Dazed Korea Spring 2026 Cover: RIIZE Sohee – English Translation

 

 

A face dotted with small moles here and there. I’ve never counted them one by one, but somehow, if even one were missing, it would feel a little disappointing. Once you start looking at that face, you find yourself wanting to keep looking. Sohee had something—something you couldn’t quite name.

He suddenly asked first.

“Ah, would it be okay if I look at the questions while answering?”

“Of course. Are you the type who prepares a lot for interviews?”

For a split second, I wondered if he had everything meticulously planned, if a perfectly memorized answer was about to come out.

“I usually go with the flow!” he said immediately.

Then he added, “I actually like interviews.”

It’s the first time <DAZED> and Sohee have met like this. In a way, it feels new for both of us.

“I saw the <DAZED> shoot on my schedule. I was surprised to hear it would be my first pictorial as a C.P. Company ambassador. I was like, ‘Is this real?’ It didn’t quite sink in.”

Sohee’s face is clear and open as he speaks. A face that makes it easy to imagine whatever scene or feeling he’s describing. That’s why it’s such a good face.

“I’ve done a lot of shoots with the members before, but today I was alone. It definitely felt different. At first, I felt some pressure (laughs)… yeah, I think the pressure was pretty big.”

He admits it simply. The more you care about something, the more you want to do well, the easier it is to fall into the swamp of pressure. Of course, Sohee didn’t sink into it.

“I think I did well today.”

He smiles.

Sohee, who liked C.P. Company, has now become its ambassador. A day shaped by mutual admiration.

“The photos today—seriously! They looked amazing.”

His voice noticeably jumps on the word “seriously.”

“If I were walking down the street and saw these photos, I think it would feel surreal. Kind of like the first time I saw RIIZE’s photos displayed everywhere.”

He says this after pausing, as if recalling a similar memory.

“Of course you choose clothes you like and that suit you, but what do you like about C.P. Company?”

Sohee wore today’s collection—pieces he was trying on for the first time—as if they were already his own. I asked him.

“Um… first of all, I think clothes have to blend well with me.”

What blends well with Sohee?

“If I think about myself, I’m someone who values comfort. And I want people who look at me to feel comfortable too. C.P. Company’s clothes and image are like that. They’re unique, but not excessive. They look comfortable on both the wearer and the viewer, and at the same time they still feel stylish. I thought my fashion taste really aligns with C.P. Company.”

It felt instinctive—Sohee seems to naturally know what suits him and what fits him well.

“The first time I encountered C.P. Company was when I was in high school. Honestly, it’s not cheap for a high school student. I saved up my allowance and bought a gray sweatshirt. I remember wearing it almost every day.”

It’s surprising that C.P. Company was the brand he chose to splurge on so early.

“I really made up my mind before buying it. I think I wore it until it was practically worn out. After I debuted, I tried some vintage pieces too. Recently, I wore a lightweight white padded jacket. Looking back, maybe there was some kind of connection (laughs). It feels kind of amazing.”

To become the face of a brand he once dug through for vintage pieces. And even before that, to have recognized a brand like C.P. Company early on.

“I think that’s why I was even more drawn to it. Rather than liking something just because everyone else knows it and owns it.”

How did high school student Lee Sohee—who used to wear that C.P. Company sweatshirt so often—become RIIZE’s Sohee? What choices and coincidences shaped that path?

“I sometimes talk about when I was a student, preparing for applied music.”

“It was the beginning. That academy was the starting point where I began taking music seriously.”

A faint smile appears at the word “beginning.”

“That memory is still precious to me. I’m grateful to the teachers from back then. Looking back, starting to sing at that academy created a lot of crossroads for me.”

Thinking about how something he started simply because he liked it led him somewhere unexpected. Sohee has said in past interviews that he never imagined he’d end up singing on stage like this.

“I might have gone to university. Maybe there was a completely different future? I think about that sometimes.”

I picture him in a small recording room, wearing his school uniform jacket, singing.

“If I remember correctly, my friends were the first to like my singing. When we went to karaoke, they’d say, ‘Sohee, you’re really good.’ That’s how I realized, as a student, that I could sing well…”

He trails off and changes course.

“Wait, that sounded weird.” (laughs)

We both laugh.

“Are you embarrassed?”

“It’s a bit awkward to say it myself. I guess… I realized back then that I had something in my singing. A certain strength? That sounds weird too, right?”

He carefully chooses his words.

“Singing feels different to everyone who listens. So I think I’m cautious about speaking too confidently about myself.”

