K-Pop Stars MEOVV Are Ready To Be Your New Favorite “It” Girls
In August, the social media account for a new K-Pop group posted “MEOVV” with five black cat emojis and an animated graphic of a cat’s paw. The not-so-cryptic post was the first for the highly anticipated girl group MEOVV — a quintet from iconic Korean producer Teddy Park’s THEBLACKLABEL.
Excitement for MEOVV — comprised of members Sooin, Gawon, Anna, Narin and Ella — built in K-Pop spaces online as the group’s September debut approached. The girl group is THEBLACKLABEL’s first, however, Park is no stranger to shaping hit groups, having produced much of Blackpink’s discography, along with several hits for K-Pop megastars like BigBang and 2NE1.
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“Meow,” the group’s first single, released in Sept., had a quintessential girl crush sound (girl crush is a popular K-Pop concept that showcases heavier music, trading in the bubblegum pop girl groups have often been categorized by for powerful anthems full of self-confidence). MEOVV’s latest pair of songs — “Toxic” and “Body” — effectively encapsulate the duality of the group.
“Toxic,” an all-English “sad girl” song, as 16-year-old Ella puts it, shows the group’s softer side. It is, as Ella says, a somber song about a troubled relationship: “Together, we’re so toxic / But my life is nothing without you,” the girls belt out in the chorus.
Where “Toxic” is all about feeling one’s feelings, “Body” is an undeniably catchy, energetic anthem, full of the confidence K-Pop fans have come to expect from a Park-produced group. “Add it how you want four plus four, why you gotta ask? Yeah, I ate / Tag, it girls, MEOVV, babe,” Narin raps on the song.
Below, MEOVV shares with The Hollywood Reporter how they stay close as a group, which artists inspire them and what they hope for the future.
What was the experience like making your two new singles “Body” and “Toxic and your debut, “Meow,” since that is pretty recent as well?
ELLA I think one of the biggest things for us was making the “Toxic” music video. We were talking with the director on the direction we were going to go in with shooting the music video, it was all really organic and just our chemistry with each other caught on camera. We had a lot of fun shooting it. We were just kind of messing around. That was the vibe. It was really memorable.
GAWON Recently, it’s been a lot of moments of our “firsts.” Our first time going to a big stage, first time performing here, performing there. I think in this period of having so many firsts, it’s just really exciting and we’re excited for what’s to come.
Has there been a moment in all these firsts that stands out to you as the most “pinch me” moment for you?
NARIN I think it was definitely a surreal moment for us to perform at MAMA [Awards] on such a huge stage. We even got the favorite rising artist award, which means so much us. We were genuinely enjoying performing there. I think that was our pinch me moment.
Were you expecting to get so much love even before you debuted? A lot of people were really excited to see your debut. How has that been for you?
NARIN I think before we got to debut, we were all focused on improving and getting better at everything. So, we didn’t really have that exact view of our future and we didn’t expect this much love. When we were able to perform on those kind of stages and were honored with those awards, we were actually realizing that kind of love and support from fans. I think it was really memorable. Really happy moments.
ELLA [It’s] because I think we were so focused on working really hard to make the best product for people to watch and just for us. We all want to do our best, so when we got that award, and when we’re seeing all the love from everyone — I think it makes us proud, and it’s a rewarding feeling.
I know It’s probably hard to choose a favorite, but do any of you have a favorite song you’ve released so far?
GAWON For me, Lyn [Narin] and I co-wrote “Toxic,” so I think I have a more special connection. I have an emotional connection to the lyrics and the song, and it’s also the type of music that I enjoy listening to on a daily basis, so I think I might choose “Toxic.”
ELLA It always changes, but right now, I’m in my “Body” era because sometimes I just want to be a baddie. [Group laughs]. A baddie listening to “Body,” very hip hop. But sometimes when I’m in my feels or having a “Toxic” girl, like a sad girl winter, I’ll listen to “Toxic.” But right now, I’m a baddie.
Since you’re pretty early into your career, are there any artists that you’ve really looked up to or hope to have careers similar to as you’re working and pushing ahead?
GAWON Even when I wasn’t aware of what K-Pop was, because I grew up in the States — I was always surrounded by Teddy [Park]-produced music [while growing up], so that was my first impression of K-Pop. I was growing up listening to Teddy-produced music, and now being here working super close with Teddy and having him as our main producer is so surreal. Sometimes I have those moments, I’m like, “Oh my God, How did I get here?” It’s super cool. I’m just really grateful in those moments, and I think we’re all just super blessed to have the opportunity to work with him and just continue his line of music and his legacy in the music industry as MEOVV.
ELLA The artist’s at our label, like Taeyang-sunbaenim [from the group BigBang], Rosé-sunbaenim [from Blackpink], Somi-sunbaenim — they all are such good influences for us. If we see them, they always give us good advice.
NARIN They’re so supportive.
ELLA It’s cool to be in the same environment as them, and it helps us grow a lot as artists.
How do you guys take time to bond with each other when you’re busy all the time?
GAWON Us, we’re working together 24/7, and we also live together, so we’re always together. But even if we have our days off we’ll still want to have fun with each other. We’re each other’s best friends, and we have a lot of fun together.
ELLA And now we have our YouTube reality show, Catch MEOVV, so it really is just us kind of hanging out and playing games. I think that’s also a way that we bond.
GAWON We also find a lot of fun in the work that we do, so even shooting, we’ll always be having fun and just being ourselves and goofing around.
As you continue to release new music, already, you’ve been able to show different sides of yourself. But is there anything you are really hoping to try in the future that you think might be perfect for you?
GAWON Even before, we’ve been recording a lot of different songs. Since our trainee days, we’ve liked to experiment with a lot of different genres and different languages and types of music. We’ve been experimenting with a lot of genres in the studio as well. I think we have a lot that people might not expect, but I think we’re just really excited to release all of those songs.
Do you guys have any goals you’re looking to work towards in the near future? Say you hit a year from your debut, what are you hoping to achieve by then? Also, what are you hoping to achieve as a group long-term?
ANNA I want to meet fans all over the world as soon as possible, so definitely that’s a big goal.
SOOIN Because we’re all from different parts of the world, hoping to perform in each of our hometowns would be a big goal in our career.
What has the relationship with your fans been like so far? Like you said, you have fans all around the world. How have you been able to build that relationship as you get started?
ELLA When we first met them, it was our M Countdown [Korean weekly music show] stage. But when we first met them, it was kind of awkward because we were so shy. It was the day of our debut, so we were very fresh, very new. When I first saw everyone I was like, “Oh my gosh.” I was so excited that they’re interested in MEOVV, and they’re listening to our songs. I was like, I just want to show you the best of us.
GAWON Since then, I think our relationship with the fans has evolved, definitely, because we were super awkward and shy with each other, but now we also have our fan communication app called Churrrrr. Even when we’re not promoting, we’re always on that app. It’s like our obsession. We always like to talk to them, give them stuff that they might not be able to see on stage.
When the world hears the name MEOVV, what do you want them to think? How do you want people to see you as a group?
ELLA I just want them to remember strong and charismatic performances. I want that to just stick with people when they watch our performances or even just content on TikTok or small apps. I just want people to think that we’re fun and pull them in, get them interested. I want a strong first impression, especially since it hasn’t been that long since our debut.
Is there anything you want to say to your fans or someone who might be checking you out for the first time?
ELLA I hope you have as much fun as we do because we really do enjoy what we do. We put a lot of thought and work into everything — the songs we put out and even our dances. I hope that energy bounces off.
GAWON We put so much love in the work that we do, so we just hope that gets across — and everyone can feel that.
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