“We tried to show IVE as we are now, without hiding or exaggerating anything,” LIZ tells Billboard Korea, and REVIVE+, the sextet’s second full-length album, carries that philosophy all the way through.
The Starship Entertainment girl group’s new record lands with a tightened point of view: big, headline-ready group tracks that push their sound forward, plus a substantial slate of solo songs that spotlight each member’s range and character with intention. It’s a split-screen era that keeps IVE’s signature chemistry intact while expanding what “IVE” can mean, individually and together.
The Western-infused pre-release track “BANG BANG” sits at No. 63 on the Billboard Global 200 this dated March 7, while peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard Korea Hot 100.
A week into their big comeback with the signature anthemic, high-octane “BLACKHOLE,” IVE (ANYUJIN, GAEUL, REI, JANGWONYOUNG, LIZ and LEESEO) speak in a written interview about the moments they recognized their growth, the creative logic behind the album’s solo-heavy format and how they approached its themes to land with clarity for listeners across borders and their world tour, SHOW WHAT I AM.
You’re returning with a full-length album for the first time in about two years and 10 months. From the earliest stages of preparation through the current promotions, was there a particular moment when you genuinely felt your growth — as artists, and as individuals?
ANYUJIN: While preparing this album in particular, our members had a lot of conversations with each other, which reminded me of our early debut days. Now, each of us has a clearer idea of IVE’s direction and I feel that our thoughts are really aligned. That makes it easier to see a clear picture together and helps us create a better outcome.
GAEUL: I felt a lot of growth while preparing for last year’s world tour in Seoul. I like to keep a diary and I had written down the things I wished had gone better and how I felt during our first world tour. Looking back at those notes while preparing for the Seoul show, I realized the things that I felt were lacking before had now improved and I also came to understand myself even better.
REI: I’ve been feeling my growth a lot recently. While preparing for the album and stage performances, I feel like I have more things I want to try and I’m able to take on challenges more boldly now. I believe that if I do my best in everything I do, growth will naturally follow.
JANGWONYOUNG: I’m usually the type to encourage myself that I’m doing well, but while preparing this album, I could truly feel my growth. Normally before we start preparing for an album, we have a meeting with our producer Seo Hyun-joo, who oversees our production, and the other members. This time I felt that our ideas about the kind of music we wanted to try and the messages we wanted to express were clearer, so we were able to share deeper and more diverse opinions. Thanks to that, the entire process felt much smoother.
LIZ: I feel that the whole group has grown a lot, but especially while preparing my solo track, I felt myself becoming stronger. It was a new challenge for me, but I could feel my excitement outweighing my worries. While I was preparing, I kept thinking that I want to perfect everything and share it quickly with everyone, so I think that was a positive change for me.
LEESEO: I finally turned 20 this year. My members and people around me say I’ve grown and matured and I also feel that I’ve grown a lot myself. Looking back from our debut to now, I feel like I’ve been moving forward slowly but surely, never backward. I believe this confidence that I’m always going forward positively influences everything that I do.
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Starship Entertainment
REVIVE+ feels engineered to announce a new era for IVE, both sonically and creatively. Which single track do you think makes the boldest case for that evolution, and what does it reveal about where IVE is headed?
ANYUJIN: The track that best expresses “change” on this album is “BANG BANG.” Since our debut, we’ve always tried to show a new side of IVE with every album. By trying out diverse styles in song camps, our producer Seo Hyun-joo has led us through many different changes. For this album, we all agreed on the idea of showing IVE’s next chapter and that’s how “BANG BANG” came to be. It’s a style of music IVE hasn’t done before and while we were preparing, all of us felt a strong desire to show something completely different, to show that we can do this type of music too.
GAEUL: I think “BLACKHOLE” best shows what kind of music we’ll do in the future and represents our next chapter in the most IVE way. The song feels like a declaration that “this is our group’s color and we’ll keep moving forward.” I hope many people listen to it and look forward to what IVE will do in the future too.
Solo tracks account for a significant portion of the album’s architecture. What drove the decision to structure the record that way, and how did each of you approach defining your individual artistic identity within it?
ANYUJIN: IVE’s narrative as a whole is important, but we also wanted to show how far IVE can go this time. That’s why we included solo tracks that reveal each member’s hidden skills and diverse musicality. I wanted to give a trendy feel while mixing 80s-90s pop and hip-hop vibes, which I think “Force” perfectly expresses. I think it came out really well so I’m proud of it.
GAEUL: When I first heard “Odd”, I fell in love with its dreamy vibes. I kept thinking about what kind of imagery I wanted to create with the track and ultimately, I wanted it to feel like moonlight. So I considered an approach that would show a dreamlike mood, as if I’m in the moonlight, in the overall performance, vocals and styling.
REI: Since it’s my first solo song, I wanted it to be immediately recognizable as “REI.” I worked hard on the track and participated in writing and composing, trying to mix playful yet sweet melodies with witty lyrics, which is why I included Japanese too. I think it added a special charm to the song so I’m happy with how it turned out.
JANGWONYOUNG: I’ve contributed to lyrics in IVE songs before, but for my solo song, I wanted to fully express my own message. Centered on my belief that I am the one in control of my own life, I wanted to show a song that really conveys confidence and powerful energy. I also tried out new vocal styles I haven’t shown before and it was a very meaningful process for me because it helped me learn more about my voice and gain confidence.
LIZ: While participating in drama OSTs before, I often wondered what kind of song I’d prepare if I released a solo track in the future. I wanted to create a song with a free and refreshing vibe so I loved the band sound when I first heard “Unreal.” I tried to match that free-spirited atmosphere with strong, bold vocals and participated in writing lyrics, which helped me achieve the exact vibe I envisioned.
LEESEO: Fans have told me that my voice is immediately recognizable. I wanted to make the most of that and also push myself to try rapping more boldly so I practiced a lot. I’m happy that my track reflects my own individuality and it’s still different from IVE songs too. Preparing this solo track was such a rewarding experience for me.
Communicating across language barriers and cultural contexts is one of the defining challenges of global pop. What did you prioritize in crafting this album’s themes to make sure they translated — and landed — without losing something in the crossing?
LIZ: I think the best way to convey any message clearly is to say it as it is. That’s always been our approach, but especially with this album, we wanted to describe IVE itself. We tried to show IVE as we are now, without hiding or exaggerating anything.
REI: I focused on emotions that can be shared even across different cultural or language backgrounds. Many of our songs are told from a “we” perspective rather than “me,” so I hope everyone who listens to this album feels confidence, hope, and energy. I believe that music has the power to connect people across languages and cultures!
What do you want Billboard‘s global readership to take away about IVE at this particular moment in your career — and what can you share about what comes next?
JANGWONYOUNG: I’m so happy to meet Billboard readers with the release of our second full-length album. I’m also thankful that this interview allowed us to share more of our true thoughts and feelings that we included in this album. After our album promotions, our second world tour, SHOW WHAT I AM, will begin. We’re working hard to show our DIVEs amazing performances, so please wait just a little longer for us.
LEESEO: REVIVE+ is a very precious and special album for all of us. I’m happy that we can share more about it with our fans through Billboard. We’ll keep coming back with more diverse and IVE-style music so we hope for your continued love and support. Please also look forward to our upcoming fan concerts and world tour stages too!
This story was originally published in Billboard Korea.
