As someone who had been praised her whole career for beautiful singing, having an instrumental portion of her song be the soundtrack to over 20 billion global video views was undoubtedly a strange thing to process.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, the part of \u2018DIM\u2019 that went viral wasn\u2019t specifically my vocal section, but I was still incredibly grateful that the song as a whole received so much attention,\u201d Yves notes when speaking to PopMatters. \u201cI was really surprised by how many people used it on TikTok and other short-form platforms\u2014and it was especially surreal to see it featured by the official accounts of ABBA<\/a> and UEFA!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n While an EP of remixes was commissioned for \u201cDIM\u201d, Yves\u2019 sonic story continues to grow and expand with Soft Error<\/a>, her third proper studio EP in 15 months. Led by the slamming glitched-out dance-pop cut \u201cWhite Cat\u201d, this release finds Yves continuing to work with her go-to producer, IOAH, and craft a synthpop identity that is increasingly moving away from traditional K-pop tropes. She is slowly morphing into an electronic artist who just so happens to be working within the conventional K-pop system.<\/p>\n Prior to this record\u2019s release, Yves had completed her \u201cApple Cinnamon Crunch Tour\u201d, which took her from Europe to the United States to South America. During her US dates, she played several English-language covers, including Avril Lavigne<\/a>\u2018s \u201cMy Happy Ending\u201d and Vanessa Carlton<\/a>\u2018s \u201cA Thousand Miles\u201d. To hear Yves tell it, she curated these live-only renditions for each country she performed in.<\/p>\n \u201cI definitely considered the fans in each country when selecting the cover setlist,\u201d she notes. \u201cBut more than anything, I chose songs that reflected the kind of music I loved at the time and the messages I wanted to share. That was my top priority.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t particularly drawn to Avril Lavigne\u2019s music when I first encountered it as a kid, but after starting my solo career, I found myself listening to and practicing her songs a lot more,\u201d she notes when asked if she had more specific early 2000s influences. \u201cHer powerful vocal tone and commanding stage presence have been a huge source of inspiration for me\u2014they feel like something I can really learn from.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet touring her solo songs with backup dancers soon led to her noticing the body rhythmic, specifically in how her fans would respond to the different themes and tempos of her work. \u201cWhile the music itself is powerful on its own, I find it incredibly fun to express songs through performance,\u201d she notes. \u201cAfter performing \u2018Loop\u2019 and \u2018Viola\u2019 from my previous two EPs, I felt a stronger desire to create even cooler stage performances. That led to a lot of discussions with IOAH, the executive producer of this album, about what direction Soft Error should take.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n While her prior EPs (Loop and I Did, both from 2024) had a colorful diversity in textures, Soft Error has her taking even bigger, bolder risks. The brisk throwback house sound of \u201cSoap\u201d is a dance-pop melting pot, as PinkPantheress guests on vocals while it rides a sample of Rebecca Black\u2019s \u201cSugar Water Cyanide\u201d. While Yves and Pink find themselves working in increasingly shared spaces, Yves notes that the song came together in a beautifully unexpected fashion.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe it was the energy of the universe that brought us together,\u201d Yves notes when recounting. \u201cWhen I was working on LOOP, I was really influenced by PinkPantheress and often thought, \u2018How amazing would it be to work with her someday?\u2019 I think the way both her fans and mine continued to show love and hope for it really helped the collaboration come to life. Thankfully, PinkPantheress liked the track, and everything came together so naturally. It still feels a bit like a dream.<\/p>\n \u2018We ended up sampling part of a Rebecca Black track. IOAH and I had talked about how her energy\u2014especially in the intro and outro\u2014could really elevate the song. Thankfully, Rebecca\u2019s team was so open and kind in allowing us to use it. I think that made the track feel complete. Huge thanks to PinkPantheress and Rebecca, and everyone who worked so hard behind the scenes to make this happen. My team kept telling me, \u2018Don\u2019t forget to thank Phoebe and Kenney!\u2019\u2014so here it is, with all my heart. Thank you for helping bring this song to life!\u201d<\/p>\n While the throwback blog-rock sound of Aibo features rising Mexican artist Bratty, the rest of Soft Error is Yves\u2019s solo and at her most unguarded. The sparsely adored and emotionally potent \u201cDo you feel it like I touch\u201d is evocative of the sparse synth-throb soundscapes of Western artists like Bj\u00f6rk<\/a> and Imogen Heap<\/a>, and a logical next step for Yves. Pushing her voice through a variety of icy filters, she shows a great hesitance about speaking to someone, insisting she has to leave, but then asking, \u201cCan you make me stay?