Decoding the Extraordinary Power of Xdinary Heroes
“You all have dreams, right?” Gun-il, leader and drummer of the Korean band Xdinary Heroes, asked the cheering crowd in front of him. “We’ll always support you,” he emphasized, speaking of dreams in the city of dreams itself.
On July 21, the six-piece band took the sold-out Brooklyn Paramount by storm for their Xdinary Heroes Showcase in USA <Troubleshooting>. As they performed their two-hour set, neither Xdinary Heroes’ nor their equally energetic fans’ passion wavered. Although the stage and the flashing lights were gone the next day, when EnVi Media sat down with Xdinary Heroes, Gun-il, Jungsu, Gaon, O.de, Jun Han, and Jooyeon still screamed casual rockstars.
Clad in a monochromatic palette, the 20-something-year-olds gathered at their U.S. label’s office downtown. The graceful silhouettes of their outfits reflected the members’ laidback, good-natured personalities. Though they lounged in the lobby’s comfy chairs during our interview, the six members have been go-go-go since they debuted on December 6, 2021. Under Studio J, a sub-label of powerhouse JYP Entertainment, Xdinary Heroes kicked off their journey — and sound — with the punk-rock track “Happy Death Day.”
The day after their first New York concert, Xdinary Heroes spoke with EnVi about their performances in the United States, their new single “LOVE and FEAR,” and what makes each of them extraordinary.
The Main Characters
As soon as Villains — Xdinary Heroes’ fandom — stepped into Brooklyn Paramount, they knew this was the perfect place for the band’s concert. With soaring rafters, stained glass panels, and ornate decoration, the architecture somehow mirrored the unique blend in the Xdinary Heroes’ discography. Guitarist Jun Han even pointed out during our conversation that “one thing that’s unique about [our] band is we have songs in many different genres.” From their earworm debut “Happy Death Day” to the onion-cutting B-side “Good enough,” the sky’s the limit (or, perhaps the universe) for the band.
The six launched their first concert in New York with “Boy Comics,” which was released this June. A dramatic, guitar-heavy intro following this first track announced the members as they walked onto the stage one-by-one. In the first verse of “Boy Comics,” there’s a lyric that goes, “But I can’t give up / Because the protagonist of the story is me.” And Villains — often clad in red and black with silver accessories — made sure Xdinary Heroes were the main characters that Sunday night. The light of the♭bongs (pronounced “flatbong”), the band’s lightstick, matched the beat of the songs from the get-go. Villains’ cheering, screaming, and singing along also never died down throughout the entire two-hour concert.
That unwavering excitement may be Villains’ superpower, but Xdinary Heroes also have some powers they wished they had. Bassist, main vocalist, and youngest Hero Jooyeon mentioned via a translator, “I would have the power to make everyone fall asleep.” “Flashy martial arts moves” are on the top of guitarist Jun Han’s list, à la Black Widow. Rapper, vocalist, and fellow guitarist Gaon has dreams of time traveling, while O.de (who’s in charge of the synths and rapping) pointed to flying as his superpower.
Leader and drummer Gun-il, on the other hand, just wants to be “really strong.” Although laughs erupted in the room because of his straightforward response, Gun-il had his reasons. “I can maybe save some people who [are] in danger in the streets,” he added in English. Keyboardist and main vocalist Jungsu, too, thought about a superpower that would help others: “If I could have an extraordinary power, it would be to heal people’s hearts.” Who can laugh at that?
<Troubleshooting> in New York
Just like a superhero racing through the skies filled with adrenaline, so, too, was the energy pumping through Xdinary Heroes’ veins at their concert. The palatable energy grew with every new song, from the frantic “Break the Brake” to the snappy “Haircut.” (Fans eagerly joined in when the hook of the latter arrived: “Get a haircut, get a haircut, get a haircut.”) Spotlit solos from Gun-il and Jun Han added even more frenetic electricity to the already-hyped venue, proving that these two members may be out of sight sometimes but never out of mind.
Throughout it all, New York Villains danced and cheered, rarely touching their seats. “I liked how none of the audience sat down on their chairs,” Jungsu recalled. “They were up the whole time.” O.de also highlighted the energy of the crowd, noting, “The response was amazing, and they were very loud.” He added that when he took out his in-ear, he could hear Villains’ cheering alongside a high-pitched beep above it due to the sheer volume.
“I was surprised that all the people in the show were able to sing along to our Korean lyrics,” Gun-il mentioned as his favorite part of the band’s U.S. showcase. “That was really unexpected because I know how hard it is to learn [another] language, but they all [sang] along to the Korean parts as well.” Xdinary Heroes’ leader himself learned English when he moved to upstate New York at 14 years old. (Both he and O.de actually lived in the same area — Fishkill — but a couple of years apart.)
