[EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW]: from20 and HELLO GLOOM on KCON, K-Pop’s Future and how They’re - WAY BETTER

Though we love all the rookies at KCON, there is something about seasoned artists who know how to play a crowd, bring them alive and have the confidence of self, body, and sound to sell their performance completely. The artists from WAY BETTER, who also run the shop, are their own company, who are also writing and producing their own sound. Established in 2020, they are primarily soloists, but sometimes duos, and for the most part, they are former group idols who have broken away from their previous molds to embrace themselves. At this KCON LA 2025, their music was this seasoned KCONer’s favorite discovery. Not only are they hot, they are fun to chat with, they have a great sound and were having the best time at this KCON. We sat with the founders of the company the Sunday of KCON weekend, who were representing WAY BETTER (unfortunately due to visa issues the two other artists on their lineup couldn’t join), and got to know from20 (Kim Raehwan), a former member of BIGSTAR, and HELLO GLOOM (Na Ungjae), a former member of IMFACT. We had witnessed their sound and charisma the night before at the KCON pre-show concert, where they not only bared their musical souls, but clearly showed off (and we mean off) their sexy sides. With incredibly outgoing personalities, our time chatting flew by and we can only hope that they’ll be back, with the rest of their crew, to bring their fresh sound and brilliant energy stateside again.

Q: HELLO from20 & HELLO GLOOM FROM WAY BETTER! CAN YOU PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELVES?

from20: Hello Kraze Magazine, I’m from20. I’m a singer-songwriter and media director, and I’m running WAY BETTER with HELLO GLOOM, together. I just released a single titled “Eye Candy” and now I’m at KCON LA and I’m happy.

HELLO GLOOM: I’m HELLO GLOOM and I think he’s [from20] the most sexy artist here [to which many had borne witness the night before]. I’m a Korean music producer and a singer-songwriter, as well as WAY BETTER’s co-founder.

Q: BOTH OF YOU HAVE SUCH DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS AS SOLOISTS, AS WELL AS FROM YOUR FORMER GROUPS (BIGSTAR, IMFACT). FOR HELLO GLOOM, THIS IS NOT YOUR FIRST KCON. HOW DOES IT FEEL COMING NOW AS PART OF WAY BETTER COMPARED TO AS A SOLOIST?

HG: It’s kinda awkward to say it like this, but I was so happy, and frankly, I think I gained a lot of experience from being here [as a soloist]. When I came [to KCON] with IMFACT, I was very thankful, but I don’t think I understood how thankful I should have been. It was very hard. More than having a heart filled with gratitude, my impression was like being at an fascinating event. This time, to be honest, to all the staff who invited us and for every single opportunity they provided us, we were so thankful and wanted to work harder. Honestly, after the pre-show last night, we were so inspired. I sincerely felt that I wanted to do better, be much better, be more imaginative and thought about it so much.

Q: IN A SIMILAR VEIN FOR from20, HOW DO YOU FEEL AT BEING AT KCON LA?

F20: It’s the same as with HELLO GLOOM. Actually, I couldn’t come to KCON when I was with the team, but when I was in the team, every chance wasn’t that important to me. I was just one of the members, and the company does everything and I just couldn’t feel what was important. This time, we are the CEOs and the solo artists, and we are doing everything by ourselves, so it feels very different. As he said, every moment is so precious to us. And yesterday, it’s been a while since we’ve been on such a big stage, and we received so many impressions and inspirations, we felt that we really want to succeed and gained a lot of motivation. After the preshow yesterday, coming back to our hotel, we talked a lot. For about four, five hours, we talked about how we can succeed more, go to the top. The other cool idol’s performances were so lit, that we really spoke a lot regarding this motivation that we have to do better, do WAY BETTER (ha ha).

Q: UNLIKE MOST OF THE GROUPS HERE, WAY BETTER IS MORE OF A COMPANY. HOW ARE THE DYNAMICS? DO YOU PRIMARILY WORK AS SOLOISTS AND DUOS OR ARE THERE ANY PLANS TO CREATE MUSIC AS A GROUP?

F20: Actually, we don’t want to call WAY BETTER a group. We just think this is the label for the artists. Solo artists that have big dreams. So we just want to call ourselves a team. Just a group of talented male artists who give off this synergy. We think as a soloist, it’s very hard to go through this life, this industry, so we just wanted to be friends, like mates. In WAY BETTER, everyone feels safe and comfortable, like being friends, family. So to become a more successful soloist, we hope to provide a good safe home-like base.

HG: Company and creative crew and….

Together: Family.

Q: CAN YOU EACH GIVE A SONG THAT BEST REPRESENTS WHO YOU ARE NOW AND EXPLAIN WHY THAT IS YOUR PICK?

F20: “Eye Candy.” Because I just want to be eye candy for everybody. Because it’s fun!

HG: “Dancing in the Dark.” Everyday life has darkness, but we can dance.

Q: YOU HAVE ALL SEEN THE DEVELOPMENT OF K-POP OVER THE LAST DECADE. WHERE DO YOU SEE IT GOING AND WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELVES WITHIN THAT?

HG: We actually discussed this yesterday as well. K-Pop is getting more and more global and there are more fans around the world that are interested in it. Frankly, if you see BTS’s Jungkook or BLACKPINK’s Rosé, the focal points of these idol groups, from the attraction that these idol groups have, we think what is next is the solo artist moving into the American pop market venture, we think it’s the expected time for this has come, and from that we think WAY BETTER as solo artists, maybe we can paint a new picture here.

F20: And if you try to think of it this way, the idol [concept] is already doing really well. The marketplace for them is going so well, but we think that companies such as WAY BETTER will get stronger, and from there, we would love to be a company that provides help [to soloists].

Q: FOR THOSE WHO ARE FANS OF YOUR FORMER GROUPS, WHO ARE EXCITED TO SEE YOU HERE, WHAT MESSAGE WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEND TO THEM NOW?

F20: Don’t listen to BIGSTAR songs, please listen to from20 songs please (said with laughter).

HG: I’m actually always thankful. Supporting us, as more and more time goes by, fans' love is both precious and surprising. And with complete sincerity, I’m thankful and I want to tell them I love them.

Q: ANY PLANS TO TOUR SOON?

F20: Right before [KCON], we just announced our Brazil tour. We’ll go to Brazil this September. And we’re preparing our WAY BETTER world tour for early next year.

Q: U.S. Included?

F20: Sure! We’ll go!

Q: LAST WORDS FOR OUR KRAZE READERS?

A: To be honest, this interview was so much fun and through this interview I hope that our thoughts and our sincerity get spread. And going forward I hope that you give from20 and HELLO GLOOM a lot of your love. Thank you.

And with that, our time came to an end. We stayed to watch their X-Stage Showcase which was filled with the same energy that they had brought to the big stage. Playing with the crowd and giving a lot of fan service throughout their set, they showed again that they’ve broken through the molds that once held them. For those of you fortunate to be in Brazil this September, make sure to catch them if they’re close by. For the rest of us, we’ll be waiting for that world tour announcement. WAY BETTER currently consists of the soloists from20, HELLO GLOOM, Sejun (VICTON), YYJ (NND) and Kang Yuchan (A.C.E.). The music is fun, danceable, and with this roster of artists, there’s nothing stopping WAY BETTER.

Thank you to the KCON team and from20 and HELLO GLOOM for taking time to speak to us. Check out “Eye Candy” and “Dancing in the Dark” here to get into the WAY BETTER vibe now!