New South Korean K-pop group, KINGDOM, launched a thrilling music video of their single "Excalibur" from their newly-released EP, History Of Kingdom: Part I. Arthur.
Drawing inspirations from the medieval period of knights and warriors, "Excalibur" presents the KINDOGM, a seven-man group just like BTS, in armors as they sing, dance, and "fight" unknown forces. Their lead singer and dancer, Arthur, is shown pulling out the mythical sword, Excalibur to beat their "enemies."
According to Rolling Stone, KINGDOM's first music video's concept is rarely seen in K-pop. The music itself can be described as "confident track" for a debuting boyband and it's a combination of hip-hop, trap and dark synth.
Since the music video's release on Feb. 18, Excalibur has had nearly 105,000 views on YouTube. Fans said that they are impressed with the quality of the production but they are still getting used to the music. Some fans, however, have agreed that the music is such a danceable tune or a K-pop bebop.
KINGDOM is composed of Arthur (vocalist, dancer), Dann (leader), Chiwoo (rapper), Mujin (vocalist, rapper), Ivan (vocalist), Louis (vocalist, dancer), and Jahan (vocalist, rapper). Every member represents a king from history and they have previously talked about their choices and interests during their training and before their big debut on the world stage.
While Arthur is an obvious choice, based from the legendary British king, Dann is based from a Danish king. Louis represents the King of France, while Ivan is a Russian king. Chiwoo represents an ancient Chinese king, while Mujin is based from a Japanese emperoor. Jahan is inspired from a Mughal Emperor in South Asia.
But in an interview with Korean Portal, the group said that their biggest influence is the world-famous K-pop group, BTS. In a statement following their debut, the group said that they hope to become well-known in the music scene and to be recognized as a unique group. Managed by GF Entertainment, the members said that they will work hard to be worthy of getting a following from K-pop fans.
Meanwhile, the whole concept of this boyband group is meant to deliver a story. Since this debut release is just part 1, fans can expect a developing storyline with every song or video that will still be out from their first EP.
