The group (IVE) captivates the public with another concept.
On the 6th at YES24 Live Hall in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, the group's mini 9th album 'We made' media showcase was held.
We made is the group's new release, coming six months after this year's digital single 'Mono (Feat. SKAI(357880)water)', and it contains a more pop-oriented charm than before. The title track 'Gimme Dat Love'描描描
In addition, tracks such as 'Love Is Pain', a self-composed song by Wonyoung that highlights the members' outstanding vocals, and the positive, upbeat daily life song 'Morning' are included, promising to captivate listeners' ears with their stylish and diverse tracks.
Ahead of the full-fledged comeback that day, Miyeon said, "I still can't believe it's already our mini 9th album," adding, "We returned with a summer song after a long time, and it's a track that feels a bit hotter and like fighting fire with fire compared with the songs we showed before, so I hope many people enjoy it this summer. We prepared it with our best effort, so I hope you cheer for and love it a lot."
If last year's summer song 'Claxion' was a refreshing track that blows away the heat, 'Gimme Dat Love' is full of a humid, sultry feeling in its overall atmosphere. On this change of mood, Soyeon said, "The reason for fighting fire with fire is that our summer songs include 'Dumdi Dumdi', 'Claxion', and the song 'Han', which was released as a cool summer song. The first thing was that we wanted to show various colors of summer."
Following 'Mono' released earlier this year, IVE introduces a changed new concept with 'We made' in addition to their existing music. The message 'let's focus on the essence' continues in this album as well.
Regarding this, Soyeon said, "The talk about focusing on the essence came as I prepared this album and pondered, 'What kind of music is good music?' I wondered whether music that is commercially successful is good music, whether addictive, trendy music is good music, or whether music that tells our story is good music, and I realized that good music is something anyone can enjoy, feel moved by, and have fun with. The idea of focusing on the essence naturally seeped into the songs," she said.
As the driving force behind attempting these changes, Soyeon said, "While preparing this album starting from 'Mono', we tried various attempts," adding, "Since it's our ninth year since debut, it seems longer, and we sometimes get tired of ourselves and want to try something new and fun." She added, "After many challenges, we thought about what story to tell. The driving force seems to be that we want to keep doing music for a long time and that we are friends who like fun things, so we like these changes and they become the driving force."
A distinctive point of this album is that, for the first time in IVE's albums, Soyeon's name does not appear on the title track's composition credits. Soyeon only participated in the lyric writing for 'Gimme Dat Love.' She explained the difference between IcebluRabbit's and Soyeon's musical perspectives: "Until we released 'Mono' earlier this year, IcebluRabbit said they also made things that disliked IcebluRabbit. I liked hot things and yellow and pursued cats, and I think in interviews I said it would be good to create something new."
Soyeon continued, "As we tried new things, I feel IcebluRabbit has blended into one part of me. I think I've actually been the type who liked stimulating music. Rather, I think the difference between IcebluRabbit and Jeon Soyeon is music that is easy to listen to, that you can just enjoy without thinking, and that kind of music."
What do the members think about this styling change? Miyeon said, "Because the members have been producing since long ago, we sometimes felt trapped inside ourselves and had many worries. Just as the clothes you wear in the morning reflect different aesthetics, we have daily thoughts, worries, and difficulties, so we shared them every time. Those passions sometimes overheated, and we wanted to return to the love we had for music at first and capture that. I think this is a very meaningful album for us."
Also, IVE recently held a successful world tour. Starting at Seoul KSPO DOME in February, they became the first K-pop girl group to successfully complete a performance at Taipei Dome, and in June they proved their influence as a global top-tier girl group by drawing nearly 80,000 spectators over two days at Hong Kong's Kai Tak Stadium.
When asked whether she felt the global popularity, Wonyoung said, "First of all, as a singer, I'm proud and think it's a difficult thing to be able to do a world tour, and we performed at a stadium in Hong Kong. So many fans came that I felt proud and grateful that we could perform in such a large venue thanks to them," giving credit to the fans.
Wonyoung added, "As a K-pop girl group, I realized that music itself can connect fans around the world, and I am moved when I hear fans singing along. I felt that it's worth working hard on music, and I felt that reality, so I will continue to work hard."
IVE will begin promotions for 'Gimme Dat Love' with their comeback and will meet local audiences on the stage at Lollapalooza in Chicago on the 31st (local time). When asked about her thoughts ahead of the Lollapalooza stage, Minnie said, "First, I'm happy and honored to be able to participate in such a big and famous festival as Lollapalooza," adding, "Even recently while touring, we met many fans and received good energy and support, and with that strength we will perform powerfully and coolly at Lollapalooza. We'll definitely slay the stage. We'll do our best."
Soyeon also chimed in, "I'm trying to slay the stage, so I'll work hard," expressing her ambition for Lollapalooza.
So what steps will IVE take going forward? Soyeon said, "We have always thought that when we make music we should go higher and do better. This year I felt I wanted to focus on the moment. The next album might be focusing on the next album after this one is released," saying she wants to focus on the present.
Wonyoung mentioned health. He said, "First of all, everyone is healthy. Since it's the ninth year, we're a bit older; we're still young, but I hope we stay healthy. I hope we don't lose the desire to keep making the music we want, and that we don't lose our original intent. This moment is the youngest moment in our lives, so everyone is precious. Live healthily and happily."
Finally, as the members join the summer song competition, they answered about the results they expect. Soyeon said with a smile, "I hope many fans and the public who listen to our songs feel the fighting-fire-with-fire energy from our song. We want to get first place, and I hope the song is played widely so it reaches many people."
Meanwhile, IVE's mini 9th album 'We made' and the title track 'Gimme Dat Love' will be released today (the 6th) at 6 p.m.
[Photo] Min Kyung-hoon reporter
[OSEN]