One year since branching off as a subunit of the hit girl group, Mamamoo+ is back with a summer beat that redefines the members.

Mamamoo+, girl group Mamamoo’s first and only subunit, featuring Solar and Moonbyul, will drop its first EP “Two Rabbits” on Thursday, five months after its first single, “Act 1, Scene 1” released on March 29 and shortly before the subunit celebrates its first anniversary on Aug. 30.

The EP contains a total of five tracks, including lead track “dangdang” for which Solar, Moonbyul and member Hwasa from the quartet Mamamoo participated in song production.

“We are a fourth-generation girl group,” Moonbyul said jokingly, but without hesitation, during a press interview held Monday at the headquarters of the group's agency RBW in eastern Seoul, ahead of the release of its first EP.

While there are no solid rules of classification, fourth-generation groups in K-pop typically refer to those that debuted in or after 2019, like girl groups NewJeans, aespa and IVE.

“Actually, we are a 4.5-generation group,” Solar added. “We debuted after most of the fourth-generation groups, which makes us 4.5 gen.” But this doesn't mean that the duo is a novice by any means.

”But we also have the skills and experience of a veteran,” Moonbyul said. “You’ll quickly feel, ‘Wow, they are a new group but they sure do feel like someone with 10 years of experience!’”

Moonbyul and Solar debuted back in 2014 as members of the third-generation girl group Mamamoo. They also each started their solo careers back in 2018 and 2020.

As a latecomer to the fourth-generation battle, “Two Rabbits” acts as an album that tries to catch both rabbits: both satisfying the group’s existing fans and introducing Mamamoo+ to the general public more, according to the members.

“Mamamoo was known for trying out multiple genres and having solid concepts. Mamamoo+ focuses on the bright and upbeat side of Mamamoo and amplifies that musical concept,” Moonbyul explained.

The album’s lead track “dangdang” is an upbeat song that features catchy lyrics and melodies and sings about someone you can’t stop thinking of. The name “dangdang” has the double meaning of daengdaengi, a cute slang word used to describe puppies, and a ringing bell sound, referring to both how someone is cute like a puppy and the fascinated and astounded feeling you get, like a bell, when you like someone else, according to the members.

“'dangdang’ was actually meant to be Mamamoo’s lead track [around 2018], but we had some clashes among members on whether or not to continue Mamamoo’s upbeat tune like in ‘dangdang,’ or to try something different,” Moonbyul said. “We eventually decided to try something new, which ended up as ‘Starry Night’ [2018], meaning this song was put on hold.”

“Starry Night,” which features calm Latin melodies mixed with the quartet’s strong vocals, received a positive response despite the group’s directional change, topping Melon’s real-time streaming chart upon its release.

“We pulled the gem out from our treasure trove,” Moonbyul added.

The duo’s lead track was not the only gem that was pulled out from its treasure trove.

“The name of the EP ‘Two Rabbits’ was actually supposed to be our subunit name,” Solar explained. “Our CEO recommended the name to us but we declined it […] but then we brought it back, as we thought it would be more suitable as the name of our EP.”

B-side track “Starry Sea,” too, was another of the group’s hidden treasures, as it was a summer track set to release two years ago, and “I Like This” was first recorded more than 10 years ago, while the quartet was still in their training phase.

“I think this makes our first EP a total masterpiece,” Solar said. “A lot of the B-side tracks of the album could’ve each been lead tracks of a different album.”

Not all songs in the EP are filled with Mamamoo+’s signature upbeat tune. “Save Me,” written by Moonbyul and Giuk from boy band Onewe, is a medium-tempo track that sings the story of the last person living on Earth, remembering their significant other. The members explained that while the duo is dedicated to focusing on brighter tunes, tracks like “Save Me” are here to prove that the duo is capable of showcasing different colors.

“Two Rabbits” is also an album which the duo helped produce from scratch, which was a different experience for Solar and Moonbyul, even though the two frequently helped write lyrics for Mamamoo.

“I think we can say that we’ve worked together in all aspects when producing [Mamamoo+’s album], from song production and deciding on the concept to the way we dress in our music videos and even the album designs,” Solar said.

“For example, we weren’t able to change the track sequence of a Mamamoo album,” Moonbyul said. “But with this album, we were able to do so and take part in the things that we couldn’t have done in the past.”

With Mamamoo recently finishing up its first world tour, “MY CON,” having visited Japan, the United States and many different Asian nations throughout 2023, the duo shared that Mamamoo+ is also planning for a tour in Korea and abroad, set to kick off later this year.

"It's been 10 years since our debut as Mamamoo, and I think it can be difficult for fans to keep giving us the same attention and love," Moonbyul said when asked about the members' gratitude toward their fan club, Moomoo. “But we can feel our fans doing just that, and that drives us to make more albums, to make more opportunities on stage to meet our fans.”

“I think love goes both ways,” Moonbyul said. “It’s only true love when both sides look at each other. We are always ready to meet you guys in person, so we hope you are too.”

“We have a few things planned for this year to meet Moomoo again, so I think it will be a happy and fruitful year,” Solar said.

To find out more about Mamamoo+, visit Celeb Confirmed!

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]