WOODZ “I’ll Never Love Again”
EDAM Entertainment
Korean artist WOODZ used to care about people perceiving him as “cool,” not just himself as an artist, but also his music. He would ask himself, “Who am I, and why do I do music?” and he would answer that he “wanted to be cool,” being seen as sophisticated in this industry.
Nowadays, the 29-year-old multihyphenate performer, who left the military earlier this year, has given considerable thought to how he defines what it means to be “cool.”
“I’ve always been drawn to things that are cool,” WOODZ says over Zoom from Seoul. “I wanted to be cool myself. In that sense, I’d also ask myself how I’d define my own coolness. Personally, I think that’s where the idea of being fashionable comes in. The whole reason why I focus more on details these days is because I believe I need great details to present better end results.”
It’s not difficult to find WOODZ impressive and “cool.” He has built his career as a singer-songwriter and producer, known for his distinct musical style, emotional range, and creative artistic vision. His projects – QUAL (2020), SET (2021), ONLY LOVERS LEFT (2021), COLORFUL TRAUMA (2022), and OO-LI (2023) – have received high recognition from music critics and charted on Korean and Billboard K-pop charts. Even after entering his mandatory military service in 2024, his 2023 song, “Drowning,” became a sleeper hit, going viral on social media and charting on Shazam, and re-entered Korea’s Top 100. It surpassed 100 million views on YouTube and has over 27 million streams on Spotify. As of last month, it continues to maintain its position within the Top 5 of Korea’s leading music charts.
Due to the strict military rules, the hitmaker couldn’t really celebrate the success of ‘Drowning’ when it first started climbing the charts. But now that he’s out of the military (since July 2025), he’s been making up for lost time.
His never-before-heard track, “Smashing Concrete,” was released following his military service, and he began performing at festivals, including SBS Gayo Daejeon Summer, Summer Sonic, Woori Momocon, and is set to perform at the Busan International Rock Festival this week.
“I’ve been using ‘Smashing Concrete’ as an opening song for my recent gigs,” he says. “It’s a great song to immerse myself in the vibe for any of my gigs.”
He also immediately began working on new music, determined to have a new album by next year. Today, his new single, “I’ll never love again,” has been released, the first that he’s worked on since being discharged from the military.
WOODZ expected there would be some pressure in preparing his new single, since he was just discharged only three months ago, but he was completely fine.
“Fortunately, I don’t know if it’s my personality,” he chuckles. “I didn’t really feel that pressure. I just thought a lot about what I would do or what I could do right after I got discharged from the military. I thought a lot about what would be my next move – and what would be the most fun for my fans and the general public to see.”
Below, WOODZ discusses how he and his sound have evolved since his discharge, what to expect from his new album, and his plans for future music and touring.
Laura Sirikul: How are you feeling about this single release?
WOODZ: I’m just thankful for this opportunity to present what I can do. I had a good time working on this song. This [may be] a single, but it’s not just [any] single. It is the starting point for bigger projects coming up, like an album or concerts going forward. In that sense, this is also meaningful.
Do you feel like your music sound and taste have changed since military service? If so, how?
There has been quite a lot of change since my military service. When I was in the military, what I could do after I was done with my daily schedule was listen to a lot of music on my phone. So, in this process of listening to a lot of music, my taste in music changed. One of the biggest changes is that I’m now listening to more details when I’m listening to songs, and this is also reflected in the songs that I make. So when I was mixing this new song, I was paying attention to the details of the sound. Recently, I moved to a new studio and got a new speaker that would be more suitable for listening to all of those details. The kind of music that I like these days are the ones that have great details because all those little details come together to make great music. I hope this shows in my new music. For this music, I worked with session artists and musicians, and had the full session to record the song. The second part [of this change] is that I am now pursuing a more natural sound. In the past, I was more focused on presenting my music in a nicer and cooler way. I feel like I have to be more honest when I make music now. Of course, every time I worked on music in the past, I always wanted to be honest with myself. But now more than ever, I’m trying to be myself and show that in my music too. That’s the direction that I will take going forward with my music. Not just one song, but the album that I will be working on in the future as well.
What can you tell me about the concept and meaning you had with this digital release? What was the inspiration behind this song?
I didn’t really have a clear visual concept that I had in mind when I was working on this song. If I were to describe a specific concept that I had in mind for this song, it would be for the music video. I wanted to be a cupid and portray different types and scenes of love. In the music video, I will be like a cupid, showing different people in love and in [various] stages of love. And musically, the strongest inspiration for this new song was “Drowning.” “Drowning” was a song where I talk about wanting my lover to come back, but this song is more about locking myself off after being hurt by love. [The feeling of] I don’t ever want to love again, and I’m so hurt by love. It’s the agony of love that I felt is something that I’m good at portraying. That’s something I realized after I made “Drowning.” So I did have “Drowning” in mind when I was working on this song. That is not necessarily bad, because it’s such a great song. While I was working on it, I thought, “Oh, this would be a great song to present to my fans.” So in general, those were the inspirations that I had, musically. “Drowning” was definitely one of the biggest inspirations for this song.
WOODZ “I’ll Never Love Again”
EDAM Entertainment
I know you initially didn’t want to perform ‘Drowning’ on the show Immortal Songs because it was too high, but I have to ask how difficult it was to sing “I’ll Never Love Again,” which feels even higher.
“I’ll Never Love Again” is similar to “Drowning” in that it is challenging to sing, but it’s a little better compared to “Drowning.” Even in verse two of “Drowning,” there are still high notes that I have to sing.
When I was working on [“I’ll Never Love Again,”] I had the ideal structure in mind, so I got to have a little break during the verse, and then in the chorus, I hit the high notes and all. I think it is a song to show off the strength of my vocals. Of course, when I train, I constantly have to use my voice and make sure I don’t hurt my voice, and still maintain the strong tone that I have. Thankfully, my voice is still pretty strong. I went to the clinic to get it checked yesterday, and the doctor said it’s very good. I think everything is good, and I feel good singing this song.
Last month, you told Teen Vogue that you scrapped your album to start from scratch. You wanted to find the right voice and core message for this album. Have you found it yet? What foundations have you built or started to put together for this album?
Luckily, I found it. The reason why I wanted to start over was that it didn’t feel like myself. I wanted to be more honest with myself as I was making the music for this album. The way it started, the whole project for this new album didn’t feel like 100% of me. You asked about the foundations for working on the album – Unless I’m working on a song for somebody else, when I make my own song, I have first to face my true self.
After I was discharged from the military, there were so many things that I wanted to show to the public and the fans. I had a lot of thoughts going through my mind on what would be the coolest thing to show people, what songs would most likely take off, and what would be the best one to follow up the success of “Drowning.” I was thinking about those things. I thought, “These are just not the right kinds of questions that I wanted to ask.” That’s why I started over and started working on songs more honestly and genuinely so that I could find the right direction. Frankly, it’s going quite quickly. It’s been going great.
Since you scrapped the album ideas you initially had, will fans ever have the opportunity to hear what could have been?
For sure. I plan to include the songs that I liked in my future projects someday. There were a lot of other songs that I feel great about that came out after that, which I got to work on. I can’t say for sure that the fans would be able to hear all of those songs that I was working on, but I can say that there are a lot more great songs coming up.
Do you have any inspirations for this album or someone you look up to when creating the music?
I’ve been influenced by various artists up to this point. Even if I don’t write songs in their particular genres, I still draw inspiration from them. For example, while working out at the military gym, I would dig into music from artists like Fred Again, GIVĒON’s latest album [Beloved], Justin Bieber, and many more. Listening to them made me think deeply about what kind of music I wanted to create. So I’d say I was inspired by the music and artists that I love.
As for other sources of inspiration, ideas can come to me while I’m walking down the street or chatting with friends. I really like the saying, “What’s most personal to me can be the most special to others.” My everyday life could be an inspiration to someone else. That’s what I kept in mind as key ideas as I approached my songwriting.
I’ve listened to your music, and it feels like all these genres – pop, rock, hip hop. How would you define yourself?
It’s difficult to define my music with a single genre. There are so many that I love and want to explore. But still, if I had to choose an existing genre that suits my music the most, I’d say it is ‘alternative.’ Some might see it as a jumble of different genres, but for me, it’s a genre that allows me to interpret other styles in my own way. In that sense, ‘alternative’ would be the closest genre to describe my music.
You’ve been doing a lot of the festival circuit in Asia. It works so well with your music as well. Would you ever do a festival in the U.S.?
Of course! If I ever get invited, I’d love to do festivals there anytime. One festival I’d really love to perform at, if given the opportunity, is Coachella.
You’ve done some collaborations in the past with several artists. Can we expect to hear any coming up?
There are various types of collaborations. One would be those that start with inspirations from certain artists. In my case, I collaborate when I feel a song needs a specific kind of voice. So at the moment, I don’t foresee any collaborations [in the next album]. That might change as the project develops, but for now, I’ll likely focus on doing as much as I can on my own. Some ideal collaborators for me would be Steve Lacy, Måneskin, and Cruza.
WOODZ “I’ll Never Love Again”
EDAM Entertainment
You stated 2026 will be your year for an album and a tour. What can we expect in terms of the tour? Will you be doing more of America again?
Of course, I’d love to go to the States. My last US tour two years ago was such a valuable experience. I’d love to go back and put on even better performances, and hopefully, at bigger venues. After my album drops, I’m planning to have more opportunities to meet with global fans, not just in the US but in Europe, Asia, and many other regions if circumstances allow.
With your return from the military and creating new music, reaching No. 1 again with “Drowning,” which came out two years ago, and your festival circuit. What energy are you putting out there? Who is this WOODZ we’re seeing today? How would you define WOODZ today?
I’ve thought about that a lot, and the answer I came to is that I want to be fashionable. The artists or designers that I personally admire, both as a listener and a consumer, are the ones who pay incredible attention to detail—to the point where it gives me goosebumps. I want to be like them, too. This approach might make me seem sensitive to those I work with, and I always try my best not to be. But ultimately, I want my work to be well-made. I know I still have a lot to work on, and I will. Now that I think about it, 24 hours feels way too short! Anyway, right now, my main focus is on being fashionable, and finding the right balance between what I want to show people and what they want to see from me.
WOODZ’s new single, “I’ll Never Love Again” is out on all streaming platforms.
Disclaimer: This news has been automatically collected from the source link above. Our website does not create, edit, or publish the content. All information, statements, and opinions expressed belong solely to the original publisher. We are not responsible or liable for the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of any news, nor for any statements, views, or claims made in the content. All rights remain with the respective source.