Music / DAY6

(L-R): Sungjin, Wonpil, Young K, Jae, Dowoon

DAY6 (Korean: 데이식스) is a five-member Korean rock band under JYP Entertainment^note More specifically, they are under the Studio J label - artists under that label exert full creative control over all aspects of their work.. They debuted on September 7, 2015, with the song "Congratulations" and its accompanying EP The Day. Since then, they have become well-known for their instrumental prowess, intensely honest storytelling and lyricism, tendency to blend rock with a host of other genres, powerful vocals and energetic live performances. They're all also quite possibly insane.

They originally had six members; Junhyeok left in February 2016 under ambiguous circumstances.

As of May 11th 2020, the band is on temporary hiatus due to Sungjin and Jae being diagnosed with anxiety and thus having to take a break.

In addition to their work with the band, Young K^note sometimes as Young One, Jae^note sometimes under the moniker eaJ and Wonpil also have active experimental solo side projects. Young K, Wonpil and Dowoon are also part of the synthpop-oriented subunit Even Of Day.

Not to be confused for American R&B boy band Day26.

Members

Current Members

• Jae (Park Jaehyung, born September 15, 1992) - lead guitar, vocals, face of the group^note occasionally raps as well
• Sungjin (Park Sungjin, born January 16, 1993) - leader, vocals, rhythm guitar
• Young K (Kang Younghyun ^note English name: Brian Kang, born December 19, 1993) - bass, rap, vocals
• Wonpil (Kim Wonpil, born April 28, 1994) - keyboards, synthesizer, vocals, visual
• Dowoon (Yoon Dowoon, born August 25, 1995) - drums, backing vocals

Former Members

• Junhyeok (Lim Junhyeok, born July 17, 1993) - keyboards, vocals

Discography

Korean Discography

Extended Plays:

• The Day - 2015
• DAYDREAM - 2016
• Shoot Me: Youth Part 1 - 2018
• Remember Us: Youth Part 2 - 2018
• The Book Of Us: Gravity - 2019
• The Book Of Us: The Demon - 2020

Every DAY6 Project ^note A series of singles and B-sides written and released monthly over the course of a year:

• "I Wait" - January 2017
• "You Were Beautiful" - February 2017
• "How Can I Say" - March 2017
• "I'm Serious" - April 2017
• "DANCE DANCE" - May 2017
• "I Smile" - June 2017
• "Hi Hello" - July 2017
• "What Can I Do" - August 2017
• "I Loved You" - September 2017
• "When You Love Someone" - October 2017
• "All Alone" - November 2017
• "I Like You" - December 2017

Singles:

• "Beautiful Feeling" - 2018

Studio Albums:

• SUNRISE - 2017 ^note "I Wait" to "I Smile"
• MOONRISE - 2017 ^note "Hi Hello" to "I Like You"
• The Book Of Us: Entropy - 2019

Japanese Discography

Singles:

• "If -Mata Aetara-" - 2018
• "Stop The Rain" / "Falling" - 2018
• "Finale" - 2019

Studio Albums:

• UNLOCK - 2018

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DAY6 provides examples of the following tropes:

Band and Member Tropes

• Affectionate Nickname: Fans and the band members themselves love using these, often during bouts of good-natured teasing.
  • They are particularly fond of pointing out Sungjin's resemblance to Bob the Builder, and nicknaming him as such.
  • Dowoon landed the moniker of Drum because of one of his earlier attempts at speaking English - his response to being asked about his position in the band came out as "I am drum!"
  • Due to their camaraderie and a common last name, Sungjin and Jae are often collectively referred to as the Park-bros.
  • Fans will sometimes shorten Young K's name to "yonk."
  • When being particularly cutesy, Wonpil is sometimes referred to as Piri.^note This stems from the Korean pronunciation of his name ending in a light hint of an 'r' trill.
• Animal Motifs: Over the course of the years, the members have come to be associated with certain animals in the context of jokes within the fanbase - to the point of occasionally using the relevant emoji to refer to themselves in social media posts or donning accessories that evoke them.
  • Sungjin is a bear.
  • Young K is usually referred to as a fox.
  • Jae is associated with birds.
  • Wonpil is a rabbit.
  • Dowoon is represented by dogs.
• Ascended Extra: Young K was a backup dancer in Dream High 1 & 2.
• The Baby of the Bunch: Dowoon. Everyone dotes on him accordingly.
• Big Eater:
  • Sungjin is proud of being one, with the majority of his Twitter feed being dedicated to discussions of favourite recipes and other gastronomical adventures.
  • Young K is known for this as well, being infamous for apparently having once devoured 9 packets of ramyun at one go.

• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: All of them are notoriously eccentric, often doing and saying some very bizarre, random, and outright confusing things with little-to-no provocation. They're also highly skilled musicians and top-notch performers known for writing and producing all of their discography.
• But Not Too Foreign:
  • Jae is ethnically Korean, but was born in Argentina and grew up in California.
  • Young K was born in Korea, but moved to Canada to attend high school.
• Butt-Monkey:
  • Jae is especially this outside the band, with Jamie from 15& always teasing him whenever the chance presents itself. He's also been roasted by Nichkhun from 2PM, while Bang Chan from Stray Kids has also trolled him a few times.
  • Within the band, this tends to fall to either Wonpil or Dowoon. A prime example is the story of Wonpil's first time flying in an aeroplane - according to the others, they had managed to convince him that he would be able to roll down the windows and touch the clouds.
• Cloudcuckoolander: All of them have shades of this, often going off into bizarre tangents during conversations or interviews.
• The Cutie:
  • Dowoon is generally regarded as the cutest member of the band. Being the youngest definitely helps.
  • Wonpil is considered to be this as well, although the others tend to jokingly blanch at the idea.
• Deadpan Snarker: While none of them pass up the opportunity to sneak in mischievous remarks when the situation calls for it, Jae, in particular, loves providing dry, puckish commentary on just about anything at any given moment.
• Do Not Call Me "Paul": Young K is not too fond of his English name, Brian. Of course, the other members playfully revel in calling him anything but his stage name.^note Somewhat alleviated since stating he doesn't mind being called Brian as much anymore.
• Family Theme Naming
  • Most artists under JYP Entertainment tend to have number-related names: 2AM, 2PM, 15&, Baek Ayeon^note baek = 100 in Korean, GOT7, TWICE, and DAY6.
  • DAY6's initial name when they started as a five-piece acoustic group, 5LIVE, also falls under this.
  • Their band name also has the same "스" syllable as Stray Kids, TWICE and Wonder Girls.
• Guyliner: It's incorporated into their aesthetic at times.
• Hidden Depths:
  • Jae is extremely insightful about philosophy and spirituality, and is also well-versed in literature. He's also very athletic (with a 2nd-degree black belt in taekwondo and exceptional proficiency in basketball and badminton), a skilled skateboarder, and majored in political science before dropping out to become a musician.
  • All of the members can play each others' instruments to a competent degree.
  • Young K is fluent in French (from his Canada days) and Japanese, plays the saxophone, and can dance.
  • Dowoon also knows a good amount of Japanese and is said to have the best grasp of the language among the group. He also holds a degree in practical music.
• I Call It "Vera":
  • Sungjin's primary guitars are named Atom^note red sunburst acoustic guitar, Baba^note white electric with black pickguard and Baron.^note black electric with white pickguard
  • Wonpil's synthesizer is named Cindy, and he calls his keyboards Via.
  • Jae's primary guitars are named Haru^note battered black electric with white pickguard, Mery^note tobacco sunburst electric with a white pickguard, Taylor^note main acoustic and Sir Nutcracker, The Fifth.^note bright red electric with a white pickguard
  • Young K's primary basses are named Jane^note dark red with a white pickguard, Goldie^note black with a metallic gold pickguard, Lisa^note white with a red pickguard, Tyson^note black with white pickguard and Ola.^note tobacco sunburst with a violin-shaped body
  • On a more flippant note, Dowoon's drumsticks are jokingly called Do and Woon.
• Jack of All Trades: Young K can sing, play at least three instruments (bass, guitar, and alto saxophone), dance, rap, write lyrics, produce, cook well and speak three languages with relative competency. Not to mention, he graduated with a degree in business management while still in the midst of touring and recording.
• Kaleidoscope Hair: All of them seem to have a penchant for frequently dyeing their hair, often in bright and unnatural colours. Jae, in particular, has had quite the range of hues - from pink to blonde to minty-green to electric-blue to silver to magenta to dark red to black to purple and everything in between.
• The Klutz: Dowoon is particularly prone to moments of extreme clumsiness, often breaking or misplacing things when attempting to examine them or drum on them.
• The Leader: Sungjin, of the level-headed and charismatic variety. He's seen as the Team Dad by the rest of the band.
• Lead Bassist: Apart from being the bassist and one of the vocalists, Young K is the primary lyricist.
• Lethal Chef: Wonpil's attempt at seaweed soup during a livestream firmly cemented his status as this, managing to royally screw up the recipe despite enlisting his mother's help via phone. The others' reactions while periodically checking in provide enough proof - to wit; Dowoon starts out somewhat optimistic but openly winces at the smell and taste several times, Jae is reduced to helpless laughter each time he tries to pitch in, and even legendarily-big-eater Young K expresses doubt at being able to stomach the concoction, while Sungjin attempts to rein in the copious amounts of salt and soy sauce being dumped in as rectification with some very pointed death glares.
• Nightmare Face: Sungjin has a rather concerning affinity for these, often pulling wide-eyed, slack-jawed expressions seemingly just for the hell of it. And then there are his often-unintentional stares and unnervingly-exaggerated smiles.
• Older Than They Look:
  • Dowoon was born in 1995, but you would never be able to guess that from his youthful appearance and adorably ingenuous, if not bizarre, personality.
  • Jae is the oldest of the group (being born in '92), but could pass for a teenager thanks to his elfin features and boyish voice.
• Only Sane Man: According to the band, Wonpil is the closest approximation to one in their team - although not by a huge margin.
• One of Us: Jae used to edit DAY6's Wikipedia page and change the member's nicknames. He's also a self-professed video-game and tabletop-game nerd, music buff and all-round geek.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Discussed by Jae on his podcast. According to him, they would squabble a lot back when they were trainees due to their personalities and differing opinions on what direction to take their music in. This mellowed out with time and turned them into the True Companions we know them as today.

