offer in Korea and came back first. A year later, he contacted me saying, ‘Come quickly!’ and we’ve been working together ever since. It’s been over 10 years now.

Now, you’re active as a rapper and songwriter at YG. How did you connect with YG? : I worked on some tracks with P.K. By chance, President Yang heard them and wanted to meet P.K. So, P.K met with President Yang, and P.K mentioned me. He said there was a member working with him. Honestly, I thought, ‘What am I going to do there?’ because I was more of a player rather than a composer. At that time, YG was focused on idols and wasn’t working with underground hip-hop musicians. But thankfully, the president said even if not for not composing, he needed someone for songwriting. I went there with no expectations, but the president extended his hand first. I was so moved. I never imagined it.

Even though YG was one of the top three agencies in Korea at the time, you must have had many concerns. How was it after joining YG? : I hesitated a bit even after joining. At that time, I was on my own. My family was all in the U.S. I was actually doing other jobs to sustain my living. Since I could only do English, I also worked as an English teacher and gave rap lessons at external companies. I was living in Gangnam, so after work, I would go back to Hongdae. It was really tough.

Did you continue other jobs after joining YG? : Yes. Honestly, music is a tough business. I was teaching English and giving rap lessons while trying to work on music, which made me completely exhausted. But once again, the president reached out. He told me to move to Hongdae and said, ‘Quit your other jobs and just focus on music.’ That was so moving. (laughs) He said, ‘If you’re doing music, just do music. What are you doing other things for?’ I shouted, ‘Long Live the President!’ (laughs)

After many twists and turns, you joined YG. What was the first track you participated in at YG? : I participated in Se7en’s "Digital Bounce" with P.K. It was just a small touch-up on the lyrics, so I feel embarrassed to say I participated. Then I worked on the lyrics for 2NE1’s "I’m Busy" and collaborated with Choice 37 on "Love Is Ayaya." I also worked with P.K on Seungri’s "What Can I Do," did a vocal feature on Gummy’s "Who Are You," and participated in English rap on Taeyang’s "Connection."

You’ve participated in many tracks, and you rapped in English in Taeyang’s "Connection." You must have felt quite comfortable doing that. : Yes. It was completely comfortable. (laughs) I got a sudden call and went there. The president said, ‘Try rapping on this track.’ I listened to the track on the spot, wrote the lyrics right away, and recorded it. (laughs)

What message is contained in "Connection"? : This song is a love song. "Connection" means a feeling of being connected. It’s about whether you and I feel some sort of love, which is actually a bit of a light content, so I felt a bit embarrassed while doing it. (laughs) But featuring on Taeyang’s song was a really good experience.

Recently, you also worked with P.K on Kang Seungyoon’s “Stealer.” But you were skeptical if the song would suit Kang Seungyoon from the start. : Yes. I had many concerns. It was his debut after the audition program. At that time, it was a cover of an existing song, so no matter how much you put your own style into it, it was still someone else’s song. The thought of maintaining that image while showing Kang Seungyoon’s new color was significant. People always associate Kang Seungyoon with ‘Instinctively,’ so I was worried about how to break that mold.

How was the response after it was released? : There were many comments saying the lyrics were cheesy. Because his name was even mentioned in the song. Honestly, when I first heard the lyrics, I thought, ‘Are you really going to put his name in there?’ But as I listened more, it was okay. It could become part of the concept.

I saw on SNS that Kang Seungyoon even gave you a drawing as a gift. : Yes. Seungyoon draws a lot as a hobby. I guess he does it when he’s bored. (laughs) He suddenly showed me some drawings, feeling a bit proud. (laughs) He drew one of me, and it was cute. I posted a photo of it. (laughs)

Today is the day. Not only at YG but also in the entertainment industry, the most talked-about topic is the conclusion of YG’s rookie group battle. You appeared as a rap teacher for Team A on Mnet’s "WIN." : Yes. I appeared as a rap trainer on the show. (laughs) Even though I’m a songwriter myself,

You’re currently training rappers Song Minho and Lee Seunghoon from Team A. On the show, you evaluated Lee Seunghoon’s rap as ‘uncool.’ As a trainer, how do you see their skills? : Honestly, I thought this way since SBS’s "K-Pop Star." It’s not a diss disguised as a compliment but a real diss. He probably knows it himself. The song "Mother’s Soybean Soup" he did back then was handled by P.K who said, ‘Help me out. I really can’t handle this.’ To be honest, the program showed that his pronunciation was sloppy, and although he danced well, his sense of timing while rapping was often off. I knew that, and when I joined YG, I started training him in rap. Since I had some ideas from when I was doing hip-hop, I was thinking ahead. As you can see now, his skills have improved a lot compared to then.

How about Minho? : Minho is really good. He has been active in the underground for a long time. But I told him, ‘I know you’re good at rapping. But how will you impress people who don’t know rap?’ He’s really good at rapping, but it’s no longer underground. So, I taught him to capture the public’s attention.

Do you have any goals you want to achieve as a musician? : To be recognized as a songwriter at YG. Also, I hope the songs I work on continue to rise in the rankings. That’s about it. I just want the music I’m involved in to do well, whether it’s something I sang or a project with the company.

What does 'President Yang' mean to you? : He’s the person who made my dreams come true. Honestly, I liked President Yang the most since the Seo Taiji and Boys era. Because, although he couldn’t sing well (laughs), his dancing style and clothing were so cool. He was always an object of admiration for me, and I saw him after coming to Korea. He gave me only good words and even asked to work together. Thanks to him, I was able to achieve my dreams.

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