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[INTERVIEW] “A moment doesn’t have to be perfect to feel meaningful or beautiful,” ARrC discusses ‘HOPE,’ growth, and deepening connection

AKP STAFF

Posted by Sofia-Sayson 2 hours ago 435

ARrC (Always Remember the real Connection), a multinational group under MYSTIC STORY, returned to the music scene for the second time this year, following ‘nu kidz: out the box.’

Marking their one-year anniversary since their debut in August 2024, ARrC's new project, ‘HOPE,’ reaffirms the meaning behind their group name. Uniting the members and the listeners, the album embodies the connection made through music.

Their third mini-album, ‘HOPE,’ consisting of five tracks: “awesome,” “dawns,” “kick back,” “vitamin I,” and “night life,” is a collection of the members’ own emotions and thoughts that they hope will resonate with the audience.

“All members poured much thought and effort into expressing ARrC’s unique color more vividly through this album,” said HYUNMIN in a press release statement. “We’re confident that we have created an album with a great level of completeness.”

For the first time, HYUNMIN and CHOI HAN are credited as lyricists on the track “dawns.”

After the album’s release, allkpop got to chat with the members of ARrC, ANDY, CHOI HAN, DOHA, HYUNMIN, JIBEEN, KIEN, and RIOTO, where they opened up about their growth since debut, the growing connection they have with their fans, and the takeaways from working on ‘HOPE.’

“We hope that as you listen to ‘HOPE,’ you’ll find your own moments of hope, too,” said RIOTO.

Read the full exclusive interview below!

Shout-out to allkpop:

allkpop: First of all, congratulations on your new project! Tell us what you feel about releasing an album for the third time. How’s your idol journey so far?

HYUNMIN: Hello, we’re ARrC! First of all, thank you so much for celebrating the release of our third mini-album with us. ‘HOPE’ isn’t about grand stories; rather, it’s an album that focuses on the trivial emotions that are often hidden in plain sight. This time, CHOI HAN and I personally took part in writing the lyrics, putting our current thoughts and honest feelings into the songs.

Being on stage is always exciting for us. Ever since before our debut, it’s been our dream to perform, and even now, we still feel that same nervous energy before every show. Meeting our fans brings us the biggest joy, and that’s what makes every moment meaningful. From the beginning, our journey as ARrC has always been about giving our best to share good music and unforgettable performances. We poured our hearts into this album with that same purpose. We’ll continue to grow with each release, so we hope you’ll stay with us for a long time and keep walking this path together.

DOHA: We’re so excited and happy to be greeting everyone again with our new album. Our third mini-album was made with the hope of sharing the fun, lighthearted emotions we feel in our daily lives with all of our fans. Since our debut, every single day has felt new, and we’re truly grateful for all of it. Whenever we hear their loud cheers and see their happy faces from the stage, we feel this strong sense of connection, like we’re all becoming one at that moment. And that feeling is what gives us the biggest reason, along with strength, to keep singing and dancing. We’ve packed this album with ARrC’s energy, and we hope it brings you lots of joy and great memories. Thank you always!

allkpop: What does this album mean to you personally? Is there anything, perhaps a lyric, that resonates with you?

ANDY: Our new album, ‘HOPE,’ was made with the desire that we want to capture and remember the current moment. As we’ve come this far, we’ve experienced small moments of happiness, countless worries, and things we’ve wanted to say to each other, and we wanted to express all of that through the songs in this album. One line from the title track that I personally connect with is, “I don’t know where my AirPod is but Awesome.” It really speaks to the idea that a moment doesn’t have to be perfect to feel meaningful or beautiful. That message gave me a lot of comfort while recording and preparing for the stage. Every track on the album was made with the hope of capturing the trivial, shining moments in everyday life. I hope that when you listen, you’ll also find small glimpses of hope in your own daily moments.

RIOTO: Through ‘HOPE,’ we wanted to share the small moments of happiness we’ve been feeling these days, honestly and openly, with our fans. As we’ve been working diligently, what’s given us the most strength has actually been the little things, such as simple moments in daily life that made us smile even for a bit. So this time, instead of telling a dramatic story, we wanted to sing about the things that are always around us but easy to overlook.

