#ReturnedPitch: SECRET NUMBER on their interests, thoughts on debuting, and creating dalgona coffee
“Who Dis?” new girl group we should stan, you may ask? Five-member girl group SECRET NUMBER has made their entrance in the K-Pop industry on May 19 with their single album, “Who Dis?”. Their album includes their debut track of the same title and a sub track titled “Holiday”. The multinational girl group is formed under VINE Entertainment, consisting of members Léa from Japan, Dita from Indonesia, Denise and Jinny from the United States, and Soodam from South Korea.
Their debut music video has reached over 12 million views in just 2 weeks, and their music show performances have garnered over 5 million views collectively.
The girls have shared their thoughts on debuting in the 4th generation and preparing for their successful debut, expressing their gratitude for the excitement surrounding it and the positive feedback they received.
Their journey in the world of K-Pop started with the members having joined the company at different times, with Léa being the first and Denise the final member to join. SECRET NUMBER said, “Although we all came in at different times, we’ve trained together as a team for a little over a year, which gave us time to build our teamwork and improve our individual skills.” As the group is made up of mostly foreigners, some of the members had to learn the language and adjust to the culture on top of practicing the basics, such as singing and dancing.
Overcoming hardships related to their performances was one of the main things the group had to learn. “We always want to give the most genuine, high-quality stages possible, so we spent a lot of time practicing to make our performances well rounded,” they said. During training, members who majored in dancing such as Dita, had to focus on having stable singing while members who majored in singing and rapping such as Denise and Jinny, had to ensure their dancing ability was at par.
SECRET NUMBER not only remains thankful to their fans who have supported their debut, but also their members who saw each other grow into the artists they are today and motivated one another throughout the process.
“I couldn’t be more grateful for Secret Number as a team. Having seen them grow and improve has been humbling and motivating for me, so I’m reminded everyday to do my best. Within the team, though I’m grateful for each member individually, I’d like to express my gratitude for Jinny. I’ve known Jinny since I first started being a trainee, and for the past 4 years I’ve seen her hustle and work through all of her hardships. I’m grateful for her persistence and presence. It’s a blessing to be able to stand on stage with someone who is like family to me”
“I want to say that I’m grateful for Léa in particular. This having been my first time as a trainee, there were many ups and downs during the process. But through it all, she was there for me, being there as a constant listening ear when I needed one. Although our team has a bit of an age gap, she treats everyone as an equal, so the fact that we can all get along like friends is so refreshing, so I’m grateful to her.”
“Being the oldest member, I see each member in each of their respective roles. I can’t pick one member in particular because each member in this team carries their part so well. Because of each member’s abilities and contributions, even their weaknesses, we’re able to come together as a team and make each other stronger. That’s what makes me so grateful for this team.”
“I’ve known Denise for about 4 years now, so I want to thank her for being there for me through all these years. I also want to thank her for joining our team when I urged her to.
I’m so glad that we made our dreams to debut together come true.”
“I’m thankful for Secret Number as a team. We’ve come this far and I believe that none of this could have happened if it weren’t for the five of us together.”
Their debut and first promotions
The group had the opportunity to work with top American producers, Melanie Fontana and Michel ‘Lindgren’ Schulz, who have also worked with Justin Bieber and BTS, for “Who Dis?”. “The production for the album admittedly took a while, because we wanted to make sure that our debut song would be something we were proud to perform,” said SECRET NUMBER. The album production allowed the group to see the challenges that come with it as a new opportunity to grow. “We were looking for a song that could express each member individually and highlight each member. The concept came about after receiving the song. It was mature enough for all of us as adults of age to be able to express comfortably, but bright enough to appeal to all age ranges,” they explained.
SECRET NUMBER added that their concept was a mix of the “girl crush” concept and their own unique styles, to “create something new that hasn’t been seen in the K-Pop scene yet.”
The girls revealed that Jinny wrote her rap part after the dance break, which was not originally part of the first version of the song. “When our CEO asked us to contribute to the song, she suggested putting in a rap. She wrote it there on the spot in the recording booth and did it in one take,” they said. Jinny added, “Being able to contribute to our title track has been an honor and we hope you guys love it too!”
When it comes to which of their songs was their favorite, “Holiday” took the cake. “I like both actually, but I’m probably more of a ‘Holiday’ listener. In my everyday life I like chill songs, where I can just sit and relax with my coffee,” said Dita.
Soodam also chose the song as it was more of her style, “Listening wise, it’s more easy going. It’s a nice song to listen to on the daily, and gives a sense of serenity in a world full of chaos. Everyone needs a holiday every now and then.” Because both songs are different in terms of genre and style, Léa found it difficult to choose between the two. “I usually tend to listen to music based on my mood though, so I guess you could say that recently I’ve been in more of a “Holiday” mood,” she said.
Denise and Jinny chose “Who Dis?” as they got to contribute to an energetic, powerful song with an amazing instrumental as well as meaningful lyrics. “Although ‘Holiday’ is more my singing style, ‘Who Dis?’ is about having a type of confidence in yourself as you are, not as you are to be. I’m proud to call this our debut song,” Denise added.
Performing their debut song for the first time felt surreal for SECRET NUMBER. “Performing it live for the first time at the showcase made us fall in love with the song even more,” the group said. They confessed that while repeatedly practicing for the song, the members felt tiresome to hear it at one point, because there was no one to show their hard work to. “Hearing the song now, however, after being able to perform it on stage has revived it, in a way. The song represents us, and who we are, finally being able to come out and show people everything that we’ve been working on. So much to the point where when people see us, they can’t help but ask ‘Who Dis?’.”
The group realized in their first week that promotions were not for the faint of heart as it was challenging to adjust to busy schedules and early morning or late nights. “Entering our third week of promotions, we’ve adapted a bit. Although it can still be a bit of a struggle at times, getting to perform and knowing that people are enjoying our performances gives us the vigor to push through,” said SECRET NUMBER.
The girls spilled that they saw 2NE1’s Minzy a few weeks into promotions, and the experience reminded them of why they got into K-Pop in the first place. They also got to see NCT 127 in person, “they are such amazing performers with such diverse members like us, so seeing them in person was really cool for us. Their songs and choreography are so intense, and they do each stage as if it’s their last, so we really respect and admire them. We hope to one day be as great as performers as them,” they said.
Quarantine thoughts with dalgona coffee
As a diverse group, SECRET NUMBER loves to interact with their fans, even in the COVID-19 situation.
“Until the situation improves, we plan on reaching out and connecting with our fans via Instagram, YouTube, and other forms of social media,” they said. The members have recently closed their personal Instagram accounts to focus on their official account, @secretnumber.official, and connect with fans as a group.
They are also gearing up for new content to post on YouTube, which fans should look out for.
The group assures fans that they continue to practice social distancing at home while doing some self-taught practice. Like most hallyu fans, the group admits to watching a lot of Netflix shows and films, Korean dramas and variety programs. “A few of us are avid watchers of K-dramas and variety programs, because of how entertaining they are, also because it’s a way to improve some of our foreign member’s Korean skills as well,” they said.
They encourage their fans to try some of their hobbies and maybe add to their own playlists the members’ favorite songs while quarantining. Léa and Soodam recommended reading different books based on the fans’ different interests and fun webtoons, as the former liked books from a young age and they find reading as a great way to pass the time. Léa picked “10,000 Hours” by Dan + Shay Ft. Justin Bieber as her favorite song right now, while Soodam personally recommends “Dolphin” by Oh My Girl.
Dita loves listening to IU’s “Above The Time” and recommended working out using home-training workout videos and reorganizing your home. Jinny recommended fans to look up videos of SECRET NUMBER because they are always filming new videos for them, and chose “Me Time” by Yubin. Denise spends her time journaling and playing games, and recommends The 1975’s “If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know)”.
SECRET NUMBER is also no stranger to the famous quarantine trend: the dalgona coffee. They revealed that Léa tried making it first by hand whisking, but was unsuccessful after 30 minutes. “She finally gave in and switched to a hand mixer which did the job in about 10 seconds. After we all tried it, we loved it, and continue to make it even now when we have the time,” they said.
Hopes for the future
As for their first ever round of promotions, the group admitted to still adjusting to the busy schedule and environments, and wishes to get through it without anyone getting injured or sick. “In the past while training, we’ve had many instances where members have gotten injured while practicing or sick because of weather changes or fatigue, even up until right before debuting,” they said. The girls want to maintain their health and safety throughout their career to continue to put on the best performances.
SECRET NUMBER said they are excited to show fans not only the different sides of the group, but also in terms of units in future releases. They want to try a straight hip-hop/R&B concept as well as a darker concept in upcoming comebacks since “Who Dis?” was a bit more on the brighter side.
Although the group has already appeared on many radio and variety programs, they mainly expressed their interest to appear on “Weekly Idol”, “Idol Room”, and “Knowing Brothers”. “We’d also love to perform at one of the many end of year award shows in Korea that we grew up watching on TV,” the group added.
The group also expressed their thoughts on the artists they wish to collaborate and share the same stage with in the future. “I would love to not only share a stage, but also collaborate with Fanxy Child one day. Their songs are so well made and intricate that listening to them really makes you feel as though you’re listening to art,” said Denise. Dita would love to share the stage with ChungHa; “Not only do I enjoy her music, but I love her dance style and performance. Since we’re still a rookie group however, I feel that it’s a far off dream, but I would love to someday!”
Jinny wants to collaborate with CL in the future, “she’s been my role model ever since I was in middle school, and is the reason I wanted to be a K-Pop artist.” “I love how (G)-IDLE is not afraid to experiment with different concepts, and styles, so their performances are always refreshing to watch. If there were an opportunity to collaborate with them in the future, it would be an honor,” said Soodam. Léa wishes to do a stage with Justin Bieber when the opportunity arises. “I’ve been his fan ever since he debuted, and love his music. Being able to do a stage with him would be a dream,” she added.
Debuting as 4th generation idols, for SECRET NUMBER, still feels unreal and dreamlike. “It’s still hard to believe that we’ve actually debuted. It’s strange seeing ourselves in the shows we’ve spent so much time watching, so it’s really an honor, especially because of all the positive feedback we’ve been receiving not only in Korea, but abroad as well,” the girls said. The group felt blessed to have met many wonderful people during promotions, and this enables them to wake up everyday with the motivation to work harder to grow together as a group in the industry.
They hope to bring joy to the people listening and watching their performances, especially during these difficult times, and reach more listeners in the future as well.
“We want to thank everyone for the overwhelming amount of support we’ve received. Even though we’ve only just begun, we promise to work even harder to be a Secret Number that you can look up to and be proud of. We ask for your continual love and support as we continue to work hard to put out the best performances for you guys. We hope to see everyone in person soon, but until then, we ask that everyone stay safe and healthy. We promise to upload tons of fun content for you guys to watch in the meantime, so stay tuned! We love you guys so much. Thank you, always.”