When I tell him he can brag a little more, he responds:

“I try to stay in this kind of mode. I push myself.”

He says it with a scrunched-up face.

“RIIZE received a lot of attention from debut. Because of that, I think we have to work even harder. The more attention we get, the more we have to keep pushing forward. We can’t get complacent. There are so many talented people out there, and if we want to become a group that represents ‘reaaally’ true K-pop pride, I think we need to work harder in every aspect. I have a big dream.”

That must be why his eyes were shining so brightly.

“After joining this group, I’ve changed a bit. I wasn’t like this before. Before RIIZE, I’d never experienced this kind of group life. After debuting, I think about being a member of this team much more. I want to work for the group. I set my goals with the group at the center.”

“If there’s someone who pushes you from the side, who would that be?”

“Wonbin hyung.” (laughs)

I found myself curious about Sohee within RIIZE as that kind of “one team.” I asked if there was anyone in particular he’d been thinking about today.

“It’s hard to pick just one person, but… maybe Anton? Earlier, before coming to the shoot from the airport, he told me ‘Fighting.’ I think he’s the type who supports you thoughtfully when you have individual schedules. When I was an MC on a music show, he even sent a coffee truck. Of course, the other members were involved too.”

He had just been speaking with steady resolve, but the moment RIIZE comes up, he breaks into a smile.

“We joke around a lot. Because we’re comfortable with each other. If I were the older one, I’d probably do the same. Normally? Somewhere in between. Serious when we need to be serious, and when it’s time to have fun, we enjoy it like elementary school kids. That’s kind of how I live too. Right now, I try to keep my manners and formality… especially in front of people I’m meeting for the first time. Hehe.”

And yet, he smiles this easily in front of someone he just met.

“In 2025, we did year-end stages for about two months, and then after quite a long time, we went back on tour. Performing again in our own space—it had been so long. I remember being really excited.”

The way Sohee described concerts as “our own performances” was striking. Even though he went on to admit he had been completely out of breath.

“If you enjoy it too much, your stamina just drops to zero. I can’t really pace myself. Even if there are lots of stages left, I use up everything at the beginning. The later stages get really hard! But it’s also that much more refreshing. It’s thrilling.”

There’s something deeply satisfying about watching someone who openly says they love what they love.

“I think it’s become a routine. Writing reviews for each city. I just want to tell them how thankful I am. It might seem small, but every city enjoys the show differently. In some places, you can really feel how passionately the fans react. In others, it’s different—not explosive, but more like they’re empathizing with us, following emotionally. Those subtle differences from city to city—I like to leave a record of them. Like, ‘Ah, this was the feeling here.’”

“What’s the secret to never making spelling mistakes or grammar errors?”

“Ah, haha. I use a spell checker. When I upload posts, I pay attention. Sometimes there are typos. But with messages, I’m not like that. I think what’s important in messages is sharing exactly what I’m doing at the moment. Everyone’s probably curious. But sometimes I end up sending the same kind of message every day. That’s something I worry about.”

“For example?”

“Like, ‘I’m eating,’ or ‘I’m too lazy to shower.’” (laughs)

Even the smallest, most trivial things—he shares them. Just like the voice I’m hearing now, Sohee communicates with fans in that same tone.

Sometimes he writes things like, “You learn by falling.” It’s something he wants to tell his fans.

“I also write things just because I like them—phrases that struck me when I first heard them. I quote them. I guess fans think, ‘That’s a nice thing to say,’ right?” (laughs)

“You often say things like ‘I’m still lacking.’ Is there anything you’ve grown more confident about?”

“I’m still lacking. There are many hurdles I still need to overcome, and I have to work harder.”

He grows composed again.

“But if there’s something I’ve gained confidence in, it’s my mindset during performances. When we had our first fan-con in 2024, I was just busy being nervous. I was scared, too. Back then, those feelings came first. Now, what comes first is thinking about how to lift the atmosphere with the fans.”

“Is there a secret to shaking off nerves?”

“Just go crazy. Focus only on the performance like you’re crazy. Really, don’t think about anything else.”

In other words, today was Sohee’s first solo cover shoot for <DAZED>. When might we see him like this again? I ask.

He turns the question back on me.

“How many years later do you usually meet again?”

“It depends. Some people come back in two years, others in five.”

“Hmm. I hope we can do it again soon.”

Throughout the day, I lost count of how many humble things Sohee said.

But there’s one thing that’s certain.

When he’s sure, he’s sure.

“Yes, I think sooner is better.” (laughs)