(L-R) Kiss of Life’s Belle, Natty, Haneul and Julie.Photo:S2 Entertainment
S2 Entertainment
Kiss of Life opens up to PEOPLE amid the K-pop girl group’s Kiss Road TourThe shows mark the group’s first official string of North American shows"It’s been go, go, go," says member Julie of their career so farKiss of Life’s Julie only wants one thing from their New York City audience.“I don’t want anyone to think about anything else but us,” group leader Julie, 24, requested at the beginning of their Nov. 22 concert at Manhattan Center Hammerstein Ballroom.The four-piece K-pop girl group — comprised of Julie, Belle, Natty and Haneul — are in the middle of their first official string of North American shows, the Kiss Road Tour. When tickets dropped on Sept. 6, the demand was so high they added three additional shows and upgraded venues throughout their 18 stops.Before their sold-out show in N.Y.C., the members opened up to PEOPLE about their fast-paced life since debuting in July 2023. In just over one year as a group, they have released five EPs, accumulated over seven million monthly Spotify listeners and charted their first song on theBillboardGlobal 200 with “Sticky.”“It’s been go, go, go,” says Julie. “We’ve gotten so many great opportunities to continue pursuing our music and continue to come [out with] one song after another.”They credit their fans, the Kissys, for motivating them to work hard — and the love translates into their onstage crowd interactions. During the concert, they select one fan from the audience to come up and sit in a chair as they perform the sultry song “Nobody Knows.”The “Kissy Chair,” as they call it, has gone viral on social media, with fan-filmed footage of the segment amassing millions of views onTikTok. They conceived the idea together, hoping to make their tour “raw and super real.”“We were like, ‘What can we do to really make this one concert wild, crazy, hot and sexy?’“ Julie says. “Why not bring one of our fans up stage and dance super close in front of them?”Fans reciprocate Kiss of Life’s energy when they perform their most popular hits, like “Igloo,” a B-side off their latest EPLose Yourself— and performing in the U.S. is “times 100 louder” than anywhere else, according to Julie.Kiss of Life’s youngest member, 19-year-old Haneul, experienced the effects of her viral “Igloo” performance in real time. For the song’s choreography, Haneul leads the four members in the chorus, flicking sunglasses down across their faces.“When we perform ‘Igloo,’ all of our fans in America bring out the sunglasses,” Haneul says, describing how the crowd mirrors their dancing. “It was so cool.”On Dec. 12, their Kiss Road tour will take them to Belle’s birthplace, Seattle, where she lived for eight years before moving to South Korea. Ahead of her upcoming hometown show, Belle, 20, says it feels “surreal” to come back.“The fact that I was born there really makes performing there feel so special,” she says. “I’m so happy to feel the energy of Seattle Kissys. Some of our family members are coming. My cousin, my aunties maybe.”(L-R) Natty, Belle, Julie and Haneul.S2 EntertainmentAfter the North American leg concludes in Vancouver, Canada, on Dec. 13, Julie says they want to “keep on having fun” in a career they’ve trained for years to achieve. For Natty, 22, a former trainee under SM and JYP Entertainment, it took nearly 10 years for her to debut in a group.Despite admitting there were “so many times” she wanted to quit, she pushed through because she “wanted to show everyone [her] true colors and musicality.”Julie says that although it’s “super good” fans see them as “cool, confident, fun, sexy,” she hopes Kiss of Life can show their “deep, intelligent side” in the future. All four members participate in writing and producing their music — and they have a company that listens to their creative input.“Because we have the skills and ability to be able to actually pursue what we want to do is a very big merit for us,” explains Julie. “That’s why we are able to actually tell the company what we want to do strongly.”When creating hits, they recognize right in the studio when a song will catch on — like “Sticky” or “Igloo.“How they know, Belle says, is simple: “We have good taste.”
Kiss of Life’s Julie only wants one thing from their New York City audience.
“I don’t want anyone to think about anything else but us,” group leader Julie, 24, requested at the beginning of their Nov. 22 concert at Manhattan Center Hammerstein Ballroom.
The four-piece K-pop girl group — comprised of Julie, Belle, Natty and Haneul — are in the middle of their first official string of North American shows, the Kiss Road Tour. When tickets dropped on Sept. 6, the demand was so high they added three additional shows and upgraded venues throughout their 18 stops.
Before their sold-out show in N.Y.C., the members opened up to PEOPLE about their fast-paced life since debuting in July 2023. In just over one year as a group, they have released five EPs, accumulated over seven million monthly Spotify listeners and charted their first song on theBillboardGlobal 200 with “Sticky.”
“It’s been go, go, go,” says Julie. “We’ve gotten so many great opportunities to continue pursuing our music and continue to come [out with] one song after another.”
They credit their fans, the Kissys, for motivating them to work hard — and the love translates into their onstage crowd interactions. During the concert, they select one fan from the audience to come up and sit in a chair as they perform the sultry song “Nobody Knows.”
The “Kissy Chair,” as they call it, has gone viral on social media, with fan-filmed footage of the segment amassing millions of views onTikTok. They conceived the idea together, hoping to make their tour “raw and super real.”
“We were like, ‘What can we do to really make this one concert wild, crazy, hot and sexy?’“ Julie says. “Why not bring one of our fans up stage and dance super close in front of them?”
Fans reciprocate Kiss of Life’s energy when they perform their most popular hits, like “Igloo,” a B-side off their latest EPLose Yourself— and performing in the U.S. is “times 100 louder” than anywhere else, according to Julie.
Kiss of Life’s youngest member, 19-year-old Haneul, experienced the effects of her viral “Igloo” performance in real time. For the song’s choreography, Haneul leads the four members in the chorus, flicking sunglasses down across their faces.
“When we perform ‘Igloo,’ all of our fans in America bring out the sunglasses,” Haneul says, describing how the crowd mirrors their dancing. “It was so cool.”
On Dec. 12, their Kiss Road tour will take them to Belle’s birthplace, Seattle, where she lived for eight years before moving to South Korea. Ahead of her upcoming hometown show, Belle, 20, says it feels “surreal” to come back.
“The fact that I was born there really makes performing there feel so special,” she says. “I’m so happy to feel the energy of Seattle Kissys. Some of our family members are coming. My cousin, my aunties maybe.”
(L-R) Natty, Belle, Julie and Haneul.S2 Entertainment
After the North American leg concludes in Vancouver, Canada, on Dec. 13, Julie says they want to “keep on having fun” in a career they’ve trained for years to achieve. For Natty, 22, a former trainee under SM and JYP Entertainment, it took nearly 10 years for her to debut in a group.
Despite admitting there were “so many times” she wanted to quit, she pushed through because she “wanted to show everyone [her] true colors and musicality.”
Julie says that although it’s “super good” fans see them as “cool, confident, fun, sexy,” she hopes Kiss of Life can show their “deep, intelligent side” in the future. All four members participate in writing and producing their music — and they have a company that listens to their creative input.
“Because we have the skills and ability to be able to actually pursue what we want to do is a very big merit for us,” explains Julie. “That’s why we are able to actually tell the company what we want to do strongly.”
When creating hits, they recognize right in the studio when a song will catch on — like “Sticky” or “Igloo.”
How they know, Belle says, is simple: “We have good taste.”
source: people.com
