SVGV (pronounced as SAGA) is an Asian Electronic dance music group based in Los Angeles. Theyβve started their activities in 2014 and currently exist out of three members: RAMY (lead vocals, born in South Korea), TRIRION (DJ, born in Japan) and PEACH (lead vocals, born in China).
The group is about to return to Europe for their new tour βFurther Than Everβ by the end of August, and theyβre also about to release a new album. Quite some stuff to talk about, donβt you think? Iβve managed to steal a little of TRIRIONβs time for these questions, soβ¦Letβs not stall any longer and-
Letβs start!
Youβre about to start a new tour here in Europe, and this time itβs under the new name SVGV. The last time was in 2015 under the name βSAGAβ. Will you focus on the new songs more now you have a new name, or not?
TRIRION: Weβll definitely play many of our new songs, but I donβt think weβll play any of our old songs in the way they were composed originally. Weβve done many remixes of them to ensure our old songs are better and on par with our new songs. Weβre very excited to share our music -new or old- with our audience again!
This will be your fourth visit to Europe, and Iβm sure youβve seen something new every time you were here. Are there any new places on the schedule this time, or are you mostly looking forward to the places youβve seen already?
TRIRION: Weβre always excited to visit new cities and meet the people there, but weβre mostly looking forward to meeting our fans who have been waiting for us to return after the last tour ended.
Is there a specific song youβre looking forward to playing for the audience here, or are you more focused on the shows as a whole?
TRIRION: Weβve been producing EDM-based music for the last few years, but recently weβve been trying a completely different style of music. We really hope youβll enjoy it!
Youβve given this new tour the name βFurther Than Everβ, but does the name hold a special meaning to you? Does it have to do with pushing yourselves βfurther than everβ for the new album for example?
TRIRION: Weβve been trying new things, but weβve also been trying to push ourselves to try new things. So to us the name means that weβre trying to push our own boundaries and limits.
Like I betrayed a little already with my last question, thereβs also a new album for fans to enjoy. Scheduled for release in the not-so-distant future. Can you tell me something about the album already?
TRIRION: Weβre thinking about naming this album βCloser Than Everβ, because weβve been challenging our limits on the outside, but on the inside weβre trying to create something thatβs very close to our hearts and emotions. This album will be a very emotional one.
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Your group is quite international, with members from different countries in Asia. And yet youβre based in Los Angeles (United States). PEACH (who is from China) joined your lineup last year, but how did you guys meet?
TRIRION: Weβve been trying a lot of things this year, since weβre always thinking about how we can develop our career further and bring our music to the next level. PEACH has one of the best voices Iβve ever heard in a singer. Sheβs like the Asian version of Adele.
We met in China during our last tour there, and after hearing her sing I asked her if she wanted to make music together with us. She usually works in China as a singer, so itβs very hard to match our schedules and work together in real time, but despite that sheβs an amazing person. I will definitely record more songs with her in the future!
You know my media focuses on Japanese music and artists primarily, and a lot of fans say that the βmagicβ for this music lies in the use of the Japanese language. Your music contains Chinese, Korean and English, but please tell me a little more about this. Do you use these languages to accommodate the singer, or to appeal to the listener? Or is it a mix of both reasons?
TRIRION: Every singer will have their best performance if they can sing in their own language. And for me as a composer a language other than my own will always sound fresh and give new life to the music Iβm making. This is why I offer the singer to write their own lyrics in their native language, but itβs also to appeal to the listeners in those countries. For global fans itβs something theyβll use to remember the song, but also to feel it and be able to sing it together. To achieve this feeling of βglobal unityβ the English language works the best, of course.
The European tour βFurther Than Everβ is the last leg of your world tour, but what will you do afterwards? Are you going back to the studio immediately, or do you have other plans?
TRIRION: This year weβve been facing a very sensitive problem. Korean artists are not allowed to perform in China due to political reasons. Since RAMY is Korean this affects us directly and caused us to have to cancel a lot of dates from the tour schedule. It did however make us stronger and it has pushed us further to challenge new markets in new ways. We are our own company and manage ourselves for that same reason. So everything is a big learning process for us. This is the reason weβve moved to the United States, we wanted to open up a new market for our music here.
Weβre nearly at the end of my list of questions, so let me squeeze this one in real fast: do you have any dreams for the future of SVGV right now? Since you just said youβre dealing with a few difficult situations here?
TRIRION: Weβve been following our dreams since the very first day we started making music. We even wrote a song about this: βDreamingβ. We would really like it if everyone who has been chasing their dreams would listen to this song as well.
And with that, weβre really at the last question. Is there something youβd like to share with everyone reading the interview today to close it off?
TRIRION: I want to say thank you to all the fans in Europe who have been waiting for us to come visit them again. And I also want to say βhello!β to all the new listeners! We hope for all of you to enjoy our music and find something thatβs close to you in it. Weβre confident in bringing our brand new music and our best show to Europe this time. So weβll be seeing all of you very soon!
Extra information
Arlequin Magazine has officially launched in 2021, but while SVGV is still listed as an active artist there are no social media links available. Thatβs why this article doesnβt have a βfollowβ section like the other articles on the website.
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