For a while, it felt like the world had already begun treating ITZY like a finished story.

After the five-member Korean girl group launched with an explosive streak of hit singles — “DALLA DALLA,” “WANNABE,” “LOCO” — ITZY carved out a reputation as confident, unshakable trailblazers. But by 2022, backlash was brewing by way of “Sneakers,” the lead single from their Checkmate mini-album. “Sneakers” even happens to be one of their biggest hits thus far, but it didn’t matter.

But ITZY didn’t fold. Instead, they began rebuilding with clarity – and that’s part of their power.

Cheshire followed later that year with a more grounded, mature sound, even if its pre-release single “Boys Like You” (criticised for its juvenile English lyrics) nearly distracted from the progress. What mattered more were the conversations happening off-stage. In the post-production phase of Cheshire, the members – YEJI, LIA, RYUJIN, CHAERYEONG, and YUNA – and their company began conducting one-on-one interviews that would directly shape their next project. The result was 2023’s Kill My Doubt, a sharply curated mini-album about fear, growth and self-belief as an admission of vulnerability — and a declaration of intent.

Since then, ITZY has re-emerged with something deeper than just good pop songs. They’ve built a new creative language: one that’s conceptual, cohesive, and proudly self-authored. On Born to Be, released in January 2024, they styled themselves as warriors: each member taking on their own solo track and visual concept to reflect their individual identity. “Our new album is so powerful, powerful to the extent that you'll be able to taste the smell of the flame burning hot,” YEJI told the press at the time — a hyperbolic statement, maybe, but one that captured the group’s firebrand energy. Later that year, after the thirty-two-date Born to Be World Tour, ITZY followed up with GOLD, a thematically rich release rooted in the idea that “our world is still different.” Where previous eras might have leaned on external validation, these new projects framed ITZY as artists firmly in control of their own creative centre.

Fans immediately hailed it as one of the most visually ambitious K-pop teasers in recent memory, but underneath the stylisation sits a story about girlhood, friendship, and emotional survival. The title track flips the dismissive phrase “girls will be girls” into an anthem of connection as opposed to conformity, echoing the project’s wider message that vulnerability and resilience aren’t opposites, but coexisting truths. That spirit continues on “Kiss & Tell,” one of ITZY’s strongest deep cuts to date, with defiance at its core: “I don’t talk / Let ’em talk,” CHAERYEONG sings, like an unbothered eye-roll that feels earned rather than forced.

None of this is to say that ITZY has fully escaped the weight of past expectations. The K-pop ecosystem doesn’t make reinvention that easy, least of all for girl groups expected to be everything, all at once. But don’t call Girls Will Be Girls a comeback. Call it a reminder. ITZY are still here, still different — and still building a story that’s theirs alone. After years of noise, scrutiny, and second-guessing, Girls Will Be Girls might be their boldest move of all.

Ahead of the album drop, we caught up with ITZY to talk through the themes, sound, and sisterhood behind their new era, and why this comeback feels like a statement.

Firstly, I wanted to talk about the teaser that came out. It has such a distinctive art house vibe, and a lot of fans are calling it one of their favourite K-pop trailers ever. How does the storytelling in that video reflect the music and themes of the EP?

RYUJIN The title track is “Girls Will Be Girls,” and the trailer expresses friendship, and how that bond can overcome the harshness that sometimes exists between them. I think that mirrors the message of the song, which is about the relationships between us.

There’s also a surreal moment in the teaser where you transform into an inflatable doll — it’s one of the most striking scenes, very symbolic. Can you talk me through what that transformation represents, both artistically and emotionally?

RYUJIN That part is about growing up — about becoming an adult, losing your dreams, and starting to feel numb to everything. But the trailer suggests that if you reconnect with your childhood dreams, your heart can start beating again. And that’s also where friendship comes in — the idea that the people around you can help bring that feeling back.

“Girls Will Be Girls” has such an empowering theme — knowing the strength that comes from being yourselves and being together. How do you define that strength in the song, and how has your bond as a group evolved through this comeback?

RYUJIN For me, being “us” means being brave — like not trembling on stage or not being overwhelmed by big moments when we’re together. While preparing this album, we had a lot of deep conversations about the title track and the B-sides, which helped us understand each other’s thoughts on the music more clearly. That process became a really good memory for me.

CHAERYEONG Our unity keeps growing the more time we spend together. Every moment we share makes us rely on each other even more.

Moving on to the next track, “Kiss & Tell” — it has such dreamy textures throughout. Honestly, it was my favourite song on the album and one of my favourite ITZY B-sides to date. I’d love to hear about the process of recording the track.

YEJI When we were recording “Kiss & Tell,” I felt like it had such a “hot” vibe for ITZY — it reminded me of early 2000s pop music. That kind of energy really matched us well, and we felt it during the recording process too.

YUNA There’s a part I have in that track [makes a pouty face and blows a kiss] and I really wanted to direct that expression to MIDZY.

Something else I noticed in the song is this strong theme of ‘no words can shake me.’ So, how do you stay grounded when you’re facing pressure in the spotlight?

CHAERYEONG When I’m in the spotlight, I tend to rely on my members. That helps me stay grounded.

I want to move on to “Locked N Loaded”. I went to the concert in London last year, and a lot of your songs had a live band. So when I heard this band-inspired track, I thought it reflected that live energy really well. Did your experience touring with the live band influence how you approached this song?

YEJI Honestly, it wasn’t something we directly thought about when recording, but I really love band-style songs. As soon as I heard this one, it brought back memories from our tour.

“Locked N Loaded” also has this theme of no more hiding — it feels like you’re revealing more of yourselves with the Girls Will Be Girls era.

YEJI There are still so many genres and sides of ITZY we haven’t shown yet, and I really want us to explore and express more of that with this album.

We have “Promise,” which is a soft, tender ballad — it really stands apart from the other songs. When you were recording it, what kind of thoughts or emotions came up for you?

RYUJIN This song was especially written for MIDZY, so they were on my mind the whole time I was recording. I felt really cozy — like I was at home. It brought me a lot of comfort.

Moving onto “Walk,” I love that powerful, bossy energy that suggests everywhere can be your stage. How do you carry that confidence, even in more challenging moments?

LIA I think it’s actually really hard to maintain that kind of mindset when you’re facing challenges. That’s why I recommend MIDZY listen to our songs whenever they’re struggling. Not just our songs, but any song with a strong, bossy vibe — it helps bring that courage back into your heart. For me, while recording “Walk,” I really felt that attitude — like I was in a movie, or an action drama, or even walking like a model. So I’m really excited to perform it on stage with that kind of energy.

When you look back on this comeback in a few years, what do you hope listeners take away from ITZY in this moment?

YEJI The theme of this album is “us,” and that can mean us as ITZY, or the time we share with MIDZY. I hope anyone who listens to these songs can feel that connection and unity — like we’re in this moment together.

LIA A lot of the time, we come back with a strong concept, but there are always deeper stories and messages we want to share within the songs. With this comeback, we really tried to express that — in the trailer, in the music, and on stage. I hope MIDZY and all our listeners can understand and feel what we wanted to show.

CHAERYEONG We worked really hard on this album, so you can expect a lot. I’ll keep showing you my best through this comeback.