It has been roughly a year since five young women clawed their way onto the K-pop scene with a single called “Meow,” and on June 1 they are coming back to take a much bigger bite. MEOVV (미야오) — THEBLACKLABEL’s first-ever girl group — will release their second EP, BITE NOW, at 6 p.m. KST, and the run-up has been one of the most carefully art-directed teaser campaigns of the early-summer comeback season. Here is everything you need to know before the apple drops.
Meet MEOVV: THEBLACKLABEL’s first girl group
For the uninitiated, MEOVV is a five-member group — Sooin, Gawon, Anna, Narin, and Ella — who debuted on September 6, 2024 with the digital single “MEOW.” The name is an acronym for “My Eyes Open VVide,” and the group carries serious pedigree: they are the first girl group launched by THEBLACKLABEL, the YG Entertainment-affiliated label behind hitmaker Teddy. Gawon is a former YG trainee and model who once fronted Adidas campaigns, while Ella Gross is an American model who has worked since the age of two on shoots for Zara, H&M, and GAP.
That polish was noticed fast. Within two months of debut, MEOVV picked up Billboard’s “K-Pop Rookie of the Month” honor, with the magazine writing that the quintet had “leaped onto the K-pop scene by showcasing a promising range and bold artistry set to claw out a legacy all their own.”
Inside ‘BITE NOW’: the tracklist and ‘DDI RO RI’
On May 25, agency Double Black Label posted the official tracklist poster across MEOVV’s social channels, confirming a tight, five-song set: “Hit ‘Em,” “In my hands,” “Favorite song,” “Revenge,” and the title track “DDI RO RI.” The poster’s bold colors and graphic patterns echo the group’s high-energy stage aesthetic, and it lands almost exactly one year after their debut EP.
The teaser rollout has leaned hard into mood and motif. The group has been seeding a team identity nicknamed “Goyang” — a wink at the Korean word for cat — and threading an apple through its concept photos and trailers as a recurring object. On May 21, a title poster even paired the comeback with the ominous organ melody of Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor,” a left-field choice that sent fans speculating about a darker, more theatrical sound this time around.
“In just two months, the five-member girl group — the first-ever launched by THEBLACKLABEL — has leaped onto the K-pop scene… set to claw out a legacy all their own.” — Billboard, on naming MEOVV K-Pop Rookie of the Month
Two “MOOD FILMS” set the tone for the EP: the first captures the members in front of screens flashing their own faces over dissonant tones, while the second uses a propulsive drum groove and a red filter that turns their black outfits haunting. Watch the first mood film below:
Video: MEOVV(미야오) [BITE NOW] MOOD FILM #1 (Source: MEOVV official YouTube).
The road to June 1
MEOVV’s momentum has been steady rather than sudden. Their first EP, MY EYES OPEN VVIDE, arrived in May 2025 — its pre-release “Hands Up” earned the rookies their first music-show trophy on M Countdown, and lead single “Drop Top” followed alongside the full record. They kept the calendar busy through the back half of the year with “ME ME ME” in July and “BURNING UP” in October, the latter later expanded with a “Rush” remix.
Part of the group’s appeal is how tightly knit they are. “We’re working together 24/7, and we also live together, so we’re always together,” Gawon told The Hollywood Reporter in 2025. “We’re each other’s best friends, and we have a lot of fun together.” That chemistry has become a selling point for a group still in its first two years.
Why this comeback matters
For THEBLACKLABEL, BITE NOW is a statement: a chance to prove that MEOVV can graduate from buzzy rookie to a fixture of K-pop’s crowded fourth-and-fifth-generation field. The June calendar is packed — comebacks from TREASURE, tripleS, BOYNEXTDOOR, ATEEZ and more are all jostling for the same charts and music-show slots — so a sharp, distinctive title track will matter. With the Capitol Records partnership pushing them toward Western playlists and a concept built around bold visuals and an unmistakable cat motif, MEOVV are betting that “DDI RO RI” gives them the bite to stand out. We will know how hard it lands when the EP drops at 6 p.m. KST on June 1.
Sources: uDiscover Music — “MEOVV Tease New Project, ‘THE 2nd EP ALBUM [BITE NOW]'”; Star News — “DDI RO RI..MEOVV opens ‘BITE NOW’ tracklist ahead of June 1 comeback”; Wikipedia — Meovv; Kprofiles — MEOVV Members Profile.
