It could be awkward, being in a small room with all seven group members, TODAY.com crew, and a plethora of staff from their record company, BELIFT LAB.
ENHYPEN, however, is comfortable and at ease. Their natural camaraderie is apparent from the way they, quite literally, finish each others’ sentences and joke around.
When asked if he’s been practicing for the team’s upcoming first pitch at the Seattle Mariners game when they travel to Tacoma, Washington for one of their tour dates, Heeseung laughs and says, “No, but I need to.”
Jake jumps right into the photo corner, ready to take the first Polaroid. The rest of the members follow his directions and line up while chatting comfortably. Each member says a sincere “thank you” after their photo opportunity. Jungwon emits an excited “Wonderful!” after Sunghoon’s photos are taken.
With five hours to go before the concert starts, the members assemble into their familiar positions and the visual team does a quick form and outfit check before the interview begins. When told he needs a raise for acting as translator for the group, JAKE laughs and says, “Thank you.”
The start of their U.S. encore tour marks a full circle moment for the group, since their first-ever U.S. tour kicked off, in 2022, at the same venue. Sunoo says he felt the “sound lingered until the next morning” after that show, and he’s “looking forward” to that experience again.
The group cherishes moments they connect with fans from the stage. They’re reminded of the moment, months prior, in October 2023, when the crowd in Carson City, California stood on their chairs as the opening notes of “BITE ME” played. It was thrilling, the group says.
It was also an affirming experience after the challenges leading up to their EPs “Dark Blood,” which came out last spring, and “Orange Blood” last fall.
“The albums turned out to be big hits in my opinion and I see these as a turning point for us, propelling us to new heights,” Sunghoon says.
The group is growing in popularity — and growing up. The youngest member, Ni-Ki, turned 18 in December of last year, marking the first time ENHYPEN is entirely composed of adults. Heeseung jokes that “he was so lonely” when the group first debuted because he was the oldest and only adult but now he feels happy with the group’s dynamic.
All seven members agree that not much has changed about the group itself over the years — though scrutiny has brought difficulty.
As ENHYPEN continues to soar in popularity and mature as artists and people, they dealt with critique and negativity.
When asked about handling hate online, Jungwon, 20, tells TODAY.com that “life isn’t always smooth sailing” and the group chooses to focus on the positive.
“The negativity doesn’t really shake us. We had a lot on our agenda, so we stayed focused on our goals. Thanks to that, we were able to end 2023 on a high note,” he says.