Rise's Wonbin candidly shared his feelings about the burden of having the name 'Wonbin'.
On the 20th, the YouTube channel 'Theo' released an episode of 'Salon Drip 2' featuring Rise members Wonbin and Sohee. During the broadcast, the two shared episodes and concerns about using their real names, which overlap with those of senior celebrities in the entertainment industry, drawing attention.
When MC Jang Do-yeon asked, "When you hear the names Wonbin and Sohee, don't other people come to mind first?", Wonbin confessed, "That's why I actually talked to the company first. It was too burdensome..."
He continued, "Still, SM said, 'It's your real name, so let's just use it,' so I've kept it until now, but it still feels very burdensome."
Sohee also had similar concerns. "When I debuted, I didn't even think about a stage name and just went with it, but lately, I feel like my name has weak energy. It feels like my image looks weak too," she expressed her small worries about her real name.
The broadcast also included the two imagining stage names. Wonbin said, "When I was younger, foreign names seemed cool. Something like 'Alex'," and Sohee added, "I think it would have been nice to have a stage name like the EXO members. I would go with 'Cold'? It has a strong and sharp feeling." To this, Jang Do-yeon humorously responded, "If it's Alex and Cold, then it's 'Alcohol'. I like alcohol," eliciting laughter.
Additionally, both shared that they are working hard to adapt to variety shows. Sohee laughed, saying, "The company tells us to push ourselves a bit. They want us to say something," while Wonbin added, "Our team itself isn't the type to try to be funny, so we're still learning in variety shows."
The broadcast captured the honest stories of the two members, along with their experiences of the 'weight of their names' and 'adapting to variety shows', resonating with fans and viewers.
[Kim Seung-hye, MK Sports Reporter]
