ENHYPEN’s Jake Reveals His Music Inspirations And How He Got Into K-Pop

In a recent episode of DIVE Studios‘ podcast K-Pop Daebak Show w/ Eric Nam, solo artist and host, Eric Nam interviewed ENHYPEN‘s Jake, Sunghoon, and Jungwon. They talked about the group’s formation from the reality competition series I-LAND and how they’ve evolved since.

Eric also asked the boys about their musical inspiration and idols. When it came time for Jake to respond, Eric specifically asked, “Who did you listen to growing up and look up to?” Jake revealed that he mainly listened to hip-hop as a kid.

I also listened to a lot of hip-hop growing up as a kid. My music taste was all about rap and hip-hop, and that was it.

— Jake

He then shared a brief story that many of us international K-Pop fans can relate to. Jake explained that it was not until BTS had reached their worldwide popularity that he was exposed to K-Pop.

I first found out about K-Pop after watching one of BTS’s performances in America. That was my gateway into the K-Pop universe.

— Jake

Jake also revealed that rap and hip-hop artists continue to inspire him as a performer. He hopes that he can bring similar energy to ENHYPEN concerts.

Thinking about it now, I really vibe with the energy that rappers give in shows. You connect with your audience. I want to bring that friendly and lively energy from rappers into our shows.

— Jake

Check out the full interview below: