Almost three years after disbandment, the Korean boy group and global idol Wanna One reunited on the stage of this year’s Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA).
Wanna One is a project group composed of the top 11 contestants from Season 2 of the survival reality show Produce 101. They debuted in August 2017, but as a temporary group, their contract only lasted until December 2018. Since then, the members have pursued individual activities under their respective agencies.
But before we get into the emotional reunion of the group that their fans have been waiting for in the past three years, let us look back at the members' previous activities and see how they persevered after one of the most heartbreaking disbandments in the K-Pop industry.
From left to right: Ong Seong-wu, Bae Jin-young, Lee Dae-hwi, Hwang Min-hyun, Park Woo-jin, Kim Jae-hwan, Ha Sung-woon, Yoon Ji-sung, Kang Daniel, Park Ji-hoon
Photo posted on Wanna One’s Official Twitter account
"Let us look back at the members' previous activities and see how they persevered after one of the most heartbreaking disbandments in the K-Pop industry."
From One Boy Group to Another
Remaining in the limelight of an idol group, Bae Jin-young, Hwang Min-hyun, Lee Dae-hwi and Park Woo-jin debuted as members of their respected boy groups. Bae Jin-young initially debuted as a solo singer in April 2019. He was reintroduced as the center and lead vocalist of CIX, which debuted in July 2019 with their extended play album Hello Chapter 1: Hello Stranger.
Hwang Min-hyun, on the other hand, returned to his original group — NU'EST — and was reunited with members who were also with him during Produce 101. Exploring a new path, he also debuted as an actor in the web drama Live On that premiered in November 2020.
Lee Dae-hwi, one of Wanna One's lead vocalists, also appeared in Yeonnamdong Global House, a short teen drama that aired in November 2019. Dae-hwi, however, never left the idol stage. As he and fellow Wanna One member Park Woo-jin debuted in one boy group, AB6IX, he concentrated on his singing career.
From Boy Group Members to Solo Artists
Entering an independent course, Kang Daniel, Kim Jae-hwan, Ha Sung-woon, and Yoon Ji-sung took over the solo stage. Kang Daniel, the group's center, is now managing his own career through his one-man label, Konnect Entertainment, which he founded in June 2019. Daniel debuted as a soloist with the single What Are You Up To the following month and now has launched four mini-albums and four digital singles.
At the same time, the main vocalist Kim Jaehwan, also continued to work as a solo artist. He signed up to Swing Entertainment, the same agency that managed Wanna One. Jae-hwan debuted as a solo singer in May 2019 with the track Begin Again, mainly focusing on ballads.
Similarly, their other main vocalist Ha Sung-woon also resumed his solo promotions. He debuted as a solo artist in February 2019 with the single Bird. Following its successful release, he began to sing soundtracks for various Korean television series such as Her Private Life, The King: Eternal Monarch, True Beauty, and many more.
Unique from the rest of the members, their eldest member and leader, Yoon Ji-sung, enlisted to serve his military duties in May 2019. Before his mandatory enlistment, Ji-sung released his single In the Rain and performed in the musical Those Days. He was discharged from the military December last year.
From Stage Performers to Drama Actors
Members Ong Seong-wu, Park Ji-hoon, and Lai Kuan-lin ventured in front of the screen cameras this time. Ong Seong-wu made his acting debut as the main lead of the coming-of-age television series At Eighteen in 2019. Because of his promising performance in the show, he starred in a few more acting projects, namely the 2020 romantic series More Than Friends and the 2021 television drama Would You Like a Cup of Coffee? But, Ong never fully left the idol stage as he released his first digital single We Belong in January 2020, followed by his mini album Layers in March, marking his solo debut.
Likewise, the group's lead dancer and visual Park Ji-hoon, who became famous from the aegyo (Korean term for a cute display of affection) 'jeojang', also started his path on acting. He appeared in the 2019 historical romantic comedy series Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency and in the teen web dramas Love Revolution (2020) and At a Distance, Spring is Green (2021). Aside from acting, Ji-hoon also debuted as a soloist with his first EP O’Clock and single L.O.V.E. in March 2019. Currently, Ji-hoon has released five mini-albums and one full album. He has also released soundtracks titled Midnight for Love Revolution and Talk to Me for At a Distance, Spring is Green.
An addition to the rising actors is the group's maknae, (Korean term for the youngest member) Lai Kuan-lin. He made his acting debut in A Little Thing Called First Love (2019), a Chinese drama adaptation of the Thai film of the same name. In 2020, he was also cast in the youth drama Don’t Think About Interrupting My Studies. Far from what others have expected, Kuan-lin's journey was not as smooth as it seemed. In July 2019, he filed a lawsuit against Cube Entertainment after the agency transferred his exclusive management rights without his knowledge and permission. After two years, Kuan-lin won the lawsuit and finally terminated his contract with Cube. Before the controversy, Kuan-lin debuted with Pentagon’s Woo-seok in a project unit, Wooseok x Kuanlin. They released an EP album 9801, with the lead single I’m a Star in March 2019.
Wanna One is Back!
Photo posted on MNET’s Official Facebook page
On December 11, 2021, for the first time in three years, Wanna One performed on one stage again. However, they returned with only ten members since Kuan-lin is currently in China. As the group danced to their debut songs Energetic and Burn It Up, audience members were overwhelmed and quickly became emotional. Meanwhile, their supporters who watched through the live stream felt nostalgic, stressing that the group took them back to 2017 again. As Wanna One surprised their fans with a whole new song, Beautiful (Part III), everyone was just carried away by the emotional performance, making their reunion stage a hot topic at MAMA2021.
"As Wanna One surprised their fans with a whole new song, Beautiful (Part III), everyone was just carried away by the emotional performance, making their reunion stage a hot topic at MAMA2021."
Wanna One’s Reunion at MAMA2021
Before they could even start, Wanna One already knew that their journey as an eleven-member group would eventually come to an end. Despite the disbandment, the members pursued new endeavors. They were welcomed with projects and gave their fans eleven times the joy they showed as one group.
"Before they could even start, Wanna One already knew that their journey as an eleven-member group would eventually come to an end."
Surely, moving on to a new slate after a successful and legendary chapter is mostly terrifying. Yet, Wanna One receiving the warmest welcome from their supporters and fans, as if they had never left for years, only proved that the end of something could spark a new and hopefully better beginning.
"Wanna One receiving the warmest welcome from their supporters and fans, as if they had never left for years, only proved that the end of something could spark a new and hopefully better beginning."
Graphics by: Sofia Vinuya
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