Stray Kids Inspire Their Generation To Pick Up The Mic

Stray Kids are fighting with their fans to decide who likes the other most. The fans began it, erupting into an impromptu chant indoors Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles: "We love you! We love you!," They shout, repeatedly. The sound is deafening, catching the boy musical group off guard. The eight members retaliate with their own impassioned chorus. "We love Stay," they respond, referencing their legions of international devotees. Both sides scream up until, ultimately, Stray Kids admit defeat; they stand awkwardly onstage, apparently unsure how to receive the unrivaled adulation. Bang Chan, the Korean group's steadfast leader, looks around the venue in awe, while sensible vocalist Seungmin makes a heart with his hands and points to the crowd, resolved to have the last word.


This isn't the initial time Stray Kids has lost the battle of who-loves-who. It’s happened in cities across the United States, from New York to Dallas, amidst their District 9: Unlock world tour. It's canon, chiseled into the group's short nevertheless vibrant history, alongside such viral moments as "Seungmin in the building" and "I'm not gonna leave you behind." Displays of affection between idols and fans are nothing new yet, with Stray Kids, they’re never forced.


"It doesn't matter how old you are," Bang Chan tells the crowd mid-show, intensity building with every word. "It doesn't matter if you are a boy or a girl, or whoever you pick to be. It is irrelevant where you're from — each person is welcome in our special district."


Two weeks back to this efficiency, Stray Kids — Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N — are gazing from a conference room in a Times Square skyscraper. The sky is gray, nevertheless that doesn't deter Hyunjin from posing for a series of selfies against the floor-to-ceiling window. Because the lithe dancer works his angles, his bandmates are scattered while in the room. Han props his phone against the room’s A/V controls to watch an anime; Bang Chan hunches over his own phone, thumbing the screen intently; Lee Know rests his eyes; and Australia-born Felix gossips about last night's Grammy Awards. Like any teen, he's obsessed with Billie Eilish, and her historic Grammys sweep is hard for him to fathom. "Can you believe it?" He says, eyes wide and sparkling. "She's only 18. It's amazing."


But at 19, the deep-voiced rapper, whose delicate features betray his cherry-red hair, has identically noticed success at a young age. Within each year of their 2018 debut, Stray Kids procured 11 rookie awards and released five EPs. Case in point, while Eilish and her brother Finneas were crafting homemade beats in a Highland Park bedroom, JYP Entertainment's tenacious boy wonders were honing their own unique sound in a tiny studio in Seoul, South Korea. Members Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han comprise the group's primary production trio, 3RACHA, and they've been making music with each other since their trainee days in 2017. Introspective early tracks like "Start Line" and "Runner's High" laid the structure for Stray Kids' sonic identity: With the disruptive power of punk, they deliver astute, poignant lyrics about the bristly experience of growing up and its side effects.


"The things we worry about and the things Stay worry about — we share a lot of the same struggles," Han tells MTV News. "Even though our ambitions are different, we work hard just the same. It becomes our inspiration musically." Because the creative force beyond two of the group's more weak cuts, "19" and "Sunshine," the 19-year-old rapper reveals his innermost thoughts and anxieties to the fans. Yet that honesty can be frightening.


"It's nerve-racking for us," Bang Chan says. Some days we think, 'If we talk about this, will people understand? Will they relate?' We're habitually thinking about how we can reach people through our lyrics because we want our music to help."


That empathy has been woven while in their music from the starting. Stray Kids’ first singles, the pre-debut track "Hellevator" and the darkly riotous "District 9," are full of angst and aggression, soundtracks for those who balk at societal pressures and follow their own rules. "My Pace" is an empowering anthem teeming with energy and affirmations. ("Don't compare yourself with others," Bang Chan sings on the hook. "It's OK to run slower.") Songs like "Voices" and "Side Effects" provide an intimate glimpse into the tumultuous mind of a young person still figuring out their place in the world, while "Miroh" and "Victory Song" are bursting with big sounds and youthful bravado.


"Young people today may feel a little trapped, like you're constantly being told what to do and also you feel like you can't speak for yourself," Bang Chan says. "So we want people our age to feel comfortable speaking out and talking about what they think."


By encouraging their fans to analyse their own growing pains, to feel everything, they make sure that their message is never didactic. "All strayed steps come with each other to create a new road," they mention at their concert. And with their latest release, "Levanter," off their sixth EP Clé: Levanter, Stray Kids come to the understanding that the journey is more meaningful than the destination, and the path ahead is ultimately theirs to define. So they double knot their shoelaces and dash full-speed ahead. "We might not directly know what the particular aim is, however as long as we're running hard and we're running as a crowd, whichever comes is going to be good anyway," Bang Chan says. "We just wish that a lot of people out there could listen to our music and get a lot of energy and hope from it."


Like 25-year-old Selina, who connects to their lyrics because she's "still on that journey of figuring out what I'd like to do and who I want to be," she says, clutching her Stray Kids light stick (a compass, right now featuring Bang Chan's name written on the nickname) outdoor of Microsoft Theater. Her friend Joseline, 18, likes that the members "have other priorities and interests outdoors of being a K-pop idol" that they reveal through day-to-day Instagram posts, livestreams on the V Live app, TikToks, and weekly YouTube videos and vlogs. "He's not just Han from Stray Kids, he's Han Jisung — rapper, producer, and person," she adds.


For Kambree, 17, the sort has a "positive vibe" that makes her feel happy and accepted. "They make us feel like family member, no matter who you are or what you look like," she adds. Her best friend Lexxie, 17, says Stray Kids "make me feel like I'm not alone with my issues." And thus Yun, 30, finds their mix of "hard-hitting EDM" and "super angsty" lyrics reminiscent of the emo bands she listened to in high school. "It's the same rebellious spirit that I felt as a teen while you desire to be your own person and figure out your own voice."


