Lucente: ‘We Work Hard To Communicate With Our Fans'

The South Korean band discuss their special bond with India, producing their own music and being inspired by K-pop giants like G-Dragon and BTS

- Riddhi Chakraborty ​​​​​​​

There’s nothing quite like watching a professional K-pop group rehearse. It’s the end of October 2018 and we’re sitting in on Lucente’s rehearsal time right before their debut showcase in Mumbai. The seven-member boy group display impeccible precision in every movement and make no errors (well, none that we can see.) The sound and light check takes all of 20 minutes and U.Seong, Hero, Bao, Z.Hoo, Kogun, Taejun, and Parkha head backstage to change into their costumes for the show. Fans rush in shortly after to grab a seat and their roars of anticipation literally have the ground shaking.

Lucente are no strangers to the country—2017 saw them come down to Assam, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi to judge the India leg of the World K-pop Contest 2017. Their 2018 trip is a little less stressful with just two performances— the first stop is Mumbai and Pune joins the itinerary for the first time. The band’s shows in both cities are preluded by a mini K-pop contest they don’t have to judge, all-round making for a more relaxed trip this time around, but also one that’s more focused on them rather than the contest. When our team arrives for the Mumbai concert at Breach Candy’s Sophia Bhabha Auditorium, there’s already a massive line of fans outside who’ve been waiting for close to four hours to catch a glimpse of the band. When Lucente’s bus does arrive (a full two hours after that) the screams are deafening and the group is visibly shocked. They wave back at the fans but spare no time rushing into the auditorium’s silence.