‘Bang Si-hyuk girl group’ ILLIT

Rookie group ILLIT (Yoona, Minjoo, Mocha, Wonhee, Iroha) was criticized for giving insincere, tautological answers at their debut showcase.

ILLIT held a debut showcase commemorating the release of their 1st mini album 'SUPER REAL ME' at 4 PM on the 25th at the Blue Square Mastercard Hall in Itaewon-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

ILLIT is the first girl group created by Belif Lab and was created through JTBC's survival show 'RU NEXT?', which aired for about 3 months starting in June 2023. Afterwards, they debuted in about 6 months through the production of Bang Si-hyuk, the head of Hive.

On this day, ILLIT related to their long preparation and debut, "I have been thankful every day since I became a member of ILLIT. I will show everything as I have prepared for a long time. I have prepared hard while waiting for today. I am really happy and excited to finally be able to debut. "He expressed his feelings.

The title song 'Magnetic' is a song that compares the heart running towards the person you like at full speed to a magnet. You can get a glimpse of ILLIT's wit in the lyrics 'Super Attraction'. This song is a dance genre that mixes Pluggnb and House, and provides a strong sense of rhythm with beautiful arpeggio synths and dynamic bass.

Regarding the title song, ILLIT said, "Producer Bang Si-hyuk directly participated in composing the song," and "a teenage producer also worked on it together." When asked, 'How did Producer Bang Si-hyuk and the teenage producer work?', Aillet briefly answered, "I think it would be difficult to answer," but added, "I understand that Producer Bang Si-hyuk worked together with the team color in mind."

He then shared Bang Si-hyuk's advice as the general producer, saying, "Producer Bang Si-hyuk advised me to approach music with a sense of responsibility, and carefully watched the practice video monitoring and gave feedback."

The ILLIT team name is a combination of the independent and progressive will (I will) and the pronoun meaning something special (It), and contains the meaning of 'anything can be, and I look forward to what it will become.'

Regarding this, Yoona said, "I think the slogan 'You can become anything' is a phrase that boosts confidence. Even when practicing, we thought about the team's slogan and colors, and we also gained a lot of confidence among ourselves."

However, on this day, perhaps because Aillet was nervous because it was her first showcase since her debut, she failed to give accurate answers to the reporters' questions and repeated the same words, causing criticism with short, insincere answers. Ailit, who received attention with the title 'Hive's youngest daughter', was asked, 'Doesn't the title feel burdensome?' Ailit answered, "There are many seniors in our company that I can emulate. I will remember that and do my best."

Also, when asked, "Compared to senior girl groups Le Seraphim and New Jeans, what is Ailet's unique difference?", he answered, "Our team's charm is that we are overly immersed in any moment. Our fans love that sight," and "On stage. “When we are on stage, we will focus on the stage, and off stage, we will show how we can enjoy ourselves.”

Next, when asked, 'Please answer in detail what makes us different from fellow teenage group New Jeans,' Aillet said, "I want to show a lot of us having fun with ourselves on stage as well as having fun naturally off stage as well." Also, when asked, 'Is there anything you want to achieve that cannot be expressed numerically?', he replied, 'I want to be like my seniors, having more fun and being more relaxed both on and off stage. “I want to become an artist that members can continue to enjoy comfortably and happily with each other,” he said, giving answers at the level of tautology to different questions.

Also, when asked, 'With so many girl groups debuting, what do you think is Irit's unique strength, whether it be singing or performance?', she answered, "Our goal is to showcase our charms so that people can enjoy a variety of music," and did not answer the question. I also gave an answer.

In addition, to the question, 'What do you think the standards are for being called a 5th generation girl group, and do you feel any pressure?', "We have our own charm and show the public an honest, confident side, a quirky and innocent side, so that the public can enjoy a variety of music. “Our goal is to allow people to enjoy it,” he said, adding, “I know that you are practicing hard in a good environment, so I will work hard to show that much more proudly to the public.” He raised eyebrows by giving a stereotypical answer that did not take the question into consideration.

On this day, the showcase was attended by nearly 100 reporters who were curious about Aylet, who debuted with the support of producer Bang Si-hyuk with the title 'Hive's youngest daughter'. Reporters prepared many affectionate questions for Aylit, but Aylit disappointed the reporters with insincere answers that amounted to tautology rather than answers to the questions. It seems like they thought the answer, “I want to show you being immersed and having fun on stage and having fun with each other off stage as well,” was the master key that encompasses all the questions.

Even considering that they are a rookie group, the Q&A at this showcase was even more disappointing as the Aillet members did not even show the will to think about the reporters' questions and give accurate answers. I can understand why his voice is shaking and he stutters while introducing himself, and I actually want to support him. However, the way he responded to the reporters' affectionate questions by giving an answer that did not make sense, like an AI, without thinking about it and thinking about it, and then saying "Thank you" was a 'lack of communication' itself.

Choi Ji-ye, Ten Asia Reporter wisdomart@tenasia.co.kr