Global boy group NEXZ is back six months after "O-Rly?" with their third mini album, "Beat-Boxer"―showing off a wider sonic palette, tighter teamwork and a lot more swagger.
Since their global debut in May 2024, the group has been racking up wins, including No. 1 on Oricon’s Daily Album Chart and a Best 5 New Artists honor at the Japan Gold Disc Awards just seven months after their official debut in Japan.
In a recent sit-down in Seoul, the members opened up about their growth over the last half-year, the story behind the new single and the surprisingly quick glow-up of their Korean skills.
Grateful for fans who waited, the group sounded confident about this comeback. “Thank you for sticking with us,” HYUI says. “We trained hard to show an upgraded version of NEXZ.”
They describe the title track as tailor-made for the stage―a performance-first banger built to blow the roof off live.
"Beat-Boxer" rides a minimalist, early-2000s hip-hop dance groove, channeling the kind of high-voltage bravado that promises to “smash the beat” onstage. Leader TOMOYA also sparked buzz with the fourth installment of his self-produced teaser series, themed “When Did You First Want to Become an Idol?”
“The title is our confidence,” HYUI explains. “It’s about flying across the stage and breaking the beat with overwhelming energy.” TOMOYA adds, “When I first heard it, I thought, ‘This is it―this is NEXZ.’ I’d love for people to call us the 5th-gen performance leaders this era.”
The members helped craft the choreography themselves to stamp it with the group’s identity.
“We’ve been serious about dance since we were kids, learning different street styles,” HARU says. “This song makes you sweat, so we put everything we had into it.” YU, who’s trained in breaking for years, adds, “I wanted to show off more technique in the video―and make sure we can actually pull it off live.”
Though most of NEXZ’s members are Japanese, their Korean has gotten impressively fluent. TOMOYA notes that he and HYUI have lived in Korea for nearly six years, and the rest of the team leveled up fast by speaking only in Korean with staff.
When asked who’s improved the most, everyone points to the youngest, YUKI. “He loves dad jokes and literally writes them down to practice,” TOMOYA laughs. HYUI teases back: “We don’t laugh because they’re funny―we laugh so the room doesn’t go silent.”
The group says advice from their JYP Entertainment seniors has been a backbone this era. According to TOMOYA, J.Y. Park stressed three keys to success: “Cherish your members, cherish the staff and cherish the fans.”
“2PM’s NICHKHUN treated us to great food and told us, ‘Even when schedules get overwhelming, confidence comes first. Fans love seeing you own the stage―push through it up there,’” they share. “Stray Kids’ FELIX told us to invest more time than anyone else in our own growth.”
This time, NEXZ are eyeing a milestone: their first No. 1 on a Korean music show. “We were nominees last era, so it left us hungry,” YUKI says. If they clinch the trophy, the group promises to perform "Beat-Boxer" in full NEXZ mascot suits.
"Beat-Boxer" packs six tracks: Legacy, title track "Beat-Boxer," "I’m Him," "Co-star," "Next to me" and "Z side _250823." TOMOYA, YU and HARU again helped create choreography for the title and pre-release "I’m Him," while all members co-wrote lyrics for "Next to me"; TOMOYA and HARU composed it, and TOMOYA handled the arrangement―flexing their artistry beyond the stage.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Kyung-youn)