Through our promotions for “awesome,” we’ve come to realize that even if something feels a little incomplete or imperfect, it can still be more than enough and truly special. We hope that as you listen to ‘HOPE,’ you’ll find your own moments of hope, too.

allkpop: Since the album is all about hope and connection, could you share with us how the past months have been with your fellow members? How has the connection between you grown over time, and what do you do to work on it more?

CHOI HAN: While working on this album, the time we spent together as a group became a huge source of strength for me. Of course, we’ve been living and working side by side since our debut, but because this album focuses on hope and connection, I think it gave us more chances to really open up to each other. Over the past few months, we stayed up talking late into the night, sharing what we’ve been thinking about, what’s been on our minds, and what we’ve been struggling with. Through those conversations, I discovered new sides of the members I hadn’t seen before, and I think that helped us build even more trust and support among us. Moving forward, I want us to keep getting closer, whether it’s by sharing a meal or just talking about the little things. That’s how we’ll stay strong, together.

JIBEEN: Spending so much time together has given us the chance to understand each other in ways we didn’t notice before. We started to see the little things, like what makes each of us smile and what our interests are. While preparing this album about hope, we were able to focus more on sharing positive thoughts and our hopes for the future as a team. And going forward, I want us to keep learning how to support and understand each other even better. I truly hope our fans can feel that same warmth and sincerity through this album.

allkpop: HYUNMIN and CHOI HAN were credited as lyricists for “dawns.” Tell us how it feels creating and putting out this track, your first as writers.

CHOI HAN: It was very meaningful for me to participate in writing lyrics for “dawns” with HYUNMIN. There was a sense of nervousness as well as a pleasant weight to write the lyrics for our album for the first time since our debut. Once I got to work, it was quite challenging to express my emotions in specific words and refine them in the style of ARrC’s music. That’s why we went through multiple revisions to really perfect it, and I was very proud when our work got selected as the final lyrics. I hope our expression of quiet yet powerful excitement and fluttering emotions of “dawns” is conveyed well.

HYUNMIN: “dawns” carries the honest feeling of anyone who is around our age group. It was interesting to be able to express my thoughts as lyrics for the first time, and I think it was an opportunity to musically grow further as an artist by organizing my thoughts through music. While imagining a story of someone who has difficulty expressing emotions, I wanted to unfold the mindset that could not be fully described in spoken words. Moving forward, I hope there will be more opportunities for me to share my honest stories through various songs.

allkpop: Are there any fun or memorable moments behind the scenes while preparing for the album that you’d like to share with us?

ANDY: When we were filming the music video for our title track, there were many actors dressed as Dokkaebi. Even though I knew it was actually people inside the masks, the visual of Dokkaebi was too powerful, and it made me a bit nervous. I was especially feeling scared when we were filming a scene where I was surrounded by Dokkaebis, but I’m a professional, so I was able to focus and finish filming without any issues. (laughs)

JIBEEN: We had a scene filmed at an abandoned apartment in the music video. It was a very old building, so it had a slightly creepy vibe. Later, staff members told me that the footage I shot had a lot of blurs, so everyone was wondering if there were really ghosts or spirits at the site, which eventually led us to think, “Maybe it’s a sign that this album will be a hit!”

allkpop: Which track on the album is your favorite, and why?

KIEN: I like all the songs, but if I have to choose one, it would be “vitamin I.” It carries the message that while we need various vitamins, the most essential vitamin is myself, or “I.” I feel comforted whenever I listen to this song, so I hope our fans to think of themselves more fondly by listening to “vitamin I.”

RIOTO: I would like to recommend “kick back.” It is a lighthearted song, especially among other songs that are more powerful, with a soft and comforting beat and melody. I found this track especially empowering when I listen to it when I’m feeling down. Many of our members also chose “kick back” as their favorites, so I hope our fans listen to it a lot too!

allkpop: Lastly, tell us your goals for the rest of the year and leave a message for allkpop readers and your fans!

HYUNMIN: For the remainder of 2025, I look forward to showcasing ARrC’s unique color more clearly. We want to meet our fans in person on more stages, and send more resonance with music. To allkpop readers and ARrCers who always stand by our side, thank you so much, and we hope you’ll continue to stay next to us. We’ll repay your love and support with better music and performance. Please stay healthy and happy!