The moment BABYMONSTER stepped into the music scene with “BATTER UP”, followed by the release of their first mini-album [BABYMONS7ER], the members have become the talk of town. They constantly wow the listeners whenever they have the opportunity to go up on stage, always there to slay.

Hailing from YG Entertainment, the new seven-piece girl group — consisting of RUKA, PHARITA, ASA, AHYEON, RAMI, RORA, and CHIQUITA — is built differently. Aside from their synchronized moves, the girls' serve strong vocal prowess and harmonies that elevate their performance to another level. And this is just the start of the promising journey that will bring them to brand-new heights.

Their eponymous record boasts seven songs. Kicking off with the 44-second track that leaves some wanting more, "MONSTERS (Intro)" is the perfect track to elate and immerse the listeners into the album. Followed by it is the focus single, "SHEESH", that will "get everyone going"; the stylish B-sides "LIKE THAT" and "DREAM"; full group versions of "BATTER UP" and "Stuck In The Middle", including a remix of the latter.

After the highly-anticipated release of [BABYMONS7ER], the septet's debut album, allkpop had the opportunity to have an exclusive chat with the members to dish on their pre-debut evaluation experience, how they plan to use all the love to keep growing, their musical influences, and more. Check out our exclusive interview with BABYMONSTER below!

Shout-out from BABYMONSTER to allkpop readers:

allkpop: You're poised to enter the music industry following the legacy of YG Entertainment's highly successful K-pop girl groups, 2NE1 and BLACKPINK. How does it feel to follow in their footsteps? Has your newfound popularity sunk in yet?

BABYMONSTER: We’ve been watching and learning from the older YG artists ever since our trainee days, and it’s such a happy occasion and great honor to be able to make our debut! Thanks to the great other YG artists, we’ve been able to receive much love and attention since the early days after our debut. It has been a long-held dream of ours to walk along the same path as those artists who had been our idols. We’ll work hard until we reach that moment of becoming fully proud of ourselves.

allkpop: Does this immense pressure weigh heavily on you, or does this rather serve as motivation to even show better sides of the members?

BABYMONSTER: It’s only natural that we feel a lot of pressure, but we are striving and practicing hard to live up to the public’s expectations of us. We’ve showcased our performance of “SHEESH” for the first time to our fans, and we’re grateful that it was met with a great response. Please continue to cheer us on!

allkpop: Why do you think this album is the perfect project for you to introduce and mark the momentous kick-off of BABYMONSTER and build that strong foundation in the industry?

BABYMONSTER: It’s an album reflecting the bold ambition of BABYMONSTER and our own diverse charms. Named after an exclamation, the title track “SHEESH” especially reflects our determination to have the world react to us with surprise. All 7 tracks on the album have different genres and styles, so they are great to listen to. Since this is the first album we’re releasing as a complete 7-member group, it’s even more meaningful. We’ll keep growing so we can show the world our MONSTER-like skills on stage.

allkpop: Can you share insights from your evaluation experience and how it contributed to your preparation for your highly anticipated debut? What are the biggest valuable lessons that you have heard or learned from your seniors at YG Entertainment?

ASA, RAMI, CHIQUITA: There were monthly evaluations held throughout our trainee period, so the producers at YG gave us detailed feedback on our performances and skills each month, and sometimes even senior artists would come and evaluate us. We were incredibly nervous back then, but thanks to the experience of practicing and working hard to improve in the areas we’re lacking in, we’ve been able to grow a lot as artists.

RUKA: During the Last Evaluation shoot, Jennie from BLACKPINK gave us advice on how we should think about moving the audience through the performance while being on stage. That advice was the most memorable.

RORA: Many senior artists would make visits during our monthly evaluations to give us advice and cheer us on! LEE SUHYUN from AKMU shared a tip on getting immersed in the imagination…that you are creating a film with your own storytelling while singing a song.

PHARITA: The monthly evaluations during our trainee days were a practice procedure for the stages we perform on now. I had a chance to meet Lisa from BLACKPINK during my trainee years and she told me that “focusing on yourself well can make you shine anytime and anywhere.” Since then, I’ve learned how to work harder for myself and build confidence, rather than compare myself with others.

AHYEON: When monthly evaluations were held during my trainee years, there were times when I was so nervous that I couldn’t even show half of what I had practiced. That’s why I began to search for ways to maintain my composure whenever I get nervous. The advice that stands out in my memory was that of a YG artist telling me to customize the songs to fit my style when singing them.

allkpop: While it's still early in your journey, what have you found to be the most rewarding aspects of your career so far, particularly during this phase of your career?

RUKA: I’m so happy that we’re receiving so much love, attention, and support from our fans already! I got congratulatory messages and videos specially made for me on my birthday from fans, and I was so moved and happy to receive them.

PHARITA, ASA: We’re so grateful that so many people support us even though it hasn’t been long since our debut! Being able to meet with our fans, see them smile, and make them happy gives us a great sense of accomplishment. Only after we met our fans for the first time did we really feel that “we had made our debut.” We are now even more encouraged when listening to our fans’ voices and cheers.

AHYEON: The moments when we’re on the stage. When we see our fans enjoying our songs, we wish those moments would never end. We felt that the time spent on recording the album while preparing for our debut was the most worthwhile. We recorded the songs with much care while imagining how our fans would sing along to them after their release.

