IN CONVERSATION WITH GIRLSET
interview by JANA LETONJA
photography BRIAN ZIFF
GIRLSET is the powerhouse global girl group redefining pop in 2025. Formerly known as VCHA, the four-member collective is relaunching with a fearless new identity rooted in diversity, authenticity, and unapologetic confidence. Their latest single, ‘Little Miss’, released on 14th November, gives listeners another glimpse into their evolving artistry and global ambition. Formed through the hit reality competition A2K (America to Korea) the group brings together voices and cultures from across the world, blending pop with hip-hop, R&B, and electronic influences.
image courtesy of JYP AMERICA
Congratulations on your relaunch as GIRLSET What inspired the new name and identity for this next era?
Camila: What inspired the name was the four members. We wanted to find a name that represented us.The meaning behind it is that we come as a set, a set of four to be exact, and that we hope that in this set people can feel represented by seeing 4 different beautiful girls from different backgrounds. It also stands for not letting anyone dictate our path, we are the ones that are setting who we want to be and we hope that our listeners feel the same.
Kendall: Yes, we are so glad to be back as GIRLSET. It was definitely a journey to find GIRLSET though. We debated for a while with many other names, including keeping our past group’s name. However, we felt it was right to have a new name because a past name wouldn’t accurately represent a new us. So we landed on GIRLSET, like Camila mentioned, setting and defining our new future as the 4 of us.
How does GIRLSET differ from VCHA, both musically and personally?
Camila: It’s completely different. The music, the styling, the vision overall for the group and the fact that we are also part of the creative process in terms of how we want to be presented, and the music direction as well. GIRLSET is a true representation of who we are. We just feel so much more confident and true to ourselves compared to how it was during VCHA.
Lexi: As Camila said, GIRLSET is so much more of us. Our vision for what we see for ourselves now and for the future is something that we have discussed for a while now, since it is something that we truly feel proud and confident in pursuing. We’re glad that we could evolve and really grow from what we had in the past.
images courtesy of JYP AMERICA
‘Commas’ was such a confident and empowering debut as GIRLSET. What message did you want to send with that song?
Savanna: I would say ‘Commas’ is definitely a bold song, eluding confidence and sending messages of being unapologetically yourself and just knowing your worth. We hope people felt that through the lyrics and the bold concept that ‘Commas’ brings.
Your next single ‘Little Miss’ just dropped. Can you tell us what fans can expect from it?
Camila: ‘Little Miss’, I would say is very “GIRLSET-coded”. We’ve had this song for a while now and we always believed that it was a true representation of what GIRLSET is. This is the beginning and a little taste of our sound. We definitely want and have been exploring different styles and genres of music, which we’re super excited to share with everyone, and we believe that ‘Little Miss’ is a great introduction to that.
Savanna: With ‘Little Miss’, you can also expect to see a strong and energetic choreo, which is personally one of my favorite parts about ‘Little Miss’. I like to think the dance is pretty satisfying to watch.
images courtesy of JYP AMERICA
What was it like to reinvent yourselves creatively after already having success as VCHA?
Camila: It was definitely a hard process. It took a while to really be at the place where we are now in terms of music. I think right now things just flow easier, we know exactly what we’re looking for, we can tell immediately if a song is meant for us or not. In the beginning was obviously a learning process, especially being able to have control over our music. It was a big deal for us and honestly a beautiful experience. We grew so much and learned a lot through that process and it paid off, cause right now we know what we want our sound to be. Also something that I wanted to mention is that when people have such a set image of you, it’s kind of hard to break that because people find comfort in what they already know, so seeing the group change so much was probably a shock, but I really hope people understand and realize that this is who we are, and the most authentic we’ve ever felt.
Savanna: Additionally, personally through the process of us finding what our sound is as GIRLSET, I found myself more as an artist. I have a lot of appreciation for the journey it took to find ourselves as GIRLSET because as Camila said, during VCHA we didn’t create our own music, so I never got the chance to really explore and discover the things I’ve learned about myself that have shaped me creatively into who I am now in GIRLSET. It was a learning process for all of us and is definitely something that adds to the strength of us in my opinion. So as GIRLSET, we feel the most authentic us again, which is something we value a lot.
Your sound blends pop, R&B, hip-hop, and electronic influences. How do you find balance between all these genres?
Lexi: I mean, although each genre is so unique in its own way and brings so much to the table, something we like to experiment with is blending the different genres and creating something new with it. We love to explore and really go outside the box, so having a blend sometimes if it feels right, is something we love trying. We all enjoy similar yet different sounds and genres, so we love being able to incorporate them all into our music.
Kendall: Like Lexi said, we love to experiment with whatever sounds we are into at the time, and although these genres can be quite different, I believe that’s what makes them so good together sometimes. I personally think “finding a balance” is not as hard as it may seem because I don’t believe there is a “right” or “wrong” in music. There’s definitely what's “mainstream” or “trendy,” but we aren’t afraid to not be the norm, so the “balance,” I’d say, is just whatever feels right to us.
images courtesy of JYP AMERICA
GIRLSET represents diversity and global unity. How do your different cultural backgrounds influence your music and connection as a group?
Lexi: Being four different girls with multiple different backgrounds and bringing that all together is truly a beautiful experience. Immersing ourselves in each other's cultures and embracing our love for the communities through our bond is something so special to us. Representation is so significant since we were also little girls inspired by others who were similar to us.
Savanna: Musically, we are also really looking forward to being able to include and express our cultures more in our songs as representing is such an important thing for us. So that is definitely something to look forward to in the future.
You’ve spoken about embracing authenticity and fearlessness. What does that look like for each of you personally?
Savanna: For me personally, it just means being authentically me in everything we do. Whether it’s through our songs/lyrics, interaction with fans, etc., I want to make sure I’m staying true to myself. I hope that alone inspires people to do the same.
Kendall: Embracing authenticity, to me, means embracing everything. All the good things, and all the struggles, everything that you stand for, and that makes you who you are, and not being open to sharing that.
images courtesy of JYP AMERICA
The K-pop and global pop landscapes are evolving quickly. How do you see GIRLSET fitting into that future?
Kendall: I would expect to see GIRLSET evolve in the global pop landscape. We are a group that thrives on the global aspect, literally made to represent, and we take so much pride in that. We strive to put out music that people can relate to globally, through talking about real topics, but also by just having fun and being us, and we hope to inspire people globally along the way.
Looking ahead, what’s coming up next for GIRLSET?
Lexi: There’s still so much more that we want to show and release, so we can’t wait for the future. We’re always working on new music and have so much in store, so stay tuned.
images courtesy of JYP AMERICA
