Boy band WeNU hopes second time is charm with release of new EP

The K-pop scene has been bustling with groups flashing upbeat songs and impressive dance moves with concepts that sometimes even extend to the metaverse, so it would not be an overstatement to say that ballads have little space to fit in nowadays...

A concept image for WeNU's debut EP "Haru Haru," which dropped Wednesday [IRION ENTERTAINMENT]

The K-pop scene has been bustling with groups flashing upbeat songs and impressive dance moves with concepts that sometimes even extend to the metaverse, so it would not be an overstatement to say that ballads have little space to fit in nowadays.

New boy band WeNU (pronounced “We-N-U”), however, is going down the road not taken (relatively).

WeNU debuted with the EP “Haru Haru” on Wednesday. The same day, the ballad quintet — Ji Sung Hwan, Yoon Hee Chan, Jung E Den, Han Sun Woo and Park Chan Hyo — held a press showcase event at the Ilji Art Hall in southern Seoul to talk about its future plans as a group.

The band’s name is short for “We and You,” which intends to show that the band and fans are “together,” Sun Woo said.

“There were other choices for our name, like ‘Iris,' which is ‘rainbow’ in Greek, or even ‘Weather,’” Sung Hwan said. “But we wanted to show how important our fans are, so agreed on going with ‘WeNU.’”

The EP consists of the title track “Haru Haru,” as well as “Over the Universe." The former’s lyrics sing about a breakup and missing a loved one while the latter is about a message of warmth toward fans, likening such feelings to a “beautiful night sky.”

Boy band WeNU poses during a showcase event for its EP "Haru Haru" on Wednesday at the Ilji Art Hall in southern Seoul. The band debuted the same day. [IRION ENTERTAINMENT]

WeNU is not your average rookie group. Almost all the members already have experience of having been in the spotlight — for example, E Den was a member of boy band Bigflo and Chan Hyo was a member of the Japanese project group Sigma.

Sun Woo also had minor parts on the small and silver screen — notably season two of the Netflix original rom-com series “Love Alarm” in 2021 and “The School Nurse Files” in 2020.

“I was an actor all by myself, because I didn’t have an agency back then,” Sun Woo recalled. “I had to find the addresses for the production companies and go there myself to hand out my profile portfolios or do auditions. I still do want to act sometime again in the future, but for now, I’m sticking with the small roles.”

Sung Hwan said that he was part of the military band back when he enlisted his mandatory service, which “greatly influenced who [he is] as a singer today.”

“The military band is filled with people who have a passion for music, as they learn new instruments or are already musicians,” he said. “The fact that we were able to converse and go up on stage for ceremonies or performances helped me get used to the stage a lot.”

Boy band WeNU sings its title track during a showcase event for its EP "Haru Haru" on Wednesday at the Ilji Art Hall in southern Seoul. The band debuted the same day. [IRION ENTERTAINMENT]

It wasn’t an easy choice to debut — for a second time for most of the members, and also because they are already well into their 20s, unlike most other rookie groups that see members make their start as teenagers.

“Although I already debuted a while ago, I had to turn to interior design because I needed to make a living,” Sun Woo said. “So when the agency called and wanted me to join its new ballad group, I was indeed caught in a dilemma. But the members and our CEO are such good people that I couldn’t reject the offer and decided to debut again through WeNU.”

There aren’t many ballad bands in the K-pop industry today, but 2AM and BTOB come straight to mind. They’ve released a strings of hit songs: “This Song” (2008), “Never Let You Go” (2010) and “I Was Wrong” (2010) from 2AM, and “Way Back Home” (2015), “Remember That” (2016) and “Missing You” (2017) from BTOB, earning both groups stable armies of fans.

A concept image for WeNU's debut EP "Haru Haru," which dropped Wednesday [IRION ENTERTAINMENT]

“Because we’re a ballad group, we do think that 2AM and BTOB are our role models,” Sung Hwan said. “They’ve released a wide range of music and have spectacular voices. We want to be a group that succeeds them.”

“I think WeNU’s greatest strength is the members’ voices,” Hee Chan said. “We have a member who has an extensive vocal range, another who has great rhythm and another whose voice is just so acoustically appealing on its own. We had so much fun recording our debut songs that I think along with our charms, it will create a synergy for our fans and listeners.”

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]