XU MINGHAO (THE 8)がWonderland’s Winter 25号に特集

Rewrite

After a decade in the spotlight, XU MINGHAO (THE 8) is still discovering who he is. Now, the singer, dancer and DJ is rewriting the rules of pop with a daring new sound.

When we knock and step into the dressing room, 27-year-old XU MINGHAO (THE 8) is in conversation with the photographer, going over his Wonderland China shoot details. The Chinese-born, global superstar has just painted his nails black, but his attitude is humble and polite. As we greet him, he gently opens his palms and offers warm high-fives instead of handshakes.

About ten minutes later, we step back in. He’s already seated in front of the mirror, smiling. The once neatly painted black polish is now deliberately chipped and faded – carefree and unrestrained, just like him. When we curiously ask about it, he lifts his DIY-style nails and says, “Because this…feels more like me.”

Even if something as familiar as a magazine shoot has become routine for him (he is, after all, one of the members of global K-Pop group SEVENTEEN), XU MINGHAO (THE 8) still takes it very seriously. To the singer, it’s not just work; it’s about how he is presented. From each outfit to the hair and makeup, even down to the colour of his contact lenses before the shoot begins, he reviews every detail carefully and offers his input thoughtfully. “Because I’m the one who will be presented in the final work, I have to be involved [in the process].”

Individuality is one of the most compelling parts of who we are – a lifelong project built around the questions “Who am I?”, “What do I want to do?”, and “What do I want to express?” For public figures under the spotlight, personality becomes their unique charm – the starting point of a conversation with the world. Right now, XU MINGHAO (THE 8) wants to share his most vibrant and genuine qualities with as many people as possible, creating moments of connection. “I’m still exploring myself, step by step, getting closer to where I want to be. What I can do now is express the answers I find at each stage, so the people who care about me can see – this is me.”

Over the past year, he’s unveiled a series of new creative works: “Orbit” at the end of 2024, “Skyfall” in June, and “Star Crossing Night (feat. GALI)” in August. These tracks mark a departure from his previous releases – more experimental, more avant-garde, and infused with bold electronic dance music (EDM) elements. They capture what he’s seen, felt, and discovered through music during this time. EDM has opened up a new world for him – a fresh way to embrace the sound he loves, and a means of exploring and understanding the person he’s still becoming.

This journey began during his 2024 world tour, in Berlin –a city known as the holy land of electronic music. Home to the legendary Tresor club, regarded as a “guide for young musicians,” and countless other distinctive clubs where young people gather to celebrate, Berlin offered something new: on the dance floor, everyone is equal. There are no labels, no outside judgments – only bodies moving to the beat.

XU MINGHAO (THE 8) was instantly drawn to the atmosphere. Under dim lights, no one bothered about who he was, and no one stopped to stare. Everyone was lost in their own world, feeling the music. “They really don’t care about others –their style, what they say or do – it’s like they’re completely focused on themselves.”

It was his first time fully immersed in that world – his first real encounter with the raw energy of club youth culture. The experimental electronic sounds and sense of freedom hit him like a wave, setting his blood alight. Even now, he recalls it with excitement: “The impact was instant – it set my blood on fire until I was completely boiling. I was totally captivated.”

What goes through his mind when he loses himself in electronic music? Is it about finally breaking free from identity? He shakes his head. “Actually, you don’t think about anything – you just enjoy the music. So, I feel it’s a lot like meditation.”

To XU MINGHAO (THE 8), meditation and surrendering to electronic dance music feel much the same. “Most EDM doesn’t have lyrics, but if you listen closely, the rhythm takes over – your body just moves. Once you’re in it, it’s like an electric current carries you. Even just listening makes you happy…” He can’t help but smile.

This joy pulled him deeper into the world of EDM – into how different rhythms can stir different emotions. As he danced freely, he found himself quietly observing, absorbing the nuances of each electronic style. Gradually, he realised that EDM carries an energy he’d never imagined before. If the pop music he once knew could move people, electronic music could ignite them.

But interest is one thing, action is another. So he began learning to DJ. DJs control the rhythm of the room, a role perfectly aligned with the EDM he loves. Back in Korea, he found a professional instructor and threw himself into learning, just as he once did with painting. Passion and dedication drove him to practice day after day.

Yet moving from “liking something” to “having the courage to share it” wasn’t easy. He admits he can be a perfectionist: “If I don’t feel I’m good enough, I shouldn’t put it out there,” he says decisively. He didn’t want to be seen as a “professional” or accused of “doing it for show” while still a beginner – that wasn’t the response he wanted.

