Wonho

WONHO is undoubtedly sexy… and he knows it. Kinda.

On stage, the 33-year-old South Korean artist is magnetic, with the ability to draw you in with his vocals and his seductive, flawless dance moves. An avid gym rat, WONHO works hard on his body and likes to show the results in his clothing style. He exudes charismatic confidence in every performance, including his recent EP, CORE.

Off stage, the singer is more reserved and humble about his appearance, often looking away or blushing when he is given compliments. At one point, he jokingly covers up his unbuttoned shirt when his past “sexy” performances are brought up.

“I definitely wish and try to be sexy and fit the image,” WONHO says, as he preps for the Timid photoshoot. “The fact that you complimented the album itself is sexy and gives me high confidence. I don’t know what to do with myself.”

Many of WONHO’s albums are pretty sexual or romantic since they’re typically centered on romance and relationships. CORE differs from his previous work, focusing more on his inner self through concepts related to an egg: RAW, SHELL, and CRACK. In CORE, he examines his thoughts and raw emotions, safe behind the shell, but then we begin to see cracks form as he finally breaks free.  

“CORE is definitely not just focused on love or those kinds of emotions, but one that encompasses different, diverse themes,” he relays. “[It is just] everyday themes, like when you’re on a walk with your dog and relatable things. This album had a lot more emotions that were on a wider spectrum for me.”

Though many know WONHO for his toned, muscular exterior and polished musical ability, there’s more to him than that. The singer came from humble beginnings, growing up in poverty, being bullied throughout his childhood, and coming up through the K-pop music survival system. He finally debuted in 2015 as a member of MONSTA X but left the group in 2019 after a controversy for which he was proven innocent. After laying low for some time, he successfully returned as a soloist in 2020, showing his strength and resilience in this industry.

“All of these things I didn’t expect would happen to me when I first debuted,” WONHO says thoughtfully. “I didn’t expect any of these things to happen for the image I have now. In general, we can’t really expect anything in the future.”

It’s probably another reason why he’s remained so humble throughout his career—he’s seen firsthand how easily it all could be taken away. He is still often surprised that his music has reached people all over the world, and that he’s even here in the US to promote himself.

“As a solo artist releasing albums and trying new songs, I had no idea that I would be doing this music and promotions in the US—and even this interview. I could never have imagined this would be what I was doing today. All the experiences I have are very interesting. It’s a learning experience for me.”

WONHO has worked hard and nonstop to get to where he is, but he doesn’t want to be known for his past or even his sex appeal. He’s thought about how he’d like to be referenced in his career, but only one word comes back every time: Idol.

“I haven’t really thought about specific keywords that people would reference me as,” he speaks candidly. “I want to be considered an idol. Nowadays, an idol is considered a job itself, but the actual meaning of the word is someone who is a role model. That’s who I want to be known as—someone who people want to be like and want to follow, whether it’s music or even personality, visuals, fashion, or snacks that I eat. I want to be someone who people want to follow what I do.”

WONHO doesn’t believe it, but he’s a trailblazer in the K-pop industry, changing what an idol can look like. At the start of his career, he began lifting weights and building muscle, going against the fit, slim frame traditionally seen in K-pop. He was recognized for his muscular body, which received positive reactions from the idol community. His solo debut performance on M Countdown in 2020 garnered the most reactions, as he appeared wearing a cropped vest that fully displayed his sculpted physique. During several of his solo concerts and fanmeets, WONHO’s shirts always seem to disappear, causing a frenzy in the audience.

Since then, several other male idols and artists have begun bulking up, wearing fashion styles that show off their fit bodies. Crop tops are the norm for male K-pop idols nowadays. WONHO takes a long pause when he’s told this, in disbelief that he would be the trendsetter in the industry.

“The image I have is the image that I wanted,” WONHO shares. “That’s how I kept working hard for it. There weren’t as many people with a similar image, but now there are people with an image like this. It’s nice to see other people doing it in their own musical style. It’s really interesting to see. Exercising was a big part of my life, and showing that and seeing that it has influenced other people to take good care of their bodies and be healthy is a really good thing to see.”

With WONHO’s image, it’s hard to believe he has never done a Waterbomb Festival. Waterbomb Festival is one of the hottest and largest summer music festivals for artists to participate in, as they perform in the heat while being splashed (and splashing water on the audience). The performances by the artists, especially from K-pop idols, tend to go viral, especially when artists end up shirtless or spice up their sets.

Fans have been anticipating his appearance at Waterbomb, and according to the interwebs, his first performance at Waterbomb Kaohsiung did not disappoint. The sexy idol went viral, appearing completely shirtless and full of energy as he performed his popular hits. He is frank when the topic of Waterbomb comes up, saying that he’s never thought about going on it since many fans have seen his body concepts before.

“I actually didn’t think too much about [Waterbomb] because even without that event, the concepts and music that I’ve released made me known for that kind of [sexy] image,” WONHO says with a chuckle. “I already thought [my sexy performances] were pretty out there, but I saw that the fans really wanted it. It was the right time to try and show what they wanted.”

As WONHO begins his photoshoot, he’s laughing and smiling with his team in between takes—a break from the seductive looks he’d given to the camera. It takes years and experience to have this duality to turn his idol brain on and off when needed. He admits it’s taken time to learn.

“The biggest thing for me is that I’ve been growing more mentally,” he explains. “My mental state has become a lot healthier after these years. When I was younger, I used to focus on myself and everything that was affecting me. But as the years went on, I was able to think outside of myself and grow and make sure that my mental state is in a healthy place.”

It’s been over 11 years since his initial debut as an artist, and he feels more confident and stronger after everything that happened during that time. Though he doesn’t know what the future holds, he can only hope it’s positive in the next 11 years at 44. At his core, WONHO wants to grow as an artist and person. He laughs when asked the question prefaced with ‘since your body can’t get any bigger.’

“The one thing that won’t change is that my personality won’t be fully mature—even at that age,” he laughs. “I just really want that—at that age, I could still feel and be young. Whether that’s working out or running, I’ll still be able to maintain that—with no knee pain.”

Before he heads into the photoshoot, he gleefully adds, “By then, hopefully, I will be fluent in English.”