RAMI, RORA, CHIQUITA: It’s when we show our fans the performances we prepared and hear their shouts and cheers. We also gain great strength when we hear positive responses and compliments about our performances. It feels rewarding to receive great love to reward our efforts, and we get motivated to work harder and put on even better performances. As BABYMONSTER, we promise to become a group that keeps on growing for the fans who root for us.

allkpop: Were you able to discover any new facets of yourselves through the process of preparing for your first mini-album?

RUKA: After our debut, I appeared on a music program and became an “ending fairy” for the first time. I had always been shy before, so it was amazing to see my facial expressions and poses becoming more natural.

PHARITA: After making our debut, I realized that I liked to hold the mic and perform in front of an audience. I can be free, add my own gestures, and have more fun with the performances.

ASA: While preparing for our debut, we proposed a lot of ideas amongst ourselves and went through numerous dilemmas before completing our preparations. I had always been something of a perfectionist, but I tried to perfect everything even more this time around because our fans had waited for us for so long.

AHYEON: It turns out that I’m much more of a homebody than I expected. I just stay home when we don’t have scheduled activities to fulfill.

RAMI: When I was a trainee, I usually sang ballads, R&B, or Soul genre songs, but BABYMONSTER’s songs are generally hip, so that worried me at first. But once I started to sing them, I found out that I could pull off songs with that tone and genre as well.

CHIQUITA: I felt that we could also pull off the hip-hop genre well.

allkpop: The members come from different countries: South Korea, Japan, and Thailand. Were there any difficulties at first in terms of communicating and sharing thoughts? How did you work on developing your relationships with each other?

RUKA: When I first came to Korea, I had a lot of difficulty with learning the language, but after speaking with the Korean trainees in Korean, my skills gradually grew. When I met CHIQUITA and PHARITA for the first time, I was a bit better at Korean, so I would teach them Korean words or Korean culture even though I’m Japanese.

PHARITA: I believe that we can communicate well even though we’re a group of members from different countries. Since we spend time together every day, we are aware of one another’s habits and personalities. I believe that we are getting closer day by day.

ASA: When I first came here as a trainee, I couldn’t speak any Korean, so I went through a lot of struggles related to the language, but I’m thankful to the members who stayed by my side and helped me. I can rely on them, and we are still helping one another out while we fulfill activities.

CHIQUITA: My Korean is still a little clumsy, but the older members are really taking care of me and helping me out! All the YG staff members are always concerned about me and helping me. Thanks to that, we got close very quickly!

AHYEON, RAMI, RORA: We kept helping each other out in terms of language and culture. We tried to have a lot of conversations together and during that process, the Korean level of our foreign members grew rapidly. It must have been difficult for them to come here from overseas and adapt to new surroundings, so we’d like to thank them. We got closer while introducing delicious foods from each country to one another and eating them together.

allkpop: The name BABYMONSTER carries a duality. How do you interpret this name and embody its meaning in your music and performances, to yourselves? In what ways do you think BABYMONSTER will stand out in the K-pop scene?

BABYMONSTER: Our group name BABYMONSTER combines “BABY – the infinite potential for growth, and MONSTER – monstrous skills.” To live up to our group name, we will make great efforts to keep growing and show ourselves in a cool way on stage. We believe that we are a colorful group that can master any genre, as can be seen from our latest album reflecting diverse charms.

allkpop: Since you're just a new group, I was wondering which artists you look up to the most. Is there anyone who served as your inspiration and motivation to choose this path of being an idol?

RUKA, ASA, RORA, CHIQUITA: We’ve pursued the dream of becoming an artist by watching the senior YG artists. Even during our trainee days, we watched their performance videos or movies to get motivated and learn.

PHARITA: BLACKPINK motivated me to take the career path of K-Pop!

AHYEON: I really respect G-Dragon. I have watched his live performances every single day since I was a trainee. I can even memorize what kind of improvisation he did for which stage. While watching his performances, I felt how the onstage power of an artist who truly enjoys performing can be tremendous. I’ll always respect him.

RAMI: I have so many… But I especially respect AKMU! Their music is great, and their tones and melodies are amazing. I truly respect them as artists!

allkpop: As you embark on your journey in the evolving world of K-Pop, what message do you have for the future of BABYMONSTER? If you could tell something to your future selves for you to come back to again in a year or two, what would it be?

RUKA, ASA, RAMI: We hope that BABYMONSTER can enjoy music in a healthy and happy way and become able to convey positive energy to people. We will keep working harder to show you a cooler side of us, so please look forward to that and keep sending your support!

PHARITA: To the future BABYMONSTER, we hope you can be even stronger and happier than before. I hope you can express whatever you want to do, and most of all, stay healthy and enjoy every moment!

AHYEON: I want to tell myself not to forget to keep my humility. I’ll work hard so that we can keep meeting you as more mature artists. Thank you to allkpop for giving us the chance to do an interview!

RORA, CHIQUITA: Hello! How are you these days? You’ve been able to see how much you’ve grown since the first performance, right? You’re doing great, so keep on studying, practicing, and growing your skills and putting on performances that exceed expectations for the sake of your many fans who always support you. We hope you can become cool artists who can wield great influence. You can do this!

Socials:

Youtube: BABYMONSTER
Instagram: babymonster_ygofficial
Twitter: YGBABYMONSTER_
Facebook: BABYMONSTER.ygofficial
Tiktok: babymonster_yg_tiktok