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| Photo Cr. JYP Entertainment |
The new single is called "Fire My Sweet Misery." That's a very intriguing title with a lot of passion and pain in it. Can you tell me the story behind the song?
Gunil: Sure! To talk about the story behind this track, I'd like to start with the lyrics. As you can see, the lyrics are about love, but it's not just simple love—it's very dramatic, overwhelming, and powerful. It's even a little demented.
The reason I chose to write the lyrics like this is because when I first listened to the track (the members sent it to me when I was in the States taking a break), it was very powerful and reminded me of the color red. Jooyeon also sang "Fire" in the demo chorus, so I naturally thought that would be the best title and theme for the song.
We had actually decided that our next song should be a love song, and when this track came out, we thought, "How can this be a love song?" After thinking deeply about it, I concluded that this shouldn't be just a simple love song—it should be very dramatic and powerful,
as I mentioned earlier.
How was the songmaking process for you guys?
Jooyeon: Genre-wise, it was a very new genre that we tried for the first time. That's why we chose very bold lines for the melody part. The final result is very new, refreshing, and fun to listen to.
How do you feel this new song represents you as artists, and how do you hope it connects with your fanbase?
Gaon: This is our first English single release, so I think this could be a great channel for us to communicate with our fanbase through our performances and music. The song is very energetic, so it would be very fun to perform on stage—the fans could probably jump with us and have a lot of fun.
Jongsu: This single is being released in the summertime, so I hope we can make this summer even hotter than it already is.
Very exciting news that you're making your Lollapalooza debut—that's a huge deal for any band. How are you preparing for that milestone performance?
O.de: First of all, Lollapalooza is a dream stage for any band in the world, so it's a great honor and we're very happy to have gotten this opportunity. We're preparing to show our true color as a band and our unique side as much as possible.
Jooyeon: Because this stage is so significant, we're being very careful in coming up with the setlist.
Gaon: The setlist is really important for this performance, so we've changed it multiple times and we're consulting with the label a great deal to come up with one that shows who we are as a band.
Lollapalooza attracts a very diverse audience. How do you plan on winning over fans who haven't heard you before?
Gunil: To be honest, I believe we're just going to do what we've always done on numerous stages—we're just going to be ourselves. We're not going to try to mimic somebody else. We're just going to be us, Xdinary Heroes. I'm confident that lots of new people are going to be attracted to us.
Jooyeon: To add to what Gunil said, we don't really limit ourselves to a specific genre and we've crossed many genres throughout our career. So for people who see us for the first time, I think it will be a
really refreshing experience that will attract them to us.
You're going to many more cities for your tour this time around. Is there something you want to try in the US that you didn't get a chance to last time?
Gunil: I'm not sure if I'll get to do this time as well, but I'm hoping I might be able to visit my home in Albuquerque if there's time, and maybe bring the members to my house.
Jooyeon: I would like to visit McDonald's in the US.
Touring extensively can be both exhilarating and exhausting. How do you maintain your energy through tours?
Jungsu: I draw my energy from being outside and seeing and expierencing new things. So I try to make this external energy into my own energy and use that on stage.
Jooyeon: I am the complete opposite. I recharge by sleeping all the time. It's really odd for me to see the members going outside.
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| Photo Cr. JYP Entertainment |
Gunil: Beside the things mentioned. I think one of our biggest focus is to gain more global fans because we want our music to be more worldwide. My personal goal for the team is for all of them to be healthy and throughout the tour.
Jooyeon: My goal is that our goal becomes so huge that our concerts feel like an event. I hope the world is filled with people who love and listen to our music.
If "Fire" could be a theme song for any TV show, what show would it be?
Gunil: Good question.. Hard question!
O.de: I think the TV show has to be really energetic and powerful to use our music as background music. What comes to my mind is "Physical 100" on Netflix.
Jungsu: I think our music would be really good for any UFC program.
You're about to go on your US tour and will be experiencing American food for several weeks. What's your survival strategy, and who do you think would start searching desperately for Korean food first?
Jooyeon: Many people don't expect this from me but I do very well when i'm overseas food-wise. I love food in the States and i'm a big meat lover and I also love fast food, so anything is good for me in the U.S.
O.de: I know by expierence that Gaon is a big kimchi lover and would be the first one to look for kimchi.
Gaon: It's true. I love Korean food, so I try to pack as many cup noodles as possible when I go on tours. Having a familiar taste is really important for me to gain energy. That's what I do.
For our last question, do you have a message for international Villains [fans]?
Gunil: First of all, we are very happy that this year, in 2025, we are going on a world tour to meet you. We're always just so thankful that there are so many fans all around the world who are giving us love and overflowing love for us. We are so honored, and we would never take all that love for granted. So we will always do our best to keep on making music and doing shows for you guys. Love you guys too. Thank you.
Jooyeon: We are so happy to have the opportunity to meet fans from all over the world. Through this, we feel closer to our fans. We are very happy to meet more Villains.
Gaon: As years go by as a band, the stages get larger. We see the Villains go larger as well, so we're very grateful and we hope we can make the fans proud.
Jun Han: Since we are doing a world tour this year, I know expectations are very high for us. I really hope we meet the expectations and we will try to be that band.
O.de: I know that there are a lot of fans around the world who are waiting for us. I hope we can make that extended waiting not go to waste. I hope that seeing us on stage can give you great energy. I'm really looking forward to seeing you and I love you.
Jungsu: We will stive to give you another reason to live tomorrow.
August 2 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount
August 5 – Washington, DC – Warner Theatre
August 8 – Atlanta, GA – Coca-Cola Roxy
August 10 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
August 14 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium
August 16 – San Jose, CA – San Jose Civic
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