When I first introduced Pristin last year, I couldn’t hide my enthusiasm for their surely long and productive future careers. After all, their first couple of releases did great, right? It wasn’t like Pledis Entertainment would repeat the same mistakes they made with After School, right? What could possibly go wrong?
Well, here we are, and it feels like 2014 all over again. Pristin has gone off the grid for nearly a year at this point, ever since their last release with Like A V and its title track Get It in May 2018—and that wasn’t even a full group release. Discounting subunits, Pristin hasn’t had a comeback for a year and a half, which is unheard of for brand-new idol groups... or successful ones, at least.
Which makes Pristin’s radio silence all the more stranger, considering Wee Woo’s runaway success. This 2017 debut title track received a pretty solid push with Nayoung and Kyulkyung’s I.O.I credentials, as well as Xiyeon’s semi-legendary status among Pledis Entertainment watchdogs (she had appeared in labelmates’ music videos as far back as 2011).
There’s been some rumblings lately over what Pristin could be up to, with fans spotting Kyla—who has been on indefinite hiatus since October 2017—returning to Korea, and Xiyeon and Eunwoo seemingly opening up brand-new personal Instagram accounts. It might seem a bit like grasping at straws, but Pristin fans will take whatever they can get at this point.