By 
When I was invited to NCT DoJaeJung’s press conference, I must say that I had no idea who they were. I’ve known NCT since watching Korean music awards, when their group would perform and the members were plenty. NCT currently boasts 23 members, however the ones I got the pleasure of seeing were a trio from the group. NCT DoJaeJung is one of the group’s five sub-units (another, NCT Tokyo, is yet to debut). It consists of Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Jungwoo, who sang songs from their EP Perfume, which was released in April of this year. The songs on the EP are bops with an R&B flavor. I was surprised to discover that when I listened to the title track “Perfume,” I was already familiar with it, having probably listened to it multiple times on Spotify.
On Sunday, the Glorietta Activity Center packed with Filo NCTzens, some of whom had probably seen the group perform the day before at the SM MOA Arena for their Scented Symphony concert. I was told that the press conference would be brief and that NCT DoJaeJung would not be performing, but their devoted NCTzens were still there to cheer them on. The press con was moderated by one of my favorite hosts Sam Oh and the crowd went absolutely mental when the boys from NCT DoJaeJung appeared on stage. Sam read some questions submitted by various media outlets, and DoJaeJung gamely answered all of them, from Filipino food that they still want to try (halo-halo and lechon), to NCT DoJaeJung’s future plans (more concerts), to their immediate thoughts about forming their sub-unit, to which they unanimously responded that they’re all happy and excited about, and what they like most about their Filo NCTzens (their warmth and energy).
Sam also asked them what surprising characteristics they had picked up from each other while promoting their sub-unit and EP. Jungwoo stated that Doyoung is very precise and provides him with a lot of delicious food, and that Jaehyun is also very meticulous, sweet, and likes contacting him daily to check on him. Jaehyun discovered that Doyoung enjoys swimming and that Jungwoo enjoys trying different countries’ cuisine. Doyoung stated that he already knew Jaehyun and Jungwoo were fantastic singers, but during the preparation and creation of their EP, he noticed that it allowed them to do the musical styles that suited them best.
The press conference lasted about 30 minutes, which was ample time for the boys to charm me. I can’t wait for them to return, and hopefully I’ll be able to catch them performing by then. The press conference for NCT DoJaeJung was made possible by VIU Philippines and Glorietta by Ayala Malls.
Denise J. Mallabo 