What is the hidden meaning behind Day6's band name? Reason revealed after 9 years

South Korean pop-rock band, Day6, debuted under JYP Entertainment in 2015. On September 9, 2024, the band members Sungjin, Young K, Wonpil, and Dowoon appeared on the popular YouTube talk show, IU's Palette, hosted by actress-singer, Lee Ji-eun aka IU.

In the show, Day6 revealed the real meaning behind their band's name after 9 years. The members said that JYP Entertainment's founder, Park Jin-young aka JYP or J.Y. Park watched an apocalyptic movie where it kept displaying "Day 1, Day 2" and so forth. He saw "Day 6" pop up and believed it would be an apt name for the rock band to debut with.

"This was the first time we heard of its meaning after 9 years. We’ve never talked about it accurately. For 9 years, we thought that Park Jin Young came up with it. It was when the CEO was watching a movie."

The group continued:

"You know how in movies about disasters, the subs would be like ‘Day 1, Day 2,’ things like that? He said that ‘Day 6’ popped up. He saw it and caught a vibe. That was how it came to be." (as translated by Koreaboo).

Since they began as a six-piece group, the band members said that they believed for nine years that the name of their band was based on the number of members.

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Day6's rise to success as the most popular pop-rock band from South Korea

JYP Entertainment initially planned to debut the group with the name, 5LIVE, consisting of five members, namely Sungjin, Jae, Young K, Wonpil, and Junhyeok. In 2015, Dowoon joined the band roster as a drummer, and the band was renamed Day6 and debuted as a six-member group in September 2015.

However, on February 27, 2016, Junhyeok left the band, citing personal reasons. On December 31, 2021, Jae announced his departure from the band and JYP Entertainment. Day6 continued as a four-piece rock band under the label.

Meanwhile, the group dropped their first mini-album, The Day, along with its title track, Congratulations, on September 7, 2015. The album climbed to No.2 on Billboard's World Album Chart. In June 2017, they released their first full-length album, Sunrise, and announced their official fandom name, My Day.

Their second full-length album titled Moonrise came out in December 2017, along with its lead tune, I Like You. It also included B-side tracks such as Better Better, I'll Try, Hi Hello, Be Lazy, What Can I Do, Whatever!, I Loved You, I'll Remember, When You Love Someone, and I Need Somebody.

In June 2018, Day6 dropped their first album in Japan, The Best Day, including three new-version tracks Congratulations (English Ver.), I Wait (Japanese Ver.), and You Were Beautiful (English Ver.).

On June 26, the South Korean pop-rock band released their third EP Shoot Me: Youth Part 1, consisting of seven tracks: Shoot Me, Warning!, "어쩌다 보니" (Somehow), Feeling Good, "혼잣말" (Talking to), "원하니까" (Still), and Shoot Me (Instrumental).

After Jae's departure from the band, Day6's four remaining members—Sungjin, Young K, Wonpil, and Dowoon—enlisted in the military one after another and served in the military from 2021 to 2023. They made their comeback with a Christmas concert from December 22 to 24, 2023, at Korea University Hwajeong Tiger Dome, South Korea.

In March 2024, they dropped their comeback Extended Play (EP), Fourever, along with its lead track, Welcome to the Show. On September 2, 2024, they released their latest EP, Band Aid, with included tracks: Monster, Melt Down, She Smiled, Shxtty Game, Help Me, Rock&Roll, Counter, I'm Fine, and Still There.

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In other news, Day6 won the Best Band Award at the 2024 Brand of the Year Awards on September 3, 2024.