Girlkind
| Company type | Girl group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | January 17, 2018 |
| Founder | Nextlevel Entertainment |
| Defunct | August 13, 2022 |
| Headquarters | South Korea |
| Products | Music, extended plays, singles |
GIRLKIND (presented in all caps) was a South Korean four-member girl group initially debuting as a quintet with Sun J, Xeheun, Jikang, Medic Jin, and Ellyn on January 17, 2018. Their debut digital single was titled "FANCI". Sun J exited the group in 2020. The ensemble officially disbanded on August 13, 2022.
2017-2018: Formation and Debut
Before joining GIRLKIND, Xeheun trained under Nextlevel Entertainment and competed on the reality competition Produce 101, where she was eliminated during the fifth episode. She was introduced as the first member of GIRLKIND in 2017.
The members gained initial public attention by uploading dance cover videos of hit K-pop boy bands such as BTS, Got7, Seventeen, and Wanna One on their official YouTube channel. On January 17, 2018, GIRLKIND officially debuted as a five-member Hip-Hop focused girl group with their digital single "FANCI" showcased on Show Champion.
2018: Broccoli Mixtape, International Activities, and "S.O.R.R.Y"
GIRLKIND released their debut mixtape titled Broccoli on April 7, 2018.
They made history by performing at the "2018 Changwon K-POP World Festival" held in Bahrain, marking them as the first K-pop female group to appear at this event.
Towards the end of May, the group announced their return with the digital single "S.O.R.R.Y". On June 5, 2018, they shared a performance video covering Bolbbalgan4's song "Travel".
Teasers for the "S.O.R.R.Y" music video were unveiled on June 7. Departing from their initial Hip-Hop image, GIRLKIND embraced a fresh, vibrant summer theme with scenes filmed in Saipan.
2019: GIRLKIND XJR Sub-unit
On August 19, 2018, Nextlevel Entertainment revealed a sub-unit named GIRLKIND XJR, comprising Leader Xeheun and Main Rapper Jikang. Their debut mini album Life is Diamond was released on August 28, 2018. Both Xeheun and Jikang were involved in composing the lead track "Money Talk," which they promoted on KBS Music Bank.
2020: Sun J’s Hiatus, "Future (퓨쳐)", and "Psycho4U"
On March 22, 2020, Nextlevel Entertainment announced that Sun J would temporarily step back from GIRLKIND to concentrate on her academic pursuits at Gimpo University after graduating from the School of Performing Arts Seoul.
By late March, GIRLKIND continued as a quartet and dropped the digital single "Future (퓨쳐)" on April 14, 2020. Members Xeheun, Jikang, and Medic Jin co-wrote the lyrics for this track. To encourage positivity during the COVID-19 crisis, they launched the "Future Challenge" via social media on April 17.
Following an announcement on October 26, GIRLKIND released another single titled "Psycho4U" on November 4, 2020.
2021: Comeback with "Good Vibes Only (이 분위기에 취해)" and Member Ellyn’s Participation in My Teenage Girl
The group teased their comeback with visuals highlighting Yellow and Pink concepts. Nextlevel Entertainment disclosed that producer Two Champ from Brave Entertainment contributed to the production of their new song. Meanwhile, members Xeheun and Jikang participated in choreographing the performance.
The single and accompanying music video were released on July 7, 2021. They quickly gained traction by entering Melon and Bugs! Top 100 charts, climbing from #99 to #39 within a day.
The youngest member Ellyn took part in MBC’s survival program My Teenage Girl. She appeared in its prequel series 등교 전 망설임 (Hesitation Before Going to School) but was eliminated in Episode 3 due to insufficient votes from judges.
2022: GIRLKIND Tokyo Live 2022 and Group Disbandment
On March 26, 2022, the group revealed plans for their concert series titled "GIRLKIND Tokyo Live 2022," which took place between April 16 and May 7 at Showbox located in Shin-Okubo, Tokyo.
Following prolonged internal discussions, Nextlevel Entertainment officially announced the group's disbandment on August 13, 2022.
Extended Plays
| Title | Release Information | Peak Chart Ranking | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| KOR | |||
| Life Is Diamond |
|
75 | 48 |
Singles
| Title | Year | Highest Chart Position | Sales | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOR | ||||
| "FANCI" | 2018 | — | N/A | Fanci |
| "S.O.R.R.Y" | — | N/A | S.O.R.R.Y | |
| "Future (퓨쳐)" | 2020 | — | N/A | Future (퓨쳐) |
| "Psycho4U" | — | N/A | Psycho4U | |
| "Good Vibes Only (이 분위기에 취해)" | 2021 | 188 | N/A | Good Vibes Only (이 분위기에 취해) |
| A dash ("—") indicates tracks that did not chart or were not released in that specific market. | ||||
Concerts
- GIRLKIND Tokyo Live 2022 (2022)