“I still get nervous every time,” Heeseung, one seventh of the K-pop boyband ENHYPEN, says as we chat in a London hotel room. “But I could really feel that Engenes [the name given to their fans] in London were having fun.” The night before, the group, who sit in front of NME in perfect, tonally coordinated looks, performed in London for the first time as part of their Walk the Line tour. Though the jetlag and post-concert fatigue are creeping in, they’re still vibrating from the energy of performing to 20,000 people at the city’s iconic O2 arena.
It’s been five years since Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, Jungwon, and Ni-ki were forged together as ENHYPEN on the debut series of I-Land, the first survival series from ‘Big 4’ K-pop label HYBE. With thousands of fans already in the bag from their gruelling trials and tribulations on TV, the septet released their first single, the tantalising ‘Given-Taken’, in 2021, alongside an intricate vampiric concept that still accompanies them to this day.
Since then, they’ve solidified themselves as one of the most celebrated acts of K-pop’s 4th generation, releasing six mini-albums and two full-length albums (including last year’s ‘Romance: Untold’) and selling out tours across Asia, North America and, for the first time this summer, performing at Coachella. They’ve also finally added Europe to their roster, as their Walk The Line tour marks the first time the group have landed this side of the globe.
Despite emerging with a readymade fanbase in tow, the group haven’t fallen into the trap of complacency, especially when it comes to performing in new places. “Anything that’s a first is always exciting,” says Jungwon, “so we’re even more excited for this European tour.” Our chat sits sandwiched between their concerts in London and Manchester, the latter often overlooked on K-pop tours, while the tour also stops in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Berlin. “I hope Engenes in Europe can feel how much we’ve grown,” he adds.
Over the course of our In Conversation chat, ENHYPEN open up about their touring rituals, noticing growth over the last five years and their goals going into 2026 after their biggest year yet.
You just had the concert last night, so we forgive you if you’re really tired! It was your first time performing in London on tour. How was it?
Jake: “I think we had the best time we could possibly imagine. The energy was just incredible. It’s our first time being in London and doing our own concert, so we kind of didn’t know what to expect from the fans and the crowds, but they were more than expected. They were so energetic.”
You all mentioned on stage that you always really wanted to come to London. What is it about London that you’ve always wanted to experience?
Sunghoon: “We’ve never been here before. When I think of London, there’s a certain vibe that comes to mind. I really wanted to feel that for myself by actually being here.
These days, it’s pretty easy to get a feel for different cities online, but I wanted to come and feel it in person.”
Jake: “Fish and chips [Group laughs].”
I feel like we have an unfair critic, though, because you’re Australian. You have pretty good fish and chips!
Jake: “I’m not 100 per cent sure, but the restaurant we went to was very high quality. It was like a proper restaurant. But back in Australia, you would just get fish and chips, like, on the road, and they would just serve you on a plastic plate, yeah? But here was very proper.”
What were you excited about with being able to bring this tour to Europe?
Jungwon: “Anything that’s a first is always exciting, so we’re even more excited for this European tour. We just wrapped up a huge dome and stadium tour before coming to the U.S. and Europe. Because of that, I feel like we can have even more fun on stage this time. We’ve really honed our skills and learned to enjoy performing even more. I hope Engenes in Europe can feel how much we’ve grown.”
Something that I really enjoy about seeing shows in different countries is how different every crowd is. Is that something that you guys see on stage as well?
Sunoo: “I have to say, after performing in different cities like Chicago, New York, and Houston, we’ve come to notice how each crowd has its own way of cheering. And yesterday in London, Engenes really knew how to have fun. The energy we felt from them was incredible. Since it was our first time performing in London, I was a bit nervous about how the crowd would react, but their passion made it such an amazing show.”
There are a few songs on the set list, like ‘Go Big or Go Home’ and ‘Helium’, that are really fun live. Is that something that you think about when you’re recording the songs?
Heeseung: “Personally, after going through several tours, there are certain songs that just feel perfect for the stage even while recording. Songs like ‘Go Big Or Go Home’, ‘Paranormal’, and especially the EDM remix of ‘Drunk-Dazed’. When we’re recording songs like these, I can’t help but look forward to performing them live.”
Jay and Heeseung, you each get a moment to play instruments on stage. How does that feel?
Heeseung: “I still get nervous every time, but I could really feel that Engenes in London were having fun. At the end of the show, we have a send-off event where we say goodbye to the fans, and a lot of fans told me they liked my piano performance. It made me so happy to hear that.”
Jay: “It’s really embarrassing, because the UK is one of the biggest band industries in the whole world. So it’s a little embarrassing for me as a big fan of British music, but I was trying my best every single time, like trying to make it more like the colours of the stages, with instruments or anything else we can do without dancing or singing.”
You mentioned last night that you’re a big fan of British music. Are there any artists in particular you like?
Jay: “Legendary bands in the UK, like The Police or The Who and The Rolling Stones. I have loved Britpop and British rock genres for my whole life, so I think it’s some of my favourite music.”
You have a few tours under your belt now. Do you feel like you’ve got it down now? Do you know the things you need to do to feel well on stage and to do your best?
Jake: “I’d say we’re definitely less nervous about going up on stage compared to maybe our first tour. I remember we used to be very nervous being back up backstage, you know, just before we go on. But now I think we’re more relaxed and we’re more hype that just came with experience being up on stage in front of a lot of people. I feel like no human being is really not nervous about that at first, but you get used to it, and you just get more ideas of how to make that crowd enjoy more. So, as a group, we’re more confident now compared to our first concert.”
