If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of K-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers.
EL CAPITXN
Years active: 2014-present
Associated Acts: History, TXT, AHOF, tripleS, PLAVE, ZEROBASEONE
His sound: Moody and sentimental, often building toward dramatic climaxes. Strong rock influence, though he can also churn out a light, funky dance track
Why you should love him: Originally an idol with (criminally underrated) boy group History, EL CAPITXN has gradually grown into one of this era’s most in-demand producers. His work emphasizes emotion and mood, taking its time to flesh out an entire arc within each song. He’s a master of atmosphere, drawing out unique tones and textures that make his music feel quite unique and cinematic. And, he’s recently been on a hot streak with the debut of AHOF and a successful reimagining of NOWZ’s sound. It feels like we’re entering his imperial phase.
Examples of his best work:
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
hes also done growing pain by txt!!
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Another personal pick for his work is ARTMS’ Virtual Angel and the PLAVE songs he’s worked on!
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oh wow I did not know he was a former idol! I think most of his tracks are very solid
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Here’s his interview with Suga (I believe a rare occurrence to see him talk like this) where he explains his path from idol to producer!
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He also co-produced Ddaeng by BTS, a hip hop track featuring only the rapline which never had an official release (just soundcloud I think?) but is extremely loved by the fandom.
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I think he also producers a huge majority of plaves tracks
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I’ll add that to the “associated acts.” I don’t have PLAVE songs in my library, so I forgot about them 😅
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he’s so talented and honestly… the man is sexy lmao. His looks impress me as much as his credits.
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I like him sooooo much. I saw him for the first time as a producer on Universe League and I kept saying wowww who’s the cat-faced guy with the ponytail. So it made a lot of sense when I found out he used to be an idol lol
Also, back when I was in bts fandom, I remember people used to ship him with Suga LOL
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I mainly think of him as having created some of the most iconic tripleS songs (Generation, Girls’ Capitalism, Girls Never Die) but yeah he’s everywhere lately and deservedly so.
He also recently did a remix of ARTMS’ Icarus which was IMO the best of the bunch i.e. better than the remixes by the song co-creators (Artronic Waves and G-high).
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Agust D/Suga should be up there in associated acts. Suga worked with him while El Capitxn was trying to make the switch to producer. He co-produced about half of the tracks on D-2 and most of the tracks on D-Day.
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