The turning point came after his fifth DJ lesson. He held a small party with his team and friends – many of them musicians. Knowing he was learning, they encouraged him to perform.

“They said, ‘This is our party – it doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad. What matters is whether you can enjoy yourself,’” the singer recalls. At first, he wanted to refuse, he felt he wasn’t ready. But his friends insisted: even if it wasn’t perfect, “imperfection” was part of growing.

XU MINGHAO (THE 8) still remembers how nervous he was that day. “As nervous as my debut,” he says, his voice emotional. “An hour before going on, I was restless – I couldn’t calm down. All I could think was, what should I do?”

Even with friends around, he was nervous? He nods, precisely because they were close, the pressure felt greater. But when he stepped up to the decks and the music flowed, all he could think about was the rhythm and melody. His anxiety melted away, he just wanted everyone to feel the music.

“After that, I suddenly understood – imperfection is part of the process. Sharing what you love with people close to you, letting them see you grow – that’s also meaningful,” he says. “I used to think everything had to be perfect, without a single flaw. But after DJing and experiencing EDM, I realised I can just be myself. People who care about you won’t focus on your imperfections – they care about your heart. And I want to care about those who like me, and those I like.”

But XU MINGHAO (THE 8) also knows that shifting musical style takes time, it’s like testing the waters. Moving from familiar K-Pop to more experimental sounds is a risk. Once the public is used to a certain label, “change” means challenges and trade-offs. He’s willing to take that risk – but even as he follows his heart, he still values his connection with fans.

“I don’t want my work to be self-satisfying while ignoring how they feel. I know everyone has their own taste, so I want to give them time to transition, to feel the energy I felt. I want to use my music to show them the powerful emotions I experienced in those rhythms, and through my sound, let them see how many incredible sounds in this world are worth loving.”

“I hope they’ll like what I’m liking,” he says, his gaze steady. “And I hope, in my future, they’ll always walk with me.”

“Star Crossing Night (feat. GALI)” was born in a subtle, almost fleeting moment. Chronologically, it was completed between “Orbit” and “Skyfall”, yet it wasn’t released until later. For XU MINGHAO (THE 8), this song is an important milestone – it captures his exploration and transition during a stylistic shift.

“It perfectly captures that early phase when I was moving from a more lyrical pop style toward EDM. Although the electronic elements aren’t overwhelming, you can already sense traces of it in the details,” he says, tracing an imaginary timeline in the air and pointing to a specific spot. “If, someday in the future, I’ve been making EDM for two or three years, my mindset and creative framework will have changed – maybe even broken from the past. Works from that time might sound very different, moving further and further from where I started…” He adds with a smile, “So if I didn’t release it now, I might never have put this song out there.”

In fact, this track isn’t the final answer to his current phase, it’s more like a footnote on his journey of self-exploration. It captures those fleeting moments of inspiration during a period of transition and amplifies his personal connection to music. The act of recording itself is an honest confrontation with oneself, and sharing that recording is a brave form of self-expression.

XU MINGHAO (THE 8) even envisioned specific atmospheres for “Star Crossing Night (feat. GALI)” and “Skyfall.” “If ‘Skyfall’ is that last song right before midnight, getting everyone hyped and ready to explode,” he describes, “then ‘Star Crossing Night’ is the moment you first step into the club, the energy is still building, people are warming up, the beat is simmering, and everything is about to ignite.”

He pauses, as if leaving a little Easter egg: “As for that track, it truly ignites the crowd and takes the atmosphere to its peak, I’m still exploring it. I believe someday, it will appear.”

“Star Crossing Night (feat. GALI)” was created almost entirely through intuition and emotion. The beat emerged first, pulling abstract feelings from deep within his mind, weaving melody and memory together. The lyrics don’t tell a full story, instead, they gather fragments of imagery, like moments of a mood snatched from every time inspiration struck. It’s like he chose to toss a pebble into a lake, then waited expectantly for the ripples to spread.

Though he modestly calls “Star Crossing Night (feat. GALI)” a song that “wouldn’t have been released if the timing wasn’t right,” it was still carefully selected from countless attempts. XU MINGHAO (THE 8) reveals that throughout the creative process, he constantly made choices: he actively communicated and collaborated with producers of different styles, accumulating demo after demo, but in the end, he kept only one or two that felt most true to himself – the rest, he decisively let go.