Their music has given Louis, 30, a newfound perspective. "I like the ['Levanter'] lyric, 'I hope to be myself, I don't care' — that line resonates with me because we reside in a society where people attempt to mold you, although at the same time, I just hope to myself and at this point, I really don't care!"


Best companions Ella and Jazlynn, both 19, met online through their mutual love of Stray Kids, and they've customized their light sticks with glitters and holographic stickers of their preference members' names. "Half of the order is technically my age, so I can look at them and visualize how successful they are, also it gives me inspiration to work harder," Jazlynn says, a I.N banner at her side. And once they do feel comforted by the authenticity in the group's songs, as Ella explains, it's who they are off-stage that several fans connect with most. As soon as you visualize Felix do the Renegade, it's like, 'I do that too!'"


Their ability to ignite the stage with powerful performances while staying true to themselves in back of the scenes — as both K-pop's reigning meme kings and young boys navigating adulthood — is what makes Stray Kids so relatable to a generation that experiences much of their lives online. "This generation is comfortable being alone," Changbin says. "We have our phones. We don't habitually need to be talking to each other to be with each other. Some days a text is fine."


And they're pretty usual, also. Bang Chan and Changbin watch videos from Tomorrowland and Ultra Music Festival to help clear their minds in the studio; the tracks "Road Not Taken" and "Stop" are the direct results of such self-care. Han's idea of a brilliant day could be to "not come out of my room for 24 hours." If he may spend all day watching YouTube videos, he would. Case in point, he says "Sunshine" was inspired by a scene in the Korean drama Boys Over Flowers, where the main characters travel to an idyllic private island. Though Han’s larger-than-life presence dominates the stage, he identifies as an introvert and admits he hopes to conquer his shyness. "On my ideal brilliant day, I'd try new experiences and meet new people comfortably," he says. "You can do it!" Bang Chan adds, encouragingly.


Youngest member I.N makes time to go shopping, though he prefers to "chill" on his days off. And as soon as Felix isn't playing video games or destroying kitchens with Seungmin, he frequents Seoul's finest dog cafes. "We have so several dog lovers in our sort he says, smiling. "I've been looking at a lot of dogs, and I feel like they help you feel better. I really want a dog with the team." Jisung points at Seungmin, whose nickname is "puppy," and Bang Chan adds, "We already have one." Seungmin scrunches his nose and says, "No way!" Yet Han insists he is a "really bad boy.")


Meanwhile, Hyunjin, who’s known by fans for his theatrics and commanding stage presence is especially open with his emotions. He frequents V Live, where he offers personalized suggestions to viewers of his video series Hyunjin’s Counseling Center. Nevertheless the 19-year-old admits that beginning up to Stay has helped him, also. "I don't routinely have a lot of confidence," he says. “When I want to be comforted or once I’m feeling sort of sad, Stay are really good at consoling me. I want have the ability to repay that comfort in full."


"The relationship between Stay and Stray Kids could be family member Felix adds. Han jokes that they're the "annoying and mischievous" little brothers. Nevertheless it's that sense of connection, among the categorize and also with their fans, that has cemented Stray Kids because the vital voices of their generation.


"The struggles we're going through — anxiety, stress, school, love — they tell us to take our time and visualize where our path leads," Selina says. "It's OK to stray from it. Just stay true to yourself. I routinely coworker that with them. The idea of 'You Make Stray Kids Stay' is to find out what it is that grounds you and just keep going."


And Stray Kids don't plan to slow down as soon as soon. Having wrapped their Clé series at the end of last year with Levanter, 2020 offers an exhilarating fresh page for new musical experimentations, beginning with the three original unit songs the categorize produced for the tour. "Wow" is a sexy R&B track from dancers Lee Know, Hyunjin, and Felix. It's also their first uncensored love song. "We wanted to try a sexy song because it's a special stage," Hyunjin says, explaining that the dancers worked on their own lyrics moreover to helping with the slinky choreography. "We wanted to include moves that we haven't tried before," Lee Know adds, noting that they wanted something sexy and powerful. "So it was a new experience."


"My Universe," featuring vocalists Seungmin and I.N with an assist from Changbin, is a bright pop ballad. "I routinely wanted to try something like that," I.N says, eyes smiling. Seungmin tells Changbin from across the table, "Thanks for helping." And 3RACHA's "We Go" oozes confidence over a scorching trap beat. "We made 'We Go' last time we were here [in the United States]," Bang Chan says. "We made around three to four songs in one day… The efficiency is really fun as well. And those two [he points to Han and Changbin] got to have the chance to use Autotune live."


They also released their first English singles in January, a process that rapper Changbin, known for his angry flow, calls complicated ("It was fun," Hyunjin argues beside him.) "I was listening to Changbin's rap [in 'Double Knot'] like, 'Why is this so fast? What am I going to write?'" Bang Chan says. "I attempted to write it as easy as possible so that he might speak it well. I'm really glad that they could record it really well for me."


In March, they'll debut in Japan. And there's another mixtape project in the works, kicked off by the digital release of "Gone Days," a relaxed, Autotune-laced anthem for the "OK Boomer" generation. A play on the Korean word kkondae, it describes someone who pushes outdated ideas and expectations onto another based only on their age and status — and signals the arrival of a bold new direction. "I think [young people] right now just need to be more comfortable with themselves," Bang Chan says of his inspiration for the track. "By being yourself, you never know what's going to happen."


"I routinely believe that one individual can change the world," he adds. "So in case if you've a thought or an idea, just let it out. Because who understands? You could make the world a much better place."