There’s poetry in boy band Close Your Eyes’ debut — quite literally.

Close Your Eyes debuted on Wednesday with a unique “literature boy” concept filled with symbols and metaphors in the title of the album, the songs and even the band itself.


“The name of the band, Close Your Eyes, means that we will give people music that’s persuasive even when people listen to it with their eyes closed,” Jeon Min-wook told reporters during a showcase held Wednesday at the Yes24 Live Hall in eastern Seoul.

“Another meaning is that we will show growth with every blink of the eye. I hope that people look forward to what we bring next. I think only then will the fans want to be with us more."

Close Your Eyes rolled out its first EP “Eternalt” as the latest addition to K-pop’s talented audition-made group roster. The letter "T" in the title of the album symbolizes "Time," and means that the band will spend eternity with the fans, according to the members.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a ‘literature boy’ concept before, so it did feel a little difficult but refreshing at the same time,” said Jang Yeo-jun. “We began to understand it more as we continued our meetings and training sessions. I think we were able to express the idea with Close Your Eyes’ unique touch.”

“When we first heard the ‘literature boy’ concept, we were a little surprised because it wasn’t a common theme,” Jeon said. “But after listening to the songs and really taking in the lyrics, we felt like we could pull this off and make it ours. We read a lot of books so that we could really dive into the concept.”

The album carries a whopping total of eight tracks, including lead track “All My Poetry” and B-side tracks “Close Your Eyes,” “Laid Back,” “Subtitled,” “To The Woods,” “Stay 4 Good,” “How To Dance” and “Upside Down.”

The Korean titles of the songs are quite poetic, just like the name of the band. For instance, the Korean title of “All My Poetry” can be translated to “All my poetry and the novel within myself”; “Subtitled” can be translated to “In this film that features you, all my lyrics become the subtitles”; and “Upside Down” can be translated into “The day that the apple fell into the sky.”

Lead track “All My Poetry” is a slow-tempo R&B track that talks about a literature boy’s young yet true love written in a poem. Jeon, the leader of the group who also debuted in 2020 as a member of boy band BAE173, took part in writing the lyrics of the track.

“We thought a lot about what our unique colors would be that could make us different from the other groups,” Jeon said. “I think that comes from our natural nature — us as who we are. The songs are meant to show that as well, and I think that shows through.”

The band was put together through cable channel JTBC's audition program "Project 7" (2024), after two months of fierce competition held from October to December last year. The seven members — Ma Jingxiang, Sakurada Kenshin, Jeon, Seo Kyoung-bae, Song Seung-ho, Jang and Kim Sung-min — took the three or so months after the show to practice not only their performance skills but to become a real team. Close Your Eyes is scheduled for a three-year term for now.

“We were put together through a survival show, which meant that we were busy just taking care of ourselves,” Ma said. “But after we came together, we thought about our future together as a team. Our focus was on how we would present ourselves as a group and prove that on the stage.”

Close Your Eyes will be managed by Uncore, a newly founded music label under SLL, an affiliate of the Korea JoongAng Daily, which produced Netflix’s “Culinary Class Wars” (2024) and JTBC’s “The Tale of Lady Ok" (2024). In collaboration with YG Plus, the music label will focus on developing K-pop idol artists, along with music production, distribution and performances.

SLL will handle the debut and global activities of the seven-member boy group selected during the show's finale. YG Plus will spearhead various businesses leveraging the show's intellectual property, including the investment and distribution of the rookie band's music.

“We hope that people feel a different charm from us,” Kim said.

“I hope that people think of our songs all day — and even in their dreams,” Seo said. “Then won’t our music have been recognized by the public?”

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]