Consisting of Miyawaki Sakura, Kim Chaewon, Hong Eunchae, Kazuha and Huh Yunjin, the group is set to drop its second EP “Antifragile” on Monday.
With five new tracks, Le Sserafim plans to continue showing its theme of fearlessness and confidence. Similarly to its debut song which nonchalantly proclaimed “I’m Fearless,” teasers for the upcoming title track show members proclaiming “I will rise over and over again […] I am antifragile.”
Le Sserafim, whose name is an anagram of “I’m Fearless,” debuted in May amid heavy public attention as “HYBE’s first girl group.” The group’s management Source Music is a subsidiary of HYBE, the K-pop powerhouse behind boy bands BTS, Tomorrow X Together and Enhypen.
Already at the time of its debut, members Sakura and Chaewon were already well-known names on the K-pop scene. They were formerly active as members of girl group IZ*ONE, a project girl group formed by the 12 finalists of Mnet’s hit idol audition program “Produce 48” (2018). IZ*ONE and its members built a high profile through hits such as “La Vie en Rose” (2018), “Violeta” (2019), “Fiesta” (2020), “Secret Story of the Swan” (2020) and “Panorama” (2020).
After IZ*ONE disbanded in April 2021, the two made headlines in March when news broke that they had signed with Source Music in order to become part of the agency’s new girl group.
With a built-in fan base from Sakura and Chaewon’s former girl group activities, Le Sserafim was off to a smooth start. Its debut EP “Fearless” (stylized in all caps) sold over 307,000 copies in the first week of its release, which was the highest CD sales by a debuting K-pop girl group at the time.
Tracks “Antifragile,” “The Hydra,” “Impurities,” “No Celestial” and “Good Parts (when the quality is bad but I am)” will be made available on music streaming platforms from Oct. 17 at 6 p.m.
Kim Chaewon
Date of birth: Aug. 1, 2000
Zodiac Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Undisclosed
Debut: May 2022 as a member of girl group Le Sserafim
Agency: Source Music
Kim Chaewon first became known to the public as a member of IZ*ONE, a project girl group formed by the 12 finalists of Mnet’s hit idol audition program “Produce 48” (2018). The group disbanded in April 2021 and a year later, Kim was revealed as a member of K-pop powerhouse HYBE’s first girl group Le Sserafim (stylized in all caps) along with her former bandmate Miyawaki Sakura. An anagram of the phrase “I’m Fearless,” Le Sserafim debuted in May 2022 with the EP “Fearless,” which set the highest record at the time for CD sales by a debuting K-pop girl group.
This information was confirmed by Source Music on Oct. 12, 2022.
BY HALEY YANG [yang.hyunjoo@joongang.co.kr]
