For SM Entertainment’s newest boy band NCT Wish, the NCT title is a double-edged sword. It gives the band a bigger spotlight but also holds them to higher standards than the usual one-month-old K-pop rookie.

Do the members feel pressured? Yes — but in a good way.

“The senior NCT members are so amazing, especially when it comes to their live performance skills,” member Sion told local reporters in an interview held Wednesday in eastern Seoul.

“That’s why we spent more time practicing and monitoring ourselves when we perform so that we too can hear people say, ‘They’re definitely NCT!’ We’ve just made our debut, but we do feel a strong sense of responsibility that we have to show that we deserve the name NCT, especially because we’re the last NCT subgroup.”

NCT Wish comes as SM Entertainment’s newest boy band in just five months since unveiling Riize. It’s the “final” subgroup to debut under the NCT umbrella, which has given some of the biggest names in K-pop: NCT 127, NCT Dream, NCT U and WayV.

“We know that the NCT name means that some people will judge us with a stricter mind,” Yushi said. “But we also feel the affection and care the senior NCT members gave us. We really want to pay all that back.”

Contrary to the other NCT bands, NCT Wish — comprised of four Japanese members Riku, Yushi, Ryo and Sakuya, and two Korean members Sion and Jaehee — is mainly targeted at the Japanese market. NCT Wish’s first official single “Wish” was released in Japan and online on Feb. 28. Physical sales in Korea began on March 4.

The band made its official debut on Feb. 21 during SM Entertainment’s agencywide concert “SMTOWN Live 2024” held at the Tokyo Dome, five months after being formed through the agency’s audition program “NCT Universe: Lastart” (2023) last September.

NCT Wish spent its first five months doing a pre-debut tour across nine cities in Japan, television appearances and the NCT Nation meet and greet events held in Tokyo and Osaka. It also released a pre-debut Japanese single titled “Hands Up” on Oct. 8, 2023.

“We did release a song during our pre-debut period, but we didn’t get to meet the fans a lot, except for on the tour,” Sion said. “But having officially debuted, we get to go on television music shows, hold meet and greets and do a lot of other events too. We get to meet the fans more often, and that feels great.”

The fans have been supporting the band enthusiastically as well. Fans crowded outside the café where the interview was held to get a peek at the NCT Wish members. They also rented out the café on the opposite side of the interview location to get a better view. The band’s first single “Wish” sold more than 500,000 copies as of Wednesday, a testament to the fans’ dedication to the band’s success.

“We just heard the news on our way to this interview,” Sion said. “We know that it means that we’re being so loved, so quickly after our debut. We feel grateful toward the fans and want to pay them back however we can.”

Debuting from SM Entertainment gave NCT Wish backing from some of the biggest names in K-pop.

The title track “Wish” was produced by SM Entertainment’s signature producer Kenzie. The song is a medium-paced dance track based on old-school hip-hop melodies. Most notably, NCT Wish was produced by first-generation K-pop diva BoA, who oversaw the band’s journey since the “NCT Universe: Lastart” audition program.

“For me and Yushi, who have been training at SM Entertainment for a long time, BoA really feels like a big person because she’s a member of the board,” Sion said. “She felt so big to us, so being able to communicate and talk candidly with her really felt special. She feels more like a big sister that we can lean on, now.”

“She’s been giving us feedback even before our debut, and helped us with the music video, the Tokyo Dome performance and more,” he continued. “We tend to get nervous and stiff about the things we do for the first time, and BoA told us every single time that we’re doing well. That helped us really have faith in ourselves and enjoy the stage.”

Only a month into their debut, the members are still half-dazed and nervous, but it’s mostly due to gratitude and joy.

“I feel so happy realizing that I can communicate with fans and that there is someone out there who loves me,” Jaehee said. “I really like singing, and being able to do that as my job, and be happy doing it, feels amazing."

"I think of myself as a tree. I’m a small blooming sprout, but I want to grow and give fruits of happiness as an artist. That’s my ‘Wish.’”

“I want to become Asia’s next Star, just like BoA,” Ryo said. “Going global is great, but I want to follow in her footsteps because she has been our mentor and producer.”

To find out more about NCT Wish, BoA and other NCT subgroups, visit Celeb Confirmed


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