A Chat with just Min (03.07.25)
Korean-born artist and producer just Min invites listeners into the quiet, complex spaces of his debut EP Molten, a heartfelt exploration of grief, identity, and emotional transformation. Crafted amid personal loss and betrayal, the project blends indie pop and alt-R&B with a deeply intimate storytelling style that resonates beyond borders. We chat with just Min about how vulnerability became his greatest strength in forging a new path forward, and more below.
OSR: Molten is rooted in personal upheaval – grief, betrayal, and self-discovery. How did writing about those experiences help you process them?
just Min: The creative process behind Molten was how I processed everything I was going through: grief, betrayal, addiction. I wrote 60 to 70 songs during that time, and the nine that made it onto the EP were the ones that felt the most honest. I was battling addiction and depression throughout, and over time, songwriting became a lifeline. From that first demo to the final mix, the process not only helped me get sober; it helped me understand myself.
OSR: You’ve said the EP reflects two years that “felt like hell.” When did it start to feel like something meaningful was taking shape from that pain?
just Min: Honestly, from the very beginning. I set out to make an EP simply so I could improve my songwriting, production, and mixing by making a lot of songs. But when I ended up making tracks 1 and 2, ‘Emotionally Unavailable’ and ‘Scars’, in back-to-back days, I felt this gut instinct that I was creating something larger than a set of songs, like a body of work was forming. It was the first time I fully trusted the process. I stopped overthinking and just kept creating, letting the music lead and everything else fall into place. What happens will happen.
OSR: There’s a cinematic quality to the EP, like a late-night drive with your own thoughts. How intentional was that atmosphere?
just Min: Very intentional. After finishing the songs, I spent about a month figuring out the right sequence and track list. I wanted Molten to reflect how the past two years unfolded – starting full of love and energy, then descending into heartbreak and reflection. The goal was to create an experience where, if you listen from front to back, you’re hearing the full emotional arc. To me, the best albums and EPs are stories, and I knew mine could be too, if I moved with intention.
OSR: What did your typical songwriting or production process look like while making Molten?
just Min: It varied. I self-produced four tracks and co-produced three, so I had a hand in most of it. For the self-produced tracks, I’d just sit at my desk trying to find chords on my guitar that would entice me, and then go from there. The co-produced tracks were all just beats on YouTube that I ended up heavily reworking: changing arrangements and adding production to fit the lyrics and melodies. But throughout it all, the only constant was honesty. I let the songs lead me.
OSR: What does Molten symbolise for you, both musically and emotionally?
just Min: Emotionally, Molten symbolises growth – burning through everything I thought I knew and emerging from it. I was in a dark place when I wrote these songs, and the positive ones were a way of reminding myself what love and hope felt like. The sad ones were reflections of where I actually was. Musically, the name reflects the way the EP moves from vibrant and energetic to slow and introspective. It’s the story of a relationship blooming and then falling apart, as someone slowly loses themselves along the way.
OSR: In what ways do you think vulnerability can be a creative superpower, especially for artists in the alt-pop scene?
just Min: Vulnerability is how you reach people. In music, especially, being transparent is how you unlock your truest voice and your highest potential as a creative. I couldn’t lie to myself while making Molten, it just didn’t feel right. The more honest I was, the more I felt like I was finally saying something real.
OSR: Was there a moment during the making of this project when you doubted if you could, or should, share something so raw?
just Min: Absolutely. For months, I questioned whether I should release songs like ‘Awake’ or ‘Sick ‘n Tired’ – they lay everything bare. They’re about my battle with addiction and depression, in a way that doesn’t hide anything. It terrified me. But I came to realise that if those songs help even one person, then it’s worth it. Once I set my ego aside, I understood why honesty mattered more than perfection.
OSR: If each track is something you had to “let go of”, what did you hold onto in the end?
just Min: I held onto the parts of myself that still felt true once everything else fell away. Writing Molten was about confronting what I’d been carrying – heartbreak, confusion, moments of self-doubt – and then choosing to release it. But in the end, I was left with immense clarity. What stayed with me was a deeper sense of self, not defined by who hurt me or what I lost, but by what I survived and what I still have to give. And maybe that’s what the EP is really about: not just letting go, but realising what was worth keeping all along.
OSR: How do grief and growth coexist in your songwriting? Do you think they’re inherently connected?
just Min: I think to grieve is to accept what is and be present, which in turn leads to growth. In my songwriting, in general and in my debut EP Molten, sometimes I capture the moments of grief and other times I’m reflecting on how much things have changed and how I’ve grown.
OSR: As a debut artist, how do you want your audience to understand you, not just your music, but your message?
just Min: I want people to understand that I’m not just an artist focused on sound, but on story, on concept, intention, and message. The heart of Molten is this: even in devastation, what’s left of you is enough. Enough to heal, to love, and to keep going. That’s what I needed to hear, and I hope someone else hears it when they need it most.
Many thanks to just Min for speaking with us. You can find out more about just Min on his Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
