Wanna One is known as one of the most successful boy groups in the history of K-Pop. Formed as a result of Produce 101 Season 2, this project group continued to make ripples and waves throughout the whole Korean entertainment industry. Their songs were always loved by their fans and the general public, advertisers lined up outside their doors to offer them opportunities in endorsing many brands, from beer to soju to chicken to a whole department store. They continued bringing home several accolades, the highest being the Record of the Year they received in the 2017 MelOn Music Awards for their song "Beautiful".
Thus, their eventual disbandment was the cause of sadness for their fans, who wish to see another reunion from them and maybe, just maybe, hear something from them again soon.
Four years later, let's check where each of the members are right now, in no particular order.
Yoon Jisung
Known as the eldest and the leader of the group, Yoon Jisung released a solo album called Dear Diary, with a song featuring Stray Kids' Changbin. He was also casted in the musical The Days and also held special fan meetings in various cities such as Seoul, Tokyo, and Osaka. He enlisted in the military and was discharged last year, with a comeback for his second album Temperature of Love a small success in April. He continued working in musicals and appearing in some entertainment shows.
Hwang Minhyun
Prior to Wanna One, Hwang Minhyun is a member of the K-pop boy group NU'EST. After his stint in Wanna One, he returned to promotions with NU'EST, and won successively in music shows for their comeback songs. On June 2020, he was casted to appear as one of the leads in the JTBC drama Live On, and he is currently in talks to star in another drama with Lee Jaewook in Return.
Ong Seongwu
Ong Seongwu immediately went into acting after Wanna One's disbandment. His acting debut was in the JTBC drama At Eighteen, with agencymate Moonbin and actress Kim Hyang-gi. His amazing acting chops had earned him a nomination in the 56th Baeksang Art Awards for Best New Actor. He also won the Best New Actor award at the Korea Drama Awards for his performance in the drama. He also recorded a song for the drama's official OST.
His solo debut was with the song Gravity, and then he appeared alongside Kang Haneul and Ahn Jaehong in the travel reality show Traveler. He also starred in the drama More Than Friends with Shin Yeeun, and is also preparing for his film debut with the movie musical Life is Beautiful, alongside veterans Ryu Seungryong and Yum Jung-ah. He will also appear in another film with Ryu entitled Jung's Ranch. He will also make his drama comeback in the drama Shall We Have A Cup of Coffee? on Kakao TV.
Kim Jaehwan
After his stint in Wanna One, Kim Jaehwan signed with Swing Entertainment, the same company that managed Wanna One back then. His debut single Begin Again earned him a nomination in the Best Vocal Performance -- Solo category in the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2019. The music video featured actress Kim Yoojung. He also appeared in several shows such as Law of the Jungle, Immortal Songs, and many others. He is currently the host of the musical talk show Sing Stay 3 that airs on Lifetime and Seezn. He also sang several OSTs for dramas such as Record of Youth and Crash Landing On You. Also, he is registered as a composer in KOMCA as has written all of his songs for comebacks and the song Strange for his former bandmate Park Jihoon's comeback album.
Ha Sungwoon
After his stint in Wanna One, he launched his solo career with the song Bird, which earned him his first ever music show win on Show Champion. He was the first Wanna One member to launch his solo career, and he was pretty much successful in it. He sang several OSTs for dramas such as Her Private Life and Flower Crew, where his former labelmate Park Jihoon was one of the leads. He also appeared in variety shows such as Knowing Brothers and also hosted several musical shows such as Inkigayo. He is currently promoting as a soloist following the disbandment of his group Hotshot.
Kang Daniel
Kang Daniel's path after Wanna One was one of the hardest, but his success is unrivaled. After his stint in Wanna One, he had several lawsuits filed against his former agency who refused to let him go along with his labelmate Yoon Jisung. Eventually, he won the lawsuits and he established his own agency KONNECT Entertainment, making him the first Produce 101 alumnus to become an agency CEO.
Soon after he released songs under his label, with his song What Are You Up To giving him his first ever music show win on Music Bank. This made him the second Wanna One member to win on Music Bank, the first being Park Jihoon. His other songs were massive hits and he was well-loved by his fans and the general public. His brand reputation was very consistent, until now, making him one of the most sought after celebrities by advertisers.
He also dated Twice's leader Jihyo for a year and a half before breaking up, citing schedule conflicts and personal issues. He also took a break from promotions due to his depression. Recently, he made headlines for collaborating with CL to assist her in her Korean activities as a solo artist.
It is very safe to say that Kang Daniel was the most successful Wanna One member after the show.
Park Jihoon
After his Wanna One activities, he launched his solo career with the song L.O.V.E. winning his first ever music show win in Music Bank. It was reported that he never expected it to happen and a fan gleefully broke the news to him while he was in the middle of his fansign event. He also started his acting career post-Wanna One (he was a child actor) in the JTBC drama Flower Crew, with Kim Minjae and Gong Seungyeon. His former bandmate Ha Sungwoon sang an OST for his drama. He continued promoting as a singer, with three more albums, while juggling his acting career. He also appeared in Love Revolution with Lee Ruby and The Boyz's Younghoon. He also recorded an OST for this web drama.
Recently, he appeared in the KBS drama At a Distance, The Spring is Green with Bae Inhyuk and Kang Minah.
Park Woojin
After his stint with Wanna One, he and his labelmate Lee Daehwi debuted in AB6IX, the first ever K-pop group produced by Brand New Music. They went on to win several music show awards, and was nominated as one of the best rookie boy groups in 2019. He had to sit out on promotions in 2020 due to an injury. He also appeared in The Law of Jungle as one of the cast members.
Lee Daehwi
Shortly after Wanna One's disbandment, Lee Daehwi and Park Woojin released a special single entitled Candle, with Daehwi writing and composing the track himself. He continues to compose songs for his group AB6IX as well as for some other artists, such as MXM, IZ*ONE, his former bandmates Park Jihoon, Yoon Jisung, and for the evaluation songs in Produce 48 and Produce 101 Japan Season 2. He is a registered member of the KOMCA, one of the youngest members as of date. He also appeared in several variety shows and he also hosted M Countdown with model Han Hyunmin.
Bae Jinyoung
Bae Jinyoung launched his solo album Hard to Say Goodbye, with songs he wrote by himself. He also went on an Asian fanmeeting, visiting several cities across the continent. He debuted in CIX, C9 Entertainment's first boy group with members Seunghun and BX, who were former YG Entertainment trainees. They won their first ever music show trophy in Show Champion, and is continuously promoting as an idol group up to now.
Lai Kuanlin
Shortly after his stint with Wanna One, Lai Kuanlin filed for the termination of his contract to Cube Entertainment. After a lengthy battle, the court sided with him and he went on to establish a career in China. He went on to launch a career in acting, variety shows, and music. Prior to his exit in Cube, he formed a duo with Pentagon's Wooseok. Recently, he was on fire for his underage photos of him smoking and his support to Xinjiang cotton even though he is a native of Taiwan. He was referred to by the premier of Taiwan as selfish, along with the other stars who posted same sentiments online with Kuanlin.
