Rapper B.I Talks All Things K‑Pop, From Potential Artist Collabs To Songs He’s Got On Repeat

Join us as we celebrate the K-Pop movement with artists, B.I, ITZY, and SEVENTEEN. In our latest global campaign, we’ve transported these artists into their own magical K-Pop dreamscapes — and we’re inviting you along for the ride.

While on set, we took the opportunity to chat with the solo artist to find out what’s on his playlist, his current earworms, and how IDs motivate him to keep making music.

What are your favorite Spotify playlists? 

I tend to create different playlists. To look for new music, I usually turn to Spotify’s Pop Rising playlist or playlists that are made up of recently released singles. I’ve also been a fan of Chris Brown’s for a long time, and I’m enjoying his new album, Breezy (Deluxe). Recently, I’ve listened to Drake’s new album, Honestly, Nevermind too. And of course, I also like discovering new music through K-Pop ON!

What’s K-Pop ON! to you?

It’s a playlist where I can listen to the newest K-Pop releases. Once, I even saw my face featured as the playlist cover image and it felt good seeing it there.

What are some songs that you’ve been listening to recently?

aespa’s Girls, SUNMI’s Heart Burn – I even watched the dance choreography for the song, and POP! from TWICE NAYEON’s solo album. I’ve listened to [NAYEON’s] album at least four times.

What does K-Pop mean to you?

It means a lot to me personally as I started doing this a long time ago. Each time I release a new song or album, people would always ask me what genre the song is or what genre I had in mind for the album. And even though I know it’s the answer they’re looking for, my reply is always “well-made K-Pop”. That’s what I consider to be the genre because it sums up all of my music. 

It’s good that Korean culture is becoming more popular globally. It’s for the Korean people and for international fans who love Korean culture. It’s a culture for everyone.

Who’s the artist you want to collaborate with?

Kanye West. I really like him a lot, and I love his songs. He’s one of my favorite artists.

How do you think your music moves the world?

I don’t know enough about the world to say whether my music’s had an impact or not, but either way, I really love making music. And I do hope that my music can motivate or help lift their spirits. The reason I make music is to inspire people and to give them something that they can relate to. So even if my music might not have changed the world, I’d like to think that at least it resonated with a few people.

What’s one line from your song that you can share with IDs that will be able to pull them out of the doldrums of life?

The line “I don’t want to be responsible for anything. I don’t want to be deep in love” from Nineteen. Interestingly, these lyrics came to my mind one day, when I felt tired and downbeat. At times like these, I realised that rather than being told to hang in there, sometimes I find it more comforting when someone says “Just give up!”, as if telling me it’s ok to let go.

What do your fans mean to you?

My fans are the reason why I’m making music. When I read the messages in the cards from my fans, it gives me a lot of encouragement, and I gain strength from them. And I’m usually not one to read comments online, but there was one time I did, and one comment in particular really resonated with me. It said, “Hyung, you can do it. You were my hero when I was in school.” It really meant a lot to me. 

And in case you didn’t catch it, watch B.I as he cruises through a futuristic Digital Metropolis, take a look at what went down behind-the-scenes. (Keep a look out for B.I throwing some taekwondo moves in-between takes.), and find out why illa illa makes a great road trip tune.

Check out our interviews with the other I’m On K-Pop ON! artists, SEVENTEEN and ITZY, and find out more about their favorite playlists and who they would love to collaborate with.

Turn ON the movement and keep bopping to the K-Pop beat with our K-Pop ON! Playlist.