• Singer-Songwriter: Although all of the members are capable of writing music and often help out with ideas and arrangements, most of the songwriting and production is done by Young K, Jae and Wonpil.
• Singing Voice Dissonance:
  • Wonpil has a powerful, piercing singing voice, which forms a stark contrast to his typically soft and quiet speaking voice.
  • Young K's singing voice is an airy, light tenor. He drops into a darker baritone while rapping.
• Sixth Ranger: Dowoon joined the group three months before they were slated to debut.
• Stage Names: Young K, for Kang Younghyun. Jae would also technically count, being a shortened form/nickname for Park Jaehyung.
• Sucks at Dancing: Played for Laughs. Other than Young K, it's clear that the band aren't dancers. Still, they keep trying... especially Sungjin.
• Talking in Your Sleep: Unexplained heightened fluency in Japanese aside, Jae has also (according to himself and his bandmates) been prone to singing as though recording demos, slapping himself, going on disjointed rambles about various topics, suddenly kicking out at things and gesturing wildly - all while still sound asleep.
• Third-Person Person: Wonpil often refers to himself in third person, especially when exceptionally overwhelmed by emotion or commenting on his feelings and experiences.
• True Companions: It's evident from the fondness with which they speak of their friendship in various interviews and vlogs that their bond is unshakeable, and - even amidst all the jests and jokes - share a deep admiration and respect of each other.
• Vocal Dissonance: Dowoon is baby-faced and childlike in demeanour. He also speaks and sings in a sonorous baritone, and has the deepest voice in the group.

