Same Name, Deeper Density…RIIZE Makes Comeback With More Mature Emotional Pop [HT Focus]

[Hanteo News = Reporter KANG SUYOUNG] RIIZE released its 2nd mini album 'II' today (15th). It marks the group’s first release in seven months since the single 'Fame' last November. The name of the group’s own genre, “emotional pop,” which RIIZE has put forward since its debut, remains the same, but the RIIZE inside it has changed.

In K-POP, the gap between a first album and a second album is not simply a matter of time. What an artist experiences in between determines the density of the music. For RIIZE, that experience was the stage. The group’s first world tour 'RIIZING LOUD,' where it met 420,000 audiences across 21 regions around the world last year, the Austin City Limits Music Festival in the U.S., and Lollapalooza South America in Argentina, Chile, and Brazil. These were places where the group had to prove its music in front of an unspecified general public, not just its fandom. When member SUNGCHAN said, “I think I naturally felt growth and change without even realizing it,” it meant a change created by the stage, not an intentional kind of growth.

That change is embedded throughout the album. It appears most clearly in the title track 'Do your dance.' What stands out in this uptempo dance track, which combines hip-hop beats with electronic pop sounds, is the performance. Member WONBIN said, “This is the first time among RIIZE’s performances that the chorus choreography has been this relaxed,” adding, “Usually, during the chorus, there is no time for our feet to stay on the ground, but in 'Do your dance,' they stay there for a moment.” Emptying rather than filling, subtracting rather than adding. This is a choice only a team that has experienced the stage in front of 420,000 audiences can make. The message of “Like a pro,” which member ANTON chose as the core of the song, is in the same context. His interpretation that “even if you are not a professional in any particular field, overcoming difficulties while enjoying them is actually a pro-like mindset” is the result of an attitude learned on stage being translated into the language of music. The composition of the B-side tracks has also changed. From alternative rock-based 'SOAR' and bass house track 'D-D-Done' to R&B hip-hop genre track 'Overdrive' and pop anthem 'In a Loop,' the six tracks each carry different colors. Member EUNSEOK’s description of the album as “crayons wearing various colors” is not an exaggeration. Never before have such diverse textures coexisted under the single name of emotional pop.

The way the album was made has also changed. The members personally created background music for their individual trailers or directly offered opinions on the performance structure. Member ANTON stayed up all night working on music for his individual trailer, while SHOTARO and WONBIN personally contributed ideas to the performance. Even while injured in his ankle, SHOTARO joined practice time by learning at least the upper-body movements. Member ANTON summed up this change in one sentence: “We started giving our opinions comfortably.” The difference between when they made their first album and now ultimately comes from knowing who they are. That is why ANTON distinguished the early days of their debut as feeling like “introducing ourselves,” while this time, he said, “We wanted to express what kind of group RIIZE really is.”

The name emotional pop remains the same, but the density filling it has changed. What they built while breathing with 420,000 audiences on stage has returned as an album. RIIZE’s 2nd mini album shows that a genre deepens not through declaration, but through experience.

grace@hanteo.com