Inside a practice studio at their label’s office in Seoul, South Korea, the members of the band Big Ocean face a floor-to-ceiling mirror.
A metronome kicks in, syncing with one of the group’s songs titled “BLOW,” and the trio breaks out into the number’s dance routine.
As they perform the tightly choreographed moves, they glance toward a monitor at the front of the small room. Numbers appear on the screen and change color on every beat.
Each artist also wears a smartwatch that vibrates in time with the music and can be adjusted with a dial to speed up or slow down the pulses.
Big Ocean is the first K-pop group whose members are deaf or hard of hearing. Their gear is specifically designed for musicians and dancers with hearing loss.
“It’s difficult to stay in step with each other during practice,” said Big Ocean’s lead singer, Park Hyunjin. “The three of us all hear differently, so we perceive the beats differently.”
Park has a hearing aid that amplifies sound in his right ear and a cochlear implant that electronically recreates sound in the other.
His bandmate Lee Chanyeon has cochlear implants in both ears. Kim Jiseok, the group’s lead dancer, can only hear in his right ear with a hearing aid.
The artists, who are all in their 20s, were brought together by PARASTAR Entertainment, an agency that works with people with disabilities, a community that is traditionally underrepresented in South Korean media.
The trio trained for a year and half, taking lessons to polish their singing, dancing and acting. They also studied Korean, American and international sign languages, which they use on stage and in their music videos. In April, Big Ocean debuted on Korean television with a cover of a song by legendary boy band H.O.T.
Prior to forming the group, K-Pop stardom wasn’t on Big Ocean’s radar. In fact music wasn’t even a part of Lee Chanyeon’s life until he received cochlear implants as a teenager.
“After the surgery, I listened to music as part of my rehabilitation and started to become interested in singing,” Lee said, adding that one of the first songs he heard featured a rapping duo. “Their pronunciation was so clear and combined really nicely with a piano melody.”
Lee says that the song stuck with him and ultimately influenced his role as Big Ocean’s rapper.
Military service
There comes a time for almost every South Korean boy band when the music has to be put on hold. Men must serve in the country’s armed forces — even pop stars.
Global K-pop sensation BTS is currently on hiatus until all its members complete their service.
But Big Ocean’s members are exempt from the draft because of their disabilities.
Lead dancer Kim said that he actually felt somewhat disappointed when he didn’t pass the military’s physical examination.
“I had actually considered volunteering to join the military because I thought it would help me grow mentally and physically,” he explained. “But I am still curious about what military life would have been like.”
Park said the band has a lot of respect for other artists who serve, but noted that Big Ocean members now have a little more time to work on their music and improve their English, as well as American Sign Language to communicate with their fans in the US.
“During a video call with our fans, we met a woman who uses ASL, but I was only able to sign simple things to her like, ‘Hi, nice to meet you, I’m Hyunjin. Happy to see you,’” he said. “She really showed a lot of support and said she’s rooting for us.”
Hoping to expand
Big Ocean wants to expand its membership.
The group has put out a worldwide call for deaf and hard of hearing K-pop lovers to audition.
Park said he’s proud to be part of this barrier-breaking K-pop group, but he doesn’t think that being deaf is the most important thing about the band.
“You wouldn’t know that we are deaf just by looking at us,” Park said. “We don’t want to focus on our disability. We just hope that Big Ocean can make everyone more familiar with people who are deaf.”