Music and Music Video Tropes

• A Capella: Live performances of "I'll Try" are often done this way.
• all lowercase letters: "hurt road" and "days gone by."
• Audience Participation Song: While spontaneous crowd sing-alongs are a staple of live shows, "Time Of Our Life" in particular has become an anthem. "Congratulations" is another song that has taken on this role, and so has "Sing Me."
• Break-Up Song: A substantial chunk of their discography is comprised of these, although they're usually more on the bittersweet side.
• Caps Lock: The band's name is stylised this way, and so are a fair amount of song and album titles.
• Concept Album: Overarching stories and themes are almost always woven into their projects.
  • Youth - split into two EPs with Shoot Me and Remember Us - is an examination of Exactly What It Says on the Tin.
  • Gravity serves as a precursor to Entropy, setting up themes of reflection and anticipation.
  • Entropy deals with the ideas of chaos and passion, and how it can affect a relationship as it blossoms and then falls apart.
• Darker and Edgier:
  • UNLOCK leans further into louder, more intense hard rock and ramps up the angst.
  • Entropy deals with heavier sounds and topics than Gravity, with much sharper lyricism, being more riff-driven and several songs ranking amongst their most hard-hitting tracks so far.
• Deranged Animation: The "art film" that accompanied the announcement of Entropy is heavy on this. It depicts a figure cradling its own, aflame heart, then transforming into a cluster of flowers that are then crushed by a pair of hands, which then transforms into a person curled into a ball, that then melts into a more detailed human heart with flowers bursting out of it.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: Their earlier releases had a somewhat lighter musical tone to them, in comparison to the increasingly heavier soundscapes present in subsequent EPs and albums. The amount of rap bridges has also gone down somewhat drastically over time.
• Empty Chair Memorial: A downplayed version due to not referencing a death but a separation; the music video for "Letting Go" makes a point of leaving a place at the keyboards conspicuously empty. Along with the forlorn expressions of the remaining members and bittersweet lyrics of the song itself, this is a shout-out to Junhyeok, who had left the band a short while earlier.
• Everything's Deader with Zombies: "Zombie," naturally. The music video takes it a step further by intercutting the band's performance with the depiction of a zombified young man dressed in similar attire staggering through his daily routine.
• Face on the Cover: Most album covers have a portrait of the band in some form - usually from a distance and visually processed in some form. Aversions include MOONRISE, Gravity and The Demon.
• Genre-Busting: While rock forms the foundation, their work also incorporates strong elements of metal, jazz, electronic music, punk, power pop and even a bit of hip-hop.
• Gray Rain of Depression: "Stop The Rain," naturally, is built around this, and so are some other songs on UNLOCK such as "Falling."
• Growing Up Sucks: "Wanna Go Back" reflects on this idea.
• Improv: Live shows feature ad-libs and improvisations both within the songs and in segments set aside for each of the members to improvise on their instruments - both individually and as part of a collective spontaneous jam session.
• Incredibly Long Note:
  • Wonpil executes one of these in the bridge of "Like A Flowing Wind."
  • Young K pulls this off in "How to Love" near the end.
• Large Ham:
  • While everyone has their moments of Keet-level hyperactivity on stage, Jae takes the cake with his frenzied, impassioned stage presence. He's well-known for his spins, high-flying jumps and kicks, theatrical expressions and gestures, as well as often standing or perching on barriers and leaping off of stage risers in the middle of riffs or solos - and the fact that he still manages to not miss a single beat or sound out-of-breath.
  • "Stop Talking" is mostly quiet and subdued - until the chorus explodes with:
  "WHOAOAH, WHAT'RE YOU SAYING?!"
• Lighter and Softer:
  • Many of their ballads, like "I'll Try" and "All Alone", are based on quieter acoustic and piano-driven structures, with softer, more delicate vocals.
  • Their discography before the EveryDAY6 project was mostly this, leaning more towards electro-rock.
  • Gravity is this compared to Entropy, with some of the most positive, uplifting lyrics in their discography to date and a bright, summery sound.
• Lyrical Dissonance: A large chunk of their discography plays with this. A particularly jarring example is "Congratulations", a triumphant-sounding, lighters-in-the-air power ballad about being broken-hearted and bitter after a relationship gone sour.
• Melismatic Vocals: A prominent feature in several songs, usually supplied by either Wonpil or Jae.
• Mood Whiplash: A particularly startling example on Entropy - the track listing goes from the jazz-influenced "Sweet Chaos" to the light-hearted synth-pop of "EMERGENCY" to the impassioned and emotive hard rock of "Rescue Me."
• Motor Mouth: Young K and Jae are most certainly capable of this while rapping.
• Multilingual Song: Most songs, while predominantly in Korean, also have lines and verses in English. A lot of the titles are in English as well.
• Obsession Song: "Hunt" and "1 to 10" are two examples of the passive and aggressive variety, respectively. The former is a risqué take on the idea framed as a daydream, while the latter paints an unnerving picture of a lover refusing to accept the end of a relationship and continuing to try and stoke the embers of what's left.
• Ode to Youth: "Time Of Our Life" and "Best Part" are explicitly this.
• One-Word Title: "Congratulations", "Colors", "WARNING!", "Blood", "Hunt," "Wish" and "EMERGENCY", just to name a few.
• Perishing Alt-Rock Voice: A non-nasal variant - Sungjin's vocals are characterized by his gravelly, raspy timbre.
• Performance Video: Most of their music videos are just this, albeit with relevant flourishes or abstractions.
• Pun: Scattered throughout their songs in both Korean and English.
  • One example is "Hunt," which has a rather slick one in the chorus - the hook is "nan neol sanyanghae"^note "I will hunt you", which sounds very similar to "nan neol saranghae"^note "I love you".
  • The English version of "Zombie" gives us "today is a present that I don't want."
• Pep-Talk Song: "For Me" is one aimed at the self.
  I want to get to know you
  You, not anybody else
  The me trapped in the mirror, about to cry
  Now I want to know you
  You’ve done well so far on your own
  I’ll tell myself, for me
• Retraux:
  • The visual and musical aesthetic for Remember Us features plenty of this. The music video for "days gone by" has a distinctly 70s-inspired aesthetic to it, complete with kaleidoscopic shots and a faded colour palette, and is musically dominated by vintage synths and clean, reverb-laden guitar tones.
  • "Deep In Love" brings back the reverb and ring-modulator-drenched guitars, making for a sound reminiscent of an 80s metal ballad.
  • "Stop Talking" was directly inspired by 80s LA metal.
• Scatting: Pops up in several songs. "STOP" makes prominent use of it in the bridge.
• Sensory Abuse: The music video for "Breaking Down" features eye-searingly neon colours, flashing lights and several overlaid and vertically tessellating, glitched-out shots of the band performing or moodily staring into the distance while leaning against a wall or sprawled on a staircase. It still manages to be artistically pleasing.
• Solo Side Project: In tandem with their work in the band, Young K, Jae and Wonpil also regularly dabble in experimental side projects, and often also upload demos.
  • Young K releases stripped-back, rearranged covers filmed in various cities as Young One. He also has collaborations under his usual stage name.
  • Jae makes melancholic lo-fi indie rock as eaJ, although the project has also delved into other genres such as gospel and funk.
  • Wonpil mostly partakes in jazz-influenced collaborations and covers of ballads.
• Step Up to the Microphone: Dowoon usually doesn't sing as much, preferring to stick to drumming and backing vocals ^note although he has been taking vocal lessons in order to be able to sing more often - but he takes the lead on a couple of verses in "Finale" and "Beautiful Feeling," and provides the chants of "WARNING!" in the song of the same name.
• Street Musician: They spent a large chunk of their early days as buskers, and still occasionally put up street performances.
• Talky Bookends: "When You Love Someone" sets up a storyline that ends up running through three videos with a brief scene where Sungjin's character confesses to his lady-friend that he's been harbouring an unrequited crush on her, and that he understands if she doesn't feel the same.
• Translated Cover Version: They have released English versions of "Congratulations", "You Were Beautiful", and "Zombie." Japanese versions of "I Wait", "Time Of Our Life" and "Sweet Chaos" have also been released.
• Vocal Tag Team: They are known for their vocal interplay and trading off of lines in their songs.
• "When I'm Gone" Song: "Sing Me," where the protagonist even states that "fate cannot kill me unless you forget me."

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