ENHYPEN Reflect On The Significance Behind “Not For Sale” And Their Relationship To Music As Generation Z Idols
In an exclusive interview with Vogue, ENHYPEN talk about their experiences as rising stars, and their unique relationship to music as Gen Z idols.
ENHYPEN, like many K-Pop artists, reflect their own experiences into their music. However, their unique visual presentations set them apart, from dark themes of desire and vampires to allusions of Shakespeare and Hamlet. Their latest album BORDER: CARNIVAL dives a bit deeper into their experience of becoming idols, and their perspective of music in this digital age.
Vogue specifically asked about their track “Not For Sale,” a song that outwardly seems like a wistful love song, but actually has underlying commentary on what Vogue calls “a world turned transactional, where we frequently put a public value on every real-life and digital interaction.”
Sunoo shared that he related to the song because he doesn’t think love should be something transactional.
Many teens these days believe that you need to give one to take one, but I don’t think that should apply when you’re in love, ‘real love’.
—Sunoo
Heeseung also expressed a deep emotional tie to the song, eloquently expressing his frustration with how people are focusing more and more on quantity rather than quality.
The world we live in is becoming further quantified as it transforms digitally. It made me upset to see people focusing on the numbers rather than life and love itself, which make us quintessentially human, so I thought true love is something that I, as a human being, should hold on to.
—Heeseung
From their answers alone, it’s obvious how much thought is put into the meaning behind their music. It’s no wonder that the group has millions of fans already despite their debut only half a year ago!