DAY6 Wonpil Drops the Filter on First Solo EP After Four-Year Wait

DAY6 vocalist Wonpil is back with a solo project that strips away the polish. His first mini-album, "Unpiltered," arrives four years after his solo debut and reveals a side of the singer fans have rarely seen.

Wonpil met with reporters at a cafe in Seoul's Gangnam district to discuss the EP, his first solo release since the 2021 album "Pilmography." With "Unpiltered," he said, he wanted to show himself as he is, without a filter.

The title track, "Love Ward," turns a tangle of private feelings into a song centered on the idea of love. Wonpil came up with the title himself.

"We put up with a lot just to get through the day," he said. "When you're working and dealing with people, you can't always be honest. You hide what hurts. You don't show it when you're in pain. I kept wondering what it would be like to have a place where you could just say all of it out loud."

He said the song's synth line reminded him of a siren, and the phrase "love ward" came to him while working on the melody and lyrics.

The album title carries a familiar wink. After 2021's "Pilmography," Wonpil once again worked the "Pil" from his name into the title.

"I went back and forth on whether to use 'Pil' again," he said. "I used it last time, so doing it again felt like a lot. Then I started thinking, does that mean I have to put 'Pil' in the third album too? After talking it through with the company, we landed on 'Unpiltered.' To fans, I probably always look like I'm smiling and like nothing hurts. I wanted to show another side of me. What's on this album is also me."

Known for the detailed songwriting he brings to DAY6, Wonpil is credited on every track on the EP, including "Love Ward."

"I prepared a lot because I wanted to show something new," he said. "I've been watching the reactions to what's been released so far. I'm grateful people are responding well. Only short clips are out right now, so I'm excited and nervous about how people will react to the full album. The tracklist was finalized around mid-January. I haven't gone a night without listening to it since. I keep playing it because I want people to like it. There's fear and excitement at the same time."

He said he wanted the project to surprise listeners. "I wanted to hear someone say they never imagined this kind of music from DAY6, or from Wonpil."

That extended to the visuals as well. "I tried to show sides of myself I hadn't shown before in concept photos or music videos. For the concept photos, I pushed the styling further than I ever had. While filming the concept film, even though it was acting, I cried a lot. I'd never cried that much during a shoot. It was actually fun."

The concept film leans into a version of Wonpil that audiences do not usually see. "I'm someone who overthinks. Am I doing something wrong? Would things be better if I'd said this, or done that? I have nights like that a lot. Even when I cry alone, I hold the sound in. I think it became a habit during difficult times. This shoot let me work through a lot of that. I cried out loud. I screamed. I realized I could actually do that."

He added with a laugh, "I still can't do it in real life. I could do it because the setup was there."

That sense of still figuring himself out runs throughout the EP. The third track is titled "I've Become an Adult." "Being an adult means making peace with reality," he said. "You can't just do everything you want. You go through work and life and gradually shave parts of yourself down. That's what the song is about."

Asked what being an adult means to him, Wonpil answered: "Pretending. Pretending it isn't hard. Pretending it isn't difficult. I think that's what being an adult is. The more you have to lose, the more responsibility you carry. There's a moment when you start being afraid of losing things." He paused before adding, "I don't think I'm there yet."

His DAY6 bandmates were quick to weigh in on the album. "After the song was done, I played it for the members. Sungjin said, 'This is so new. It's really good.' For him, that's a big reaction, so I thought, okay, this works. Before it became the title track, there was a point when I wasn't sure. I played it for Young K, and he said this was the title track out of all seven songs. Dowoon said, 'It's this one, right?' Everyone picked the same song."

DAY6 marked its 10th anniversary last year. Asked whether he has a picture of the band at 15 or 20 years in, Wonpil said he thinks about it often.

"We joke about it. We've said we'll do shows in wheelchairs, hooked up to IVs. It's our way of saying we want to keep making music together for a long time. I'm looking forward to 15 and 20 years. I wonder what kind of music we'll be making. I want it to still be good. Trendy, but also right for our age."

Wonpil's first mini-album, "Unpiltered," and its title track "Love Ward" were released on March 30 at 6 p.m. KST. He will also hold a three-night solo concert, "WONPIL SOLO CONCERT 'Unpiltered,'" from May 1 to 3.