On an August evening in Seoul, South Korea, a newly formed production crew was setting up cameras and microphones as the eight-member session band warmed up and rehearsed. Most of the musicians had flown in from the U.S. just for this performance; a few were already based in Seoul. The special occasion was one of the first concerts for Tiny Desk Korea, a brand new series based halfway around the world from NPR's offices in Washington, D.C. It was an exciting moment for everyone in the room as we awaited the arrival of Kim Tae-hyung, 김태형, who most know as V from BTS.
He was about to release a new album, Layover, and he'd never performed the songs live before. The three sultry cuts in this set are sure to make ARMY go crazy. "Love Me Again" starts the set with a catchy hook and steamy verses sung in Korean; you don't have to understand the language to feel the regret and loss. He keeps the romantic mood going with an uptempo R&B vibe on "Slow Dancing." Before the last tune, "For Us," V says in Korean, "These songs evoke a sense of fleeting tranquility, as if they effortlessly pass by and offer a soothing pause."
This video is part of the newly launched international version of Tiny Desk, a joint venture between NPR and LG U+, a Korean telecommunications and media company. All concerts — including the first few episodes with the Kim Chang Wan Band, Sunwoo Jung-A and the Yun Seok Cheol trio — are available on the Tiny Desk Korea YouTube channel, which will unveil a new video every Thursday.
SET LIST
- "Love Me Again"
- "Slow Dancing"
- "For Us"
MUSICIANS
- V: vocals
- Blake Straus: guitar
- Brett White: keys
- Pete Jonas: bass
- Destin Johnson: drums
- Jacob Scesney: saxophone
- Iyanu Anderson: vocals
- Trudi Henderson: vocals
- Jewaun Word: vocals
TINY DESK KOREA TEAM
- Executive Producer: DJ Lee
- Vp, Visuals And Music: Sangjin Lee
- Tiny Desk Korea Team Leader: Kilhyo Lee
- Creative Producers: Soyeon Kang, Heewon Kim
- Tiny Desk Korea Team: Euddeum Park, Seongyeon Lee, Jisook Son
- Format Licensing Producers: InSoon Kim, Jinwoo Hwang
- Director of Production: Jinsoo Chung, Hyewon Kim
- Production Assistants: Jieun Park, Jeong Eun Gwon
- Camera Assistants: Lim Young Chae, Yeom Seowoo, Wang Sunho, Kim Yonghyuk, Jeon Gihun, Suh Kangjun
- Lighting Crew: Hyunsuk Song, Yuseok Lee, Junghyun Choi, Jisu Kim
TINY DESK U.S. TEAM
- Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
- Creative Director: Bob Boilen
- Series Producer: Bobby Carter
- Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame
- Tiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Ashley Pointer, Hazel Cills
- VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
- Senior Director of Partnership Development: Gordon Synn
- Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann