Girls was a commercial success and debuted at number one on South Korea'sCircle Album Chart with 1,426,487 copies sold in the first week of release, marking Aespa's second number-one album on the chart and their highest-selling album to date. In September, the EP was certifiedMillion by theKorea Music Content Association (KMCA) for surpassing 1,000,000 copies sold. Selling over 1,610,000 units during its pre-order period, the EP became Aespa's best-selling album to date; surpassing a record previously held bySavage (2021). It also debuted at number three on theBillboard 200 with 56,000album-equivalent units, becoming the group's second and highest entry on the chart.
On June 1, 2022, a teaser marking the release ofAespa's upcoming extended play (EP) was posted on the group's various social media accounts.[3] The teaser was a short video with a "panorama of a digital mountain range" and a "burst of synth-heavy music".[4] It was then announced that the group would release their second EP, titledGirls, on July 8.[5] It was the group's first EP sinceSavage in October 2021, and their first release since their 2021 remake of the song "Dreams Come True", originally byS.E.S.[6]Girls was released in South Korea and the United States by bothSM Entertainment andWarner Records, with whom SM Entertainment signed a global partnership for music content distribution and marketing promotions earlier in the year.[7] In an interview withBillboard, Giselle reiterated that Aespa would travel to the US to promote the EP.[8] Digital and physical pre-sales for the EP opened on June 2.[9]
Aespa was selected as the June artist forApple Music'sUp Next, a global campaign designating the most anticipated artists of the month amongst new artists worldwide.[10] Alongside making pre-orders forGirls available, the group also released a feature short film forUp Next.[11] They released "Illusion" as a pre-release song for the promotions on various music streaming services on June 1, 2022.[2] On June 24, the English version of "Life's Too Short" was released as the EP's second pre-release single.[12] The group debuted the song live at theCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.[13]
In an interview with theAudacy, Inc., it was revealed that the release ofGirls had been postponed to July 8 from its original date to "make way for more refinements to be made to its songs".[14] On June 24, 2022, in an exclusive interview with Korean mediaStarNews, the group mentioned that they were wondering if "Lingo" or "Illusion" should be released as a pre-release single. Eventually the members felt the latter fits the album's concept better and has "Aespa's color".[15]
The standard edition of the mini album is about nineteen minutes long, consisting of 6 tracks, while the digital adds the group's previously released singles "Black Mamba", "Forever", and "Dreams Come True".Girls features various genres such aspop.[1] Lyrically, the album discusses themes of love, self-confidence, friendship, alliance, and more.Rolling Stone's Kristine Kwak noted that while "Girls" and "Illusion" are closer to the group's futuristic sound, the rest of the mini album is "more light-hearted side of the girls with themes of not taking life too seriously".[1]
Thelead single "Girls" was described as a "dark", "brooding"dance,pop[16] andelectropop[17] song with "heavy bass synth" and lyrics about "Aespa and ae-Aespa having a full-fledged battle with Black Mamba [the antagonist]".[18] It's "glitchy, electronic-heavy production" softens during thebridge, before "sliding into a nuttytechno breakdown" at the end.[19] The second track "Illusion" was described as anelectronic "high-energy"hip hop,synth-pop,[20]dance andEDM-trap[21] song with "punchy 808 bass and kicking sound that catches the ears".[22] It consists of elements indicative ofhyperpop, including an "eccentric percussion to hi-hats and electric, woodblock-like clicks".[23] Lyrically, the song was described as having "Aespa's own color expressed" such as "comparing the desire to seduce and devour one's opponent to goblin fire".[21]
The third track "Lingo" was described as acountry dance anddance-pop[24] song with a "reverse charm that combines bass and energetic drums", "Wild West-worthy"harmonica[25] andcowbells. The track celebrates "the special and unique bonds between close friends", expressed through themetaphor of a sharedlingo.[19] The fourth track "Life's Too Short" is a medium-tempopop,soft pop andbubblegum pop song with a "catchy,electric guitar riff" and "bright, breezy and hopeful vocals".[26] The song's lyrics feature a "positive aspiration to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime life as desired without regrets".[27] The last track "ICU" is a "gentle" and "soothing"acousticballad[19] that has a "harmonious"folk guitar and "delicate" strings.[28][29] It delivers a message that emphasizes the importance of "making sure to take a step back and rest in the midst of busy times".[1]
Upon its release,Girls received positive responses from music critics, who praised Aespa's energy, consistency, and diversity. OnMetacritic, which assigns anormalized score out of 100 to ratings from publications, the album received amean score of 78 based on 5 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[30]
In a four-star out of five review forRolling Stone, Kristine Kwak said that it "includes everything one could want from an Aespa record" from heavy synth beats and strong "piercing" vocals to visuals that "don't give you a second to blink".[1] Writing forAllMusic, Neil Z. Yeung gaveGirls a 4 out of 5 rating, citing it as a "edgier and more aggressive than most of their contemporaries". Yeung added that the EP is "brisk nine tracks, there's enough variety and energy to make it an engaging and irresistible listen".[24] ForBeats Per Minute, Chase McMullen rated the album 77 out of 100, applauding that album "does exactly what it's meant to, in exactly the time that it takes to do so".[28] Rhian Daly ofNME gave the album a three-star rating, pointing out: "If 'Girls' is a bid for superstar status, though, it sometimes plays it too safe."[25]Clash's critic Robin Murray wrote that the album "demonstrates an advancement of aespa as artists" and "it has solidified the group's creative intentions whilst also illustrating their ability at owning other concepts".[29]
On June 9, 2022, the pre-orders forGirls surpassed one million copies, a week after the announcement, exceeding Aespa's previous career high of 401,000 pre-orders forSavage.[32] Pre-orders exceeded 1,610,000 units one day prior to its release, the highest figure for a girl group album in K-pop.[33] The album debuted at number one on theCircle Album Chart, selling 1,426,487 copies for the 28th week of 2022.[34] In the first week of release, it was reported thatGirls sold more than one million copies on the Hanteo Chart, exceeding the mark set byBlackpink'sThe Album in October 2020.[35]Girls has since been certifiedmillion by theKorea Music Content Association (KMCA).[36] In Japan, it debuted at number 3 onOricon's Digital Albums Chart and at number 2 onBillboard Japan's Hot Albums chart.[37]
^abLee, Seung-rok (June 1, 2022).에스파, '도깨비불' 선공개했다 [Aespa, Pre-released 'Illusion'].MyDaily (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. RetrievedJune 2, 2022.
^Lee, Min-ji (June 1, 2022).에스파, 美 시장 본격 진출…SMX워너 레코드 손잡았다 [공식] [Aespa, Enters the U.S. Market…SM X Warner Records are Holding Hands [Official]].Newsen (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. RetrievedJune 1, 2022.
^Kang, Bo-ra (June 1, 2022).에스파, '걸스' 한-미 동시 발매…글로벌 시장 진출 본격화 [Aespa, Will Release 'Girls' in Korea and the U.S. at the Same Time…Full-scale Entry into the Global Market].Single list (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. RetrievedJune 2, 2022.
^Lee, Tak-haeng (June 1, 2022).에스파, '워너 레코드'와 손잡고 美 시장 본격 진출 [Aespa, Joins Hand with 'Warner Records' to Enter the U.S. Market].StarNews (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. RetrievedJune 2, 2022.
^Park, Dong-sun (June 1, 2022).에스파, 애플뮤직 'Up Next' 6월 선정…신보 수록곡 '도깨비불' 선공개 [Aespa, Selected for June in Apple Music's Up Next…Pre-release of the New Song 'Illusion'].RPM9 (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. RetrievedJune 2, 2022.
^Lee, Da-won (April 24, 2022).에스파, 美 코첼라 접수 [Aespa, To Take Over Coachella].Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. RetrievedJune 2, 2022.
^Gong, Mina (June 24, 2022).에스파 "새 앨범 'Girls', 더 전투적인 음악·퍼포먼스 담았어요"[인터뷰] [Aespa New album 'Girls' contains more combative music and performance [Interview]].StarNews (in Korean).Archived from the original on July 19, 2022. RetrievedSeptember 12, 2022.
^Lee, Deok-haeng (July 8, 2022)."에스파, 블랙 맘바와의 전투 그리고 성장 'Girls' [12시★카페]" [Aespa, Battle with Black Mamba and Growth 'Girls' [12 o'clock Cafe]] (in Korean). MT Star News.Archived from the original on July 11, 2022. RetrievedSeptember 7, 2022 – viaNaver.
^abLee, Seung-rok (June 1, 2022)."에스파, '도깨비불' 선공개했다" [Aespa 'Illusion' pre-released] (in Korean). My Daily.Archived from the original on June 5, 2022. RetrievedJune 5, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Kim, Soo-jung (June 9, 2022).에스파 새 앨범 '걸스' 선주문량 100만 장…밀리언셀러 예고 [1 Million Pre-orders for Aespa's New Album 'Girls'…Million Seller Notice].No Cut News (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 9, 2022. RetrievedJune 9, 2022.
^Jo, Hye-jin (July 8, 2022)."에스파, 미니 2집 선주문만 161만장…'K팝 걸그룹 최고기록' [공식입장]" [aespa's 2nd mini album pre-orders alone, 1.61 million copies ... 'best record for K-pop girl group' [Official position]].Xports News (in Korean).Archived from the original on July 8, 2022. RetrievedJuly 8, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Lee, Yu-na (July 15, 2022).[Y이슈] 에스파가 열었다...걸그룹 초동 100만장 시대 [[Y Issue] Aespa opened... The era of 1 million copies in the first week of girl groups].n.news.Archived from the original on July 16, 2022. RetrievedJuly 16, 2022.
^Park, Seo-yeon (June 1, 2022).에스파, 워너 레코드와 손잡고 美시장 본격 진출..24일 영어 싱글 발매 [Aespa, Joined Hands with Warner Records to enter the U.S. Market..English Single to be Released on the 24th].Herald Pop (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. RetrievedJune 1, 2022.
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