(G)I-DLE's MINNIE Is More Than Just A Performer

MINNIE (NICHA YONTARARAK) is an up and coming dynamo in the K-pop scene. Petite and doll-like in person, with beautiful features and immaculate skin, one wonders if her cute nickname has anything to do with her stature. Beneath the perfect package lies a talented musician (she plays the piano and is keen to learn guitar), composer (she writes several of the band’s songs) and polyglot (she speaks Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese, as well as her native Thai.)

To understand MINNIE’s career in music, one needs to delve a bit deeper into her upbringing and family background. MINNIE grew up with a musical mum. She says, “My first memory of music is my mum playing piano. My mum is really, really good at playing the piano and she plays it every day.” In fact, MINNIE’s mother taught her piano from the age of four and her uncle, Nat Yontararak, is a classical pianist, composer and music teacher. It’s safe to say that music runs in her blood, or at least has been a big part of her life since she was young.

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Her early musical inspirations included singer-songwriters who happened to play the piano like Vanessa Carlton and Alicia Keys. Seeing her daughter’s interest in both piano and singing, MINNIE’s mum began sending her for weekly vocal lessons from the age of six at a music academy, which she attended all the way to the auditioning stage of her career. Shy at first, MINNIE’s mum rewarded her if she performed on stage, giving her the push to explore her talent and share it with a wider audience.

Today as a member of (G)I-DLE, MINNIE is living the dream. She was recently named a Miu Miu ambassador. On the Asian leg of a world tour with the group at the time of our shoot, she was looking forward to a homecoming of sorts when the band performed in her native Thailand for their Bangkok date in mid-July. These sweet reminders of how far the group has come has been a highlight for MINNIE. “We started in Seoul a few weeks ago, and Taipei was our second stop. And it was SHUHUA’s (her (G)I-DLE bandmate) hometown. And it was the first time we performed a concert there. SHUHUA cried, and I was kind of surprised as I don’t see her cry often. I was so proud of her because she looked so happy and so nervous at the same time,” she shares. And having experienced the same mix of emotions, MINNIE could understand her bandmate’s feelings. “And I can understand her. Because last year when we performed in Bangkok, I cried a lot. It was a dream come true. It was not the first time we were performing there, but it was the first time we had our own concert. My parents, friends, everyone was there and I was really touched. It was very emotional.”

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Beyond performing, MINNIE also composes some of the band’s songs. On her process she says. “I write the melody first. And then I’ll write the lyrics after. So when I recorded the demo for ‘Paradise’, I was just humming ‘dice, dice.’ And then I’ll find a word that kind of rhymes or matches with the humming that I recorded. So it became the word ‘paradise’ that I chose to write about.” For MINNIE, part of the writing process is creating music that her fans can relate to as they are a large source of her inspiration. In the lyrics for the chorus, MINNIE says the line, “Every time I look into those angel eyes,” is about the feeling of inspiration she gets when she looks at her fans. She tells us that for the song “Lucid” she was inspired by Scooby-Doo as the music had a horror undertone, but in a cute way.

While her songwriting has improved since her debut, MINNIE reveals that she still asks her producers for advice on writing Korean lyrics. “I think I’m more confident writing the melody,” she quips. “I come up with something catchy and then if it’s good, I’ll just go with it.” As for confidence in her personal life and stage persona, MINNIE says that she is still a work in progress. “I wasn’t a confident girl. But I think I’ve grown together with my group members. Our members’ auras are very energetic, so they inspire me a lot. When I’m with them, I’m very comfortable.” Ever the professional, MINNIE says that constant practising and honing her skills is part of gaining that self-assurance when performing.

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Proud of her Thai heritage, MINNIE is impressed by her NEVERLAND ((G)I-DLE's fandom name), some of whom have even started to learn Thai because of her. Being a polyglot, MINNIE shares that she sometimes thinks in different languages, which can prove challenging if she is doing an interview in English as she is for Harper’s BAZAAR today. Currently she is thinking in Korean, but if she is in a country like the US, her English gets better. Coincidentally, (G)I-DLE released their first English digital single in July. Future plans for MINNIE include a chance to collaborate with Australian singer Troye Sivan, who she admires greatly, as well as singer Justin Bieber. But for now this multilingual and multi-talented star is enjoying the ride.

Photographed by Junkyoung Lee
Styled by Gracia Phang
Makeup: Haemin Kim
Hair: Aram Chun
Manicure: Jinsol Kim
Producer: Esther Kim
Production Coordinator: Crystal Sang