He compares this process of selection to painting, another passion close to his heart. “I believe creation should have a standard, just like painting. When I wasn’t satisfied with a drawing before, I’d erase it over and over and start again. Some pieces took an hour; others took months, even a year. I kept reworking them until they felt ‘complete.’ Maybe from the beginning, there’s no real good or bad – it’s just that I felt it should be preserved at a certain moment.”

An artwork is a mirror, it reflects the creator’s current state of mind and offers a glimpse to the outside world. EDM, with its inclusivity and variability, often works with lighting, visuals, and space to create a holistic experience: it can be euphoric and intense, or nostalgic and soft; it can be gentle, or hard and cathartic. Its tone depends entirely on the creator’s choices.

So what will XU MINGHAO (THE 8)’s EDM sound like? He offers a vivid metaphor: “If different music styles are like different doors, I’ve already found the one that belongs to me. Once inside, I discovered a vast, open space. What I need to do now is fill it with many rooms, each decorated in a different colour…and leave my mark in every room.”

The word “sensitivity” comes up often in XU MINGHAO (THE 8)’s conversations. The young man, whose voice often lifts slightly when he speaks, doesn’t shy away from calling himself “highly sensitive.” “I quickly pick up on other people’s emotions, and I’m also very aware of my own feelings. So sometimes, this sensitivity amplifies what I feel and affects me deeply.”

Perhaps that’s why he’s so drawn to meditation. For years, he’s maintained this practice: closing his eyes, sinking into a state of flow, and focusing only on his breath. In those moments, he detaches from swirling emotions, finds stillness in the present, and draws strength from within. “To me, energy isn’t good or bad – it’s either positive or negative. So whenever I feel negative energy, I remind myself: there must be a reason behind it. Then I try to find what triggered it, and ask myself why it affected me.”

Yet even the calmest analysis can’t always override instinct. XU MINGHAO (THE 8) doesn’t specify the source of those negative emotions, but in his view, all energy – positive or negative – can be a catalyst for growth. “Even when I’m feeling down, I try to look at it positively and think about how I can grow from it. I’m someone who loves evolving, who always wants to think proactively. That’s what I’m doing right now.”

The lyrics of “Skyfall” are in three languages: Chinese, English, and Korean. There’s one line – “飞鸟不留下痕迹” (translated to ‘a bird leaves no trace’) – that he insisted must be sung in Chinese. “Every language carries its own unique emotion, and some feelings are untranslatable. That line, to me, is one of them. It’s the heart of the song, the reason I wrote it. I had to keep it in Chinese – it represents my emotion.”

Though a bird may leave no trace, both as an artist and a creator, XU MINGHAO (THE 8) is expected to leave his mark. So what does this phrase mean to him? He slowly stretches, as if spreading invisible wings: “If the bird is obsessed with the past or afraid of the future, it can’t focus on the present. If it doesn’t flap its wings, it will fall. So what I mean is, even if I leave no trace, I still want to keep flying forward.”

Painting remains a beloved way for him to express emotion, but for now, he feels music is a more suitable outlet for connecting with others. “Energy is limited, when you divide it, there’s not much left. So I thought about it, and right now, music is how I want to communicate the most. I’ll never give up painting. But maybe when I’ve gathered more experiences and emotions, my style of expression will evolve too.”

Entering his tenth year in his career, XU MINGHAO (THE 8) still believes he can do better – that he can spread even more energy than imagined. His courage for new attempts remains undimmed. When asked if there’s one trait that will never change, he doesn’t give a definite answer. In his view, his future is bound to be full of change, and defining himself too soon would feel like setting limits. And he has never been one to be confined.

“I once told myself: don’t do anything you’ll regret,” he says. He lowers his head, thinks, then smiles. “But even if I do regret it someday, so what?”

Pre-order Wonderland’s Winter 25 Issue here.

Photography by @liu__zongyuan
Styling by @YANKCUI
Executive Stylist Luona
Interview & Writing by Jessica Xu
Translation by Nan Dong
International Copyright Connection @_francesca_fan

Editor In Chief @vicky_yincy
Editorial Director @vic0407tao
Fashion Director Michelle
Digital Director Leon Chang
Digital Editor Hao
Hair by Gabe Sin
Make-up by Park Hyunah
Set Design by ZHU
Producer Doris He
Artist Manager by Tia
Stage manager Li Chunjie
Photography Assistant 61
Fashion Assistants Xiaofeng, Xiaolei, Yuying, Meihua
Art Assistant Eve

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