For reasons no one is thrilled by, this was a year that will go down in history. But in spite of everything, people carried on with their lives, and did their best to make it through. The stories on each of the performances by the six teams across three days from December 28 to 30 is also a documentation of how people live their lives.

July 16, 2020. Mnet M COUNTDOWN: “Apple” Comeback Performance

GFRIEND puts forth their transformation as the subject of their “Apple” comeback performance on M COUNTDOWN. Before the performance, a video shows EUNHA in a school uniform, facing a crossroads then choosing and running in one direction. The video ends with EUNHA clad in white escaping from the Labyrinth and into the light. The choice leads EUNHA to the M COUNTDOWN stage where there is an apple tree. It is here that GFRIEND, once famous for their “powerfully innocent” label, presents to the world their new concept: the witch. The symbolism of this transition is emphasized on stage as the members start by wearing all white in the opening and change to all black as they sing the chorus a second time. Their white costumes and strappy gladiator boots, the lush green apple tree in the background and marble structures impart in them the image of mythological goddesses. In the second half of the performance, on the other hand, when gray marble buildings erected around the apple tree are paired with black costumes, dark makeup and eye catching accessories, the audience is reminded of demons and corruption. After changing to black and singing “we O wow wow wow wow” in the chorus SOWON, the tallest of the members, conducts the others’ motions while the lights flash like lightning. There is a striking contrast between this section and the first, which sang of desire, “Nearer, nearer, nearer / Until my lips desire your red allure,” and, “Infuse me with pleasure,” during which one member after the other is surrounded by the others. But here, GFRIEND uses the black and gray elements of the performance once interpreted as negative images for their own message: “I am the master of my own desire.”

As YERIN sings, “let the festival I dared to imagine come alive,” the now gray apple tree on stage bursts into flames. It only feels natural, then, that SINB should sing, “let go the timid child,” turning the lyrics from GFRIEND’s older song “Navillera” on their head. Reminiscent of witches burning at the stake, the image of fire actually strengthens the sense of catharsis that GFRIEND’s performance builds to under their assumed witch personas. At the showcase on July 13 held for the release of Song of the Sirens, SOWON said, “We all agreed that it was time for a change.” The “Apple” comeback performance on M COUNTDOWN is the start of that change, and at the same time it is a clear statement of what this change of direction means. The performance shows GFRIEND’s transformation progressively, from white to black, then black to fire, and this evolution is portrayed with the blackened stage design, dark makeup, glamorous jewelry, rising smoke, and fire reminiscent of the witch trials. For girl groups, freedom from the watchful public eye is hard to come by. It is on this stage, where GFRIEND show their most dramatic change, that the meanings of metaphors that have always been used to portray women negatively are subverted. While at the beginning of the song the members perform the same dance moves but slightly after one another, like shadows out of step, later they dance together and twirl at the same time as they sing “we O wow wow wow wow,” sounding like the Siren’s song. It’s a dance of pure joy, of resolved inner conflict. Instead of emphasizing certain body parts, this is danced with the body held straight up, a dance solely for myself. As if “starlight shines in me,” no matter what others may think of me. Of all the performances in 2020, this girl group’s performance shows the most impressive change.