January is kicking off K-pop in a big way, and Oh My Girl is one of the latest acts to release new music. The girl group, labelmates with B1A4 and ONF, dropped their Secret Garden EP on Tuesday (Jan. 9), offering up a shimmering synth-pop title track to mark their return in the new year.
With sweet, breathy vocals, the septet belt about planting the seeds of potential internally to pursue their future dreams. “Inside me I have a precious place only for me,” they sing on the chorus. “The landscape is nothing special yet/ if you wait for a while you’ll meet it. Inside this/ I planted something cool and amazing/ you can’t see anything yet/ but if you wait for a while you’ll know it/ My secret garden.”
The song’s fantastical, animal-filled music video posies the members of Oh My Girl as young women on the verge of discovering their future paths, and intersperses scenes of them exploring career and educational options with their hypnotizing choreography. Oh My Girl has consistently delivered some of the most compelling dance formations in K-pop, and “Secret Garden” continues this legacy as they come together to form a human sun.
“Secret Garden” marks Oh My Girl’s first single since the withdrawal of former member JinE, who left the group due to ongoing health complications related to her struggle with anorexia nervosa. The now-seven member act last released their Coloring Book EP in April. The group performed for the first time in the U.S. at KCON 2017 LA in August.
Watch the music video for “Secret Garden” below: