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Punchnello spent a busy year in 2016 after first making headlines in March with his decision to join HIGHGRND, the independent label run by Tablo of Epik High, and releasing his debut deluxe single “Lime” in September.

This year, Punchnello hopes to show a different side of himself with the recent announcement of his participation in Mnet’s rap competition program “Show Me the Money 6.”

“People think that I am cute because I am young. But I don’t really think I am,” said Punchnello in an interview with The Korea Herald on April 11. “I want to establish myself as an artist who is good at not just one genre, but many different, diverse genres.”

He feels that due to his young age -- the rapper is still 19 years old -- his fans perceive him as “cute.”

“I don’t get it,” he said when asked about his perceived image.

Punchnello has another busy year ahead as he plans to make his name known as an artist, with an album in the works, and live show performances, such as a jazz festival in May for which he will share the stage with Club Eskimo crewmates Millic and offonoff.

Club Eskimo is a group of musicians who are quickly gaining popularity in the underground R&B scene, with well-recognized names like the chart-topping artists Dean and Crush, and rising artists Miso, 2xxx!, and Rad Museum, who is also currently Punchnello’s roommate.

“When we all get together and talk, I get inspired by (the other members), and I find out what I need to learn, from them. And they don’t really try to find faults with each other’s music,” said Punchnello. 


Aside from talking with his Club Eskimo crewmates, Punchnello draws inspiration for his music mostly from his daily experiences.

“It depends on how I’m feeling that day, and it depends on what happened that day,” said Punchnello. “When I am feeling down, (the lines) tend to come more easily. Or when I am drinking alcohol,” he added.

As for some things that bring Punchnello down, he cited reasons that a student entering the work world might encounter in having to meet different people.

“I used to work on music by myself at home and interact with just my close friends, and family. But now, there are difficulties that arise from having to meet different people in order to make music.”

Asked about a local artist that he would like to work with, Punchnello chose C Jamm, a runner up on “Show Me the Money” season.

“From my point of view, by my standards, he is a cool person,” said Punchnello. “He says what he wants.”

“With Punchnello, he raps very well, but because of that image, fans find him ‘cute.’ And that’s that kind of image that Punchnello wants to break,” added his management.

By Jenny Suh (suhjenny2@gmail.com)