X:IN Unveils Raw and Reflective 3rd Mini-Album “Defend Myself”

Rosa Gulliver
May 15
4 min read

Rosa Gulliver of TINYGMUSIC | May 15, 2025

X:IN Unveils Raw and Reflective 3rd Mini-Album ‘Defend Myself’

Rising stars X:IN return with their boldest and most vulnerable music yet in their third mini-album, Defend Myself, marking their first release under their new agency, BeBy Entertainment.

Coming over a year after their second mini-album, Defend Myself delves into the vulnerabilities and challenges of life in the spotlight, as experienced by X:IN. The album captures the anxiety of constantly having to uphold a perfect image. It offers an autobiographical narrative of the group’s pain, inner conflict, and emotional turmoil. At its core, it conveys a powerful message: in the midst of chaos, they made a conscious choice—“to protect me.”

X:IN’s leader, E.sha, elaborated on the meaning behind ‘Defend Myself,’ saying, “The album talks about two sides. It's an album about the feelings behind the glamorous appearance and our story of trying to protect ourselves in the confusion. As you listen to the four songs in the album, you’ll notice the atmosphere continuously shifts.”

Defend Myself Tracklist:

1. Attention seeker

2. 수리수리마하수리 수수리 사바하 (SABAHA)

3. Bitter love

4. Almost done

The title track, “Attention seeker,” explores the inner conflict between the desire for attention and the fear of it. It reflects the intersection of one’s narcissistic and authentic selves, with each member embodying a “movie-like persona” to portray the emotional struggle of navigating fame, fear, and self-identity. It’s a bold statement on image, vulnerability, and the longing to be truly seen.

The second song on the mini-album, “수리수리마하수리 수수리 사바하 (SABAHA),” is a track that spells love. With occultish lyrics and a strong base house sound, the track wittily expresses the desire to “make me fall in love” with pleasant and strong energy. “Bitter love,” the third track on the album, captures the quiet turmoil of a love caught between pride and lingering affection in a subtly complex relationship. It reflects the vulnerability of wanting to hold on, yet being unable to speak first, delicately expressing the emotional push and pull of a complicated relationship.

The final track, “Almost done,” is an autobiographical story by X:IN, reflecting on their growth through blood, sweat, and tears after enduring dark times. Anchored by the hopeful phrase “I’m almost there”, the song resonates deeply and reflects the perspective of “the self I wanted to be.”

“I hope we are able to convey our true emotions and experiences through this album and also encourage the audience to express themselves honestly and be unapologetically themselves.” - Aria

With Defend Myself, X:IN moves away from their previous playful and kitschy sound to tell a raw, honest, and vulnerable story that had been kept deep in their minds. Through this album, the group expresses their desire to become real artists, not just ordinary idols, with the hope that the emotions contained in this album will be conveyed to many people.

Defend Myself will be digitally released on May 17, 2025, at 6 PM KST (2:30 PM IST).

The physical album will be available in two versions: the ‘Photobook Platform’ version and the ‘Platform’ version. Pre-orders are open until May 20 at 11:59 PM KST (8:29 PM IST).

The ‘Platform’ version can be ordered here, and the ‘Photobook Platform’ version can be ordered here.

The physical album will officially release on May 22, 2025, with all pre-orders being dispatched on the same day. The album will also be available at offline stores starting May 23, 2025.

About X:IN

X:IN is a five-member multinational girl group that debuted with the digital single “KEEPING THE FIRE” on April 11, 2023. Prior to their debut, the group introduced themselves with the pre-release single “Who am I” on March 12, 2023. Just four months later, they made a comeback with their first mini-album SYNCHRONICITY on August 30, 2023. Since then, the group has released their second mini-album THE REAL, a 2024 rock version of their debut track “KEEPING THE FIRE,” and the digital single “ACHA%.” In October 2024, X:IN collaborated with Russian singer TSOY on the single “Seoul - Moskva,” featuring lyrics in Russian, English, and Korean—a first-of-its-kind release in K-pop.

X:IN, short for EXIN, comes from a Latin word that means 'furthermore.' The 'X' stands for an unknown variable, a mathematical concept, symbolising the group's goal to explore endless possibilities in music and performance. The group consists of Korean members E.sha, Nizz, and Hannah, alongside Russian member Nova and Indian member Aria. Notably, X:IN is one of the first K-pop groups to include an Indian member, with Aria also being the first K-pop idol from Kerala.