Singer Yoon San-ha, better known as Sanha of boy band Astro, begins his solo career with the release of his first album, “Dusk,” at 6 p.m. on Monday.

Yoon made his debut in 2015 with the web drama series “To Be Continued,” and then began his singing career with Astro in February 2016.

He formed a duo with Astro bandmate Moonbin in September 2020 with the EP “In-Out.” The duo released its last EP, “Incense,” last January. Moonbin died by suicide three months later.

Yoon will meet with press at 2 p.m. ahead of the album's release, to explain his new project in detail at the Banyan Tree Club & Spa Seoul hotel in central Seoul.

The Korea JoongAng Daily will cover the conference live.

2:04 p.m. “This is my first time saying hello as a solo artist,” Yoon says as he comes on stage. “I'm Yoon San-ha. The rain has been coming and going. Thank you for being here to see me. It feels really awkward for me, still.”

“How do you feel?” the singer is asked.

“It's been a moment I've been waiting for. I always thought that I wanted to be a solo artist, but I never knew that it would be today. I'm nervous but happy. I'm excited to hear my voice on my own album.”

2:05 p.m. “Being the youngest of the team meant that I could lean on the older members, but having to prepare for this alone made me feel the absence of the members,” Yoon says. “But that also helped me grow, I think. I'll try my best to show the best side of myself.”

2:07 p.m. “Did a lot of people support you?” the singer is asked. “How about the Astro members?”

“Members congratulated me a lot,” Yoon answers. “I asked for their advice. I sent them the parts of the songs when they came out to ask what to change. They told me things that were so supportive when the album was finally done.”

2:09 p.m. Yoon poses for photos. “I'm very nervous, but I think it'll get better with time,” he says.

Asked what his pose means, Yoon explains, “Dusk is when the sun settles down and the night comes. My hands are posing [like] the sun. I had this pose in mind [for the photo session].”

2:10 p.m. “Congratulations,” a reporter says. “You've been busy this year with a concert and musical. How has it been for you?”

“Like you said, the March concert was for me to overcome times that were so hard,” Yoon says. “I wanted to see them and feel that I was alive by seeing them and feel why I started all this. Preparing for the solo album alone gave me difficulties, but all the moments were happy for me.”

2:12 p.m. “You're also going to tour in Korea and Japan,” a reporter says. “Do you have other goals, too?”

“The goal for me is to keep myself busy. And rather than just this year, I want to become the next Eun-woo,” Yoon says, referring to Astro bandmate and actor Cha Eun-woo.

“How much more do you have to catch up?” Yoon is asked.

“It does seem quite far away for now, but I'm going to take one step at a time,” he answers.

2:13p.m. “Has he given you any advice?” a reporter asks, referring to Yoon's bandmate Cha.

“I'm sure he's aware, because I keep telling him that he's my goal,” Yoon answers. “He tells me to catch up, laughing.”

2:14 p.m. “There was also a short documentary, but can you explain the album in detail?” Yoon is asked.

“My first solo album, 'Dusk,' is [about] when the sun comes down and the night comes,” Yoon answers. “The youngest of Astro, Sanha, and my solo career as Yoon San-ha seemed a little confusing. I thought a lot about the music that I could pursue on my own. What is my own color? I was debating myself, and the agency told me that all those thoughts could actually be turned into an album. That's how 'Dusk' was born.”

2:15 p.m. “Let's listen to the highlights of the tracks and hear your explanation,” the host says to Yoon.

2:16 p.m. Yoon begins to speak about “Yeowoobyul,” for which he composed both the music and lyrics. “This expresses the color of the sky just before the sun comes down,” he explains. “ Yeowoobyul is the star that comes up in the sky regardless of bad weather. I look up to the sky whenever I'm down, so I wanted to write something about the sky. I searched for a lot of words, and I came across this amazing word. I also wanted to persevere through hardships, which is why I chose to write a song about this.”

2:17 p.m. “What are you inspired by?” the singer is asked.

“Just as I told you, whenever I'm down, I used to look up to the sky and breathe out to feel that I was alive,” Yoon answers. “I wanted to make warm songs for the fans, also, so that everyone like me can feel warm inside.”

2:19 p.m. Attention turns to the all-English track “Losing My Mind.”

“This is an all-English song about the color of the sky right before the sun comes down,” Yoon says. “It's about missing the person that you love after you lose them. 'Losing My Mind,' sent me to tears when I heard it in my car for the first time. I think the word 'losing' made me so sad. When I heard the song for the first time, I thought that I could just sing it in English, and the company also agreed. It's the first song where I sing everything in English.”

2:22 p.m. The audience listens to “Bittersweet Mistake,” the next track. “This is really good, right?” Yoon says. “I like it a lot, too. It's a very multisensory song like the multicolored sky. It's about the remnants of love. I liked it from the very beginning. I first heard the song in English, and the melody wanted to move my body as soon as I heard it.”

2:24 p.m. Next up is “Dive,” the lead track. “Dusk is a short-lived and happy time, but the emotions that come after are also worth living for,” Yoon says. "'Dive' means diving into water, but I wanted to shed light on both the fears that come before jumping in and knowing that it's O.K. after you actually make the jump. I also felt really nervous before doing all this, but I became happy after I did it. If there's anyone out there struggling, I want you to listen and feel happy with this song.”

