I.O.I, the first group formed from a survival reality show (Produce 101), celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Quite amazing how 10 years have passed. Whilst active, I.O.I gave us Dream Girls, Whatta Man (Good Man) and the massive hit Very Very Very. Per their temporary contract, the group disbanded after less than a year. However, to celebrate their 10th anniversary, the group (sans Mina and Jieqiong) regrouped to release their 3rd mini-album, I.O.I : Loop, and its title track, Suddenly (갑자기).

While I appreciate Suddenly as a reunion song that brings back one of the biggest girl groups of their day, it just doesn’t hit as hard as their past tracks. I.O.I switches up their iconic Very Very Very cutesy sound for a much more mature profile, which makes sense after 10 years. To be fair, I didn’t expect them to replicate the exact same sound from when they were last active. However, I did hope for some energy and vibrancy. In making Suddenly more mature, the producers also made it extremely beige and dull. The synthpop instrumental does bring back a straightforward disco-retro sound, which was something that I liked about Suddenly. But the chorus and its melodies are surprisingly flat, lacking the excitement to draw me into the song. And there isn’t much to remember Suddenly by in the verses. The vocals were pleasant, but again, no one stood out to me in the track. Overall, Suddenly was good, but a missed opportunity for I.O.I to deliver something that truly celebrates their milestone.

The music video carries forward the retro vibes that Suddenly gives off, looking like it was shot with an old-style camera, with the occasional flickering dot in the footage that reminds me of a similar effect seen in older movies. A beige filter also appears to have been applied to reflect the song’s beige feel. Aside from that, not much else is going on in the video. I did appreciate seeing the 9 members again and wished that they had included some sort of reference to the other two members who couldn’t be part of this reunion.

There was a gracefulness to the performance which made the routine look really pretty and feel mature. All of this complemented the song quite well.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.8/10