Group Ace, who returned as ‘military service members’, have opened their ‘second act’ with a full group album after three years.

Ace will release their third single album ‘Piñata’ at 6 PM on the 20th and begin full-fledged promotions. ‘Piñata’ was inspired by the piñata, a doll used in children‘s festivals in the United States and Central and South American countries. They interpreted it as sealing away negative emotions and senses such as human sadness and pain, and expressed the process of liberating emotions within their ‘worldview’.

The title song of the same name, ‘Piñata’, is an impressive song with a grand emotional line that makes you feel like you’re watching a blockbuster movie, inspired by director Christopher Nolan‘s film ‘Tenet’. Member Park Jun-hee participated in writing the lyrics, and with the will to “try something new”, they will perform ‘mega crew choreography’ with a large number of dancers.

They earned the new modifier ‘military service completion’, meaning that all members have completed their military service, as youngest member Kang Yu-chan was discharged from his service in February of this year. In addition, the members suffered mentally due to the reduced opportunities for stage performances due to the pandemic that swept the world right before their military service, but they are determined to cleanly end their three-year hiatus with ‘Piñata’.

Member Park Jun-hee said at a media showcase held at Ilchi Art Hall in Gangnam-gu, Seoul ahead of the album release that afternoon, “Due to the pandemic and military service, we kept breaking down whenever we could, and whenever we could, we broke down. We were in a situation where we seemed to be able to catch up but couldn’t keep up.”

He continued, “It took three years to finish all the big things and release a full album. We held on only with trust and pride in each other, and the love of our fans. We had a strong belief that if we kept going, we would see the light someday.”

Kang Yu-chan also said that he was given the nickname ‘Zzanice’, which means ‘a salty group’, and said, “We also have many regrets. There were moments when I thought, ‘It will get easier soon,’, but I couldn‘t. It felt like I was trying to walk and falling over,” he said, revealing his overwhelming feelings by saying, “If it weren’t for the fans and the members, I would‘ve run away halfway through. We all came this far because we’re together.“

The members, who have continued releasing new songs as a full group, holding fan meetings, and touring overseas this year, smiled and said, “We‘re happy to be able to finish the year off strong with ‘Piñata’, their first ‘full group album’ in three years. In the new album teaser video, the five members took off their tops, showing their extraordinary determination, saying, “We gave it our all.

They also honestly shared their thoughts on their ‘7th year’, which is considered another turning point on the idol stage. Park Jun-hee said, ”It’s been 7 years since our debut in 2017,“ and added, ”We still have a lot of thirst left. We are positively discussing contract renewal with the company in order to quench our thirst for group activities.“

He also said, ”We are making various preparations for the future. However, we are focusing on what we need to do right now. I think that‘s how those days will pile up and produce good results. We will prepare while remembering our gratitude for what we’ve done so far,“ conveying his strong will to maintain the team.


Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com