fromis_9 Chats About Overcoming Pressures Ahead Of "#menow" Comeback, Their Teamwork, And More

Jun 19, 2023

The ladies of fromis_9 have teamed up with Elle magazine for a gorgeous photo shoot!

In the group’s accompanying interview, fromis_9 chatted about their careers thus far, latest comeback, teamwork, and more.

After training for over 4 and a half years and now being six years into her debut, Lee Saerom was asked what she’s learned over the past decade. She answered, “After entering society at a young age, I experienced a lot of things. In the process, I came to believe in the phrase ‘good things are memories and bad things are experiences.’ When I don’t have the strength to overcome a difficult moment, I want to quickly rediscover that belief and turn that difficult situation into experience and resilience.”

As the interview took place before fromis_9’s latest comeback with “#menow,” Song Hayoung discussed her approach to their first promotions in nearly a year. “Although there’s a ton I’ve felt and learned after debuting, I believe I need hundreds of times more experience,” she explained. “Because I have a desire to learn, I want to learn more and grow. As I’m still young, I want to try out things I can do while I’m young without regret. That’s why I’m working to make more specific things happen.”

Among fromis_9’s new b-sides is “Wishlist,” a song that Park Jiwon participated in composing and writing lyrics for. Park Jiwon explained, “The song is about not conforming to other people’s gazes or expectations. It captures the aspiration to love myself a bit more. That’s why when I was writing the lyrics, I thought about and reflected on myself more. In that process, I got to learn more about myself and was able to take time to think again about those who build up my self-esteem.”

Thinking ahead to their comeback promotions, Noh Jisun described the team’s conversations, saying, “In the past, we would comfort each other by saying ‘We can do well.’ Now, we have more conversations giving each other feedback. Saying things like ‘We have to do this part well, let’s do it like this.’ Because it isn’t all cool just because we’re enjoying ourselves.”

On what fans should focus on in fromis_9’s new “#menow” music video, Lee Seoyeon shared, “It captures the message that even if we’re wandering, we can eventually move forward and grow because we have each other. There are quite a few scenes of the members running and I believe this is a cut that shows the story of how those who met while running towards a utopia can become one team and create synergy.”

Discussing her nerves for fromis_9’s first comeback in a year, Lee Chaeyoung remarked with a giggle, “Even until last year, we had a lot of events and award shows so I didn’t really feel that our hiatus was getting longer, but from the beginning of this year, I began feeling a sense of crisis. I worried whether [our fan club] Flover would wait for us and whether we’d be able to live up to expectations after returning in a year. But the energy we received at our concert last year became a driving force and we were able to prepare even more diligently, so the members were able to come together with one mind to gain strength.”

Looking back on their pre-debut track “Glass Shoes,” Lee Nagyung commented, “Those promotions are a record of my radiant moments. I can’t recreate my image from our debut no matter how hard I try. As those promotions captured my image then exactly as it was, they are so precious and pretty.”

Expanding on Lee Chaeyoung’s comment about the strength fromis_9 received from their first “Love From.” concert last year, Baek Jiheon shared, “I began wanting to believe in ‘forever.’ I wanted time to stop for awhile in that moment with Flover and my members. As we’ve returned after a year with our first full album, I felt a lot of responsibility to show an even greater final product, and every time [I felt that way], I’d think about our ‘Love From.’ concert and gain strength. Because it was a performance that helped me realize that this moment too is a precious moment that will eventually pass.”