After two rounds of cancellations and postponements, ATEEZ have finally set foot in Europe. From late April until mid-May, after successfully touring the U.S. earlier this year, the eight-member group — made up of Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Mingi, Wooyoung, and Jongho — set sail across five European cities with their The Fellowship: Beginning of the End world tour.
To chronicle their voyage, Teen Vogue caught up with the members in Madrid, the very first stop of their EU tour, to hand over a disposable camera, which they took all the way to Berlin, their second to last stop on the tour. Below, the group takes us behind the scenes like they have never done before and chat about all things beauty and style, including their "dos and don'ts."
It’s 5:00 p.m. on a normal Monday when ATEEZ enter the room. In a couple of hours, they are going to meet 100 ATINY during one of their fan signs. But, for now, they are still reeling from playing two nights in a row at Madrid’s Palacio Vistalegre, kicking things off with their hit “Wonderland” and wrapping it up nicely with slow-burn “Turbulence,” off 2021’s Zero: Fever Epilogue. “Was it fun?” San curiously asks with a smile, raising both his thumbs in approval. A quick scan through the hashtags dedicated to the concerts on Twitter would suffice to answer his question. By the time this interview is out, ATEEZ have already finished their European tour, putting on eight shows in total. Back in March, when the tour was officially rescheduled, additional shows in Madrid, London, and Berlin were also announced. During the concerts, the members explained how they wanted to give everyone a chance to see them even if the venues didn't fill up. (Spoiler alert: they did.)
Meeting ATEEZ in Madrid, the city where they first learned about COVID cancelations altogether, feels serendipitous. Before the coronavirus pandemic uprooted the world in 2020, the group had made the trek all the way from Seoul with hopes of seeing their fans. It was here, just a couple of days before their long-awaited The Fellowship: Map The Treasure world tour was about to kick off, that they would hear about lockdowns and borders shutting down. With life put on hold across the world, they had no choice but to return home without putting on a show.
It might have taken two years but ATEEZ are back and they are stronger than ever. "Because Madrid was our starting city and we couldn't make it last time, we wanted to perform many songs. We missed ATINY so much and started practicing right away to be able to come back. We wanted to show something better so we worked really hard all this time,” San explains. “We waited for this concert for a long time,” captain Hongjoong adds. “[ATINY] were really energetic and they gave us a lot of love, so I can't wait for our next meeting. That's all I can think about now.”
After finishing up a concert, all the members already have their preferred methods of relaxation, which often involve communicating with fans. In Madrid for example, Wooyoung, who was absent for most of the first show and the second one entirely due to a minor injury, went directly online to share a letter with fans about his condition. San, on the other hand, unwinded by listening to The Greatest Showman’s “Never Enough” — “I enjoy the romantic feeling,” he admits with a fond smile — and eating a pack of ramen he brought from Korea. (Yes, he didn’t just pose with them for the ‘gram.)
Seeing the members of ATEEZ talk about their favorite songs and pastimes nonchalantly, you wouldn’t think these are the same people that sent fans into a frenzy when they were spotted with fresh new haircuts and colors for the tour, including an undercut by Seonghwa that shook Twitter and Hongjoong’s now iconic “Cruella” hair. (Or, “Hongruella” as he calls it.) The reason behind the new ‘dos? They just wanted to switch things up.
“[The hairstyles we go for] depend on the album,” Seonghwa says via an interpreter, explaining how they usually go about selecting new hairdos. “Every album is a different concept so what we do is get opinions from within ourselves first and then consult with everyone else in the team, the hair designers and the makeup artists. We try to communicate and find a way to match both opinions.”
“But also, we are eight members,” Hongjoong quickly adds in English. “So sometimes, our opinions [overlap]. So, first, we consider our own style and then we talk about that concept or that hairstyle together. [Maybe] someone wants to do red hair, [but] someone [else] wants to do red hair, too. We talk about that. ‘Oh, this time I did red hair so next time, you can.’”
Since hairstyles and colors are decided before they fully dive into a new concept, it’s only natural to wonder if there’s ever been a time when they had to “fight” for their preferences. But, as Hongjoong assures us, there are always plenty of options and ideas going around. “We never fought about that,” he says. “If we fight, it’s usually because of food or something like that, not with styles.”
Maybe that’s because all eight members have such distinct styles. Whether it is tracking down the pieces in their wardrobes or simply archiving their best looks, there are multiple fan pages dedicated to ATEEZ’s style, both as individual members and as a group. But who better to describe their style than the members themselves?
Hongjoong categorizes San as being really “flashy” on stage, but says his style off the stage “is really simple and cool.” He says that duality is “one of the charming points of San,” who just smiles and nods from the side. Though San admits he’s not a fashion connoisseur per se (and that’s why he mostly packed ramen), he says he would love to learn more about it and we are sure he will keep fans updated on the progress.
According to San, Yunho’s everyday style is “comfortable and cool,” but there’s one element that helps elevate all of his outfits — quite literally. “Because he is tall, whatever he wears looks good on him,” he says, which makes the Gwangju native slightly blush before he mouthes a shy “thank you” and cracks a joke to lighten the mood.
When it comes time to describe Seonghwa’s style, not even a second passes before Yunho pronounces the word “beautiful.” He quickly explains how his hyung has “very specific tastes” and a penchant for “fitted” and “tailored” pieces. “Even though coats look very good on him, jackets that frame his body better look really really good on him,” Yunho adds. Seonghwa himself says he gets inspired by the places he visits, trying to match the feel of the city with his sartorial choices. In Madrid, for example, he drew inspiration from the architecture, focusing on predominantly beige buildings, and opted for a smart trench coat in a similar tone that is now immortalized on ATEEZ’s social channels.
