Illit core. The term refers to the unique sensibility and aesthetics of the group ILLIT. Wearing outfits with balloon skirts, ribbons, and Race embellishments, they delivered bright, bouncy-sounding music that evoked "magical girls" and became very popular among global fans in their teens and 20s.
But ILLIT did not follow the existing path to success and boldly pursued new experiments. Through their recent single album NOT CUTE ANYMORE, they declared that they are "not just cute anymore." They rejected others' gazes, societal stereotypes, and expectations, and sang about the subjectivity and growth of the real "me" beyond the image of a "cute girl."
The musical atmosphere changed completely. Unlike previous works that often used synth sounds and danceable tempos with repetitive trap beats, this time they released a title track based on a loose reggae rhythm. Yet the catchiness remains. The soft, round melody suits winter well and feels calm. The space is filled by the five members' unadorned pure vocals and delicate expressiveness.
The performance also showed a different side of ILLIT. The simple choreography of lightly shaking the head and shoulders and the restrained facial expressions reduce their trademark vivacity and deliver the song's cool, chic message with density. Despite ILLIT's declaration of "shedding cuteness," their quirkiness remains, amplifying the five members' paradoxical charm.
ILLIT has continued a narrative faithful to its emotions, using playful, whimsical imaginations that cross reality and dreams and exploring them through various motifs. They drew empathy from their peers by likening the feeling of being attracted to someone you like to a magnet ("Magnetic"), expressing growth pains as a wisdom tooth ("Cherish (My Love)"), and comparing awkwardness in new relationships to a cat ("Borrowed cat (Do the Dance)").
NOT CUTE ANYMORE focuses even more squarely on the emotions and tastes of "me." Lyrics such as "Linda Linda lullaby," which reflects growing up listening to a rock band's LP like a picture book, and "Suede on my vinyl" show this. The desire to be a cool jellyfish that lives freely without caring about others' gazes rather than a cute puppy loved by everyone (lyrics: "I prefer a loose jellyfish to a puppy") punctuates NOT CUTE ANYMORE.
This is the so-called "expansion of Illit core." Global fans responded. NOT CUTE ANYMORE rose to No. 1 on Billboard Japan's rising chart Hot Shot Songs on Nov. 30 and topped QQ Music's weekly Korean chart (aggregation period Nov. 28–Dec. 4). On Melon's top 100, the song entered at No. 100 shortly after release and gradually climbed, reaching No. 34 as of 9 a.m. on the 10th, showing a steep upward trend.
Through NOT CUTE ANYMORE, ILLIT proved that they are a team with a wide musical spectrum capable of freely expanding their colorful palette. The group name ILLIT, built from combining "I will" and "It," is fitting for this move. ILLIT, a group with great potential that could be anything and is expected to become anything, has an anticipated next step.
[photo] provided by Belift Lab Inc.
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