New Co-Ed Group CHECKMATE Debuts With Single “Drum”

In the years since K-Pop has grown in popularity, it is almost impossible to see a co-ed group debut to begin with and even rarer to see that group gain popularity. KARD has done exceptionally well since their debut in 2016, so it was about time for us to see another company give the concept a try. 

CHECKMATE is currently the only group under their label, GraceCompany, and consists of five members, two girls and three boys. The ladies, Sieun and Suri, have a bit more information available as they both had debuted previously with different girl groups (RAMISU and AMOR respectively). The boys, Nason, Yongseok, and Noah, are fresh faces with very little personal information available. The group’s official debut took place on September 21 with “Drum.”

The Single: “Drum”

This track is EDM down to its core, a club banger through and through. There are some Latin influences felt in the rhythm, which adds a bit more depth to the song that would otherwise be fairly flat. There’s not much else to say about the driving melody, as it remains generally consistent through the entirety of the track. If club banger is your style, this will be right up your alley. One thing to note is that rap seems to be sparsely used if even used at all. The song does get more catchy with each listen.

The video definitely emphasizes a club atmosphere with the use of neon lighting and shadows. Floral patterns are used heavily in the backgrounds and help add an element of depth to the video, so it’s not just a boring old neon background. The choreography isn’t bad, but it didn’t quite have a lasting impact that it would for more seasoned groups. It makes sense, considering this is a debut, and for those standards it was pretty on par.

The group appears to be targeting an audience in South America, or at least that appears to be where they’re gaining traction, since just about every comment you see when scrolling through the music video page is in Spanish or Portuguese. It wouldn’t be a surprise if that location was chosen as a target, considering KARD has had more success in that area of the world compared to Korea.

Check out the group’s debut below!