A Tribute to PURPLE KISS

There will never be another group quite like them.

Here is all past 17 Carat K-Pop praise for PURPLE KISS in one place!

March 2021: INTO VIOLET Review

“Just like the kiss they sing about, PURPLE KISS makes a strong debut that will leave a mark on listeners and viewers. The ‘Ponzona’ music video captivates with vampiress personas, allusions to dark magic, and a visual feast. While this video may draw comparisons to other K-pop girl groups who have a goth-adjacent aesthetic, this group manages to pull off the concept in their own unique way. ‘Ponzona’ is riveting rather than derivative, and their B-sides are equally enchanting. Listeners will be hooked from the very beginning of INTO VIOLET, when a Billie Eilish-esque intro sets the stage for a dark and mysterious journey.”

September 2021: HIDE & SEEK Review

“The ‘Zombie’ music video has something in it for all kinds of K-pop fans to love. SHINee’s Odd Eye era comes to mind while watching it, as do the many recent comebacks featuring a Clueless-inspired wardrobe (namely TWICE, SUNMI, and SOMI). In other words, a second-generation K-pop concept is combined with a newer K-pop trend to make something original. The originality of ‘Zombie’ is further enhanced by its ambiguous ending scene and the flipping of the script. Recent zombie-themed K-pop music videos, such as Golden Child’s ‘Burn It’ and SUNMI’s ‘You can’t sit with us,’ feature zombies as enemies. In this case, PURPLE KISS allude to being the zombies, or at least being willing to party alongside them!”

July 2022: Geekyland Review

“The aesthetics of the ‘Zombie’ era return in the music video for ‘Nerdy,’ which includes a movie’s worth of spooky, magical mayhem! Supernatural powers wreck havoc as the group sings about wearing their ‘nerdy’ label as a badge of honor. Their signature violins and highly-distinguishable voices personalize this catchy track, and their vocals remain irreplicable on the B-sides too. They lure listeners in with the mystical intro (‘Intro : Bye Bye Bully’), then present the perfect soundtrack for a host of hijinks!”

February 2023: Cabin Fever Review

“In a fictional universe where a group of witches nicknamed ‘Purky’ fend off evil forces, everyone must stay on high alert. Warnings to not look behind the doors and to not pick up the phone are loud and clear. But the ‘Purky’ show a naive degree of confidence, causing their battles against the evil spirits to persist. They have the upper hand in some moments and appear victorious, with their cold stares and entrancing vocals. But in other scenes, they are literally pushed around and taunted by the invisible spirits. The ‘Sweet Juice’ music video has many twists and turns and keeps the fate of ‘Purky’ a mystery. The sinister story further impresses with its specific aesthetic. The group’s wardrobe combines preppy and prom-ready styles, shimmery makeup, and, naturally, a deep shade of purple. Their carefully-curated visuals keep their characters consistent and sink viewers deeper into their music video lore. In addition to storytelling mastery, PURPLE KISS flex their vocal chops and dancing skills through this comeback, the former through the Cabin Fever highlight medley and the latter through the ‘Intro : Save Me’ video.”

September 2023: FESTA Review

“PURPLE KISS seem to be checking off an obligatory box for K-pop groups by having a summer-themed release fronted by a breezy pop song, but a closer look reveals the many ways they make the concept their own. The group balances flirty, suggestive connotations with cute and youthful ones in ‘7HEAVEN,’ and they strike another typical-for-them balance between singing about their excitement (in the title track) and putting guardrails around their optimism (in ‘Mistake’). They indirectly recall the ‘don’t cast pearls before swine’ reference from a previous song with the lyrics ‘It’s useless attention / I don’t want it’ in ‘Biscuit.’ Other ways they bring to mind older PURPLE KISS songs are more likely to be coincidental, like when they use the phrase ‘fade away’ again in ‘Mistake.’ But regardless of how intentional or not the ways FESTA brings to mind their past eras are, the point is that PURPLE KISS have an admirably distinct way with words and the talent to give each song the most shine possible.”

November 2023: USA Tour Review

“There are natural downsides to performing on a small stage to a relatively small crowd and without flashy, large-scale special effects, but PURPLE KISS offered an excellent example of when less is more. All the performance limitations on small-venue shows turned into their concert’s biggest strengths; they were able to connect with the crowd in ways that would not be possible in a bigger place. However, they performed with a stamina, synergy, and skill level that deserved to draw in arena-sized audiences, so those who attended their Chicago tour stop got the best of both worlds!”

March 2024: BXX Review

“In both this new album and their previous ones, the members walk many tightropes while making it look effortless. First of all, their group synergy is remarkable; their voices go off of one another’s with perfect timing. They each have spotlight-worthy vocals but never hog that spotlight; they each get solo chances to shine that come about organically. Second of all, they sing powerfully and passionately without going overboard, allowing the fullness of the instrumentals to be appreciated while still proving their vocal confidence is earned. Third of all, they make the most pointed lyrics sound just as mellifluous as the plain fun ones, like the ‘Ah, yeah, yeah, yeah’s and ‘Ooh, ooh, ooh’s in ‘Toy Boy’! Although there is less clever wordplay in BXX than in previous releases, their words still have a bite to them. Their sweet comments always come with sassy reminders of their upper hand, like in ‘Toy Boy’ (‘I’ll shine so you don’t lose your way’) and ‘Heart Attack’ (‘I’m yours / You don’t need to give me an answer’). It is fitting that ‘[T]he wind tosses me’ is BXX’s final line; it sums up how PURPLE KISS’s musicianship might go wherever the wind takes it, but it will always be there naturally!”