Do you do anything to hype yourself up before you go on stage?
Heeseung: “I eat bread a lot. With strawberry jam! Lots of carbs.”
You’re basically doing a marathon!
Heeseung: “It makes me energetic.”
Jet lag can be pretty gruelling. Do you have set ways to get over it now?
Jake: “I feel like everyone gets jet lag whenever they’re travelling, but the hard thing about jet lag is that the time you need to sleep, you can’t sleep. And when you can’t sleep, you just get so tired. I think we’re just used to it now. We just came to the conclusion that you can’t really do anything about it. You just gotta go through it.”
Are there any essentials you can’t leave home without when you go on tour?
Heeseung: “Melatonin!”
Jake: “There’s an essential thing that I regret not bringing, which is my own pillow! Your pillow is one of the most important things for getting a good night’s sleep. But it was way too big to fit in my trunk, so I couldn’t bring it, and I regret it.”
Jungwon: “It’s good for your skin as well.”
Jay, you’ve said previously that you think 2025 is the most important year for ENHYPEN. Why is that?
Jay: “This year, the plan was to take our team to the next level and [get to] the next page of our team. The schedules we did, the big events this year, were all for that.”
Jake: “We always gather around the beginning of the year, saying that this is going to be the biggest. But I think that’s gonna be the same for next year. It’s just gonna keep going.”
How do you guys stay grounded and plant your feet on the ground when life is whipping you into these crazy situations?
Jake: “Me, personally, I don’t think I can give you the answer right away, right now, because it’s one of the biggest questions we go through in life. We’re still trying to figure out how to balance and how to do what you said, but we always come back to, I think, our fans, as they help us stay grounded, and they’re the reason we’re able to do all this. Like you said, performing in front of big crowds, we can’t be performing in front of no one, right? You can’t be touring without people watching us. So I think it always comes back to our fans, them being there and them giving us so much love and support.”
You said on stage last night that the Walk The Line tour is about looking back in the past and also forging ahead to the future. When you look into the past, what are the things that you’re looking at?
Ni-Ki: “It might be a small thing, but back during the pandemic, we had our fan meeting, EN-CONNECT. After every concert, we always post some photos on social media. Looking at the ones from back then and comparing them to now, I can really feel how much we’ve grown – both in audience and venue size.”
You’re celebrating five years since you competed on I-Land. Is there anything about your life now that you feel like you could have never predicted?
Jake: “That’s the fun thing about life, you know, yeah, you can’t really predict the future, and you can’t really know what’s gonna happen, but that’s the fun part of it, and you just got to try and give it everything you got in the moment and hope for the best.”
Sunoo: “I-Land happened five years ago, and we were really just babies back then.
I’m sure you’ll notice a big difference seeing us now. We’ve grown so much over the past years, and there’s definitely a huge change from then to now.”
Do you ever watch it back?
Sunghoon: “I’m reluctant to see it.”
Jungwon: “Sometimes!”
Jay: “If you want to be humbled.”
Jake: “It’s hard, it’s not easy.”
What would you say is the biggest learning curve that you have experienced over the last five years?
Jungwon: “For me, I’ve felt something that’s actually my motto: ‘Just do it.’ I felt it strongly during our rookie days, and it’s still something I try to live by. Let’s say we have a really busy day ahead. Even if we’re unsure if we can pull it off, we can if we just go for it. I think it’s been a continuation of that mindset. Not only with our schedules, but also with the venues, we sometimes doubted if they’d sell out. Still, we kept giving our all, and we’ve managed to fill those venues.”
Is there anything you never thought you’d be able to master that feels like second nature now?
Sunghoon: “Performing on stage. Even music show stages were tough when we first debuted. When we practice, there’s always a mirror in front of us, so I could check which parts I messed up and make sure I was in position. At first, performing without the mirrors felt a bit strange, but now it’s become so natural that it feels like second nature.”
Jungwon: “Perhaps Jake’s translating skills?”
Jay: “His Korean has improved a lot!”
Jake: “[In Korean] I do agree on that. See how I just spoke in Korean? [Laughs] As time goes by, I think the chemistry between our seven just gets better. And if we’re up on stage, you can tell if someone’s not feeling well or someone’s having less energy, and then it’s the rest of the members’ job to kind of fill that in. I think that we don’t do that without talking. You can just feel and see that on stage. I think that we couldn’t do that at the beginning. But I think as time goes on, as we do more concerts, as we do more performances, I think that just comes by naturally.”
Looking ahead, do you have any specific goals in mind for the rest of the year and beyond?
Heeseung: “Whenever this topic comes up, we always say, ‘Let’s end the year in good health.’ Our members are already so talented, so being healthy is the most important thing. If you’re not healthy, you can’t do anything. And I know I’ve said this a lot, but Coachella was a huge turning point for me and for us as a team, too. When we were preparing our performance, we put so much of our ideas and creative input into it. Performing at Coachella helped us find a new artistic direction and gave us the confidence to move forward on our own.”
Ni-Ki: “Agreed, Coachella was probably the stage we worked hardest on this year, so we’re really proud of it. Engenes seemed to love our performance as well. We put a lot of ourselves into that stage, and I think it will really benefit us moving forward.”
