OH MY GIRL's Mimi on the fairy concept struggle: "I wasn't pretty"

OH MY GIRL's Mimi debuted in 2015 with the group's first single CUPID. The fairy-girl concept that followed was never really her.

Before debut, Mimi was drawn to intense styles and had her sights set on becoming a hip-hop singer. "Looking back, I think I was happier as a trainee than after debut," she said. The mismatch cut deep: "I wanted to express myself freely, but I couldn't."

She was also candid about the pressure that came with being in a girl group. "Girl groups had to be pretty," she said. When asked directly whether she considered herself pretty, she didn't soften it: "You're saying I'm pretty now, so it seems that way, but I wasn't pretty. I don't have a particularly pretty face."

OH MY GIRL's discography grew to include 살짝 설렜어, 돌핀, 던던댄스, and 비밀정원. Mimi eventually got her outlet. Her first solo single 비시 배시 보시 let her handle writing, composing, and production herself.

The conversation came out of a video posted August 29 on the YouTube channel 꼰대희, titled 빵을 너무 좋아해서 빵만 먹고 간 미미와 빵묵자 (roughly: Mimi, who loves bread so much she only ate bread and left).