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The Korea Times

By Dong Sun-hwa
As a child, Kyler Niko dreamed of becoming a singer – and he nearly made it as one, too.
Niko – who wrote his first song when he was 14 – was approached by one of the world’s biggest labels at the time, who said he had the looks, voice and songs they had been searching for. There was just one problem – they were not sure how to market him as a Chinese/Asian artist.
Ultimately, they did not sign him. Although this frustrated Niko at first, his discontent did not last long, as he soon discovered a new career path as a songwriter.

“In hindsight, it was a blessing in disguise,” says the London-based Niko. “My new path as a songwriter has acquainted me with some of the greatest friends and colleagues one could ask for. Writing music for different artists is the most creatively gratifying experience as well.
“I am intensely proud of K-pop breaking through and sending waves across the world, as it has commanded respect for artists and people like myself who did not quite fit the box.”
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Niko’s involvement with K-pop began about seven years ago, when he met songwriter Obi Mhondera. During their chance meeting, the founder of music publishing and management company InnerV8 Musiq told Niko that his songs sounded like K-pop.
“Mhondera said, ‘You know you are writing K-pop, right?’” says Niko, who is represented by InnerV8 Musiq. “He later secured my first ever K-pop song placement – boy group Exo’s Japanese single ‘Electric Kiss’. I vividly remember watching the music video in my bedroom with my mother, and it was at that moment I became fascinated by the world of K-pop.
“What’s wild is that only a few weeks prior to meeting Obi, I told myself that I wanted to give up on music. I guess the universe was listening and had other plans for me.”

Since then, Niko has worked with a plethora of A-list K-pop stars including NCT, Twice, IVE, Seventeen, Aespa, Enhypen and Monsta X.
“Some of my milestone projects include ‘Bloom Bloom’ by The Boyz, my very first Korean single – ‘Blue Hour’ by Tomorrow X Together, the release that helped put my name on the map – and Le Sserafim’s ‘Fearless’, ‘Antifragile’ and ‘Unforgiven’.”
When asked about the stumbling blocks he has faced in K-pop, Niko says the toughest thing for him has been in identifying his writing style.
“Identifying my writing style, strengths and weaknesses was a steep learning curve that required endless trial and error and the vulnerability to listen to my mentors,” he says. “I learned all about the ‘moments’, hooks and storytelling – all the unspoken ingredients of a bop that grabs the listeners and refuses to let go until the final second.”
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“I have also been aggressively intentional in developing my ‘meter’, the tool that helps me create and recognise hit melodies. I am not sure if this meter can be trained, but my advice is to ‘trust the rave’, a saying we have in our team which refers to the overwhelming urge to rave when listening back to a truly great song.”
In Niko’s eyes, K-pop is distinct from other genres because it guarantees creative freedom unfettered by conventional songwriting rules.
“K-pop allows me to have freedom to experiment wildly with genre, structure, melody, concept and lyrics,” he says.
Underneath all the creative madness is a person that I must not forget to nourish and nurture
Kyler Niko
“These days, I swear half of my mission is to write something that goes TikTok viral. That being said, there is an intrinsic formula gluing together an authentic K-pop song, one that listeners look out for without knowing, regardless of how adventurous a song sounds.
“K-pop is also different in the way that songs are heavily written to inspire choreography and the most eclectic music videos.”
Niko believes each section of a song must capture people’s full attention with something intentional. For this, he has a bag full of tricks such as big hooks, clever lyrics, vocal delivery, audio effects and rhythm.
“When writing a song, I first decide on its title, as this blueprints the lyrical concept, mood and sometimes even the chorus hook,” he explains. “After that, the rest of the writing journey depends on the order of which sections trigger me creatively.
“The one rule that governs all my decision making is to never settle for anything that does not excite you.”
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Niko hopes he will get the chance to work with Taeyang of K-pop boy band BigBang and girl group Blackpink.
“I have been a huge fan of Taeyang’s voice and artistic presence since the beginning,” he says. “In fact, a picture of him used to be stuck in the centre of a career dream board above my bed.
“Another band that come to my mind is Blackpink, who command the world’s attention with every release with their outfits, choreography, songs, music videos and attitude.”
As a songwriter who brings joy, unity, escapism and catharsis to people, Niko plans to come up with more experimental collaborations in the future.

“There are so many K-pop artists breaking out and more than ever they are delving into other genres to create new energy and new sounds,” he says.
“My mission is to contribute to this unstoppable wave. My core goals, however, are more personal. I aim to pay more attention to nature, health, relationships, overall well-being and peace of mind. Underneath all the creative madness is a person that I must not forget to nourish and nurture.”
Read the full story at The Korea Times.


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Kyler Niko nearly gave up on music after a record label passed him over. A chance encounter with the founder of music company InnerV8 Musiq led to a new career – now he is a hit K-pop songwriter. Photo: courtesy of InnerV8 Musiq

Niko wrote his first song when he was 14. Photo: courtesy of InnerV8 Musiq

Niko helped write “Electric Kiss” for K-pop boy band Exo (above). Photo: courtesy of SM Entertainment

Niko has worked on “Fearless”, “Antifragile” and “Unforgiven” for Le Sserafim’ (above). Photo: courtesy of Source Music

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Lifestyle

K-Pop

Entertainment

Culture

Music

After a record label chose not to work with Kyler Niko because they did not know how to market him as an Asian artist, he thought about giving up music entirely
A fateful encounter with the founder of music company InnerV8 Musiq set him on a different path: writing K-pop songs for the likes of Exo, NCT, Twice and Aespa


Kyler Niko nearly gave up on music after a record label passed him over. A chance encounter with the founder of music company InnerV8 Musiq led to a new career – now he is a hit K-pop songwriter.


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Korea Times

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