The two husky guys of 2BiC may not look like the typical hard-bodied and pretty-faced male singers one expects in today’s image-conscious music scene, but Ji-hwan and Jun-hyung have powerfully soulful voices that can blow the competition out of the water.

“I know when you look at us you think we don’t really look the part. Many people ask if we’re comedians,” said Ji-hwan. “But when we sing, we are very sincere ... and I think people can see that.”

The old college buddies did not expect to find themselves debuting together as a vocal duo. In fact, member Ji-hwan only stumbled upon his passion and musical gift after a night out with friends. 

“I actually had no interest in singing as a kid,” said Ji-hwan. “But once, when I was in high school, I went to a karaoke room with my friends and I heard a lot of positive feedback about my voice. After that, I started becoming more interested in singing and in music.”

After high school Ji-hwan went on to college but decided to leave in order to pursue a career as a singer. One of his friends helped him film and upload several YouTube videos of himself and the singer’s voice eventually grabbed the attention of the head of a local talent agency, Nextar Entertainment.

“After practicing for a year, I thought that singing as part of a duo would be more fitting, so I decided to look among people that I knew. And that’s how Jun-hyung and I came together again,” he said.

The duo intended to name themselves 2Big, referring to the members being two large guys. However, there were concerns that the public might not take a shine to the name. So it was decided that they would be called 2BiC, meaning “to be continued.”

The duo released their first single under the name 2BiC in March last year titled “Made Yet Another Woman Cry,” showing off their powerful vocal energy and wide pitch range.

“I know the title of this song makes us kind of look like players, but that’s not what we intended,” Ji-hwan explained. “The lyrics of the song are very different. They’re saying, ‘Because of you, I can’t meet anyone else. That’s how much I loved you and wish you would come back.’”

2BiC then released their first full-length album, “Back to Black,” last month along with the album’s lead track “Bye Bye Love.” The track, as well as many of the songs on the album, has a very Western music essence.

“Compared to the other Korean artists out there, we want to contribute a more American sounding, black soul style of music,” Ji-hwan said.

“We love R&B and we want to continue to introduce more of this genre in Korea,” said Jun-hyung.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)