TRI.BE pioneers 'K-pop afrobeats' with latest release 'Diamond'

Girl group TRI.BE dropped single ″Diamond″ on Tuesday [TR ENTERTAINMENT]

TRI.BE hopes to pioneer “K-pop afrobeats” as they foray into the genre with “Diamond,” the girl group’s first physical release in more than a year.

“I believe that not many [K-pop] girl groups have based their songs in the afrobeats genre, […] so I hope people listen to ‘Diamond’ and link TRI.BE to the afrobeats genre in the future,” Songsun, the leader of TRI.BE, said during a press showcase held in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Tuesday afternoon, shortly after the single’s release at noon.

“Furthermore, I hope people link the K-pop afrobeats genre to TRI.BE and have more K-pop idol groups release songs in the genre,” Songsun said.

“Diamond,” the title track of TRI.BE’s latest single, is a song that mixes chill afrobeats tunes with TRI.BE’s unique vocal style. Producer S.Tiger, known for working on EXID’s “Up & Down” (2014), Apink’s “LUV” (2014) and more, worked with TRI.BE once again to produce the two songs on the single.

“While we had some afrobeats sounds in our previous releases, this is our first time going full-on with the genre, and it was not easy for us to understand and adapt to it,” Songsun said.

Trying out and really nailing down the new genre was one of the reasons why it took so long for TRI.BE to come out with new music, according to the members.

“We started preparing for ‘Diamond’ back in July,” Hyunbin said. “We had some changes in our title track, and it also took us a while to come up with matching choreography."

“I would send producer S.Tiger recordings of me singing for his evaluations and feedback,” Mire said.

“He provided me with precise directions and even recorded back pronunciations for words that I was unfamiliar with. I think that’s one of the ways I tried to improve myself.”

TRI.BE also worked hard for its B-side track “Run,” taking turns in song and lyric writing and designing their own choreography for the track.

“'Run’ is a song that shares the wishes and thoughts TRI.BE members have for each other and for our fans,” Jia said.

“We designed the choreography to make sure that it fits with the popping nature of the song,” Mire said.

“Following ‘Diamond’ promotions, we plan to meet our overseas fans this year,” Hyunbin said. “We will also return with a new album in Korea this year, so I hope you look forward to our activities in 2024.”

To find out more about TRI.BE, visit Celeb Confirmed!

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]