MANILA, Philippines – Multi-awarded Korean boy band 2AM is amazed and thankful to find out that they have many fans in the Philippines, a country hundreds of miles away from home. The group—comprised of Jo Kwon, Changmin, Seulong and Jinwoon—is currently in the country for the first time to promote their first full album, “Saint o’Clock.”
Citing their very first Philippine meet-and-greet show at the Newport Plaza on April 28, the boys told Bulletin Entertainment on April 29—through the aid of interpreter Chaeyon Kim—that they’re happy to finally meet their passionate Filipino fans at their well-attended show.
2AM said they were “amazed by the atmosphere and ambiance, how the fans love them and then shouted even when they were singing.”
“They're really happy to realize that there's a lot of fans for 2AM in the Philippines. They appreciate the 'hallyu wave' spreading around Asia,” Kim translated.
Seemingly a curious choice for some for a band name, leader Jo Kwon explained the story on how “2AM” came about.
“2AM, in regards to the time, when it's 2 AM you're gonna sleep or [have a] relaxing time. [It’s when] you think about what happened in the day like happiness, happy thoughts and then [you get] emotional, so the sentiment is really high. You're very sensitive [at that] time,” he said.
He added that the their management company JYP Entertainment's CEO Jinyoung Park was the one who gave them the group name in order to highlight their forte, ballads.
Asked to differentiate themselves from other renowned K-Pop idol groups, Changmin said that it’s their ability to also do other genres such as R&B and pop “even though [our] main focus is [on] ballads and the slow kind of music.”
The boys also believe that though they might be singing in Korean, non-Korean speaking people such as Filipinos won’t have too much trouble appreciating their music because they put their heart in their music. "Therefore even if they [non-Koreans] might not understand the lyrics of the song, they [would still] know the sentiments and the feelings [it conveys],” they note.
2AM's 12-track album, “Saint o’Clock,” was released in October 2010. It has two carrier tracks, “Like Crazy” and “You Wouldn't Answer My Calls.”
Jo Kwon noted that all the songs in this album are new and original, emphasizing that no songs from any from their previous albums were included. He added, “It was really loved by many fans, not only domestically but also in foreign [countries]” and that they are “appreciate how the fans in other countries love [our] music even if it's a sad song or a ballad.”
More, the boys shared their personal favorite cuts from “Saint o’Clock.” For Jinwoon, it’s the first track, the instrumental “Intro - Phone.”
“It doesn't have any lyrics in it but if you listen to the first track and you listen to the first song, which is 'You Don't Answer My Call ['You Wouldn't Answer My Calls'],' you really feel the sentiment of the first song,” he explained.
Jo Kwon said he loves the track, “Love U Hate U” as it features the “catchy” rap by trainees Bulletproof Boy Scouts.
Seulong, for his part, named the two carrier tracks as his favorites.
The song “To Love You Again,” meanwhile, is special to Changmin because he wrote the it and was based on his “own personal story.”
“It was gonna be included in the last album but it didn't push through and they negotiate with the producers and then it got into the latest album,” Kim explained.
2AM held two successful meet-and-greet shows on April 28 and 29 at the Newport Plaza and the Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill, respectively. With the promise of giving a “great performance,” they will be having their Grand Show on April 30, Saturday, at the Eastwood Mall Open Park with teen acoustic-pop duo Krissy & Ericka as their front act.
Aside from the regular album, “Saint o’Clock Special Edition” is also now available in major record stores nationwide and features all 12-tracks from the standard release album, two bonus tracks and a DVD of their music videos.
Source: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/316239/2am-o...among-filipinos
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