Solo star Yves has built a distinctive artistic identity around unexpected sounds, striking imagery and a cool exterior – yet the person behind that is far less easily defined. She describes herself as someone whose mind is often busy, whose feelings can be difficult to explain and who is still discovering what she wants to say. On Cute & Anxiety, her forthcoming EP, those tensions are no longer something to smooth over. They are the point.

For many listeners, Yves first came into view as a member of LOONA, the 12-member K-pop group whose ambitious pre-debut project and expansive musical universe cultivated a devoted international following. Introduced as the group’s ninth member in 2017, she also formed part of its sub-unit LOONA yyxy before making her full-group debut the following year. But when the group’s activities came to an end, Yves chose going solo, signing to independent Korean label PAIX PER MIL, and beginning to build an artistic identity on her own terms.

Since releasing her debut solo EP, LOOP, in 2024, she has carved out a space that moves freely between electronic pop, alternative sounds and club-influenced production. Collaborations with artists including PinkPantheress, Lolo Zouaï and Lexie Liu have further expanded that musical world, but the defining feature of her solo work is its willingness to resist a fixed identity. She is an artist still experimenting with what she can be – and increasingly comfortable with not having to know the answer in advance.

The title Cute & Anxiety might initially suggest two opposing states, but Yves sees them as closer than they appear. Cuteness, she explains, can exist alongside uncertainty: the excitement of liking someone, for instance, can be accompanied by the anxiety of wondering whether those feelings will be returned. The more something matters, the more there is to lose.

That idea extends beyond the EP’s title. Across her solo work, Yves has moved between electronic pop, experimental textures and moments of unexpected softness, following ideas that do not necessarily fit into one recognisable sound. Her process begins with an image or feeling rather than a fixed genre, leaving room for a song to become something she had not initially imagined. She is particularly drawn to the slightly strange or imperfect: an unfamiliar sound inside an appealing melody, or a trace of sadness beneath something bright. For her, beauty does not need to be immediately obvious to leave an impression.

The pre-release single ‘Hysteric / Adam’ offers an early introduction to the world of Cute & Anxiety, which is due to arrive on 20 November. But the project also marks a shift in how Yves approaches her own creativity. She speaks candidly about the difficulty of separating what she genuinely wants from what she feels expected to deliver. Having spent years trying to meet expectations, she still finds herself questioning whether a decision comes from personal instinct or the desire to prove something. Her response has been to ask a simpler question: would she still love the music if nobody else did?

It is not a declaration that she has suddenly become fearless. She still has doubts, and she does not present artistic ownership as doing everything alone. Instead, it means knowing what she wants to communicate, remaining part of the conversation with collaborators and being able to stand behind the finished work. The freedom lies in trusting her taste enough to try something before she can fully explain it.

That same openness has changed her relationship with performing. Where the stage once brought the pressure to avoid mistakes and deliver a perfect performance, she now finds happiness in sharing a moment with an audience. Hearing people sing her songs back to her has altered her understanding of what those songs can become once they leave her hands.

From her early days with LOONA to the artist she is becoming now, Yves has not abandoned her past so much as learned to make more deliberate choices about her future.