Kiss of Life are known as the “hot girls” of K-pop with their hip-hop and retro-inspired music releases. But that’s not stopping the girl group from going for a new, refreshing style of music.

“Refreshing concepts are usually associated with being pure and innocent, but they don't have to be like that. Our refreshing concept is about us being brighter and happy,” Julie said during a group interview held at a cafe in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, ahead of the release of Kiss of Life’s first digital single, “Sticky,” on Monday.

“We are saying that hot girls can also pull off a refreshing concept. We are happy, pleased and confident. That’s the way we interpret a refreshing concept. Isn’t that fresh in itself?” she said.

Kiss of Life has been known for its unique, retro-inspired and strong concepts since the group’s debut in July 2023. “Sticky,” based on Afrobeat rhythms, marks the girl group’s first venture into a more mainstream genre of music — done in a Kiss of Life way.

“We’ve engraved a strong and intense image based on hip-hop sounds so far, but this time, we are back with a completely bright energy and a more girly energy,” Julie said.

But going for a completely different style of music and concept didn’t stress or pressure the four members. It did the opposite.

“I think ‘Sticky’ was the album that we were most comfortable while making,” Natty said. “With our previous releases, we’ve been trying to immerse ourselves in a character and, for example, think what kind of rascal we can be. This time, we just told ourselves to do whatever we want because it’s a song that we can just enjoy.”

“I was just happy throughout the entire music-making process,” Haneul said.

The main theme of “Sticky,” however, somewhat unexpectedly, is butterflies — a dream creature for member Belle.

“Butterflies are creatures that represent freedom because they live without a strict goal in life,” Belle said. “And I too, want to live a flexible life without set goals.”

Belle explained that she was first attracted to the concept of butterflies when she lived her life as a musician and music producer before she started her life as a K-pop idol. Belle most famously is known as being one of the producers of girl group Le Sserafim’s hit song “Unforgiven” (2023).

“I sound like a crazy person talking about butterflies,” Belle said, making everyone burst out in laughter. “But I think of my dad [singer Shim Shin] as a butterfly, an artist without set goals but a clear mind of what he’s pursuing. And to that extent, I think our members are also like butterflies, like true artists.”

The title of the song, “Sticky,” which sounds counterintuitive to the refreshing summer concept of the music, also had a more ambiguous meaning underneath.

“Even when you dance in a refreshing summer environment, you will end up being sticky if you are enthusiastic about it, and that’s the one side of ‘sticky’ that we are trying to say,” Belle said. “But it also might mean, ambiguously, the sticky love you can have in the summer. It can refer to the sticky sweat but also the ice cream that melted. The warm vibe the four members have can also be defined as sticky.”

The single also includes B-side track “Te Quiero,” an English track that Belle took part in the production of. The Kiss of Life members explained that while both tracks were strong contenders as the lead single, they eventually opted for the bright and energetic “Sticky” over “Te Quiero,” which has “captivating Latin rhythms and melodies.”

“We are still a rookie group with less than a year of experience, but we are already dropping our fourth release. That’s all down to the love and support of our fans and the general public,” Natty said.

“Kiss of Life is a group with endless charms, and to show that, we are working relentlessly and are already in preparations for our next album.”

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]