''Fearless'' is the debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

by South Korean girl group

Le Sserafim Le Sserafim ( ; ; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by Source Music and Hybe Corporation. The group consists of five members: Sakura, Kim Chae-won, Huh Yun-jin, Kazuha and Hong Eun-chae. Originally a sextet, Kim Ga-ram ...

. It was released by

Source Music Diegetic music or source music is music in a drama (e.g., film or video game) that is part of the fictional setting and so, presumably, is heard by the characters. The term refers to diegesis, a style of storytelling. The opposite of source m ...

on May 2, 2022, and contains five tracks, including the lead single of the same name. ''Fearless'' is the group's only release to include Kim Ga-ram, who was removed from the lineup on July 20, 2022.

Background and release

On March 14, 2022, Source Music announced it would be debuting a new girl group in collaboration with

Hybe Corporation Hybe Co., Ltd. (, stylized as HYBE Corporation) is a South Korean multinational entertainment company established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk as Big Hit Entertainment Co., Ltd. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music productio ...

. One week later, Hybe Corporation announced the group would be debuting in May. On April 13, it was announced the group would release their debut extended play ''Fearless'' on May 2. On April 25, the track list was released, with "Fearless" announced as the lead single. Two days later, the highlight medley video was released. Music video teasers for the lead single were released on April 29 and May 1, respectively.

Composition

''Fearless'' consists of five tracks and incorporates various genres of

alternative pop Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

, disco-funk, and R&B. The opening track, "The World is My Oyster", is characterized by "a strong rhythm and a psychedelic mood that sreminiscent of the runway of a fashion show". The lead single "Fearless" is a

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and

song with lyrics about "moving forward without being shaken by the past". The third track "Blue Flame" is a disco-punk song with "a sophisticated melody and mysterious atmosphere". The fourth track "The Great Mermaid" was described as a retelling of ''

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a h ...

'' fairytale "from the perspective of Le Sserafim". The final track "Sour Grapes" was "inspired by

Aesop Aesop ( or ; , ; c. 620–564 BCE) was a Greek fabulist and storyteller credited with a number of fables now collectively known as ''Aesop's Fables''. Although his existence remains unclear and no writings by him survive, numerous tales cre ...

The Fox and the Grapes The Fox and the Grapes is one of Aesop's fables, numbered 15 in the Perry Index. The narration is concise and subsequent retellings have often been equally so. The story concerns a fox that tries to eat grapes from a vine but cannot reach them. ...

fable Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular mo ...

and features lyrics detailing " hepsychology of pure curiosity about love and the selfish side of valuing oneself more".

Commercial performance

On April 30, it was announced that pre-orders of ''Fearless'' exceeded 380,000 copies. On the day of its release alone, the extended play (EP) sold more than 175,000 copies, breaking the record for a girl group debut set previously in January by

Kep1er Kep1er (; ) is a South Korean girl group formed through the Mnet (TV channel), Mnet Reality show, reality survival competition show ''Girls Planet 999'' in 2021 and managed by Swing Entertainment and Wake One Entertainment. The group is composed ...

's ''

First Impact ''First Impact'' is the debut extended play (EP) by South Korean girl group Kep1er, a project group formed through the 2021 Mnet reality competition show '' Girls Planet 999''. The album was released on January 3, 2022, by Wake One Entertainmen ...

'', which achieved 150,000 first-day album sales. ''Fearless'' debuted at number two on South Korea's

Gaon Album Chart The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their Record sales, pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart, pr ...

in the issue dated May 1–7, 2022; on the monthly chart, it debuted at number five in the issue for May 2022 with 412,696 copies sold. On ''

Billboard Japan ''Billboard Japan'' is a sister organization of the U.S.-based music magazine ''Billboard''. It is operated by the Japanese Osaka-based company Hanshin Contents Link (a subsidiary of Hanshin Electric Railway), holding an exclusive licence from ''Bi ...

'' Hot Albums, the EP debuted at number one in the chart issue dated May 11, 2022. It also debuted at number three on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

Albums Chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...

in the chart issue dated May 16, 2022; on the monthly chart, it debuted at number nine in the issue for May 2022 with 32,998 copies sold. The EP debuted at number 37 on the Hungarian

MAHASZ Hungarian Recording Industry Association (Hungarian: ''Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége'', more commonly abbreviated to MAHASZ or Mahasz) is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. MAHASZ issues the Hungarian Music Awards, ...

Top 40 Album Chart in the issue dated May 20–26, 2022.

Promotion

Following the release of ''Fearless'', Le Sserafim held a live showcase on the same date to introduce the extended play and communicate with their fans. The group performed "Fearless" and "Blue Flame" during the showcase.

Track listing

Notes * All tracks are produced by 13.

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Year-end charts

Sales and certifications

Release history

References

{{Le Sserafim 2022 debut EPs Korean-language EPs Hybe Corporation EPs Source Music EPs Le Sserafim albums