Going around the table, next up is Mingi, who gets Seonghwa as his fashion critic. “Mingi is also tall but he has his own style, which can be a bit hip,” he explains, as the rapper claps and nods. “He always tries to [add] his own [twist] and he always tries new things. That makes him stand out a bit from the others.” This is evidenced in Mingi’s many OOTDs and “Minkiway” video series. One day, he can wear an oversized sweater with baggy jeans and Birkenstock sandals, and the next he could show up in a buttoned-up shirt and tie.
Of Jongho’s style, Mingi says the best way to describe it is “clean,” explaining the youngest of the group often gravitates toward simple clothes, favoring pants, jackets, and white shoes. Jongho himself also admits he likes to keep things simple. He shares he doesn’t really like having fully packed bags when he’s traveling so he likes to have a big normal suitcase with everything he needs and then a smaller one on the side with the essentials that he can just carry around with him at all times.
For Wooyoung, the first thing Jongho notes is that he wears streetwear a lot, particularly pieces by Nike. “He likes baggy clothes,” Jongho adds. “He always buys one size bigger than what his normal size is. And he likes beanies. But then one day out of a sudden he will dress very formally [and pull that off, too.]” To prove how right he is, Jongho makes the room analyze Wooyoung’s ‘fit and he couldn’t be more right. For the fan sign, the star has opted for a big tee, baggy jeans, and a pair of Supreme x Nike Air Force 1s. “If I can add a keyword, our fans talk about ‘boyfriend material’ a lot [when referring to Wooyoung’s style,]” Hongjoong says.
Describing Yeosang, who’s sitting right beside him, Wooyoung says he has a “very peculiar style,” which immediately makes him raise his eyebrows. “But it's beautiful, it suits you,” Wooyoung reassures him. “It's something that maybe the others members cannot pull off. But because Yeosang has a really unique style and he can. I always wonder where he gets his clothes from. He recently got a belt that really caught my attention. His style is very unique and beautiful at the same time.”
Last but not least is Hongjoong, as described by the charismatic Yeosang. “Hongjoong puts a lot of thought into what he wears and he always makes sure there's always something that stands out in his clothes,” Yeosang says. “He also likes to collect really beautiful clothes, special clothes that match his style. Wherever he goes, he attracts attention because of his style. He is really cool and has that ‘rich guy’ vibe.” That last comment makes everyone clap and laugh. Even though he’s slightly flustered at first, Hongjoong is ultimately delighted with the compliment.
But, as experimental as some of their styles might be, there are some things the members of ATEEZ would never try. For Yeosang and Seonghwa, that’s facial piercings. Having already ticked tattoos and piercing off his list, Wooyoung first says there’s nothing he won’t try but that’s only until the words “bald” and “shaving your head” are brought up in conversation. (“Oh, yeah, that’s the thing I would never,” he admits laughing.)
Jongho, on the other hand, is firm on no tattoos. Does that mean ATEEZ would never get a group tattoo? “It would take a lot of discussing,” the maknae proclaims, suddenly sitting upright. “Eight makes one team?” San jokingly suggests from the other side of the table. You could almost literally see the weight lifted off Jongho’s shoulders when Yunho also list tattoos as his no-go. “I think we can't do group tattoos,” Hongjoong immediately quips, putting on a comedic sad face. Yunho also doesn’t see piercings in his future. For now, he’s sticking to faux ones. And, though he already has both tattoos and piercings, San admits he’s also team no more body mods because “they hurt more than I thought they would.”
On the other side of the spectrum are Mingi, who says he likes to go with the flow, and Hongjoong, who proudly proclaims he “will try everything once” if the timing is right. However, contact lenses are off the table for the captain. Not because he doesn't want to wear them but because his eyes won't tolerate them. “It’s so sad,” he laments.
As for things that the other members want to explore, Yeosang wants to see what the experience of getting a tattoo would be like. Seonghwa wants to give face paintings another chance after getting a taste during “THANXX” promos but, instead of script, he’d like to go for something more artistic and editorial. Yunho wants to try out different makeup styles and hairstyles. San wants to experiment more with his fashion choices and Wooyoung says he feels his existing tats and piercings are enough experimentation. But it’s without a doubt Jongho’s answer that takes the cake: “There is nothing that I want to try.”
Fashion can be fun and games, but it also plays a bigger role in ATEEZ’s world. “After the U.S. tour, we did a lot of monitoring and talked about how we could make our show better. We [already] practiced really hard so we don't have much time to change [everything.] We considered what's something different that could be different and one thing is style. Our clothes change [for each show,]” Hongjoong explains. “We also asked Maddox [if he wanted to join us on tour] and he came with us as a special guest to make our show more varied.”
“After this tour, we plan many things,” he continues. “We already announced the Japan tour and we spoiled something for our next comeback already in this tour season.” He is referring to a very cryptic video linked via QR codes all over the venues that ATINYs around the world might have already seen. As for a spoiler of the spoiler? “Choreography,” Wooyoung shouts before Hongjoong explains the nitty gritty. “After our first series, the Treasure series, we tried many, many genres. We tried many colors and many types of choreography. But many of our fans… I heard them [say they] miss the original ATEEZ style from the start. So we prepared that mindset and that choreography, from that time. So maybe you can see more of just [that] ATEEZ style.”
We'll have to wait until July to see exactly what form that takes but it’s safe to say both ATEEZ and ATINY are more than ready.
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