Still, the special bond makes sense after hearing Xdinary Heroes and their fans sing together live. Released in summer of 2022, “Strawberry Cake” is one of the band’s most popular B-sides — and one of their most popular songs in general. So, during their concerts, the six members encourage fans to sing the chorus with just the drum beats to guide them (no, not even lyrics). New York Villains, quite frankly, killed it. Xdinary Heroes took this moment to soak in the voices filling the venue and cheer on their fans when the chorus came to a close.
The band’s all-English track “Good enough,” a cut from their 2023 album Deadlock, formed some core memories as well. When he introduced the emotional song, Jungsu added that he really wanted to share this one with fans. Lyrics on the screen behind Xdinary Heroes guided fans through the ebb and flow of each line as well as the soft “ahh ahh ahhs.”
“I want to hear this forever,” O.de said while looking adoringly at Villains. Later on, Jooyeon, too, chimed in, “You guys are all rock stars tonight.” As they say, every Hero needs a Villain.
Creating Without Limits
In the music video for their newest single, Xdinary Heroes don oversized suits as the lights and cameras flash and zoom around the set. “LOVE and FEAR” introduces itself with a powerful and hypnotic acapella section, a style that has not appeared in Xdinary Heroes’ discography until now. Through the three-minute track, the band explores the push-and-pull of toxic relationships with fully-belted lyrics, heavy drum beats, and electric guitar riffs. While one could argue that the entirety of “LOVE and FEAR” is the key part, Xdinary Heroes also weighed in on its highlight.
“I think the intro of a song is very important, but when you hear [“LOVE and FEAR”], there’s an acapella part…that’s really captivating to the listener,” Gaon said. Gun-il, meanwhile, decided to spotlight the main hook. “There’s one point that I want to point out. It’s during the chorus part; the lyric goes like, ‘넌 계속 내가 널 포기하는 걸 포기하게 만들어,’” he noted. “It means ‘You’re making me give up on giving up on you.’ And I think the lyric is really deep, so I think that’s one of the highlight parts.”
Around the two-minute mark, “LOVE and FEAR” features a guitar solo. “There’s actually a fun story behind this guitar solo,” Jun Han mentioned. “It’s actually two people playing. During the recording, I was playing the guitar while Gaon was also doing some wah stuff in the background,” the long-haired guitarist added, speaking of the pedal that makes a “wah wah” sound. “[Gaon] was pressing the pedal to add into the solo.” Of course, it’s just Jun Han during concerts, but this story remains very “insightful” and “memorable” for him. Teamwork makes the dream work, indeed.
Xdinary Heroes are well-known for creating without limits. From piercing high notes to guitar-shredding solos, the band never leads with thinking about what they can’t do. Instead, they go for it and adjust later, if necessary. This open mindset characterizes how they approached their ongoing Xperiment 2024 project. Currently composed of their single albums Open beta v6.1 and Open beta v6.2, Xdinary Heroes released the respective title tracks “Boy Comics” and “LOVE and FEAR” in the past two months.
Authentic expression forms the foundation of their creative process. As Jungsu emphasized, “We actually don’t think that we have to produce a better song than we did before…But we try to be honest [about] what we’re going through in that moment, in that season of our lives, and try to express that throughout our music.”
Without the pressure of limits on them, Xdinary Heroes can focus on what they want their music to be. They play with a colorful palette of genres that results in the loud, somewhat chaotic, but always fun sound the band possesses. Jun Han also noted an additional benefit of their mix of multiple genres: “Each member…can show what they’re good at…depending on the different genres that their style best fits.”
Although the six members work together to create a cohesive “Xdinary Heroes” sound, Gun-il, Jungsu, Gaon, O.de, Jun Han, and Jooyeon have their own styles. These preferences (and personalities) come through in the three songs they would choose to represent Xdinary Heroes.
“Everyone’s gonna answer differently,” Gun-il said immediately after the question was posed. Spoken like a true leader — they indeed had different answers. There was a little flurry of activity and slightly hushed voices as the band members talked among themselves. In the middle of it all, Gun-il diplomatically suggested going around the circle to hear the members’ individual answers.
Just like he was the first to introduce himself at the start of the interview, Jooyeon selected his picks first as well. Xdinary’s Heroes debut single, “Happy Death Day,” made it onto his list, along with “Strawberry Cake,” and the title track of the band’s full-length album, “Little Things.” The bassist tried valiantly to sneak in another song, but his bandmates caught on quickly with interjections of “No, no, no, that’s it!” woven in with laughter.
Jun Han began his picks with a disclaimer that the songs mentioned will come down to “personal preference.” In the end, after some thinking, he added “Freakin’ Bad,” the title track of Deadlock, to Jooyeon’s list. The only song Gaon and O.de had in common was also “Freakin’ Bad,” although they went in different directions for their other two tracks. The slightly older guitarist shouted out some of Xdinary Heroes’ high-energy tracks: “Strawberry Cake” and “Happy Death Day.” On the other side, O.de went for a more emotional (albeit still high-energy) route with his picks of “Little Things” and “Pluto.”
