Will Red Velvet be able to become f(x)-level girl group?

On September 8, Red Velvet held a preview event of its new album 'The Red' in Olympic Park in Seoul. Well, the title track 'Dumb Dumb' was a very fascinating song, while the members' performance was great.(SM Rookies' Doyoung hosted the event. As he is not an experienced MC, he looked a little bit awkward on stage, but he did a good job)

As you know, there are so many new kpop girl groups who debuted in 2014 and 2015. Who do you think is leading in the race? It's Red Velvet. When Red Velvet released its debut song 'Happiness', it seemed that the girl group fell short of people's expectation. However, after making a big hit with its new song 'Ice Cream Cake', the group took the initiative in a rivalry among rookie girl groups.(No other rookie girl groups who debuted in 2014 and 2015 but Red Velvet topped music chart shows so far) Yeri, the youngest member of the girl group, put fresh vigor into the team, while SM Entertainment provided full support to the group.

So, who do you think is the biggest rival of Red Velvet? CLC? GFriend? Or Lovelyz? I don't think so. Red Velvet does not need to try to compete with those rookie idol groups any more. Red Velvet has to aim higher. It's time for the girl group to try to catch up with established girl groups such as f(x), Girl's Day, AOA, etc.

"SM Entertainment has started making the generational shift of its idol groups. It has been already 8 years since Girls' Generation debuted, while f(x) is experiencing a difficulty because of Sulli's leaving the group. As SM is the biggest kpop agency which has a financial strength and top-class producing system, the agency will lead Red Velvet to a big success somehow. That's why I told that Red Velvet does not need to compete with the other rookie girl groups. The girl groups' agencies will not be able to challenge to the huge kpop agency."
Anyway, let's see what the Red Velvet members talked about their new album at the preview event.

Q. You released your new album “The Red.” Tell about the album.
Irene: Our team name contains two different meaning. The word “Red” reflects our colorful and strong image, while “Velvet” reflects our feminine and sensual image. So, our new album “The Red” contains various “Red concept” songs.
Joy: As it is our first full album, we wanted to show more about our “Red concept.” I think the title track “Dumb Dumb” shows the “Red concept” more than “Happiness” and “Ice Cream Cake.” We'll show cheerful performance on the stage.
Seulgi: Yeah, “Dumb Dumb” is more powerful than our previous songs. And we've been preparing a lot for the album.

Q. Girls' Generation recently released its new song “Lion Heart.” Have you watched their performance?
Seulgi: Yeah, whenever I watch their performance, I think we have to show as natural performance as them on the stage.

Q. I heard that TVXQ's Max Changmin sent you some snacks when you were filming the music video of “Dumb Dumb.”
Wendy: Yeah, we could pluck up our spirits thanks to him. Apart from him, many other SM artists supported us a lot.

Q. Is there anything special you’ve prepared to show better performance on the stage?
Wendy: We tried to express the bright feelings of “Dumb Dumb” even though the choreography was very hard.
Yeri: I think we could do it because of our great teamwork. We always try to practice pleasantly, and we cheer for each other when we are exhausted.
Seulgi: Performance director Sim Jae Won choreographed the dance moves, and we’ll show a special bracelet performance on the stage too.

Q. Do you aim to become an "Impossible to Surpass" girl group just like Girls' Generation?
Joy: I think we need to be good at not only “Red concept” but also “Velvet concept” to become an "Impossible to Surpass" girl group. We'll try to show various aspects of ourselves through various music.

Q. Yeri and Irene have been active as MCs of music chart shows. Was it of help to you?
Yeri: Yeah, I think I became a better speaker.
Irene: As I watched other singers' performance close to, I could learn a lot from them.

Q. What do you hope to achieve through your new album?
Wendy: I wish we can rank atop music charts.
Yeri: We'll be very thankful if we can top various music charts. But I think we need to promote ourselves to the public first.

Q. It has been a year since you debuted. How was your first year as an idol?
Joy: At first, I was just elated when I performed on the stage. I didn't know anything because I was a rookie. But I was given quite a lot to think about my future as time passed. I know I can't be a cute and young idol forever, and I think we should promote ourselves harder.
Wendy: Just like Joy said, we were elated when we just debuted. I think we can enjoy the stage now, and I’m happy that we have such a great teamwork.