Who is ITZY? TWICE's sister group makes waves as global brands' new face

MANILA, Philippines — In case you haven’t heard, there is a fourth-generation idol group that has been breaking records since its debut.

JYP Entertainment, the multinational and record label conglomerate that produced the celebrated K-pop group TWICE, has yet again given rise to new girl group superstars. 

ITZY is a five-member South Korean girl group composed of Yeji, Lia, Ryujin, Chaeryeong and Yuna.

MIDZY is the official fandom name of the group.

ITZY debuted on February 12, 2019, with their first single album “IT’z Different,” which includes two tracks: “DALLA DALLA” and “WANT IT?” 

The music video of the lead single “DALLA DALLA” had a total of 17.1 million views during its first 24 hours, breaking the record for most viewed music video by a K-pop group on their first day of debut (until Aespa surpassed it).

ITZY’s sound has elements of mixed EDM subgenres such as future house and bass house; Pop; R&B and Soul. 

Pre-debut 

Prior to their first appearance as a K-pop group, the members were not new to the spotlight. 

Yeji, dancer, vocalist and rapper for ITZY, starred in the survival show of Stray Kids and became a contestant on SBS’ "The Fan," where she earned a lot of attention.

Lia, also a vocalist and rapper, first became a trainee both on YG and SM Entertainment during her much younger years before joining JYP.

Meanwhile, dancer, vocalist and rapper Ryujin starred in BTS’ “Love Yourself,” participated in Stray Kids’ survival show, and became a contestant on “MIX NINE.”

Chaeryeong, also a dancer, vocalist and rapper, had the longest training years with JYP. She was a contestant on JYP’s SIXTEEN, which formed the now known group TWICE, where she got eliminated in the finale.

Dancer, rapper, and vocalist Yuna, the youngest member of the group, was also in BTS’ “Love Yourself” highlight reel with Jungkook.

Records

On July 29, months after their debut, ITZY released their first mini-album “IT’z ICY.” 

The tracks include: “ICY,” “CHERRY,” and “IT’z SUMMER.” The two tracks on their debut album were also included, only this time, the songs were on a remix. 

Their comeback music video was welcomed by 18 million views on its first day. 

“IT’z Me,” the second mini-album, was released last March 9. 

In the same year, the girl group also had a tour titled "ITZY PREMIERE SHOWCASE TOUR: 'ITZY? ITZY!'.”

The showcase tour began in November in Jakarta, Indonesia as its first stop. ITZY also went to several Asian countries including the Philippines, before going to the United States for shows in January 2020. 

On August 17 last year, ITZY released their third mini-album “Not Shy.” Last January 22, they dropped their first English digital single album “Not Shy (English Ver.),” composed of English versions of their previous track releases.

As a way of giving appreciation to their fans, the girl group put up a special single “Trust Me (MIDZY),” released last March 20.

ITZY made their latest comeback last April 30 with their fourth mini-album titled, “GUESS WHO.” 

JYP Entertainment indicated that the album’s title track “In the Morning” was bolder and powerful to win the hearts of global fans.

Awards 

After breaking the record for the most viewed K-Pop debut music video in history, ITZY also peaked at number 2 on the Billboard World Digital Song Sales Charts.

At the 2020 Fact Music Awards, ITZY won the “Best Performer Prize.” 

ITZY is also considered the only fourth-generation idol group to win Bonsang (Main Award) at Golden Disc Awards for two consecutive years. 

In 2020, they won the “Rookie of the Year Award” and “Digital Bonsang,” being the first girl group to win two awards on the same night of the said awarding since Wonder Girls 13 years ago.

In 2021, the girl group’s “WANNABE” won the “Best Digital Song.”

Endorsements, collaborations 

Since its debut, ITZY has collaborated with different brands. 

Earlier this year, Maybelline New York named ITZY as their first K-Pop Global Spokesmodels. 

Not only are they the first K-pop stars to represent Maybelline, but they are also the first music group to become one. 

Recently, they starred in Maybelline's new Color Sensational Ultimatte Lipstick campaign, featuring the new Ultimatte lipstick and its "better than luxury" formula that makes it more lightweight, more plush-matte and more color-intense with its ultra-fine powders, texture blurring gels and high-impact pigments. This new formula aims to give every Maybelline girl a luxurious lipstick experience at home with its smooth-like-butter texture and regal packaging so they can feel confident and be at their ultimate best.

ITZY, Maybelline’s newest Global Spokesmodels, is also advocating the same message of self-confidence, which empowers everyone to be unapologetically themselves in whatever they do. 

“The new Color Sensational Ultimattes will be the new holy grail bullet matte lipstick in the market. Apart from being the only air-light texture blurring matte, we also want to give every Maybelline girl that luxurious lipstick experience that is accessible," said Ira Santos, Product Manager for Maybelline. 

“We want to redefine moments of wearing lipstick even just at home to make every woman feel empowered in every moment they wish to feel their very best.”

The Color Sensational Ultimattes collection is available in 10 shades ranging from nudes, pinks and reds that cpmplement morenas. It is now available in Lazada and leading Maybelline counters and drugstores nationwide. 

Prior to Maybelline, Kia Motors, one of South Korea’s biggest automobile manufacturers, worked with the girl group to promote “Kia Soul” in a music video.

Lotte Duty-Free, Andar and Shopee Thailand are some of the brands they worked with.

In 2019, they collaborated with Mac Cosmetics for a photoshoot of the April issue of Cosmopolitan Korea.

In May 2020, the girl group attended their first overseas fashion show in New York. They were invited by Louis Vuitton to their Cruise 2020 show. 

The fashion brand gifted each member personalized bags as their way of showing appreciation. 

Come October, the girl group was once again invited by Louis Vuitton, this time a fashion show in Paris.

The luxury brand Burberry is the latest endorsement of the group after gracing the launch of the brand’s new product, Olympia Bag, on “ITZY x BURBERRY Special Show” last June 16. — Videos from JYP Entertainment via YouTube