“Because I know that everyone else is gonna say ‘Happy Death Day,’ I’m gonna say something else,” Gun-il started off with. His choices? “Break the Brake,” “Pluto,” and “Freakin’ Bad.” “Break the Brake,” for example, “represents a metal genre that we do,” he said. “It’s very heavy, and very, very energetic, and it’s also kind of dark and sexy.”
Meanwhile, “Pluto” shows a different side of Xdinary Heroes: “I think that represents our more emotional side.” Lastly, “Freakin’ Bad” demonstrates the fun found in the band’s music. “Freakin’ Bad represents our ‘having fun’ kind of energy, party-like energy, where everyone just can jump around and have fun and just scream their lungs out singing along,” Gun-il concluded. (Rapper Gaon had, in fact, said the day before: “At Xdinary Heroes’ concert, we party like there’s no tomorrow.”)
Jungsu rounded out the answers with his selections. At first, he picked “Happy Death Day,” but after a pause, he sheepishly asked to be skipped. Once O.de and Gaon offered their choices and the spotlight came back to Jungsu, he realized he still needed a minute to think. Gun-il gently guided the quiet, yet powerful, main vocalist with another question, “What’s your favorite?” In response, Jungsu finalized his list with “Happy Death Day,” “Pluto,” and “Little Things.”
However, in another plot twist, Jungsu remembered one more important track. Diving for the mini mic in the center of our group with apologies of “sorry sorry,” he quickly switched out “Pluto” for a song close to his heart, “Good enough.”
Up, Up, and Away
On November 3, 2023, Xdinary Heroes embarked on their first world tour. Named after their 2023 title track “Break the Brake,” the band held 14 shows across Europe and Asia. In early November, they kicked off the tour with three shows in Seoul before jetting off to Paris a week later. After five more stops in Europe and a four month break, Xdinary Heroes took their extraordinary energy to Asia. Starting in Jakarta, the six made their way to Taipei, Singapore, and Manila before concluding Break the Brake in Bangkok at the end of March.
In our post-concert interview, Xdinary Heroes reflected on their experience touring this past year. O.de focused on the overall feeling versus highlighting a specific moment: “Personally, while being on tour, I was able to enjoy the moment — be present and enjoy that moment,” he mused. Gun-il also followed that line of thought as he considered, “To be honest, I feel like every single experience that we had during that tour…was special because we don’t usually get to go around the world and go to different places.”
However, the leader did want to give a shout out to their fans. “But the most special thing that I felt was we were overseas, like literally 10 hours away from home,…and it was surprising to see the people [who live] on the other side of the Earth know us.” Gun-il continued, saying, “They are cheering for us daily [and] listen to our music…they know all of our names, how we live, and they’re our fans. It was so heartwarming to meet those people and have fun and spend time singing together in the concert[s].” He firmly concluded with a sparkle in his eyes, “We’d love to do it again.”
Since Xdinary Heroes played shows in places like London, where some of their favorite bands are from, Jooyeon noted that the members did a little homework beforehand. They “listen[ed] to the different bands that are popular in the areas that [they would] be touring in,” creating a unique learning experience for them all. By doing so, Xdinary Heroes were “able to give a little glimpse of that [research] during the show and also to share that…was an important experience,” Jooyeon said. (Of course, we chatted a little bit about Taiwan, and they asked for a Taiwanese band recommendation. I suggested Sunset Rollercoaster, who just released a collaborative album with the Korean band HYUKOH.)
Speaking of unique experiences, Gun-il’s 26th birthday fell a couple of days after the band’s New York performance. As a surprise, Villains sang “Happy Birthday” to the drummer with cheers and laughter adding the cherry on top. From releasing “Happy Death Day” in 2021 to singing “Happy Birthday” surrounded by fans in Brooklyn, Xdinary Heroes have come a long way. In 2022, the rock band won Best New Male Artist at the annual MAMA Awards. That same year, they also clinched MAMA’s Best Band Performance award for “Happy Death Day.” While Xdinary Heroes were nominated for Worldwide Fans’ Choice Top 10 in 2023 (also under the MAMA Awards), they won the Band Award at the 2023 Seoul Music Awards. Next up? Their fifth single album, Open ♭eta v6.3, and its title track “Save me” will arrive on August 5.
With the band’s third anniversary coming up on December 6, they are not worried about putting too much pressure on themselves artistically. “I think there are many things we want to do, but I feel like it’s good to not set limits artistically,” Gun-il said sagely. “I think we’ll always just focus on having fun. We’ll always just focus on having fun while making music and having fun while playing music.”