October 2024: HEADWAY Review

“HEADWAY is a testament to PURPLE KISS’s strong artistic intuition. They manage to make all kinds of adjectives suitable for their songs, and often seemingly contradictory ones at the same time. Their lyrics do not pick and choose between being spiteful or sweet, and their songs can be breezy but maintain an ominous undercurrent! The album starts with an introduction that perfectly epitomizes PURPLE KISS’s multifaceted identity and multitude of strong suits. ‘Intro : Concrete Jungle’ immerses listeners in an industrial atmosphere, and their message sounds just as stark: ‘Give it all you’ve got… Only the strong survive.’ Guitars and engines rev up to start ‘ON MY BIKE’ with a bang. The pop-rock song has attitude in spades. ‘Sweet Nightmare’ shows their knack for bouncing off of each other’s voices with perfect timing, as well as the ease with which they weave ominous connotations into their lyrics (bringing to mind the dark-magic-wielding characters they play in their music videos)! They interrupt a message about enjoying each other’s company to acknowledge ‘The whispers of the devil’ nearby! They stay in character in ‘Encore,’ which is like the spooky sequel to ‘Sweet Juice.’ Again, their lyrics can be interpreted in a darker-than-it-sounds way: ‘Sing more… Before my time is over;’ ‘Let the music drown us;’  ‘Come closer.’ Another strength of ‘Encore’ is also present in ‘Light the way’: seamless switches between rapping and singing. ‘Light the way’ ends the album on a softer, more romantic note, but the air of mystery from the first tracks remains: ‘I’ll be looking in the same direction / Even if it’s endless.’ With terrific teamwork and distinguishable lyricism, PURPLE KISS have once again released a project that is as smooth as it is dynamic.”

July 2025: I Miss My… Review

“These well-written songs seamlessly compile commentary about the past, present, and future. In ‘DOREMI,’ PURPLE KISS sing about rewinding a ‘music box’ of memories but frame that rewinding as a chance to chart a new path: ‘With this monotonous melody / I can find myself in the end.’ In ‘LOST & FOUND,’ they embrace the times they are both lost and found, because both involve a meaningful process of gathering ‘precious pieces,’ lasting reminders that not all journeys need to end: ‘It will not be over / When I’m lost and found.’ Lastly, ‘VVV’ compares their current situation to filming a movie, describing it as being at the ‘climax’ and calling ‘Action.’ But it also looks forward: ‘Dive into a world you don’t even know;’ ‘The new me, I rebrand my vision.’ The ‘DOREMI’ music video walks the same line between wistfulness and wonder. The members wear bohemian outfits, play in a field together, unfurl a keyboard-printed blanket, and toss flowers like confetti. They sing about savoring this summer day, dancing ‘the final waltz’ and enjoying ‘Our festival.’”

August 2025: OUR NOW Review

“PURPLE KISS’s final album before their November disbandment is a beautiful and bittersweet gift. It closes the loop on their bewitching, years-long narrative, in which they have played witches and turned uninspired topics into whimsical source material. They sing about putting a curse on an ex in ‘Unhappily Ever After,’ pulling crushes under their irresistible spell in songs like ‘memeM’ and ‘Zombie,’ and becoming the witch archetype that haters might try to smear them as in ‘Sweet Juice’ (the telling line from a video that summarizes OUR NOW’s songs: ‘Trapped under the world’s gaze, we became the witches they imagined’). Beyond fictional applications, their pure talent has enabled them to continuously turn ordinary ingredients into extraordinary musical magic! The two brand-new songs on this album (which primarily consists of new English versions of older songs) are great examples. The self-explanatory ‘WANT U BACK’ gives each PURPLE KISS member a chance to show off distinct vocal colors, and ‘Unhappily Ever After’ perfectly times its string-backed moments and beat drops to enhance the most in-character moments.

“As for the new music video for the English version of ‘DOREMI,’ it harkens back to the Korean ‘DOREMI’ video but makes some key edits. Ironically, the videos’ most important commonality is their ambiguity! Both have up-to-interpretation endings, showing that PURPLE KISS want fans to finish the story themselves. This explains why the album is called OUR NOW; like the mix of acting and approachability that have defined past eras, they only want to celebrate being unique if listeners and viewers decide to do so too.”

“Best of the Year” Wins

“Zombie” and “Ponzona” made the “Best Songs of 2021” list!

“Nerdy” and “SuMMer RaiN” made the “Best Songs of 2022” list!

“Sweet Juice” made the “Best Songs of 2023” list!

“ON MY BIKE” and “Sweet Nightmare” made the “Best Songs of 2024” list!

“Ponzona” made the “Best K-Pop Music Videos of 2021” list, landing at No. 15! 

“Nerdy” made the “Best K-Pop Music Videos of 2022” list, landing at No. 26!

“Sweet Juice” made the “Best K-Pop Music Videos of 2023” list, landing at No. 16!

Geekyland made the “Top 100 Albums of 2022” list, landing at No. 28!

Cabin Fever made the “Top 100 Albums of 2023” list, landing at No. 16!

HEADWAY made the “Top 100 Albums of 2024” list, landing at No. 13!

Revisit PURPLE KISS’s catalog like never before…

… with this acapella medley and this cover of “Mistake”!

View the Substack version of this piece here!