2:25 p.m. “Did you focus on anything in particular?” a reporter asks.


“It was difficult for me, because it was a new genre of song for me,” Yoon says. “The R&B-ness was hard for me to get across. I was really fast at recording songs as part of Astro, but the lead track took me two days to record, almost seven, eight hours. It was difficult for me to get the emotion across.”

“You said that 'Dive' is about jumping into something,” Yoon is told. “Do you have anything you want to jump into?”

“I would have to say: myself,” Yoon says. “While I was preparing for this album, I did jump in. But I really want to push myself to the limit. I'll challenge myself to test my limits.”

2:27 p.m. “Bleeding” plays. “I wanted to get across a dark and chaotic vibe, a dynamic image in a way,” Yoon says. “It's a little different from the other tracks. The rhythm is more powerful and really set for a good performance. I just shot a performance video for this, and I hope you look forward to Yoon San-ha performing.”

2:29 p.m. “Rain Down On Me” is the final track of the day. “This is about the calm darkness after the rain passes,” Yoon explains. “You'll hear a very charming melody with this song.”

“Now I'll perform the lead track, 'Dive,' for you.”

2:37 p.m. The Q. and A. portion of the news conference begins. “Hi again. I'm solo artist Yoon San-ha,” Yoon says in introduction. “I know I'll have to get used to saying this.” He laughs.

2:39 p.m. “You just finished your first solo stage. How was it?” Yoon is asked.

“I was so nervous to be on my own,” he answers. “I actually started the tempo late, but I tried my best.”

2:40 p.m. “Congratulations on your solo debut,” a reporter says. “You've also had solo tracks, but an entire album must've been different for you. Did you find anything new about yourself? And what about Cha Eun-woo — do you want to catch up?”

2:41 p.m. “While I was preparing this album, I found that I am …” the singer begins. “I'm not sure whether it's a good thing or not, but whenever I saw myself in the pictures for Astro, the photos for this album, I could see myself subtly grown up — somehow a little more mature than before. I like my voice when I'm singing. So when I heard the song after I was done recording, I felt that I did well. But I know that I have to grow a lot. And with [Cha] Eun-woo, I've always thought that he's an amazing person. His appearance and actions are so mature and make me want to learn from him. He does things that made me wonder how he could be so ahead of everyone. His character is also something that I look up to. And, to be honest, his fame is also very inspirational.”

2:44 p.m. “There seems to be a lot of sadness and loss in the songs and their lyrics,” a reporter asks. “What is the source of such emotions? And what do you want to highlight as soloist Yoon San-ha?”

“When I first heard the song 'Dive,' I thought about a person that I really missed,” Yoon recalls. “I thought about them and took the photos. The acting just came through. And the mood in the music video just came naturally. I feel satisfied. The charm I wanted to show, as Yoon San-ha, is that I could pull this off as a solo artist. The cute image as Astro's maknae [youngest member] stuck with me, but I want people to think that I'm changed in a way — more mature.”

2:46 p.m. “When did you first think that you wanted to make a solo album?” Yoon is asked. “And in what sense did you mature?”

2:47 p.m. “The moment I wanted to make a solo album was around December of last year, I think,” Yoon recounts. “I had taken some time off, and I saw myself struggling. I wanted to see the fans, so I held the solo concert in March. The energy and support that I received made me remember why I wanted to become a singer and made me realize why I started all this. I have grown in …” The singer laughs. “I think in the past, I looked a little younger. I was young, in fact. But I've become older with time, and the lines on my face have become more defined, people say. And I couldn't imagine talking to reporters in the past. But seeing myself do this without the members makes me realize how much I've grown.”

2:50 p.m. “You took part in writing the songs of the album,” Yoon is asked. “How was that for you? And did anyone give you any advice?”

“When I first wrote the song 'Yeowoobyul,' it was my second self-written song,” Yoon says. “Making the melody is the hardest and also just defining what kind of song it will be. When the songwriter asked me what I wanted, I said that I wanted it to be warm. We worked on the guitar chords, and that was great. Writing the lyrics was the most difficult part, I think. I'm a bad writer, so I looked up what other artists wrote. And just like your question, a lot of members write their own songs. I asked [Astro leader] Jinjin how he writes his songs. He told me that I needed to just decide on the subject and that it would just come naturally.”

Did it, in fact, come naturally? “Not really,” Yoon says. “I'm just still learning. It was the first time for me, to write something from beginning to end. It's really meaningful for me.”

2:52 p.m. “I'll now perform 'Yeowoobyul,'” the artist says, concluding the Q. and A. “I hope you will feel warm inside, in a way.” The conference will end following Yoon's performance.

2:58 p.m. “How did you feel?” Yoon is asked after performing the song. “You seemed even more nervous.”

“I don't know why I felt more nervous than [I did during] the first performance,” Yoon answers. “I think talking about the fact that I wrote the songs made me feel pressured. I thought that I wanted to do well, and I think I overdid it. I was so nervous even before I was on the stage. I was scared that I wouldn't be able to speak properly. Thank you for being here, and I hope you like my first album, 'Dusk.' I'll try other things, too, and diligently get through the promotions. I hope you watch me as I do.”

3:00 p.m. “I hope you are all healthy and happy,” Yoon says to wrap up the conference. “I will be content with that. It's really hot today, but thank you so much for being here. I will be a Sanha that always tries hard. Thank you again.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]