Interview: cignature Gives us a Taste of the Summer With Their Latest EP and Speaks About Their Growth as a Group!

This summer definitely belonged to the K-Pop girl group, cignature. On August 29th, 2023, the group released their 4th EP, “Us in the Summer.” With their carefree visuals combined with the catchy, upbeat, and lively melody of their newest title track, “Smooth Sailing,” cignature embraced their youth to the fullest with this comeback. 

The main focus for this promotion for the group was to encompass the new feelings felt by girls in their youthful stage of life. From experiencing love to going through a first break up and finding one’s inner self, cignature’s 4th EP, “Us in the Summer,” encapsulated all of the exciting, young feelings with the 4 new songs of the album. Beginning with, “Mess With My Mind,” the girls reflect on how complex young love can be. Moving onto the title track, “Smooth Sailing,” the story shifts towards a tale of trivial love. The electronic, R&B, and disco elements combined with a very groovy baseline reinforce the intended summery vibe playing into the characteristics of a classic K-Pop summer song. The 3rd song, “Sorry So Sorry,” details the feelings of leaving a love once longed for and the 4th song, “Little Me,” leaves us learning about someone trying to comfort their inner youth. 

cignature Group Photo. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment

For “Us in the Summer,” cignature promoted as a 6 member group with Jeewon, Semi, Chaesol, Seline, Chloe, and Dohee. Cignature member, Belle, did not participate in this comeback as she is currently involved in the SBS audition program, Universe Ticket. Cignature was formed by C9 Entertainment and managed under the exclusive girl group sub-label, J9 Entertainment. First debuting on February 4th, 2020 with their debut single, “Nun Nu Nan Na,” the group has been active for 3 years, have a fandom called “SignFan,” and have released 4 EPs in total. This year, the group won the Blooming Star Hanteo Music Award and has been previously nominated for a Melon Music Award and 3 MNET Asian Music Awards. On behalf of BroadwayWorld, I had the chance to speak to cignature about their latest comeback. Discussing topics such as the recording process for their EP, advice they had about love, and embracing this new school girl concept, the group shared stories, experiences, and opinions that their fans would love to hear about. Read the full interview below! 

Your latest EP is entitled, “Us in the Summer,” and deals with the story of girls experiencing all of the feels of the summer. What is your favourite summer memory either with the group or friends and family? 

Seline: I remember going to Busan with the members in the summer. We couldn’t enjoy it for long because we had limited time there as we arrived at night and had to return the next afternoon. We ate grilled clams, hung out at Gwangalli beach, and went to Lotte World in Busan for the first time. It’s not always possible to travel with all of the members at once, so it remains a precious memory to me. 

Jeewon: The music video shoot in Japan this summer was a precious memory for us. It felt like we were on a trip together! The schedule we had was full of passionate memories of us having fun in the hot summer and will remain an unforgettable memory for our group. 

Jeewon of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment

“Us in the Summer” features the lead single, “Smooth Sailing,” and 3 additional tracks entitled, “Mess With My Mind,” “Sorry So Sorry,” and “Little Me.” Which track on the album was your favourite to record? 

Semi: I enjoyed recording “Sorry So Sorry” the most. I was worried because I was in charge of the song’s introduction, but the director kept praising me by saying “you’re good at it” and “the introduction part is the best,” so I let go of my worries and enjoyed the recording process.

Dohee: I really enjoyed recording the title song, “Smooth Sailing.” At the beginning, I felt a lot of pressure because it was the title song, but soon after, those feelings went away as the recording process was so exciting. I had a lot of fun singing my parts. In addition, the director guided us in a comfortable way, which created a fun environment allowing us to enjoy the whole process.

Chaesol: I enjoyed recording “Mess With My Mind” the most. While recording, I sang the song with more confidence after hearing the director’s praise. It was nice and fun to incorporate vocal colors that I hadn’t shown before.

Semi of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment 

What does this comeback mean to you and how does it differ from the EPs and singles the group has released in the past? 

Chaesol: This album was like a diary that captured the story of our group well, which allowed us to empathize and resonate with the songs on a deeper level. The album was produced with connectivity in mind which was different compared to our previous album, “My Little Aurora.” The main distinction between this album compared to our past ones would be that this one contained songs that gave a slightly more comfortable feeling and matched the summer season release date. 

