NMIXX Isn’t Worried About Making ‘Public Friendly’ Music

On the sun-baked sands of iHeartRadio’s 2025 Wango Tango in Venice Beach, NMIXX did something most K-pop groups would shy away from even in the most ideal of concert settings: they refreshed their entire setlist to perform with a full backing band while reworking choreography for a tight medley of singles with fully live vocals. The result felt like a statement and a deliberate refutation of the idea that K-pop must perform within a fixed box that prioritizes perfect aesthetics over artistic bearing. Even as the group shared the bill with major music names like Doja Cat, David Guetta and Meghan Trainor, the set they described as “a dream” was a compact but impactful demonstration of why this six-member group is quickly becoming one of the most confounding and confident acts in pop today.

Typically, festivals and promotional radio shows demand economy: short slots for maximum impact. Yet, NMIXX still ensured they showcased as much as possible to the diverse group.

“Obviously there is limited time because it’s a festival and we wanted to show as many songs as possible,” NMIXX member Lily explains of the group’s mindset preparing. “Even though it hurts our hearts, we ended up cutting songs down and then we made this cute little mashup. It was a lot of fun figuring out where we should stop the songs and how we are going to connect them together — even with our dancing, we had to change it up a little bit so they could all flow nicely. That was a lot of fun and I think it’s a cool version that our fans would like it as well.”

Sullyoon described the intentionality behind such logistics, adding, “Since it was our first time back in L.A. in a while, we wanted to show as many songs as possible. We worked hard on the arrangements to make the set feel full and meaningful…we also practiced separately to perform with handheld microphones to match the live arrangement.” Bae adds that the group specifically “designed the medley so the set would feel continuous and keep the energy going.”

NMIXX’s words cut to the multifaceted appeal that defines the sextet: meticulous craft plus a willingness to upend convention. Backed by a live band complete with percussion and horns in Venice, the group blended studio-level production with on-the-spot theatricality, inviting the audience to enjoy their artistry whether they are superfans or curious critics.

“Most of the time, I like showing off,” Lily, the group’s powerhouse vocalist, says with a laugh that’s determined but not pretentious. “We’re artists! You know, what’s the point of performing if we are not showing our best selves on stage again and again? And the people that come to our shows deserve to see that as well. So, I think that is a big part of why we get so much love from our fans because they love that we are confident in our own skills. We aim for yeoksi — it’s a hard to explain [Korean] word, but our passion and ambition is what we want [audiences] to expect.”

That insistence on craft is visible in NMIXX’s music. Released in March, Fe3O4: Forward preceded this summer’s festival circuit and expanded the group’s palette and set up their upcoming leap: the group’s first full-length album, Blue Valentine, due Monday, Oct. 13. Forward songs like the pre-release buzz single “High Horse” and standout B-side track “Papillon” all illustrate the increasing stakes of NMIXX consistently pushing themselves toward.

“I really like ‘High Horse,’ but for me it was a big challenge — the melodies were more difficult and there were a lot of high notes,” Kyujin, who handled several of the song’s higher-register moments, says. “It was technically demanding, so I practiced and recorded it with a lot of care.”

The demo for “Papillon” arrived with heavy internal buzz within NMIXX’s label, a division under JYP Entertainment known as SQU4D, before the experimental electro-pop gem became a favorite among pop-music fans upon release. “When we first heard ‘Papillon’ we loved it,” Jiwoo says. “We felt confident we could do it justice, and we thought the public would like it — and they did.”

NMIXX says putting as much effort into these side tracks as into their main singles is key to ensuring they are not quickly labeled or pigeonholed into one sound or style.

“We didn’t just focus on the title track [‘Know About Me’],” leader Haewon says of the group’s strategy with Fe3O4: Forward. “We tried to make the whole album feel complete, like a cohesive work.”

Sullyoon adds a broader point about momentum, saying, “We prepared this album very carefully and I think the fans really liked it… their support let us enjoy the process.” While Jiwoo says, “Compared to the previous album, we were able to show a more mature side of NMIXX. Being able to present that to fans was really great and showed how hard effort and hard work we put in.”

The group’s confidence coexists with a palpable awareness of being perceived as atypical to the overall K-pop scene.

“As entertainers, we sometimes face fixed ideas and prejudices,” leader Haewon shares. “There are stereotypes about girl groups — such as how girl groups are supposed to make ‘public friendly’ songs — and comparisons we face with other groups, but we’re trying to break that. We try to overcome those expectations through our music and the messages in our songs and do our thing no matter what.”

Case in point: Lily shares the deeper meaning of “High Horse” is about how “We are sick of people being on their high horses and looking down on us with prejudices and things like that,” summing up the group’s mindset with “We want to show many sides of ourselves and push past other people’s expectations. Music is how we express that.”

With NMIXX’s first full-length album, Blue Valentine, dropping three years into their careers, the focus is clear: the group is now letting the music be the core element that sets them apart with their talents allowing them to bring it to life in ways to create meaningful connections with music lovers. If you had any preconceptions or expectations about what a K-pop group is “supposed” to be, NMIXX have truly arrived to prove they are here as true artists.