Q&A with hongjoin
Reflecting on his fan community, one year since 'KOMOREBI,' and new music on the way
Written by: Martina Rexrode
On August 11, Softside announced its latest addition to its ever-growing artist roster: hongjoin.
The multi-genre artist effortlessly evokes a sense of comfort and honesty in his music that listeners both appreciate and resonate with, something that’s sure to come across visually in his eventual merchandise.
Through Softside, fans are able to build & submit portfolios featuring examples of past creative work, or they can create mockups with original designs inspired by hongjoin for consideration. Approved fans are paid royalties with each sale.
To officially welcome hongjoin to the Softside community, we caught up with the indie-pop artist to talk about his fans, reflect on his sophomore album, and get a hint of what’s to come…
Welcome to Softside! What about this new partnership are you most excited for?
I’ve known of Softside for a while now and really love what you guys are doing for the creative community!
I am looking forward to pushing this platform out to my fanbase since I know a lot of them are super creative. The fan art and fan projects that I’ve seen over the years have always impressed me and it’s going to be so interesting to collaborate with fans on some official, artist-approved merch!
How would you describe your fan community?
Loyal, down to earth, and has a unique music taste!
What visuals come to mind when thinking about your music?
I would say I have a distinct color for each project, from purple to light blue to most recently, green!
As of now I would say my music’s aesthetic feels nature-y forest green, with dreamy undertones. My latest album KOMOREBI features…a lot of trees and flowers. I like trees and flowers!
You’re currently based in Boston, with roots in Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan. How do each of these locations reflect in your identity as an artist?
I think it helps me draw cultural inspiration from both ends of the world. I grew up in a very Southeast Asian household, and always visited Taiwan and Japan due to family being there, and growing up in Singapore now living in the US helps me appreciate the nuances of both the East and West.
All my songs are pretty much about love, whether romantic or platonic. I’m always inspired by how big the world is, and navigating that unknown while growing up makes me write a lot of music deeply personal to me.
Are there any emerging artists you can’t stop listening to that you’d like to shout out? Any artists in general who have major influences on your own music in different ways?
Honestly, I have so many artist friends that make awesome music. I can’t name them all but I’ve really been digging Rin’s music and it’s been on rotation in my playlist for a while now.
For artists that inspire me, my answer’s always been the same. Charlie Burg, VALLEY, Jeremy Zucker, Sunset Rollercoaster, wave to earth like damn the list goes on and on. Underneath everything I’m just a fan who happened to make his own music so hooray shoutout music!
You recently opened for Charlie Burg in Boston. How was this experience? How do you view opening gigs like this as a rising artist?
I’ve been keeping cool about it and trying my best to act calm…BUT I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE IT HAPPENED.
I cover his songs at every show I play and singing his song was the first YouTube post I ever made. My fans know how much his music inspires me and honestly, he’s such a great guy so down to earth and humble. He lives and breathes music, and it shows on stage. Opening for him was a dream come true.
I have opened for many artists that I’m a fan of, and I’m always happy to do it. I love hyping the crowd up for an artist I truly respect and to me, it’s always such an honor to be able to be a part of their musical world. I love getting to interact with new faces in the crowds, and being able to share my music and stories with people I otherwise would not have crossed paths with is an experience I am always grateful for.
It’s been a year since KOMOREBI, your sophomore album, was released. When thinking back on this project, what stands out the most to this day (songs, lyrics, sounds, etc.)?
This project really solidified my sound as an artist I think. I’m still a growing artist but I think KOMOREBI really gave my music journey a push and somehow people really resonated with it. They were mainly love songs that reflected on long distance and taking the leap of faith, and I’ve had the opportunity to bring this album to life on stage many times.
My favorite song on the project varies with my mood but right now I would say - “Yesterday,” SLAPS. A late bloomer on the album.
How does KOMOREBI compare to any new music you might have on the way? What can listeners expect about what’s to come?
Like you said this was over a year ago. Since then, I’ve lived more of my life and grew up a little haha. My discography is like my diary, a reflection of what I was going through at that point in time. In my current stage of life I think, I found myself navigating through different phases of figuring out who I am as a person and what dependency means to me. My new stuff will be a lot more reflective — I’d say we are about to slow things down a little.
Get involved with Softside x hongjoin’s fan-designed merchandise collaboration here.
Listen to hongjoin here.
Softside is a fan merch platform dedicated to connecting music artists with their creative communities via officially licensed, fan-designed merchandise collaborations. We’re currently in beta working with music partners via invite-only.
Our blog covers fan art, album releases, merch trends, niche pop culture communities, and other topics at the intersection of music, visual art, and fandoms.
Martina Rexrode is a writer based in Delaware. With a Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Delaware and a lifelong passion for music, she combines the two when she can to put her thoughts about all kinds of music down where anyone can read them.