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HYBE and BELIFT LAB’s newest girl group, ILLIT, debuted on March 25, 2024. Consisting of five members - MINJU, IROHA, WONHEE, MOKA, and YUNAH - the group hit the K-pop stage with their debut album, SUPER REAL ME. The group is popularly called “HYBE’s youngest daughter” and “NewJeans’ little sister.”
They are already gaining immense fanfare for their album’s title track, Magnetic, which entered the Spotify global chart on the day of their debut. However, they are now gaining attention for a completely different reason. Their interview from their debut showcase has been going viral because of the nature of their answers to the questions asked.
After the interview, some journalists couldn’t stop talking about how the group gave repetitive answers to the questions and displayed a lot of apprehension while answering.
Some fans came in support of the group, but some expressed mild criticism of this behavior from the group. Many fans were of the opinion that the group members are indeed quite young and hence nervousness while answering should be seen as normal.
ILLIT's debut showcase interview goes viral on the internet
On March 27, 2024, ILLIT members went viral for their debut showcase interview. Some journalists criticized them for their alleged repetitiveness and lack of maturity. Many journalists expressed dissatisfaction with the group's answers and reported them online.
Conversely, fans deemed that ILLIT members were quite nervous during this particular day and, hence, could not give accurate answers to the reporters. However, the journalists present during the showcase reported that the group gave insincere, short, and repetitive answers no matter the questions asked.
When asked if the nickname of being HYBE's youngest daughter is burdensome, they answered,
"In our company, there are many seniors to look up to. I will remember that and do my best."
The group was then asked, "What sets ILLIT apart from senior girl groups LE SSERAFIM and NewJeans?" They responded,
"Our team's charm is that we immerse ourselves completely in any given moment. Our fans appreciate that. When we're on stage, we focus on the performance, and off stage, we'll show how we enjoy ourselves among us."
Some fans thought that ILLIT's answers lacked context here, and they twisted the answers according to the questions. Another person asked,
"What do you think the standards are for being called a 5th generation girl group, and do you feel any pressure?"
The group answered,
"We want to show the public an honest, confident, quirky, and innocent side with our own charm, so the public can also hear various music genres through us. Our goal is to enable people to enjoy music, We know that we are practicing hard in a good environment, so we will work hard to show it to the public proudly."
Here, people thought this answer did not justify the question.
It was reported that about 100 reporters had gathered for this debut showcase of HYBE's new group but were left disappointed by the answers they received. The journalists also said they understood that ILLIT is a rookie group; however, their unwillingness to think about the interviewers' questions especially made the interview disappointing.
Some journalists reported that there were no emotions involved while answering, and there was a visible lack of conversational skills and professionalism. Many fans agreed with the reporters, while many deemed the reporters' questions as repetitive themselves.
Overall, this debut showcase has created much chaos in the K-pop community and raised eyebrows over the group's debut.
