The Wolves of EXO Say They′re Hungry for More

12 wolves burst out onto the stage, and they practically demand attention with their howling charisma.

This is the story of EXO, the mix of two separate unit groups who used to promote in Korea and China.

After making its debut from SM Entertainment as two separate groups, EXO made a comeback as one this year, with all 12 members promoting its first studio album XOXO in Korea. Perhaps because they had joined forces, the new, big group managed to score big. It sold over 300,000 copies of its album in a market that had practically been staggering along, and won the no. 1 trophy in all three main channels. It also took down the servers for KBS 2FM Super Junior′s Kiss the Radio′s site, as fans scrambled to listen to the group appear on the show.

When enews met with these 12 boys, we could understand just why they were so popular. They weren′t like other idol groups that gave predictable answers; they were really as surprising as wolves.

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They first drew attention with their good looks, and added to that their wit and skill with words. At times they were like mischievous boys, and at times they were passionate men.

You′ve won the trophy just a year after your debut. EXO has grown a lot, and you must′ve felt so emotional. You made issues when it looked like you were pretending to cry once.

Suho: "We were trainees for a long time before our debut, and we had finally become a candidate for the trophy. We were so nervous on whether we would win, and once we heard our name being called, what we had been through flashed before my eyes. My eyes met with the other members′, and immediately teared up. I was shaking so bad I couldn′t think of what to say, and I kept thanking our parents, President Lee Soo Man and the members (Laugh). I wanted to cry because it was a big moment, but I held my tears in because I had to give my speech (Laugh). Thanks to that, fans teased me that I was pretending to cry."

What did you do after? You must have done something to enjoy that big moment.

Baek Hyun: "We just took pictures with each other because we had practice the next day."

Chan Yeol: "We had some good jjajangmyeon and beef (Laugh). Our leader, Suho hyung (big brother), took his credit card out, saying he would get us a meal, but because over 30 of us were there our manager ended up paying. Suho hyung just paid for the beverages (Laugh). I think he′ll pay the next time we win first place."

Did President Lee Soo Man say anything about your win?

Chen: "He congratulated us, and told us to always be modest."

It seems this year is EXO′s year. It′s your first album, and you already have so many records under your belt.

Suho: "Thank you for saying that. I think we were lucky. We had been on hiatus for a long time, but during that time we worked hard on our album and gave our best efforts. I think our fans saw that, and helped us get all these records."

Lay: "We were very attached to our songs and performances for our album, and our fans were also as interested, which helped us get these good results. I want to really thank them, even for talking about us a lot after news of our comeback first came out."

Xiumin: "During the week after its release, our album sold 118,000 copies according to the Hanteo Chart. The viewer forum for KBS 2FM Super Junior′s Kiss the Radio went down, and over 100,000 posts were uploaded. I can see how much attention we′ve been getting through that (Laugh)."

Kai: "Like the other hyungs said, we were lucky. It′s all thanks to not only our Korean fans, but also our fans overseas, especially fans in China."

(c)