In a recent episode of Salon Drip, hosted by comedian Jang Do-yeon on YouTube channel TEO, Wonbin and Sohee opened up about the burden of debuting with names already made famous by legendary K-pop figures.
Jang Do-yeon playfully brought up the elephant in the room, “You debuted with the same names as actor Won Bin and Wonder Girls’ Sohee was that ever a source of pressure?”
Wonbin didn’t hesitate to admit it was. “I actually told the company early on that I felt really burdened by it,” he revealed. “I wanted to use a different name. But they said, ‘It’s your real name, let’s go with it.'”
Despite debuting under his legal name, he added, “To be honest, I still feel a lot of pressure.”
Sohee, on the other hand, had a different perspective at least at first. “I thought the name Sohee sounded unique in a good way,” he said. “But recently, I’ve started wondering if my name lacks presence. Maybe it makes my image feel weaker.” He added, “Sometimes I wish I’d gone with a stage name.”
When the topic turned to hypothetical names, the conversation got more fun. Wonbin laughed, “I used to want a foreign-sounding name, like ‘Alex.’ It just sounded cool to me as a kid.” Sohee chimed in, “I liked the kind of stage names RIIZE sunbaenim use—something like ‘Cold.’ Something sharp and intense.”
Host Jang Do-yeon joked, “Then how about ‘Middlehee’? Since ‘Bighee’ is already taken by comedian Kim Dae-hee.” Wonbin joined in with a laugh, “Yeah, go with ‘Junghee’ (Middlehee) then.”
While the two rookies took the name talk lightly, their honesty about the weight of comparisons and finding personal identity in K-pop struck a chord with fans.