Photo Courtesy of Gabby Onme
In a Seoul studio sits music’s compelling new cross-cultural duo. Gabby Onme—Texas-born Adrian with his hip-hop and gospel roots, and Seoul native KINDA with his K-pop idol background—found each other during Adrian’s military service in Korea. Their partnership bridges continents, creating innovative sounds that defy categorization. As they prepare to release new music, we explore how these vastly different musical journeys converged into one refreshing voice.
As Gabby Onme prepares to release their newest project, we discuss cultural identity, creative processes, and how two vastly different musical backgrounds collided to create one of today’s most refreshing sounds.
Adrian: Could you describe your musical journey from Texas to Korea, highlighting the key influences that shaped your style? How did your upbringing in Texas influence your music, and how has that evolved since moving to Korea?
I took up music at an early age by playing instruments, specifically the piano and the drums. Piano recitals and drumline competitions were part of my daily life during middle school and high school years. I was blessed to also be able to go back and forth from Texas and Seoul and be exposed to many genres of music spanning from Classical, Jazz, POP, R&B, hip hop, rock, Gospel, Latin, Reggaeton, country, to K-pop, and ballads. From this wide exposure at an early age, I was able to get inspirations and form my personal tastes and sounds to produce later on in my musical career. This type of cross cultural upbringing has been a solid foundation and a key part of my journey as an artist. Moving back to Korea definitely elevated my skills because after meeting KINDA, I was able to learn in detail about other sounds, especially K-POP and the professional production side of music. The influences from my western upbringing were definitely upgraded with his expertise
KINDA: You’ve had a unique path in the KPOP industry, both as an idol and a producer. How did these experiences shape your approach to music creation and performance? How did you balance these two aspects of your career?
I started my music studies from an early age studying music composition. Then at middle school I was fortunate to be cast for auditions and become an idol. While being a KPOP idol, I was also producing and learning how to make music all along the way. I would not really see it as a balance, because making music has always been a part of my life. Since middle school, music production has always been the main focus as I developed into different stages of my career, starting with being a KPOP idol, to a producer, and now an independent artist.
Both: How did your paths converge in Korea? What was it about your individual musical styles and backgrounds that led you to form Gabby Onme?
We met through a mutual friend in the music scene in Seoul. Although we had very different backgrounds, we realized that our passion to create new and exciting music was the same. Adrian always had a solid foundation and specific taste to his sound. KINDA, with his expertise in sound design and production, was also curious to take part in developing Adrian’s sound as well as input further possibilities to create unique music. That is when we decided to join up and create the duo Gabby Onme!
Adrian: Your musical influences span hip hop, R&B, and Southern gospel. How do you blend these diverse genres in your music? What are some of the challenges and rewards of combining such different styles?
I love to incorporate many styles within our catalog. With a wide variety of musical genres to choose from, we can make more creative sounds and moods to convey to the listener. We wish Gabby Onme will not be tied to just one or two genres, but rather a mood and a vibe that represents uniqueness with diversity. With each new project we love to challenge ourselves with new sounds and themes that have inspired us. We want our fans and listeners to join in our growth as well, sort of like an adventure! One of the main challenges I think is that our vision of growth and development is long term. Because we use so many different sounds and genres that differ with each song, sometimes new listeners might get confused to know what type of songs that we make, since the beats and genres can change so often. We hope that they can stay to enjoy the omakase of flavors that we can provide 🙂
KINDA: As a producer deeply rooted in the KPOP scene, how does your production style complement Adrian’s songwriting and vocal abilities? What are some of the unique production techniques or sounds you bring to Gabby Onme?
I have had many mentors throughout my development as a musician. Sound design has always been a cornerstone of my abilities as a producer. With this in mind, I have always been interested in combining, mixing, and making new sounds within various genres. With this type of outlook on music, Adrian and I have been able to make music that caters to our specific tastes and interests.
Both: Your music aims to bridge cultures and sounds. Can you give us specific examples of how you achieve this cultural fusion in your music? What emotions or expressions are you hoping to convey through your music?
We believe that music has no cultural boundaries. For Adrian, he focuses on universal emotions within his music and lyrics that can relate to people not regarding race or location. From KINDA’s perspective, different sounds and musical techniques can be used to make a song that carries this universal theme. A good song should serve as a vice that can provide a relief of various emotions when listening. We hope to make songs that serve this purpose as well.
Both: What are your aspirations for Gabby Onme? What are some of the goals you have for the future of the group, and what kind of impact do you hope to make on the music scene?
Great artists of the past have left their mark in many industries whether it be fashion, music, art, writing, and all other creative areas. We are still inspired by them to this day and ultimately, we are inspired to inspire other people as well. Leaving our own trail of sounds and emotions that are unique to our own art would be our end-goal as an artist.
Both: What is the creative process like for Gabby Onme? How do you collaborate on songwriting and production, and how do you ensure both your voices are heard and respected in the creative process?
The first step of our process would be to decide what message and emotion we want to deliver with the song. After the message is decided, then the other parts of the song, like the composition, lyrics, melodies, sound design fall into place to cater to the main theme. As a team, we put importance on transparency of opinions. Through years of working together, mutual trust has been built to ensure that we trust each other’s decisions with confidence. So if the other is sure of their decision, we usually move forward in the production process.
Adrian: How has your experience in the Korean military influenced your perspective on music and life?
Military life was a special experience for me because it was also a re-adjusting period in my life. I grew up in the US, so the military experience was a fast-paced learning experience of Korean culture and organizational structure. This opened up my world view even more and got me to learn about my heritage and roots as a fellow Korean.
KINDA: What advice would you give to aspiring KPOP idols or producers who dream of making a name for themselves in the industry?
As an artist that is still developing myself, I would humbly advise fellow newcomers in the area to study your mentors and put in consistent and focused efforts to hone your craft as a musician, whether it be producing or performing.
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