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Baek Z Young reflects on an extraordinary life with 'Ordinary Grace'

Published: 02 Dec. 2024, 08:00

YOON SO-YEON
[email protected]

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

“Looking back on every ‘rock bottom’ that I thought I hit, none of them were truly rock bottom.”

Singer Baek Z Young calmly told reporters during an interview held for her fourth EP “Ordinary Grace,” an album that, rather than celebrating with fanfare, peacefully collects every emotion she felt and learned during her 25-year career.

Baek, one of the most esteemed singers in Korea who is famed for her powerfully emotive vocals, will release her new EP on Monday at 6 p.m. as her first new album in five years, one that also comes in tandem with her silver jubilee.

“Rather than the many years it’s been for me, I actually want to put more emphasis on the fact that this is my first new album in a very long time,” Baek said. “I’ve been working on singles and soundtracks for some time now, so it feels really good to have come back with an album. I tried to put in a lot of the emotions that I felt in life, not just love. It’s an album that feels strangely unfamiliar yet kind to me.”

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

“Ordinary Grace” is a five-track album that “expresses the gratitude and appreciation of the deep emotions and preciousness that come from the smallest and subtlest details of everyday life,” according to the album’s introduction. The lead track “Indeed, It Was” is followed by three other ballads, “Fly,” “Sweet Sleep” and “Gleam,” along with a string version of “Indeed, It Was.”

“Indeed, It Was” is quite a self-explanatory song — losing love but simply accepting that “indeed, it was” meant to come to an end. Baek tried to lay off the usual explosive energy from her voice and go for a softer, lighter touch to give a laid-back, unmoved vibe to the song, in contrast to some of her hits where she demonstrated the true meaning of “singing at the top of one’s lungs."

“It was actually more difficult for me,” Baek said. “I’ve had directors ask me often to ‘tone it down’ and sing as if I’m talking, even when I thought I was doing so. But it came naturally to me with this song, because the message of the song was toned down in the first place — we were more beautiful than any landscape, any other thing in the world, but that was it. The recording process came so easy that I was surprised at how few takes were needed.”

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

Another emphasis she pointed out with “Indeed, It Was” was casting drama producer Lee Eung-bok for the music video. Lee is famed as the showrunner of KBS series “Descendants of the Sun” (2016) and the three seasons of Netflix’s original series “Sweet Home” (2020-24). Actor Nana and model Chae Jong-seok took part in acting out two young lovers of the theatrical music video.

“I became acquainted with Lee through my husband [actor Jung Suk-won] while he was shooting the second season of ‘Sweet Home,’” Baek said. “The drama-like music video really helps with engaging deeper with the emotions of the song, I think. Performance videos often end up trying to mesmerize the viewers with fancy effects, but a well-structured narrative video really makes it easier for people to imagine the emotions."

The “letting go” of both her emotions and vocals came naturally after spending 25 years singing, as well as the ups and downs she suffered in the entertainment industry along the way. Baek debuted in 1999 with a full-length album, “Sorrow,” and soon became one of the most respected vocalists in Korea with hit ballads such as “I Won’t Love” (2006), “Like Being Shot by a Bullet” (2008) and “Don’t Forget Me” (2009).

She was forced to take a six-year break in the very early stage of her career in 2000 when her former boyfriend leaked a sex video of the two at a time when an excessively patriarchal Korea turned the blame toward Baek, the victim. She also suffered backlash when her husband was caught using illegal drugs in 2018 — none of which were her fault but involved her name nonetheless.

She rose above, taking each uphill battle to make her stronger.

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

“I might sound young to my seniors, but having been a singer for 25 years and lived almost 50 years, having a child and always passing through some sort of challenge in life, I can see the trajectory of my life getting somewhat gentler,” she said.

“The big things that happened in my life — the drama, the damage or even the bliss — all influenced me in some way, but none of them change me entirely. Everything made me realize that it’s not the past or the future that’s important, but the present. I think having a child definitely brought me this peace.”

The peace isn’t just with her life but also with her career, too. Even though Baek has some of Korea’s biggest hit tracks under the belt, the “good” songs outweigh numerous other songs in her discography that failed to see spotlight from the audience.

“I actually have a lot of songs that did terribly,” Baek said, laughing. “There are songs that even I don’t remember because I never sang, and then there are songs that were so ambitiously prepared but still did bad. My 20th anniversary album ‘Reminiscence’ was just that. I love the album, but I wasn’t so shocked that it did so bad. I just thought that maybe I failed to follow the trend. Whatever the reason was, it’s a part of my life and I believe that it will be heard some day.”

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

Knowing Baek’s quarter-century experience and her professionalism, some younger singers call her to ask for her advice to consult her both on their careers and life.

“Their first question is always, ‘How did you get through it?’ and I always tell them that I didn’t have ‘my own special method,’” Baek said.

“I tell them that what took me six months could take them six years. But the only way to shorten that painful period is to just accept everything — to take pity on yourself and embrace everything, because denial and blaming the world just perpetuates the pain. The moment I tell them that, they all suffer more. But I truly believe that this is the only way that anyone can get through anything.”

Singer Baek Z Young [TRI-US ENTERTAINMENT]

For now, going through the quieter and calmer phase of her life, Baek’s only goal is to keep singing, regardless of genre.

“Because I’m not a singer-songwriter, I almost feel like the relationship between me and my songs are like those of people who meet and fall in love — like a blissful coincidence where I ‘come to have met’ the song, rather than just meeting it,” she said.

“I used to think in the past that I won’t try hard and just stop singing when my hair starts to turn gray. But now, seeing all those veteran singers take the stage on their 50th anniversaries and beyond, I hope to stand on the stage until my legs allow me to. I know that it’s not something granted to anyone, so I hope to be given that chance.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [[email protected]]