"Just like him, I want to promote our culture" — BIG OCEAN's Chanyeon confesses getting inspired by Stray Kids' Felix’s volunteer work with UNICEF

On Saturday, April 20, Korea Now released an interview with BIG OCEAN, the first hearing-impaired K-pop group comprising three members, Chanyeon, Jiseok, and Hyunjin. During the interview, the trio addressed several questions regarding their recent debut, music creation, choreographies using sign language, etc.

One of the questions posed to the group focused on their global achievements and goals. While each member stated different reasons, such as holding concerts, spreading awareness, etc., Chanyeon expressed a particular inspiration drawn from Stray Kids' Felix. He shared how articles detailing Felix's charitable activities with UNICEF in Laos motivated him to engage in volunteer work abroad.

Elaborating further on his desire to engage in volunteer work during the interview, he added—

"Since the meaning behind our name BIG OCEAN is to spread positivity around the world, I want to take part in volunteer work overseas. I recently read an article of Stray Kids' Felix participating in volunteer work abroad. Just like him, I want to promote our culture and group, so that we all can take part in volunteer activities."

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BIG OCEAN's Chanyeon dishes about being inspired by Stray Kids' Felix to participate in volunteer work abroad

On April 20, the three-piece K-pop boy group BIG OCEAN debuted with their first digital single, Glow. The group stands as the first-ever hearing-impaired artist to debut in the K-pop industry, which naturally garnered a lot of attention from the members. The group is currently housed under Parastar Entertainment.

In order to answer the several questions fans had regarding their journey in K-pop, the three K-pop idols, Hyunjin, Chanyeon, and Jiseok, appeared on Korea Now for an interview with the host, Jessica. From their early struggles as hearing-impaired individuals to pursuing music as a passion and career, the idols discussed several things that differentiated them from the other K-pop debuts.

BIG OCEAN is driven by a core mission to encourage other differently abled individuals to pursue their passion and raise awareness about the stigma around hearing-impaired people. While the group currently sings and dances through ASL (American Sign Language), the group aims to see themselves holding concerts worldwide and performing according to the country's sign language.

Despite their groundbreaking path in the K-pop industry, BIG OCEAN acknowledges the uncertainty and challenges ahead. However, as long as they get to meet and encourage people from around the world, the group stated that the journey would be rewarding enough.

With their core dedication to spreading awareness and positivity, the members are naturally inclined towards volunteer work. Chanyeon, in particular, has showcased his interest in such endeavors and hopes to travel to different parts of the world to participate in a cause. He cited Stray Kids' Felix as a source of inspiration for his philanthropic aspirations.

Recently, Felix went to Laos with UNICEF as a member of the organization's Honors Club. Several news articles covered the idol's charitable activities in Laos, and UNICEF Korea also released a vlog of his time there. The idol expressed that he's been interested in volunteer work ever since childhood but was previously unable to do it due to conflicting schedules.

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While many fans stated that they were moved and inspired by Felix's words of expression in the vlog, following BIG OCEAN Chanyeon's confession, it looks like it wasn't just the netizens.