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EXCLUSIVE
[INTERVIEW] "We want to be a breath of fresh air to K-Pop with our music," KISS OF LIFE talks working on debut album, solo tracks, goals, and more

AKP STAFF
Posted by Sofia-Sayson Monday, July 17, 2023

"We want to set a new color to the industry." Breaking into the K-Pop scene with a no-skip debut album, KISS OF LIFE, a four-member girl group under S2 Entertainment, is ready to bring a breath of fresh air to K-Pop with their music. Composing of all-rounded members Julie, Natty, Belle, and Haneul, you may have heard some of their names already.

Julie is a former YG Entertainment's THE BLACK LABEL trainee and is the rapper and leader of KISS OF LIFE. Natty, who you may be already familiar with, is a former JYP Entertainment trainee; she was seen in survival shows, including 'Sixteen,' the program that formed TWICE, and 'Idol School,' the show that formed fromis_9. Prior to her debut in KISS OF LIFE, Natty had already made her solo debut with 'NineTeen.' 

On the other hand, Belle started her musical career as a songwriter and producer. She took part in the creation of LE SSERAFIM's hit 2023 single "UNFORGIVEN," (G)I-DLE Miyeon's "Softly," and more. Lastly, Haneul, born in 2005, is the maknae of the group. Other than being an idol with overflowing talents, she also plays guitar.

Shout-out video:

Coming from different backgrounds before being together as one, KISS OF LIFE shared that when they found out that four of them will be in a group, they told themselves that they should make it work. "We definitely started out as really different four girls, but now we learn and train to be better as four. We're working on making our synergy even better," said Julie.

In an exclusive interview with allkpop, the girls of KISS OF LIFE sat down to talk more about their well-received debut. Belle and Julie lead the group in answering during the interview.

"For our first album, we just hope we set a good stable introduction for KISS OF LIFE. This is just the start, so we're just warming up to show everyone what we got," said Julie. "We hope to show everyone our confidence in performing and our dynamic music."

The mini-album consists of six songs: the title track, "Shhh" which blends hip-hop and dance genres, the sidetrack "Bye My Neverland," which tells the story of becoming a full-fledged adult from a girl, and the members' solo songs, Natty's "Sugarcoat," Belle's "Countdown," Julie's "Kitty Cat," and Haneul's "Play Love Games." All the songs have been praised by fans, who say that they believe this is one of the best debuts they have seen in a long time.

"We're beyond grateful and we feel very blessed to have so much support already. It really means a lot to us. Words can't explain how grateful we are." Speaking of the positive comments on their album, KISS OF LIFE claimed that they don't feel any pressure for their future releases, but instead, they are excited to show more of themselves to everyone.

Along with their solo tracks are their solo music videos, which interconnect with each other well. "We had to film six videos as well so it was super crazy for us," Julie responded. According to the members, the preparations for this debut were really hectic, but a big experience for them. "We learned a whole lot throughout the whole process and it was super amazing. The recording process took a while because we wanted to make it really perfect. The filming of the music video was actually a really big one for us because our music video was drama-based."

The members of KISS OF LIFE found the filming process to be fun, even though it was a challenging experience, as they had to practice their stages extensively. Nonetheless, they enjoyed the camaraderie and teamwork that came with the project.

"Each one of us has a story behind our solo songs." Julie explained that her song, "Kitty Cat," is about a girl that looks like she's having the time of her life, but actually, she's craving for something else inside. "She secretly is hiding her passion for music and the same goes for Natty, Belle, and Haneul."

The music videos for KISS OF LIFE's solo tracks, as well as for "Shhh" and "Bye My Neverland" all tell a similar story, with each member struggling in their own way before coming together to achieve their dreams. 

"I burned my neverland / I don’t look back after a long night / I have no regrets / I'll never come back" — "Bye My Neverland"


"I think this is different for each person, but all of the songs fit so perfectly with each other right now," Julie told allkpop, adding that it would be very hard to choose which song would each of the members do if they switch songs with one another. "But I think it would be fun if we got the chance to try singing each other's songs."

"Actually, I worked as a producer of our first mini-album, 'KISS OF LIFE,'" Belle remarked. The members were stunned and looked at each other in admiration after Belle thanked them for making everything possible. "I just want to say that it was an honor to work on our group's songs as a member of KISS OF LIFE. And I think that each member's talent and charm made it possible."

For their future releases, the members said that they would like to try some hip-hop songs. "We have so many styles and genres of music that we haven't shown people yet, so we hope you look forward to it!"

When asked about what pushed them to take the challenge of being an idol, Belle revealed, "Ever since I was very young, I received a lot of inspiration from a lot of pop stars' music performances. So we just naturally dreamed to make music and performance just like them."

As a newly-debuted rising girl group, KISS OF LIFE is going strong on charts, with their album topping iTunes charts in 5 countries, the group is continuing to attract more fans, marking their great start. The girls relayed the goals they would like to achieve in the future. Belle answered, "First of all, we want to win the 'Rookie of the Year' award as this is our one and only chance. In a few years, we think we'll be going on an international tour with our several songs." Julie chimed in, "We would love to be able to make it in the Billboard if possible. That's our biggest goal."

KISS OF LIFE's message to the readers: "Everyone out there! We've come to the world as KISS OF LIFE, so please give us a lot of love and support. Please listen to our first mini album, 'KISS OF LIFE,' our main track 'Shhh' and our B-side track, 'Bye My Neverland,' along with each of our solo songs. We'll be doing many things in the future, so stay tuned. Thank you."

Social Media:

Facebook: @Kiss Of Life
Instagram: @kissoflife_s2
TikTok: @kissoflife_official
Twitter: @KISSOFLIFE_S2
YouTube: @KISSOFLIFE_official

Shop the story
KISS OF LIFE - 3rd Mini Album [Lose Yourself] (Magazine Ver.)
$35
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fluffydeath
fluffydeath3,784 pts Monday, July 17, 2023 2
Monday, July 17, 2023

Just don't betray your CEO for your A&R/Music Producer you will being doing better than some.

I know I am setting the bar pretty high here, but I don't think I'm asking too much...

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rock-lover
rock-lover306 pts Monday, July 17, 2023 0
Monday, July 17, 2023

I have been so impressed with KIOF already. I only heard about them by hearing about how many great songs had contributions from Julie in them, but I am so glad I caught them in time to watch all their pre-debut stuff come out. What a storyline so far.

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