Q. Congratulations on your comeback. Tell me about your new album "Palette".
IU: The title means my new album contains a variety of colors. When I was young, I liked a palette better than a painting. A palette is a drawing tool, but I thought a palette itself can be a work of art. As it's my first album in a long time, I wanted to show my own palette to you.
Q. As a music producer, you took part in writing all the tracks of your new album.
IU: Yeah, all the tracks contain my own stories. There is no fiction, and the lyrics are from my diary.
Q. Tell me about the title track "Palette".
IU: I wrote the song by myself. The song is basically an extension of "Twenty Three" because both songs are about myself. When I released "Twenty Three," I wanted to tell you there were various aspects of me. But two years have passed since then, and I became a woman who can clearly speak about what I like. I've practice dancing a lot too, so please look forward to my dance performance.
Q. It's notable that G-Dragon is featured as a rapper in the song.
IU: Well, I'm a big fan of him, and I asked him for advice when I was writing "Palette". And I later asked him to be featured in the song because I was sure he is the one who can express free and witty atmosphere of the song. He readily said okay, and he did better than expected. I'm so thankful for him.
Q. How about Kim Soohyun? He appeared in music video of "Ending Scene".
IU: We've known each other for a long time. You know, we appeared in "Dream high" and "Producer" together. I'm very thankful for his help because I know he's so busy.
Q. Many famous k-pop singers will make a comeback between April and June. Don't you feel pressured to win the competition?
IU: I know a lot of awesome singers will release their new albums soon, and it's true I'm a little bit scared. However, I'm very happy about it too because I think the competition among popular singers can boost the k-pop industry. I hope we all will sing great songs for k-pop listeners.
Q. You've not recently attended any end-of-year music awards, and some people say you boycotted end-of-year music awards. Is it true?
IU: No, it's not true. Officially, I've never done promotional activities for my album since I released "The red shoes" in 2013. And some of broadcasting companies even didn't ask me to attend its awards ceremony. It's good to attend end-of-year music awards, of course, and I will attend end-of-year music awards this year if I can.
Q. It has been 10 years since you debuted. Do you think you've changed a lot?
IU: Even though it has been a long time since I debuted, I don't think I became very skillful. I'm still not used to what I'm doing. Instead, I became to know about myself better, and I know how to soothe myself.
Q. So, what's your goal as a singer?
IU: As there are so many people who know me, I feel responsible. I want to be a singer who can talk about my thoughts instead of just making sounds.
** If you want to know real personality of IU, GD and Kim Soohyun, download <K-pop Secret Vol.1: 40 Korean Stars’ Real Personality> :)
Google Play:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.goodbarber.kpopsecret
iTunes:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1225053074
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y12BM3D