\u201d as if challenging them to be the party that makes the emotional investment. It\u2019s one of the most affecting songs she\u2019s ever made, even if her focal point was the performance aspect.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t directly involved in the writing or composition of that particular song, but speaking about my creative process\u2014when I write lyrics, I tend to be honest and draw from real emotions,\u201d she notes. \u201cRather than writing from the perspective of fictional characters, I try to tell my own stories, based on things I\u2019ve experienced either directly or indirectly. I believe that\u2019s what allows me to convey genuine emotion when I sing, and helps that sincerity reach the listener.\u201d<\/p>\n On Soft Error\u2018s acoustic closer \u201cMom\u201d, themes of longing and missing those around you are present, yet the melodies they sing still ring in your head. Between more open-mic sing-alongs and re-working her voice through elaborate production effects, she truly embodies the \u201cvoice as instrument\u201d philosophy, which at times is almost in defiance of K-pop norms, which sometimes prize crystal clear vocal \u201ckilling parts\u201d above other elements. \u201cSometimes I do feel the urge to show my natural vocal tone as it is, but to maintain Yves\u2019 distinct character and musical identity, I think using my voice more like an instrument\u2014whether by boldly applying filters or pushing the tone higher\u2014is an interesting and creative approach.\u201d<\/p>\n Yves\u2019s ability to craft increasingly daring music on such a short time frame speaks to her incredible work ethic and her ability to challenge her team. \u201cI\u2019m really grateful to my producer IOAH, who\u2019s been working so hard alongside me,\u201d she beams when asked about her rapid release schedule. \u201cI\u2019m the type who can\u2019t stay still for long\u2014I\u2019m always working on something. Even if a song doesn\u2019t make it onto an album, that ongoing creative process helps me find direction and inspiration for what comes next.\u201d<\/p>\n While her former LOONA sisters remain in good contact and supportive spirits, there\u2019s one friendship she particularly treasures: \u201cChuu! She\u2019s the member I stay in touch with the most, and her bright, cheerful voice always lifts your mood just by listening to it. I think that\u2019s one of her greatest strengths.\u201d<\/p>\n Yves may have been the last of the LOONA members to launch her solo venture, but her strong, remarkably consistent discography is nothing short of a wonder. K-pop is a fascinating genre that continually pushes for new, groundbreaking sounds while staying in a fairly rigid framework with release packages and preserving the sacred idol-fan relationship. Yves isn\u2019t just carving her own path: she\u2019s bordering on something new and unique, intimately daring and yet so clear in its vision, it\u2019s no wonder she\u2019s found great success, especially with Western audiences. When I mention that even in my friend group, we find great joy in her artistry specifically, she pauses for a bit of reflection.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are times when I\u2019m just stuck in the practice room or lying alone at home, lost in my thoughts, and I start to feel small and insignificant. But when someone says something like this to me, it reminds me of my worth. I want to become an even better artist\u2014someone my fans can be proud of. \u201c<\/p>\n As the dawn of Yves\u2019 Soft Error emerges and she continues touring the world, we ask her to reflect on her solo journey and what she considers her proudest accomplishments. \u201cMore than any specific outcome or achievement, I\u2019m proud that I\u2019ve been able to release three solo albums consistently,\u201d she notes. \u201cBefore my solo debut, I saw a lot of comments on YouTube saying things like, \u2018She\u2019s not meant to go solo, she should return to the group.\u2019 So in a way, being here now feels like I\u2019m telling those people, \u2018I\u2019m doing just fine on my own.’\u201d<\/p>\n After hearing Soft Error, it\u2019s clear that Yves is more than just fine: she\u2019s breaking down sonic barriers. No number of viral moments can ever usurp an achievement like that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What do you do when you are a world-renowned singer-songwriter and your big viral moment is for a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":45698,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[49,48,75,341],"class_list":["post-45697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment","tag-music"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45697"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45697\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Yves](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Yves-2025-by-PAIX-PER-MIL-2.webp.webp\" "\\"Yves")
Photo: PAIX PER MIL<\/p>\n