"We think of ourselves as family": aespa joins Apple Music's Up Next Artist and shares their Coachella debut with the world

World-famous K-pop girl group aespa is creating ripples on the internet with its latest feature on Apple Music’s Up Next Artist Film. The metaverse superstars sat down with the production team and recorded an inspiring session. Each member got the opportunity to express their thoughts and feelings as the first K-pop girl group to perform on Coachella’s main stage.

Karina spoke about the group and stated:

"People may think we're just group members, but we think of ourselves as family".

Earlier, after the group’s agency, SM Entertainment, announced that the quartet would be the first-ever K-pop girl group to perform on the Coachella 2022 main stage, many netizens were confused and denied these claims as they believed that K-pop girl group BLACKPINK was the first to perform.

However, after much research and proof, it was clarified that aespa was indeed the first K-pop girl group to perform on the main stage as BLACKPINK had earlier performed at the Sahara stage back in 2019.

---

aespa dubbed as Apple Music's 'Up Next Artist'

Up Next is Apple Music’s monthly artist program in which numerous international celebrities are brought onto the platform to discuss various topics in relation to their careers and success. The program is geared towards identifying, showcasing, and boosting rising star talent from around the world.

Each month, Apple Music’s editorial team sits down and discusses potential artists that they can promote on the program. The team utilizes the very essence of the platform to create awareness for artists and their ever-rising global influence on music and audiences.

In its "Up Next Film Preview", the platform invited K-pop global superstar aespa to conduct a session in which the group spoke about its Coachella Music Festival debut in April 2022.

In the video, group member Giselle introduced the group and also gave a shoutout to the group's avatar members. The quartet was created with the concept of an alternate AI universe or metaverse.

Each group member also has their own "aes", which refers to both "Avatar and Experience". Their digitally beautifully created avatars appear alongside the members in various music videos. Group member Giselle stated:

"They can express things that we in real life can’t or haven’t yet."

After speaking about their debut and success, the group stated that they rarely had the opportunity to perform in front of a crowd due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, when they were called to perform at Coachella, the members were extremely excited and nervous. The group members stated:

"Whenever there are hardships, we overcome them together and share a range of experiences. We have a great relationship with one another and the fact that we are able to experience this together is an honor in itself."

aespa rose to success by setting multiple records within the industry. With its impeccable music productions and unique concepts, the group topped several music charts despite the difficulties of the COVID-19 pandemic. The quartet made their debut in 2020 when the pandemic was at its peak.

---

Meanwhile, on June 1, 2022, aespa announced its much-awaited comeback to the music industry with its upcoming second mini album Girls. The quartet has also partnered with Warner Records and will be pre-releasing their English-language single, Life’s Too Short, on June 24.

Adding to the excitement, the group surprised fans and recently released a fresh new track titled Illusion from their forthcoming mini-album Girls.

Fans can surely expect more surprises and teasers in the coming days.