A few months ago, K-pop darlings Oh My Girl was a group of seven young women secretly whispering “Inside me I have a precious place only for me” in its shimmering single “Secret Garden.” Who would have thought those ladies would turn into monkeys dancing to a comical tune with a banana in their hands?

The seven-piece act Oh My Girl returned with its new EP “Banana Allergy Monkey” Tuesday, aiming for a dramatic change in the group’s image. The album, which is the group’s first pop-up album, features the members split into their two units -- the monkeys with banana allergies and those without. 

In “Banana Allergy Monkey,” the album’s lead track with an electro house chiptune sound, features Hyojung, Binnie and Arin as monkeys allergic to bananas. The song tells the story of how those playful monkeys find the solution in alternative banana-flavored milk and fall in love with it. “I Did it (working title),” featuring Mimi, YooA, Seunghee and Jiho, tells the story of how the allergy-free monkeys interpret the situation of their fellow unit in their own perspectives. 

Clad in pink safari jackets and shorts, outfits that suit the album’s overall jungle-themed concept, the members said they could totally understand fans who may find their new song unexpected.

“Some said they were shocked by our new concept, but I am satisfied that our new song was refreshing,” Jiho said during a press showcase for the album “Banana Allergic Monkey” in Seoul on Tuesday.


 

Asked about how the song was created, Hyojung said, “We’ve actually asked our producer BAM how he came up with the idea.”

“And he said he is actually allergic to apples, which became his inspiration.”

Seunghee expressed her wish for the song, with its catchy hooks and melodies, to be easily sung along by people, regardless of their age or gender.

The group debuted in 2015 as an eight-piece group with the EP “Oh My Girl,” but one of its members JinE left the group in March last year due to ongoing health complications related to her struggle with anorexia nervosa.

The now-seven member act released its last EP “Coloring Book” in April last year and its “Secret Garden” EP in January. The act performed for the first time in the US at KCON LA in August last year.

By Hong Dam-young

(lotus@heraldcorp.com)