LOONA Make Their Much-Anticipated Debut with “Hi High” Music Video, Mini Album

K-pop girl group LOONA officially debuted on Monday, Aug. 20, with their first mini album titled + +, which is accompanied by the music video for the album’s title track, “Hi High.”

The music video, in contrast to some of their past darker solo concepts, is bright and colorful to match the rapid tempo of the song. Accompanied with the pop vocals of all 12 girls, the song fits the conventions of energetic K-pop tracks while also subverting them through, according to the video’s description, “beats and synth stabs that previous-girl groups have never tried before.”

The debut comes after nearly two years of anticipation for what is one of the most unique and unconventional projects to come out in the K-pop landscape. Starting with the debut of member Jeon HeeJin in October of 2016, the group was slowly introduced to the world through the “Who’s Next Girl?” concept, in which one girl was unveiled each month through teaser photos on social media, an eventual music video release and a physical mini album featuring their single and a b-side. Each girl explored a different genre, creating a group discography that ranges from soft ballads to electronic-pop dance songs.

In the process, the group also revealed three sub-units consisting of multiple members, further demonstrating the group’s versatility in tackling a wide variety of concepts with the help of some of the most famous figures in the K-pop music industry—and even outside of it.

Yesterday, on Aug. 19, the group held its debut concert titled “LOONAbirth,” marking the end of the pre-debut project and showing appreciation to the group’s rapidly growing fandom—named Orbit—for supporting them throughout the many months it has taken for the group to debut.

Check out the “Hi High” video below and revisit LOONA’s collaboration with Grimes right here.