Big in Bangkok

Boy band has a blast

Since their 2007 hit “Lies,” Korean boy band Big Bang have been praised by critics and fans alike for their captivating music, great singing and trendsetting fashion sense.

On March 28, Big Bang — leader G-Dragon, 23, Taeyang, 23, T.O.P, 24, Daesung, 22 and Seungri, 21 — visited Thailand to promote a new brand of motorcycles and to perform a showcase at Central World. On the day, Big Bang’s V.I.P fan club members stood out from the crowd by wearing yellow paper crowns on their heads, yellow being Big Bang’s official fan club colour.

During their show, Big Bang performed songs from their recent Alive EP, as well as “Hands Up” from their previous album, Tonight. While the guys were performing their first song, V.I.P held up cards saying, “Welcome back.”

Big Bang’s fans screamed wildly during the group’s interview, especially when the guys said a few sweet words in Thai. Seungri drove V.I.P crazy when he asked if any of them would like to be his girlfriend, while T.O.P said he hoped all the girls would have nice dreams at night. But it was leader G-Dragon who truly drove the fans wild when he said the popular slang word “narak ah (cutie)” with perfect pronunciation.

Student Weekly went along to Big Bang’s showcase to hear what the guys had to say.

Question: It’s been a long time since you were last in Thailand. How do you feel about this visit?

Taeyang: We have to apologise for not coming here for so long. We’ve missed our Thai fans a lot. Thanks to all the fans for coming here today!

Question: What was it like filming your latest motorcycle commercial?

Daesung: It was fun. Some of the crew members were Thais who flew to Seoul to work on the commercial. They were kind and always took good care of us.

Question: Was it difficult to working on your album, Alive?

G-Dragon: We had a really hard time while we were working on Alive. We devoted ourselves to this album. When the album was released, we felt like we’d really expanded our work and our spirits felt uplifted. We hope you guys all listen to the album.

Question: T.O.P, are you happy with your new look?

T.O.P: Many people have complimented me and said that my hair style is really cool. This hair colour is called mint. I decided to dye my hair while we were working on the song, “Fantastic Baby.”

Question: How did you feel that about your video for “Blue” having more than a million views on YouTube?

Taeyang: We’re thrilled that our fans have stuck by us, even during our hiatus. We hope you continue to support our work.

Question: Do you guys have a favourite song on Alive?

Taeyang: I like every song, but I especially like “Bad Boy.”

Seungri: I like fun songs, so my favourite is “Fantastic Boy.”

G-Dragon: I like Daesung’s solo track, “Wings.”

Daesung: Awesome!

Question: Do you plan to bring your Alive tour to Thailand?

Taeyang: The plan for our official tour isn’t finished yet, but we intend to visit every country where our fans love us. If Thai V.I.P likes our songs, then we will definitely visit Thailand on tour. We’d love to perform in Thailand.

Seungri: We promise you we will come back to perform