[TMA Interview] ILLIT "First Busan performance with TMA debut... the air was good"

'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS' First Appearance, Wins 'Artist of the Year'Continuing 'Non-stop Activities' with New Song 'Catch Me If You Can'Group ILLIT won 'Artist of the Year' at the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS(2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS, TMA)' held at the Busan Asiad Main Stadium on September 19th. The photo shows ILLIT YUNAH WONHEE IROHA MINJU (from left) posing before the award interview. / Reporter Park Sang-min[THE FACT| Reporter Choi Hyun-jung] For the group ILLIT, 2026 is proving to be a very busy and meaningful year.Their fourth mini-album 'MAMIHLAPINATAPAI', released on April 30th, broke their personal best in album sales, and the title track 'It's Me' is considered one of the biggest challenges of 2026.Additionally, they have been on their first tour concert 'PRESS START♥︎' since March, and released the collaboration single 'ICONIC BY MISTAKE' in June and the Japanese single 'I Got Your Back' in July.Not stopping there, ILLIT continued their domestic activities in August with the Korean version of 'I Got Your Back', and released their fifth mini-album 'BREAK EVEN' on October 26th.These achievements by ILLIT led to a 'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS' trophy.At the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS(2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS, TMA)', hosted by THE FACT and organized by FANNSTAR and UCW, held at the Busan Asiad Main Stadium on September 19th, ILLIT was recognized as a 'K-pop artist who shined in 2026' by winning 'Artist of the Year'.ILLIT, who won 'Artist of the Year' in their first appearance at the 'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS', could not hide their joy during the post-award interview.Minju stated, "I will accept this award as encouragement to work even harder. This award is thanks to our GLIT (fandom name), so I want to express my gratitude to GLIT once again. I also want to thank my family."Yuna added, "This is my first time attending the 'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS', and I'm so glad to have made good memories because of it. I will continue to work hard, so please keep watching us."Through the 2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS(2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS, TMA), ILLIT performed in Busan for the first time since their debut. The photo shows ILLIT receiving the 'Artist of the Year' award and sharing their thoughts at the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS'. / Reporter Nam Yong-heeThe reason the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS' became an even more special memory for ILLIT is that it was their 'first performance in Busan since debut'.Yuna revealed, "This is our first time performing in Busan," and Minju confessed, "This is my first time ever visiting Busan."Minju said, "I am so happy to be able to perform on a big stage like 'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS' on my first visit to Busan," and added with a laugh, "As soon as we arrived in Busan, I felt the 'Busan vibe' and the air felt good."In this way, ILLIT has been continuing their non-stop activities throughout 2026. Minju reflected, "We've had so many activities this year. There were comebacks in Korea and Japan, and concerts. We were very busy, but thanks to that, our growth rate has also accelerated. It has been a rewarding year with significant improvements in our stage presence, concepts, and skills."Meanwhile, IROHA expressed confidence, saying, "I'm really looking forward to showing more growth and a cooler image in the encore concert and with the new album 'BREAK EVEN'."The song 'It's Me', released by ILLIT in April, is currently maintaining a high position on music charts and enjoying great popularity. The photo shows ILLIT performing 'It's Me' at the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS(2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS, TMA)'. / Reporter LEE SAEROM'It's Me' is an indispensable song when describing '2026 ILLIT'. This song, which has joined 'Magnetic' as one of ILLIT's representative tracks, continues its long run by remaining in the top ranks of music charts about six months after its release.Regarding the popularity of 'It's Me', Yuna shared, "It gave me a small but special feeling when 'It's Me' would play while I was out and about. It was also very impressive how much the audience loved and mentioned 'It's Me' during concerts."When asked if they had ever walked down the street with the 'It's Me' step, Wonhee and Yuna confessed, "We do it sometimes when we're feeling energetic," drawing laughter.ILLIT plans to continue the momentum of 'It's Me' with their new song. The title track 'Catch Me If You Can' from their fifth mini-album 'BREAK EVEN' is an electronic pop song that combines a powerful beat with a repetitive whistle sound, featuring point choreography such as making a gun shape with their hands and running-like steps.In an interview held before the album release, Minju introduced the song by saying, "This song has a clear color. If I were to describe the concept of the song, I'd say 'GLIT! Run away well!'"ILLIT will continue their activities with the title track 'Catch Me If You Can' from their fifth mini-album 'BREAK EVEN', released on the 26th. The photo shows ILLIT on the blue carpet at the '2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS(2026 THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS, TMA)'. / Reporter Kim Sung-ryeolConcluding the interview, ILLIT said, "This is our first time at 'THE FACT MUSIC AWARDS', and I want to express my sincere gratitude to GLIT for allowing us to receive such a big award. 'BREAK EVEN' is also a really fun and great album, so I hope you listen to it a lot."ILLIT will continue various activities with their new song 'Catch Me If You Can'. Following this, they will hold the finale performances of their Asia tour 'PRESS START♥︎' in Tokyo, Japan, on December 23rd and 24th, and 26th and 27th.laugardagr@tf.co.kr[Entertainment Department | ssent@tf.co.kr]