ReviewIVE dives into darkness with 'IVE SECRET,' in test of group's identity
From left are K-pop girl group IVE members Ahn Yu-jin, Liz, Leeseo, Gaeul, Rei and Jang Won-young. Courtesy of Starship Entertainment
K-pop megastar girl group IVE is back in the spotlight with "IVE SECRET" and its moody title track "XOXZ," with the band's first release in seven months already creating an undeniable buzz.
Fans rushed to streaming platforms, with the single debuting at No. 32 on Melon within an hour of its release on Aug. 25. The official music video also racked up nearly 5 million views in less than one day to top YouTube's trending music chart.
But hype doesn't tell the full story.
What IVE offers in the new work is a daring image shift that sounds good on paper, yet leaves room to question whether the group itself is ready to embrace it.
From the beginning, the six-piece group — consisting of Ahn Yu-jin, Gaeul, Rei, Jang Won-young, Liz and Leeseo — have been carving a lane of their own.
The group's opening trilogy — "ELEVEN," "LOVE DIVE" "After LIKE" — built a glittery, modern spin on Y2K under the banner of self-love. Instead of leaning on K-pop's fierce "girl-crush" archetype, the members focused on delivering a princess-like elegance, presenting themselves as confident young women with a touch of fairy tale magic.
Even as they expanded sonically with "I've IVE" and its breakout hit "I AM," the band's longtime producer Ryan S. Jhun kept the group's catalog consistent.
The streak peaked with "I'VE MINE" — with its three hits, "Baddie," "Either Way" and "Off the Record" — selling 1.6 million copies in its first week.
Then came the slide.
The following release "IVE SWITCH" cooled off in sales, and "IVE Empathy" slipped a little further. Fans began voicing what many suspected was behind the decline — Jhun's once-reliable formula for IVE was gradually losing steam.
K-pop girl group IVE / Courtesy of Starship Entertainment
That's why the new release "IVE SECRET" feels like a calculated answer.
In it, the glossy optimism that defined IVE's image gives way to darker, bass-heavy textures. Its lead single "XOXZ" swaps synth-pop melodies for hip-hop vibes, layering 808 bass lines, drum patterns and verses tinged with rap.
The visual concept also drives the shift home. "XOXZ" is IVE's own coined slang for "love you, good night," and its music video leans into shadowy imagery.
In one striking sequence, five members crash through glass in a car to reach member Rei's sleepless bedroom, pulling her toward hidden temptations she's never dared to touch. It's a symbolic detour from angelic innocence toward something more dangerous.
For fans who loved IVE's radiant charm, the pivot might feel like betrayal. Yet musically, the execution works like magic. The heavier beats inject freshness without turning abrasive, landing somewhere between risk and restraint.
The timing also makes sense. With youngest member Leeseo, born in 2007, nearly stepping into adulthood, the group is ready to shed its perpetual youthful image. Rather than abandon its core "self-love" message, IVE retools it into a darker narrative of transformation.
Still, there's a catch.
For all the reinvention happening in the Starship Entertainment studio, the members themselves don't always match the ambition on stage. IVE's presence, often knocked for feeling too polished, even detached, lingers in the new release. "XOXZ" reads like a radical break on paper, but onstage it sometimes plays like the same old IVE — just in darker clothes.
That's the paradox at the heart of this comeback. Visually, no other group in K-pop can touch IVE's appeal. At its four-year milestone, the group's dominance is intact, its every release sparking heated debate — proof of how central the group is to K-pop's fourth generation.
But if the group truly wants to break through their own ceiling, beauty alone won't do it. They need to channel the bite their new sound suggests, not just wear it. They've shown glimpses before, crushing doubts about their live performance ability with explosive sets at overseas festivals.
The question is whether they'll tap that fire consistently, not occasionally.
"IVE SECRET" isn't a flawless reinvention. But it is surely a bold swing, and bold swings matter. Whether listeners see it as growth or misstep, it stands as a statement — that IVE remain unafraid to gamble, and that its confidence, for better or worse, is still the loudest thing in the room.