(G)I-DLE leader and producer Soyeon has opened up about her approach to the group’s newly-released studio album ‘I Never Die’.

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At a press showcase for the girl group’s new album and single ‘Tomboy’ yesterday (March 14), the (G)I-DLE leader shared the thought process on the new record, which came over a year since the quintet’s last release.

“Because we are coming back after such a long absence, I made this album as if we were debuting again,” said Soyeon, who wrote and co-composed over half the tracks on ‘I Never Die’, including its lead single.

“When I saw the five members, who have matured, I wondered what concept would best suit them, and focused on that throughout the process,” added the leader, who said that she had worked on the release with the goal of producing a “detailed and cool” album.

Elsewhere during the showcase, the vocalists of (G)I-DLE spoke about rapping on the B-side track ‘My Bag’, for which they had dropped a special video prior to the album’s release. “This is the first song where [the whole group] raps,” said Taiwanese member Shuhua, who added that she had enjoyed the challenge.

Meanwhile, Chinese member Yuqi, who also co-wrote and composed the songs ‘Liar’ and ‘Polaroid’ joked that she had “always [been] good at rapping”. “I thought ‘oh, I finally got an opportunity to [to show off my skills]. I did so well that I started to think if I should switch positions” from a vocalist to a rapper, she added.

‘I Never Die’ marks the girl group’s first-ever full-length project since their debut in 2018. (G)I-DLE last released the mini-album ‘I Burn’ along with its lead single ‘Hwaa’ last January, shortly before bullying allegations surrounding ex-member Soojin began to arise.

Earlier this month, CUBE Entertainment released a statement notifying the public of the official termination of Soojin’s contract, six months after her departure from (G)I-DLE.