Having fun is at the foundation of Xdinary Heroes as a group. It’s “the most important part of us that we can never give up,” Gun-il added. However, they do have some general goals they strive for. “We would be very happy if we get a chance to perform [on] bigger stages, maybe arenas or stadiums,” their drummer noted. In addition, their focus will always be the music. As Gun-il also stated, “Our plan for [the] future is we’ll keep on making music, we’ll keep on playing, and we’ll keep on updating our skills.”
The Extraordinary Xdinary Heroes
“One of my favorite songs [is] from the rock bands of America back in the days, and I would love to one day be able to come back and share that with our fans and perform it,” Jooyeon said when asked to share a few words with their American Villains.
Gaon also expressed, “I also feel very inspired by the rock bands of America. I feel like it’s an honor to come here to perform, and I wish that one day Xdinary Heroes can be a band that others also think of likewise.”
Yet, the band is carving their own path, too. Before they kicked off their New York concert with a guitar shred, Xdinary Heroes had a special announcement for their Villains in attendance. They gifted every person in their dedicated audience a hi wave — even those who weren’t in the VIP sections. This kindness and genuine care for their fans formed the foundation for Xdinary Heroes’ show, from their opening ments to their casual chats. Gaon, for example, taught Villains “chwego” (최고), a Korean word meaning “cool” or “amazing.” “I love your energy!” the guitarist exclaimed in response to the crowd’s enthusiasm.
Jungsu summed up the feeling well: “The cheers I heard here in New York, I will never forget it in my memories.”
As our interview came to a close, EnVi had one last question for the six Heroes. The band’s tagline is “WE ARE ALL HEROES,” which appears on all their video content. Reflecting the name Xdinary Heroes — a shorthand for “Extraordinary Heroes” — the band emphasizes that everyone can be a hero. But what makes Gun-il, Jungsu, Gaon, O.de, Jun Han, and Jooyeon extraordinary?
“I think music makes me extraordinary in the sense that I’m not a very expressive person myself,” Jungsu started. “So I’m not very good at expressing my own emotions, whether it be anger or sadness or even the expression that I miss someone. However, he emphasized, “But I’m able to do all that through music.” His excitement to perform “Good enough,” a track he helped pen, and the hard work that went into crafting the vocal skill needed for this song make his response ring even truer.
Gun-il and O.de focused on the people in their lives. “I think it’s the people that make me extraordinary because it’s the people who always support me, the people that I love, the members make me extraordinary, like my friends make me extraordinary. The people that I’ve worked with make me extraordinary; our fans, the Villains, make me extraordinary, because without them, I would be nothing. I would be just ordinary,” Gun-il explained while surrounded by his bandmates. “I would just be an ordinary guy…But there’s so many people who care about me, and there [are] so many people who love me and who always support me for who I am. So I think it’s the people around me [who] care about me that make me extraordinary. So shout out to all [those] people.”
O.de took a slightly different approach. “Even if one person loves me, I think that makes [me] extraordinary — if anyone is loved by even one person. Even if that person is normal, if they have someone that loves the normality of [them], that within itself makes them extraordinary,” he said after pondering the question for a moment.
“There’s no people [in] this world [who are] the same, and likewise, everyone is unique in their own ways,” Jun Han added. “When they’re able to be honest with expressing their uniqueness and who they are deep inside, that’s what makes them extraordinary.” With his painted black nails and his lush, long hair, the guitarist clearly takes this philosophy to heart in his own life.
The emotional weight behind Jooyeon’s voice in heartfelt tracks like “Little Things” is palatable. Even the first question — “Do you remember?” — that opens the song feels as if he is speaking directly to listeners. This delivery is what makes him extraordinary, he noted. “When I’m performing and singing [our] songs…I think of it more as reading the lyrics to the listeners. I think that the heart in which I read the lyrics to the listeners with is what makes me extraordinary,” the vocalist expressed.
When fans watch Gaon bounce everywhere on stage, whether it is to join Jun Han and play a guitar solo together or hang out with Jungsu and O.de by their keyboards, Villains can tell that he doesn’t like being restricted to one area for long. But that’s something that makes Gaon Gaon. “I like to experience new things and try new new challenges and try to overcome new challenges as well. I actually don’t like when things repeat or [when I go] through the same motion of things,” the energetic guitarist noted. Gaon concluded, “My heart in wanting to try new things is what makes me extraordinary.”
From rocking out on stage and cheering alongside their Villains to lending a helping hand and giving thoughtful answers — that’s the extraordinary power of Xdinary Heroes.
Keep up with Xdinary Heroes on YouTube, Instagram, X, and TikTok. The band’s latest single album Open ♭eta v6.2 is now available to stream now. Plus, look out for Open ♭eta v6.3, which will release on August 5.
Translations by Grace Bae.
Want more exclusive interviews with your favorite artists? Check out EnVi’s conversation with The KingDom here!