Jeewon: While we have shown a more elaborate side of ourselves through our previous releases, our latest EP emphasized the smile-inducing side of our group, which our fans really love. We put a lot of passion, effort, and sweat into preparing for this comeback and I would say that this is the EP that I am most attached to. Our group definitely became closer with one another while preparing for this comeback and the EP was important to us as it served as a stepping stone for our growth. 

Chaesol of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment 

The music video for “Smooth Sailing” was very upbeat and showed a very refreshing and happy side of cignature. Were there any memorable moments from the music video shooting? 

Seline: The first filming location was a Japanese high school and it was a memorable experience for me as it was my first time visiting one. I was grateful towards the teachers at the school who cheered us on and also very appreciative towards the staff that was on-site with us. The staff provided us with delicious drinks to keep us energized so we wouldn’t get tired from the heat. 

Dohee: I celebrated my birthday while filming the music video and my most memorable moment was when the staff members and the director threw me a surprise party. It was an unforgettable birthday! 

Many of your fans are praising how much they love the song because of how catchy the chorus is. What was your first impression of the song when you first heard it? 

Seline: As soon as we heard the intro of “Smooth Sailing,” we immediately thought, “this is it!” I remember we all agreed that it was perfect for our title song and that was the first time we were all in agreement over something like this. It goes well with our image and matches the season well, so we were excited to share it with everyone.

Chloe: We’ve listened to many demo songs, but none of them appealed to us as much as “Smooth Sailing, which is why after we heard the song for the first time, we knew we had to make a comeback in the summertime. We happily prepared for this comeback with our fans (SignFan) in mind and knew they would like the song as much as we did. 

Seline of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment

The EP contains small stories about one’s inner self highlighting the small and simple stories of young girls’ feelings. The lyrics of the song tell the story of getting the courage to confess feelings of love to a crush. What advice would you give someone who is in the same place wanting to confess their love to a crush for the first time? 

Chaesol: I still don’t know much about love as it is a complex emotion, but if I were to give advice (while thinking about my love towards our fans), I would say to express and to love without regrets. Moments like these sometimes never come back and our beautiful, precious life only lasts once, so try and have the courage to confess no matter what the outcome may be! 

Chloe: As a person who does not hesitate to push through what I like and want to do, I would advise the person to express their feelings generously to the person that they like. No matter the outcome, the most important thing is that their feelings are conveyed! Follow your heart so there are no regrets in the future! 

Chloe of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment

As a group, you have tried many different concepts over the last couple of years. For this comeback, you adopted a school girl concept with a summer vibe. What was it like taking on this new concept? 

Dohee: Back when I was a student, I enjoyed wearing my school uniform. After graduating, it felt quite different to wear my school uniform for the first time after a long time. I liked this concept because it seemed to fit well with our title song. 

Semi: At first, we felt a lot of pressure regarding whether we would be able to pull off the concept well; however, after filming the jacket and music video, we gained confidence in ourselves and really felt that our charms were shown well. We were happy to challenge ourselves with this comeback to show you this concept and a new side of us as a group! 

Dohee of cignature. Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment

A popular test that K-Pop idols often talk about is the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) test. Have any of you taken the test and if so, what is your MBTI and do you think it matches your true personality? 

Semi: I took the MBTI test and my result came out to be an ENFP and ENTP (alternately). When I read the description, I was very surprised to see that it truly described my personality. Even though I usually feel like an F, I seem to become a T when I work. 

Dohee: My MBTI recently changed. The first time I took the test I was an ENFP and when I took the test more recently, I became an ISTP. My new MBTI seems most similar to my current personality. Lately, I have become a bit more introverted, realistic, and thoughtful, but I still prefer improvising rather than planning ahead. 

Cignature debuted in 2020 and has been active for 3 years. During that time the group has released 4 EPs and 3 singles. What do you think is next for cignature? 

Jeewon: At the moment, we are focused on successfully completing our promotions for our EP, “Us in the Summer.” We plan to show our charms to more people through various group and individual activities ranging from acting to entertainment. Please look forward to our future endeavors! 

Chloe: In the near future, we plan to put a lot of thought and preparation into showing a new cignature that we have not shown yet. We will work hard domestically and overseas to show our fans the better versions of ourselves.

Cignature’s 4th EP “Us in the Summer ''including the lead single “Smooth Sailing,” is available to stream on Apple Music and Spotify. Watch the music video for “Smooth Sailing” below! 

 

This interview was done with the assistance of a Korean translator and edited for clarity. 

Top Photo Credit: J9 Entertainment 

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