The K-pop group also opens up about the “great honor” of collaborating with Megan The Stallion and Patti LaBelle on the Apple TV+ series, and shares what they’d like people to understand about the K-pop genre.
Starring on KPOPPED was impactful for the K-pop group, Billlie, in more ways than one.
In an interview with TooFab, the South Korean girl group — which consists of Moon Sua, Suhyeon, Haram, Tsuki, Siyoon, Haruna, and Sheon — opened up about working with Megan Thee Stallion and Patti LaBelle on the Apple TV+ series, and reflected on how the experience on the show made them realize they can “really grow further” as a group.
As shown in Episode 1 of the Apple TV+ series, which is streaming now, Billlie split into two teams, with Moon Sua, Siyoon, and Sheon teaming up with Megan Thee Stallion on a K-popified version of “Savage,” and Haruna, Tsuki, Haram, and Suhyeon collaborating with Patti Labelle on a remix of “Lady Marmalade.”
Apple TV+
When asked what interested the group about KPOPPED, Suhyeon said, “It was very interesting to be given an opportunity to perform with such iconic international artists, and we just couldn’t say no to it. It was also interesting to think of ways to combine their musicality and Billlie’s musicality in our collaboration, so we had a lot of fun preparing for the stages.”
Billlie recalled what went into the collaborations with Megan and Patti, including how they created the K-pop remix demos in the studio.
“First of all, it was a great honor for us to cover two iconic songs,” Haram shared. “Our main focus was to maintain the original song’s messages and energy while incorporating our musical color. All members discussed in various ways and practiced together, too.”
Ahead of the KPOPPED song battle, the two teams went for a bonding outing together, with Moon Sua, Siyoon, and Sheon going out on the town with Megan out for some spicy ramen, and Haruna, Tsuki, Haram, and Suhyeon taking Patti out for a treat for her first time out in Seoul.
“Seeing the artists laughing and having fun off the stage made me realize that they enjoy music and people even in their daily lives, and it was a great experience,” Haruna said, reflecting on the team bonding.
However, it still was a competition, and the two groups faced off, hitting the stage with two epic performances, with “Savage” ultimately winning the song battle.
Although Sheon said it was “awkward” initially for Billlie to be split up for the show, the brief separation ultimately taught the group a powerful lesson.
Apple TV+
“It felt a bit awkward to be divided into two teams, but rather than thinking it as ‘I need to win this competition,'” Sheon told TooFab. “I think it was more of a learning process that reminded us about each other’s strength[s].”
“It created positive tension, and I felt proud to see our members’ stage, thinking, ‘they’re really good!'” she added.
As for what Billlie will ultimately take away from their KPOPPED experience, Moon Sua said, “It was amazing to be able to take on the genres we haven’t done yet, thanks to KPOPPED. This was our first time to perform in different teams, and it made me realize the wide musical spectrum of our members, which I felt proud of. And when we all gathered as one to perform, I thought, “Billlie can really grow further.’ I was also happy to promote K-pop to a wider audience.”
Meanwhile, Billlie also named the Western artist whom they’d love to collaborate with in a similar capacity, revealing the song they’d love the other artist to perform.
“Ever since I was a trainee, I listened to Tori Kelly’s songs a lot when I was practicing,” Suhyeon told TooFab. “If Tori Kelly sings one of our songs… I would love to hear them all, but ‘remembrance candy’ would be perfect. Right? I think her delicate, beautiful voice would go so well with the melody of ‘remembrance candy,’ I would love to hear her cover of the song one day.”
Apple TV+
The group went on to reflect on the global phenomenon of K-pop, sharing whether they believe there are any misconceptions about the genre, or what they’d like people to understand about it.
“Rather than being one fixed genre, K-pop encapsulates multiple genres like rock, pop, jazz, and R&B,” Haram explained. “Within K-pop, each artist or team also has different goals.”
“That’s why K-pop can produce such various colors within the genre, and I think it’d be good to enjoy it fully, as a whole,” she added.
Check out TooFab’s full interview with Billlie in the video at the top of this post, and check out their epic performance on KPOPPED, streaming now on Apple TV+.
