Now that the first EP, three music videos, seven covers, and seemingly endless teaser photos have been released for WINNER's first comeback since 2014, it certainly seems like their year-long hiatus is officially a thing of the past.
However, it appears that WINNER's hiatus may have actually made their comeback that much more difficult.
Recently, the members of WINNER sat down for a press conference and discussed what they went through while they were on a break from activities. According to the members, there was a lot of pressure to be as good as their debut, but overall the members are pleased with early reception of their first release "Exit: E."
When asked about how they felt in regards to both title tracks "Baby Baby" and "Sentimental" topping the music charts, member Nam Taehyun explained that he felt nervous because he knew how much work the staff and the group put into the album.
"I didn't want to get hung up on the chart results. But then, I'm a human being, so I guess I somewhat wanted the songs to do well on the charts. I was really nervous though because I knew that the members and the staff really worked hard for this. I suppose I was thinking about the chart results," said Taehyun (via YG-Life).
Kang Seungyoon added that he felt added pressure after all of the other famous YG artists released cover songs of "Baby Baby" and "Sentimental."
"I was so worried, worried to death. All of them were famous and great musicians. Honestly, I think that they sang the song better than I did. I was really worried when the covers were revealed. I thought that it might backfire on us," explained Seungyoon.
Overall, in the face of the pressure, WINNER's Seungyoon further expressed that they were grateful for the long hiatus so that they could put the most effort into their new album.
"I'm really thrilled. I'm also thankful to our fans since they have waited for so long. Our break wasn't just about taking some time off. We wanted to put in enough time so that we can come up with music that can move people's hearts."
