GFriend returns sweet and strong

GFriend has no intention of losing its innocent schoolgirl image anytime soon, the K-pop group’s members said Monday.

They were holding a press showcase for the release of their first full-length album “LOL,” whose track “Navillera” topped major Korean music charts after its release at midnight on Sunday.

“For now, we still want to be girls,” Sowon said when asked whether the group was ready to show off a more mature side.

“It’s only been a year and a half since our debut ... we thought it would be okay to go on a little longer (with this theme).”

“Our concept is retro this time,” she explained, pointing out the girls’ outfits on that day -- red shoes, white tennis skirts and new hairdos.

The K-pop group, whose six members are all 20 years old or younger, has reaped considerable success with its pristine image.

In promoting their debut song “Glass Bead,” they had donned gym shorts. For last year’s “Me Gustas Tu” and “Rough” released in January, they had sported summer and autumn school uniforms.

These songs were hits, lingering on music charts for weeks. GFriend has now amassed over 30,000 members in its fan club, “Buddy.”

Like its title “LOL,” which stands for “laughing out loud” and “lots of love,” the new album is meant to “make people happy,” said the group’s youngest member Umji.

The track “Navillera” is named after an expression used by Korean poet Cho Chi-hun in his poem “The Nun’s Dance.” Cho created the word to describe butterflies and GFriend felt it was an apt depiction of the group’s resolve.

“We’ve finished our three-part schoolgirl series,” said Yuju. “Now, we want to soar like butterflies and show even better performances (to fans).” 

GFriend caught the attention of global audiences last year when foreign news outlets reported a performance during which Yuju slipped and fell numerous times on stage, each time doggedly getting back up to continue with the show. “This video of a K-pop singer falling eight times in one song will inspire you to keep going no matter what,” one report said.

The group’s members say they will continue to work as hard as they can and dance as energetically as possible.

“Even with the same dance moves, our members tend to make bigger and more powerful movements,” said Sowon.

“When we doubt ourselves, the only answer is to keep practicing, 24 hours,” said Yuju.

GFriend, which debuted in January 2015 under the agency Source Music, consists of members Sowon, Yerin, Yuju, SinB and Umji. Songs in the new album include “Mermaid” and “Gone with the Wind.”

By Rumy Doo (doo@heraldcorp.com)