Fully Bold (Hong Gu Kwon and Suwon Yim) is a musical duo from Seoul, South Korea. While studying abroad in Boston, they met by chance encounter at a bank and have been making music together ever since. With their diverse backgrounds and penchant for boldness, the group infuses warmth and storytelling into the sounds they create. Don’t miss our interview with Fully Bold, where we discuss composing music, influences, artistic vision, upcoming projects, and life.

Your story started with a chance meeting at a bank in Boston—how did that moment lead to the creation of Fully Bold?

Hong Gu Kwon: Well...it is a long story, but I’ll cut to the chase. It was January 2016 when I first met Suwon at a bank in Boston. She was standing in front of the queue, looking very hesitant and clearly needed help in English as she wasn’t fluent back then. With my basic instinct, I knew she was Korean and offered to help her. Funny enough, later realized she was actually in the same class as me. We were both students at Berklee College of Music so from that day on, we kept in touch. I had zero intention of making music with her until I asked her to record piano on one my beats that I was working on, which was ‘Jetlag Love.’

What were your first impressions of each other musically, and how did you know you wanted to collaborate?

Hong Gu Kwon: My first impression of Suwon was ‘Shy but bold’. She was very humble. Never stepped up to play the piano in front of people. but because she didn’t have the kind of strong ego many musicians do, I felt she is very versatile, especially given her talent. Back then she was into jazz and nursery music which is way off from what I was craving. But no matter what I brought to the table, she would make magic out of it. Music is all about the vibe! That’s what made me to work with her more.

Suwon Yim: Yes, I felt a musical connection with Hong Gu. He always brought something interesting and his way of making music was a bit different, something like ‘not in the frame’ but the meaning behind his compositions were pretty much the same as mine. I guess, at first, it was all about curiosity but that grew to inspiration.

Your name—Fully Bold—suggests fearlessness. What does "boldness" mean to you artistically and personally?

Hong Gu Kwon: Personally, boldness means a lot to me. From a young age, I often found myself gravitate with unpopular opinions. Some say creative, but others say stubborn. It wasn’t always easy to keep to my stance, but in the end, I was always glad I followed my gut. With that said, I think the word boldness correlates artistically as well. Both Suwon and I are naturally shy, but through music, we wanted to go above our comfort zone and push our limits. You know, at least in music, let’s be bold! Stay true to who we are rather than get swept up by trends.

How do you navigate creative disagreements or differences in artistic vision?

Hong Gu Kwon: Well, luckily, we’ve never had any disagreements during the creative process. It’s either that we jump on a track together from a scratch, or one of us brings an ideas to the table and we build from there. I love throwing out ideas and Suwon embraces everything with patience. She is incredibly forgiving haha! Maybe that is the key to what keeps this duo going.

Who or what are your biggest musical and non-musical influences?

Hong Gu Kwon: To be honest, I wasn’t particularly influenced by any specific artist but back in the late 2000s, the music I had on my iPod during high school had a huge impact on my musical journey. My influence is all about the vibes and atmosphere. I still can't forget the days listening to music with wired earbuds, looking out the window on the bus ride to school. Just thinking about that time still gives me a lot of ideas.

Suwon Yim: For me, Japanese animations (anime) have given me a huge influence in many ways. It was like my life bible. Most pianists start learning music when they are very young, but I didn’t start until I was 15. There was no pressure from my parents either. As an extremely introverted person, my childhood was all about watching anime. If I had to choose my favorites, they would be ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ and 'Detective Conan'. The music, visuals and the emotional scenes not only gave me courage, but also made me want to play the piano. That’s when I decided to study music seriously and become a musician.

What was the inspiration behind your debut EP, and what was the creative journey like putting it together?

Hong Gu Kwon: To take a trip down memory lane, we made these tracks during our senior year of college. We had no plans releasing the song whatsoever. We were just exhausted from finals and stressed about our careers scrolling through Linkedin. As we were quite active in Soundcloud uploading demo tracks, luckily, Majestic Casual reached out to us for a collaboration and everything started from there. Looking back, I think our intention with this album was to have fun. No frills. We just did what we could to entertain ourselves.

If Fully Bold could collaborate with any artist or band—dead or alive—who would it be, and why?

Tricky question. But we will say hands down ‘JS Bach’. His music is timeless and incredibly inspiring. Imagine working with Bach in the same room. Suwon starts playing the synth, I add some groovy production but with his Midas touch, it would turn into a masterpiece.

Can you share any details about your upcoming projects or collaborations?

We recently released our full length album ‘Nature Is Closed’. It’s an album we’re really proud of, so we’d love it if you could give it a listen. Right now, we are working on a new album which is in a totally new style. We always try to go with the flow and experiment our ideas. Starting this year, we’ve been planning more collaborations with different artists to bring more diversity into our sound, so that project is already in progress. Still waiting for the release dates but a lot of tracks are already finished. Definitely worth checking out when it comes out!

Finally, from your perspective, what is the meaning of life?

Hong Gu Kwon: I tend not to get too deep but my meaning of life is to just keep your own island. Everyone has their own reasons and lives in different circumstances. Don’t try to be someone else.

Suwon Yim: It is about sharing what you have with the world! We are all unique and have our own super powers. Don’t keep it to yourself. Try to see the good side of things and be kind and friendly. It will come

back to you.