Another newly debuted artist that I haven’t written a review for is KISS OF LIFE, a four member female group under S2 Entertainment featuring JULIE, NATTY, BELLE and HANEUL. You may recognize NATTY as she was a contender on SIXTEEN (the trainee survival show that formed TWICE) and Idol School (the trainee survival show that formed fromis_9). She also debuted as a solo artist in 2020 with the single NINETEEN. KISS OF LIFE debuted in early July with the single Shhh and their self-titled first mini-album, KISS OF LIFE. Prior to the debut, the group did release music videos for the four solo tracks and a group track that also make up the rest of the mini-album.

Shhh was quite a debut song, giving off Ariana Grande vibes. For a newly debut group/artist to be liken to one of the biggest pop stars currently who is also known for her unique style, that is quite a feat. Shhh still manages to showcase KISS OF LIFE’s musical ability, with a strong showing of vocal and rapping styles in the verses of the song. I really enjoyed this playful side of Shhh and it keeps the upbeat R&B pop number interesting. The energy that the group throws at us make it feel like they are seasoned professional, and not rookies. I particularly liked the falsetto part in the verses (you know I am a sucker for those). The rapping in the second verse was also commendable, along with those powerful vocals that soon followed the rapping. The ad-libs we get at the end were also super cool. The anti-drop chorus does pull the song down. Shhh had an opportunity to be taken up a notch with some central piece that could have gone further than the verses, and I am not entirely sure if an anti-drop and chanty motif was the right way to go about it. Also, the ‘What you really want‘ autotune repetition that serves as cornerstones in the song doesn’t exactly fit in well with the rest of Shhh. Overall, Shhh still has a lot of offer as a debut track and it does put KISS OF LIFE on the map for me.

The music video for Shhh follows on from the other music videos released alongside the solo tracks and another pre-release single of the group’s – Bye My Neverland. I will do a super quick recap for that, as I should keep thoughts on that music video for that review whenever I do get around to it. But essentially, NATTY screws up her audition, runs from the stage embarrassed and ends up getting hit by JULIE’s car. In Shhh, NATTY ends up being taken in by JULIE and becomes friends with both JULIE and BELLE who live together. They go out one night and notice that HANEUL was being followed by the same guy who took notice in HANEUL in her solo video, but they end up stopping him from doing anything bad to HANEUL. The four ends up being a tight knit group of friends, sharing their troubles with each another. In the end. the group comes together to audition at the same place that NATTY had run away from at the end of the Bye My Neverland video. The entire universe that is shared amongst the 6 videos explores their passion to be themselves on stage and gives a story to their formation, and I quite like that side of this debut. The end of the music video sees the video extended out to show part of Shhh‘s performance, presumably what they went on stage to audition with.

The energy they bring to the stage was amazing and I liked how they captivated me on stage despite only being just four members. That wide and well-timed swing in the first verse was impeccable, while the routine of the instrumental break brought a bounce to the choreography. I also enjoyed the confidence and attitude that was infused in the performance. But what I like the most is the four members had fun on stage and you can see it on their smiles towards each other and the audience.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8/10