Does HYBE own LE SSERAFIM? K-pop girl group's journey explained

The K-Pop girl group LE SSERAFIM debuted in May 2022 under Source Music, a South Korean record label established in 2009. LE SSERAFIM's record label, Source Music, is a subsidiary of HYBE Corporation, following its acquisition in July 2019. The five-member group consists of Kim Chae-won, Huh Yun-jin, Sakura Miyawaki, Kazuha, and Hong Eun-chae.

LE SSERAFIM is the first girl group launched by Source Music under HYBE, the entertainment giant that is home to BTS, Tomorrow X Together, Seventeen, and others. The group has quickly risen through the ranks in the Korean music scene and has achieved many feats, even as a relatively young group.

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LE SSERAFIM's musical journey and achievements

LE SSERAFIM is an anagram for I am fearless, and the group expresses this philosophy in their songs and music videos.

In an interview with Dazed Korea in February 2024, Yun-jin, one of the main vocalists, emphasized this:

"A recurring theme we’ve talked about since our debut is that the world is a hard place, a cruel place, and we’re going to face whatever adversities in life but we’re always going to have confidence in ourselves.”

Originally a group of six members, Kim Ga-ram left in July 2022 after the termination of her contract with the record label. The group debuted with their eponymous Extended Play, Fearless, in May 2022. The EP broke the record for debut album by a K-pop girl group with the highest first-day sales.

Their second Extended Play, Antifragile, was released in October 2022, which sold over a million copies and debuted on the US Billboard 200, making them the fastest K-Pop group to achieve this feat.

The title tracks of Fearless and Antifragile were certified platinum in South Korea and Japan. The group won Best Musician Award and Rookie of the Year at the Asia Artist Awards 2022. They also won Rookie Artist of the Year and the Next Leader Award at the Genie Music Awards 2022 and The Fact Music Awards 2022, respectively.

They released their first studio album, Unforgiven, in May 2023. By this time, the K-Pop idols had already established themselves as artists to look forward to. The album featured 13 tracks, with the lead singles of the same name and the second track titled Eve, Psyche & the Bluebeard’s wife.

In an interview with Teen Vogue published on May 1, 2023, Yun-jin talked about the story behind the album’s release.

"Through this album, we kind of talk about how regardless of what people think, or regardless of people’s prejudices, we’re going to conquer,” she said.

The album debuted at number one on the Circle Album Chart and sold 1 million units. Unforgiven also earned the group their first top-ten entry on the Billboard 200, debuting at number 6 on the chart.

The album was praised as a "bold anthem for female empowerment" and was awarded Best Album Bonsang at the 38th Golden Disc Awards. LE SSERAFIM also won several other awards in 2023, including Millions Top 10 Artist at the Melon Music Awards, Rookie of the Year at the Seoul Music Awards, and Top 20 Songs of the Year (Overseas) at the Asian Pop Music Awards.

The K-Pop girl group embarked on their first tour, titled Flame Rises, from August 12 to October 3, 2023. The tour took place in Seoul, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Hong Kong, and Jakarta. It had over 80,000 attendees in total and reportedly generated $7.9 million.

The group released their third mini album, Easy, in February 2024. The lead single from the album, of the same name, became the group's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and their first top-ten song on the Billboard Global Excl. US Chart.

The K-Pop idols made history at the 2024 Coachella festival in April 2024 as the fastest K-Pop group to perform in only two years since their debut.

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Meanwhile, LE SSERAFIM is expected to drop their fourth mini album titled, Crazy, on August 30, 2024. Stay tuned for more updates.