Since their debut, rookie K-pop girl group Purple Kiss has made waves online. Their debut music video “Ponzona” is sitting at 21 million views on YouTube as of September 2021. Jieun, Goeun, Dosie, Ireh, Yuki, Chaein and Swan made their first comeback this month with the title track “Zombie,” and are on their way to becoming elite talent in the industry. Despite this, they still have a down-to-earth, kind and humble air about them, one that makes you feel like you already know them. Purple Kiss sat down for an interview with EnVi via Zoom about the creation of their album, advice for maintaining mental health, and showed off their fun side.
Twinkle: The Development of the Comeback
Purple Kiss has been involved in the development and creation of their music from the very start. For “Zombie,” the concept is contrasted with a brightness that one wouldn’t associate with the monstrous entity. “The CEO [of RBW Entertainment] is also a composer,” the members said. “When we asked him why he chose this concept, he told us ‘Ponzona’ was about letting your inner charms out into the world and ‘Zombie,’ was about trying to enchant everyone with their charms.”
Dosie opened up and shared what the curation process was like for Hide & Seek, their second release since their debut in March 2021. “Although the zombie concept is usually associated with the horror genre, the concept for this album is more popping and jumpy, sound wise. It has that teenage concept to it, where it’s awesome, fun, cute and energizing,” she said.
As Dosie continued answering, her tendency to refer to herself in the third person slipped into her comments effortlessly. “From Chaein writing and composing a song on the album, to Dosie, Ireh and Chaein being involved in the choreography for one of the tracks, multiple members were involved in the concept development and creation,” she said.
Because the members are so involved in their craft, EnVi asked what the most challenging part of writing a song was. Yuki, Ireh and Swan nodded in agreement as Chaein gave her answer. “It’s not so much the making, as much as it is the alteration,” she said. “You have to change the things that didn’t sound right or come up with new ideas apart from the original concept.”
Goeun, Yuki and Swan laughed when recalling their favorite scene to film for the “Zombie” music video. “For me, in my personal cut, there’s a scene where Goeun and Swan kind of pull my back and in that sense, it was a really difficult scene,” Yuki said. “It was really hard, but it came out really well, so I’m really happy about that.”
With two different concepts already under their belt, Purple Kiss is eager to try more and expand their style in the future. “There’s so many concepts that the members really want to try. For example, we want to try a magical or sparkly theme that could be more thoughtful, something like an enchanted theme,” Ireh shared, and the members all expressed their agreement. When I asked about an enchanted forest, the members expressed their approval, oohing and ahhing at the concept.
Purple Kiss debuted during a pandemic, so they haven’t been able to have live performances in front of their fans, known as PLORY, yet. Jieun answered, “Wherever global fans are, we’d like to go to those countries and perform in them.”
The group has already racked up a quarter million followers on Instagram, in addition to the 15 million views on their music video for “Zombie,” and has been mentioned along with some of the most popular girl groups of the fourth generation in K-pop.
Showing Their Relatable Side
Purple Kiss is filled with talent and wisdom beyond their years, and they have a fun-loving, relatable side that shines when you speak to them. Not only do they continue to prove their status as a powerhouse fourth generation idol group, they make everyone they speak to feel comfortable and welcomed, even complete strangers meeting them for the first time.
They recalled a memorable story from the holidays, showing their true nature as approachable idols. “On January 1, 2021, we were chatting and eating delivery in the dorm until dawn,” they shared. “We had things like chicken, pizza and all of the other delivery foods we wanted to order. Also, while listening to our pre-debut song, it became twelve o’clock and it became 2021, so it became a raging party.”
In addition to their passion for music, the group shares a common interest in tarot and astrology. At the mention of it, all of Purple Kiss lit up and started chattering amongst themselves and laughing, and overall, became very animated. “All of us are really into it,” they said. They also shared that they take psych tests and personality quizzes in their free time and compare their results, as they enjoy learning about it and getting results accurate to their personalities.
Purple Kiss has posted fun content in addition to their performances. For example, during their pre-debut days, they recreated the viral game Among Us in a YouTube video. When asked about recreating another game in a future video, the members all became more animated and made a wheeling motion. They explained that there’s a phone app called Kart Rider, and they would love to try recreating it in the future.
Staying Grounded: How Purple Kiss Maintains Their Mental Health
Though idol life is stressful on its own, Purple Kiss debuted in a uniquely challenging time for everyone, where a lot of people are trying their best to care for their well-being. The members opened up about looking after their mental health and what they’ve learned from the other members.
Since there are seven members in the group, they have so many opportunities to learn from each other. They had to think about it, as they had a hard time choosing just one thing they learned from another member. “I learned from Dosie how to be calm and idealistic,” Swan, Purple Kiss’ youngest member shared. “I get really emotional in certain situations, but when Dosie is in the same situations, she is usually very calm and idealistic, so I try to learn how Dosie reacts.”
Purple Kiss values their mental well-being, and they make a conscious effort to maintain it. Goeun answered this question as well, sharing her wisdom as one of the older members of the group. She paused to think about it, and explained, “One of the most important parts of maintaining my mental health is looking after physical wellness, as well as taking time to clear out my emotions routinely because when I clear out my emotions, the good, positive energies can come in. By writing diaries, I try to clear out my emotions.”
Being in a group with six other members has provided each member with not only a support system, but also six other people who know exactly what they are going through. The members’ chemistry is evident, but even so, Ireh shared what she loves most about being in Purple Kiss. “Within Purple Kiss, there’s six more of you. So while the members are all super talented at performing, they’re all warm and funny and it’s such a good atmosphere.” The interview ended on a high note as they said their goodbyes, and asked EnVi to look forward to their future projects and releases.
Looking for more Purple Kiss? Check out our coverage of their debut project here!
Thumbnail by Jenessa.
