Kiss of Life (group)
Kiss of Life (Korean: 키스 오브 라이프; RR: Kiseu Obeu Raipeu; stylized in all caps), also known as KIOF, is a South Korean girl group formed by S2 Entertainment in 2023. The group consists of four members: Julie, Natty, Belle, and Haneul. They debuted on July 5, 2023, with the extended play (EP) Kiss of Life.
History[edit]
2015–2022: Pre-debut and formation[edit]
Belle is known as the daughter of the veteran Korean singer Shim Shin. She used to work for SM Entertainment as a songwriter. Natty was a contestant on the South Korean reality survival shows Sixteen and Idol School, that led to the formation of Twice and Fromis 9, respectively. In both shows, she made it to the final episode, but was ultimately not chosen for the final line-up of the groups.[3][4] In 2020, she debuted as a soloist with the single album, Nineteen. Julie was a trainee under The Black Label, a sub-label of YG Entertainment from 2017 to 2020.[5][6]
On July 12, 2022, Natty signed an exclusive contract with S2 Entertainment.[7] In December 2022, Natty was featured in a British documentary about K-pop trainees along with Julie, Belle, and two other unknown trainees. It was speculated that they were the alleged members of the company's upcoming girl group. On December 27, 2022, S2 Entertainment announced they were preparing to launch a new girl group in 2023.[8] Later in February 2023, it was discovered that the agency had applied to trademark Kiss of Life and that they had opened SNS accounts of the same name for the group.[9]
Artistry[edit]
Influences[edit]
Julie stated in an interview that the group has been greatly influenced by the music of Blackpink, 2NE1, and BigBang.[31] The members additionally mentioned that they listen to a lot of R&B and hip-hop music, being strongly influenced by artists such as Ariana Grande, SZA, Rihanna, and Rosalía as well.[32] Individually, Julie cited Blackpink and 2NE1 as her role models,[33] Natty cited BoA and Yerin Baek as her role models,[34] Belle cited Sabrina Carpenter as a musical inspiration, and Haneul cited Olivia Rodrigo as her role model.[2]
Endorsements[edit]
On February 19, 2024, Maybelline New York announced that it selected Kiss of Life as its new brand ambassador.[35]