K-pop girl group Le Sserafim, jointly managed by BTS’ parent label Hybe and Source Music, has debuted with their album and title track “Fearless.”
The six-member group also dropped their debut music video today for the song, a confident track declaring the group’s motto “I’m fearless.” Le Sserafim’s name is an anagram of that same phrase, which was chosen by BigHit founder and Hybe chairman Bang Si-hyuk himself.
In an interview with Soompi, the girl group shared their thoughts about their name and debut.
Korean American member Huh Yun-jin said about their group name, “My first thought was, ‘It’s extremely luxurious.’ It was fascinating and touching. I remember getting goosebumps all over my body and tearing up that day.”
Prior to Le Sserafim, Huh was a contestant on the idol survivor show, “Produce 48,” ranking 26th. Her fellow bandmates Sakura Miyawaki of Japan and Kim Chae-won of South Korea were winning contestants who went on to form the girl group Iz*One in 2018.
This is Miyawaki’s third debut as part of a girl group, following her appearance as a member of the Japanese idol group HKT48.
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“When all my promotions ended, I wanted to continue group promotions and promote as an artist on stages all across the world,” Miayawaki said. “That’s when I met with Source Music and our thoughts aligned well, so I ended up joining the agency.”
“Since it’s my third debut, there is pressure. I keep thinking that I want to do better. However, I think people need to feel pressured in order to grow. I will continue to work hard in the future. I want to promote diligently this year and perform on many award show stages at the end of the year. I also want to receive the rookie award, which we can only receive once as Le Sserafim.”
Kim Chae-won shared similar thoughts about how having been on “Produce 48” has impacted her, Huh and Miyawaki, saying, “We’re receiving a lot of attention but [because of that,] I don’t think we are free from other people’s perspectives. That’s why we consistently talked about the subject of not dwelling on the past or being affected by the world’s gaze and incorporated that in our album.”
Kim also serves as the leader of the group.
“At first, we thought it’d be okay to promote without a leader but then we decided we needed one for smooth communication with our agency,” she said. “After discussing, I ended up taking on the role of leader. There isn’t anything difficult. My members follow me well. I’ve gained more responsibility than before and I’m thankful to have this good experience with this team.”
Other members include Japanese professional ballerina Nakamura Kazuha – who was personally chosen by the head of the label – Source Music trainee and “maknae” (youngest) Hong Eun-chae, and Kim Ga-ram, who made an appearance in the boy group Enhypen’s music video “Drunk-Dazed.”
The “Fearless” album includes four other songs: “The World is My Oyster,” “Blue Flame,” “The Great Mermaid” and “Sour Grapes.”
Feature Image via Hybe Labels
