Following the footsteps of their YG Entertainment seniors, TREASURE is here to top charts and break records as the rookie-to-watch of 2020 and we have an exclusive chat with the group ahead of their new comeback with 'THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER TWO".

If you are in the world of K-Pop as an artist (be it solo or group), the road to&nbsp;debut is a hard one and sometimes, it involves a talent search reality program.

For TREASURE (<a href="http://instagram.com/yg_treasure_official">@yg_treasure_official</a>), a 12-member boy group,&nbsp;that was their path &ndash; auditioning and working hard as trainees under YG Entertainment, participating in a massive reality TV&nbsp;show &quot;YG Treasure Box&quot; and even more training and preparation before their major debut on 7th August 2020 with &quot;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER ONE&quot;, a single album featuring four tracks.

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Even during YG Treasure Box, the boys&#39; talents are apparent and their fandom (named &quot;TREASURE MAKERS&quot;)&nbsp;grew bigger by each episode and by the time of their debut, TREASURE broke multiple records, including taking the&nbsp;record for the largest number of albums sold by a rookie group in 2020 and breaking YG&#39;s internal record for highest pre-order sales for a rookie&#39;s debut, surprising the likes of their seniors BLACKPINK, WINNER, iKON and BIG BANG, proving that they are one of the monster rookies to watch for 2020.

And in celebration of their latest comeback &quot;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER TWO&quot;, which has just debuted on 18th September 2020, we have an exclusive interview with the boys to talk about their journey in K-Pop and what the new single album means to them.

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Scroll down to read our interview with TREASURE:

Your 1st single album &lsquo;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER ONE&rsquo; launched on 7th August 2020. How do you think the album captures your group&#39;s aesthetic and essence?

Well, we are still in the process of defining the true essence of TREASURE! In our first album, we tried to mix the original vibe of YG with a twist of our own distinct styles. We really tried our best to make our music more approachable to various listeners in a way that they could see our charm and potential.

Since there are so many of us, we hope that our listeners can experience the many different sides of TREASURE and the dynamics in our choreography! We think that &lsquo;BOY&rsquo; is a song that really emphasizes our diversity!

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Was the preparation very intensive for your first single album debut?

Since it was our debut album, we really put in a lot of hard work and effort into finishing it! We spent most of our time in the studio recording and practising until everything was perfect. We knew that a lot of our fans were eagerly waiting for our debut, so we uploaded several cover song/dance videos to show them a snippet of what we had in store.

We would like to thank all our fans who have patiently waited for the album and have given us support throughout the process!

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Meet the boys of TREASURE in the gallery below:

JUNKYU

YOON JAE HYUK

DOYOUNG

CHOI HYUN SUK

ASAHI

SO JUNG HWAN

JIHOON

MASHIHO

BANG YE DAM

YOSHI

HARUTO

PARK JEONG WOO

Your group marks as the band with the highest album sales for their debut within the YG family. How does that achievement make you feel?

We are honoured and so grateful! We still can&rsquo;t forget the day we did our first ever performance on a music show! We have had so many fans and TREASURE MAKERS who supported us since day one, and we are just so grateful to have their support throughout our journey.

They are the reason we all want to work and train harder to give our best performance and we would do anything to give them joy, especially through our music. We can&rsquo;t wait to see all our fans!

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How are the team dynamics within the group? Who do you see as the father or big brother figure and who is the baby within the group?

TREASURE has two leaders! Since our trainee days, CHOI HYUN SUK&nbsp;and JIHOON have led the group. They are like the father figures to us! They are very charismatic and always take good care of us!

The youngest of the group is most definitely our &lsquo;Super King Cow Baby&rsquo; SO JUNG HWAN. He is like a baby, but there are times when he behaves more mature than most of us!

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As a group, what do you hope to achieve in the coming years?

As of now, we are preparing to release several albums by the end of the year, so we are just hoping that goes well as planned! In the long term, we hope TREASURE as a group can grow to become one of the world&rsquo;s greatest artists!

Each and every one of us is talented with our own individual merits, and we hope to make good use of them to bring happiness to our fans!

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Your next single album, &quot;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER TWO&quot; have just debuted, can you tell us more about this comeback?&nbsp;Is it a continuation from the narrative of the previous album?

Through &lsquo;BOY&rsquo;, the title song of &lsquo;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER ONE&rsquo; we tried to express the innocence of a reckless boy in love.

In the upcoming &lsquo;THE FIRST STEP : CHAPTER TWO&rsquo;, those emotions grow and become stronger. It is somewhat of a sequential love journey. We have devoted all of our passion into the music and choreography of this second single!

Do you have a message to the Malaysian Treasure Makers?

We would like to thank all of our Malaysian TREASURE MAKERS! We have prepared a lot for you guys so please stay tuned! We hope you all stay safe, stay healthy, and stay positive during such difficult times. We love you all and always FIND YOUR TREASURE!

Our exclusive interview with TREASURE will also be published in our L&#39;Officiel Hommes Malaysia October 2020 issue, coming to newsstands and bookstores from 1st October 2020 onwards.

Coordinated by: Will Kim I MAXPERIENCE (MPE) I <a href="http://www.maxperience.asia">www.maxperience.asia</a>

Exclusive: TREASURE on rising as 2020's monster rookie of K-Pop

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