In an online community, a debate sparked after a netter pointed out similarities between NMIXX's new song and NewJeans' concepts.

NMIXX Unveils Pre-Released Song 'Young, Dumb, Stupid'

Prior to the release of its first mini-album, "expérgo" and its title track, "Love Me Like This" on March 20, JYP Entertainment's rookie girl group NMIXX surprised the music scene by dropping a pre-released song, "Young, Dumb, Stupid" on March 13.

This first track of the album follows the "MIXX POP" genre, which combined hip-hop and famous children's song, drawing attention to the members' stunning vocals and refreshing sound.

On the same day, the music video for "Young, Dumb, Stupid" was also unveiled, amassing more than 12 million views as of March 14. In the MV, the sextet can be seen accessing a game and doing missions.

The music video was loved for its colorful and vibrant scenes which go well with NMIXX's bubbly concept. The MV also caught the eye of Gen Z with its trendy animation and character emoticon game details that fit the concept so well.

Meanwhile, NMIXX will officially release its first mini-album "expérgo" at 6 p.m. KST on March 20 and hold a comeback showcase "Docking Station: expérgo" on its YouTube channel at 8 p.m. KST on the same day.

NMIXX Imitating NewJeans? Rookies Compared After 'Young, Dumb, Stupid' Release

When the MV and song were dropped, it immediately earned attention from music supporters, especially NSWERs (fandom). Fans went on by praising the team's concept, vocals, dance skills and visuals.

However, some raised their brows after watching NMIXX's new release, claiming that the team is only imitating their co-4th-gen girl groups, especially NewJeans and aespa.

In an online community, a web user implied how NMIXX's concept changed significantly after their powerful and intense debut song, "O.O" to a freestyle one. The author claimed that NMIXX initially "copied" aespa's concept when they were extremely popular and changed to something lighter when NewJeans became the new "rookie monster."

The OP further explained that although there are differences in the two group's MVs, the uncanny similarities in their hairstyles, freestyle choreographies, as well as outfits, were recognizable.

When the post went viral, NSWERs were quick to defend NMIXX, calling out the author for its farfetched claim. First, the fandom emphasized that NewJeans' current image is Y2K-inspired, but in fact, a lot of idols were also following this such as TWICE, VIVIZ, BLACKPINK and more.

Regarding their vibe, people were confused as the two groups were nothing alike. If this was about the significant concept change, fans once again reminded people that NMIXX is following a genre called "MIXX POP" which is combining two or more genres in one song, thus, there are possibilities that the group will use a sound that is currently trendy.

• "What are you saying? If anything, the closest it matches is ITZY's 'LOCO.' (NMIXX senior sister)."
• "It feels different though."
• "These days, a lot of girl groups do it like that. It's not like NewJeans reserved this concept."
• "Where is NewJeans?"
• "Copied NewJeans? NMIXX dance and sing live better."

For more K-Pop news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Eunice Dawson.