Exclusive: AKMU Gets Candid About Their “Love Lee” Comeback And Sibling Relationship + Dishes On Sweet Interaction With IU

Get ready for AKMU’s long-awaited return!

Ahead of their comeback on August 21, the lovely sibling duo composed of Lee Suhyun and Lee Chanhyuk held a press conference with the theme of a live radio broadcast to dish on their highly-anticipated fourth single “Love Lee.”

AKMU’s new title track “Love Lee” captivates with acoustic and rhythmical drum sounds in addition to their charming vocals. A refreshing song that makes listeners reminisce of AKMU’s past love songs, “Love Lee” delivers heart-fluttering excitement to listeners. The title of the song also has a double meaning, referring to the word “lovely” as well as the sibling duo’s last name “Lee.”

To kick-off their radio show, Lee Suhyun and Lee Chanhyuk introduced themselves as one-day radio DJs and went on to talk about their album “Love Lee.” Lee Suhyun shared, “As many know, we had a two-year-long rest period. I rested really well during that time while Lee Chanhyuk released a solo album. We spent a lot of time apart, and since it’s been such a long time since we prepared an album, I realized that there was a lot to prepare.”

Lee Chanhyuk explained that during the two years, he spent a lot of time focusing on music that he wanted to explore, taking on many experimental directions. He remarked, “After doing all that, I thought that rather than what I want to do, I now want to do what we can do. Let’s make refreshing music before we get older, and let’s make songs that can make listeners feel good.”

During the press conference, Lee Suhyun got candid about how difficult it was to match her brother’s musical colors as they grew older. However, she shared, “I received a promise to get a song that’s a style that I like. I said, ‘I don’t want to do an experimental style [song]. I want to go back [to when we did music like ‘Give Love.’] We also thought that our fans awaited our early-style music, so we are looking forward [to the response].”

Regarding “Love Lee,” Lee Chanhyuk teased that the song is like Part 2 of “Give Love,” while Lee Suhyun explained, “If ‘Give Love’ is like grape flavored ice cream, then this song is strawberry flavored ice cream.’” In preparations for this release, Lee Suhyun and Lee Chanhyuk shared that they even brought their guitar and laptop to their family trip to keep working on the chorus. Lee Chanhyuk thoughtfully reflected that since Lee Suhyun had a difficult time exploring music styles that he wanted to do, he wanted AKMU to make enjoyable music that they can both enjoy.

Furthermore, AKMU dished on the backstory behind the long-awaited release of “Fry’s Dream.” Although Lee Chanhyuk initially gifted “Fry’s Dream” to IU, the singer revealed on “IU’s Palette” that she had not been aware that the song was a gift. After resolving the simple misunderstanding, IU gifted and passed on the song once more to Lee Suhyun, allowing the song to finally be released to the public.

Lee Chanhyuk revealed that Lee Suhyun worked on the artwork, drawing the characters and adding in her handwritten writing to the animated music video for “Fry’s Dream.” He complimented, “I think you drew it very well. It’s my favorite project out of all your drawings.”

During the live radio-style press conference, AKMU also answered the reporters’ personal concerns as well as questions regarding their comeback.

One reporter’s story talked about his concern of growing distant from his younger sister, asking if AKMU had any solutions for his predicament. Lee Suhyun sweetly advised the reporter to actively put more effort into the relationship, elaborating, “There are times when I feel that it’s a given that [my brother] gives me a song, but I realize that’s not the case, and I also express that I am grateful.”

Lee Chanhyuk similarly reciprocated, “I also thought it was a given that I could use Suhyun’s voice like a toy,” adding that rather than taking their close relationship for granted, he put in more effort to maintain it that way. He sweetly said, “I love you, Suhyun. Saying things like this is making an effort.”

When asked how they felt about their new album, Lee Suhyun shared, “I am highly satisfied, Starting with the recording to grasping the concept, I didn’t have trouble understanding how to sing this song,” expressing her love for the song. She added that the performance for this album is also casual and light, making it easy to watch.

Lee Suhyun also took a moment to get candid about her hardships that she briefly mentioned through a past broadcast. She shared, “I am still in the process of overcoming [that hardship], but I am continuing to put in effort, and Lee Chanhyuk is supporting me and giving me advice by my side,” conveying her hopes to receive good energy through these album promotions.

Lee Chanhyuk remarked, “Lee Suhyun had a lot of concerns about music because I pushed with too many difficult things, and I realized that belatedly. I felt guilty over Lee Suhyun’s slump, so with AKMU, I thought, let’s do music that the general public likes.”

When asked about an advantage of promoting as a sibling duo, AKMU shared that the biggest advantage is that the waiting room feels just like home to them since they are already so comfortable with each other as siblings. Lee Suhyun joked, “As for the disadvantages, we’ll say them to each other later when we’re alone.”

AKMU briefly touched upon their upcoming participation in the third season of the music talk program “The Seasons” as the new MCs. Lee Suhyun shared, “It’s our first time hosting a program together as AKMU, and we haven’t had our first recording yet, so we are excited but nervous.” Lee Chanhyuk elaborated that since their preferences are so different, they will make good synergy, leading to a good experience for the duo.

Finally, Lee Suhyun teased, “Next year is our 10th debut anniversary, and I think you can think of this as our first step toward our 10th anniversary.”

Lee Chanhyuk further previewed, “There is also happy news. We think we will have our first concert in three years, so we are excited. Please look forward to it.”

AKMU’s “Love Lee” will be released on August 21 at 6 p.m. KST. Are you excited for their return? While waiting, check out the teasers here!