Park Woo-jin's 'Narrative' of Taking 1st Place Despite Shingles Pain... "The Best Choice I Ever Made"

Park Woo-jin, who has established himself as a solo artist after passing through the groups Wanna One and AB6IX, looked back on the intense moments of his past. Appearing on the 1theK Originals content 'Idol Appearance', Park Woo-jin shared his honest feelings regarding the physical pain he experienced during his survival program days and the final moments of his group.

'Never' stage overcoming shingles pain, "The best choice in my life"

Recalling the urgent situation during the 'Produce 101' competition, Park Woo-jin confessed to the extreme physical pain he suffered at the time. While preparing for Triple H's song 'Never', he developed shingles, and his condition worsened to the point of visiting the emergency room. He revealed that at the time, it was difficult even to open his eyes due to the shingles that had spread from his head down to his face.

He explained that the reason he had to go on stage wearing an eye patch was due to shingles, not a simple eye disease. Although he felt pain as if an electric current were flowing just by touching him, Park Woo-jin said, "I only thought that I couldn't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," adding, "Deciding to go on stage then was the best choice in my life." This determination led to results. Despite the extreme pain, he finished the stage and proved his presence by taking 1st place out of 35 people in the individual vote for that concept evaluation. He added that although his condition was so poor that he had to be rushed to the hospital immediately after finishing the stage, in the end, it was a decision precious enough that he wanted to praise himself for it.

The crises during the past competition process were not limited to this. Park Woo-jin shared his feelings at the time, mentioning the experience of his first-week voting rank dropping to as low as 75th. Unlike what he expected before the Hallyu stage, his mental state wavered when his rank fell, but he recalled that instead of giving up, he focused on practice and strengthened his will toward debut. He also looked back on the process of trying to show his own color, such as the instinctive lyric modification and wink performance shown while presenting 2PM's stage during the group evaluation.

Wanna One's final ending and the memory of the 'cruel' farewell

Among the memories of his Wanna One activities, Park Woo-jin specifically mentioned the ending of the last concert. Regarding the situation at the time, which is still talked about among fans as the 'most cruel ending', he recalled the emotions and atmosphere of that moment. The direction where members said their goodbyes one by one while the remaining members watched them gave a great resonance to fans at the time.

In particular, he also mentioned the remarks he made on stage back then. The remarks to the effect of "I won't be able to call your names again and we won't be able to meet again" reflected the situation at the time, but looking back now, he drew laughter by saying, "It was an embarrassing remark made with the emotions of that time." At that time, it was a moment filled with the desperation that they really might never meet again. He shared that the atmosphere was so intense that the surrounding staff even imitated the remark.

A new start, solo activities with Para Music

Park Woo-jin, who announced a new start with his new agency Para Music, shared his changed recent status. He expressed his ambitions as a solo artist, saying, "I intend to move forward vigorously with the new agency." While he performed the roles of main rapper and main dancer during previous group activities, he expressed the responsibility of having to handle all positions now that he is alone.

Additionally, regarding the nickname 'National Potato' given to him by fans, he showed his close communication with fans by mentioning his recent YouTube channel activities. Having overcome past trials and grown steadily, he defined himself by saying, "My charm is not giving up no matter what trials come," conveying his strengthened inner self. Furthermore, regarding his relationship with the AB6IX members, he showed unchanging friendship, saying, "When we are apart, we live our own lives, but when the two of us get together, it feels like we return to being nineteen years old."

Source: original video (YouTube)