Yezi of girl group ITZY shared her thoughts on being the team‘s first soloist.

Yezi made her solo debut on the 10th at 6PM with the release of her first mini-album, ‘Air’. Ahead of the album’s release, she held a press conference at the Sofitel Ambassador Seoul Hotel in Songpa-gu, Seoul in the afternoon and personally introduced the new album.

She said, “My heart is racing and I‘m nervous. When I heard the news that I would be going solo, which I had only imagined in the distant future, I was so happy that it felt like time had passed so quickly. As the first member of the team, I also felt a lot of pressure. The reason I was the first soloist is because I am the eldest and the leader, so I think they trusted me and sent me out first,” she said, expressing her anticipation.

She continued, “I think debuting solo after 7 years can be a big turning point, but while I was preparing, I wanted to discover things I didn’t know about and show them to many people without shame. I really wanted to show my best side. I am very determined to make Yezi known.”

She also explained, when asked about JYP Entertainment’s head producer Park Jin-young’s reaction, she said, “Because I was under a lot of pressure, PD Park told me that he wanted me to focus on making myself known rather than the results. He said that Yezi is good, but if people feel the potential of Yezi as a soloist, that’s enough. That’s why I let go of the pressure a little.”

She also conveyed the members’ support. Yezi said, “The members also said they were happy that I was the first to go out. They knew that I could do it and cheered me on. The members’ support gave me strength and warmth. The members visited all the locations including Paju and I received a coffee truck. It was my first time receiving a coffee truck, so I thought, ”I‘m finally receiving something like this. The members’ support and encouragement gave me strength. I became proud of having the members.“

Yeji, who foreshadowed various changes in ITZY in the future, said, ”We received a lot of expectations and love because ITZY had its own team color during the 7 years of activities. I‘m looking forward to seeing other members show new sides of themselves starting with my solo activities.“

Meanwhile, Yeji’s first mini album, ”Air,“ which is the first among the members of ITZY to challenge a solo career, contains a synth-pop title song of the same name. Yeji herself participated in writing the lyrics, and JYP Entertainment‘s CEO producer Park Jin-young was credited.


Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.