Songs like IVE: 10 elegant K-pop tracks about loving yourself

Songs like IVE pair polished, dramatic dance-pop with a calm kind of self-regard: cool, low-pitched hooks, sweeping arrangements and lyrics that treat liking yourself as the starting point rather than the goal. IZ*ONE's "La Vie en Rose," Red Velvet's "Feel My Rhythm" and (G)I-DLE's "Queencard" share that poise, each from a different angle.

IVE debuted under Starship Entertainment in December 2021 with "Eleven," with six members: Yujin, Gaeul, Rei, Wonyoung, Liz and Leeseo. Yujin and Wonyoung had already been in IZ*ONE. "Love Dive" followed in April 2022, then the disco-flavored "After LIKE" that August, which borrows its hook from Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." The first studio album, I've IVE (2023), brought "Kitsch" and "I AM," and the harder-edged "Baddie" arrived later that year.

What does IVE sound like?

IVE's records are built on contrast. "Love Dive" sets a hushed, almost whispered chorus against a strutting beat, "After LIKE" turns a 1970s disco anthem into a clap-along, and "I AM" opens up into a big, soaring chorus with strings and choir-like backing vocals. The production is glossy and spacious, with deep bass, crisp percussion and enough room for the six voices to trade lines cleanly.

Vocally, IVE favor control and a slightly aloof cool. Verses sit low and breathy, hooks are short and chantable, and the big notes arrive late. The themes keep circling one idea: loving yourself first, and treating that as a source of strength rather than vanity. "Love Dive" frames it as a kind of fearless self-absorption, "I AM" as a vow to keep going, and "Baddie" as not caring what anyone thinks.

Songs like IVE: 10 picks

1. Gloria Gaynor, "I Will Survive" (1978). The song IVE borrow from on "After LIKE." Hearing the original makes clear how much of IVE's appeal is old-fashioned disco self-belief in a new outfit.
2. Girls' Generation, "The Boys" (2011). A confident, show-stopping group single that set the template for the elegant, dressed-up girl-group anthem IVE now carry forward.
3. IZ*ONE, "La Vie en Rose" (2018). The debut of the group Yujin and Wonyoung came from: theatrical, lush and built around a single striking color image, much like IVE's early singles.
4. Chungha, "Gotta Go" (2019). A dramatic, swirling dance track with a sudden, sharp hook and a graceful, controlled delivery that IVE fans will recognize.
5. TWICE, "Feel Special" (2019). A mid-tempo song about finding your worth through other people's support. It shares IVE's warmth beneath the glamour.
6. Ariana Grande, "7 rings" (2019). A cool, trap-tinged pop song about treating yourself, sung with the same unbothered, low-key confidence as "Baddie."
7. Dua Lipa, "Don't Start Now" (2019). Pulsing disco-pop with a strutting bassline. If "After LIKE" is your favorite, this is its closest Western cousin.
8. Red Velvet, "Feel My Rhythm" (2022). Built on Bach's "Air on the G String," it blends classical elegance with a bouncy beat, the same high-gloss mix of refinement and dance-floor drive.
9. LE SSERAFIM, "Fearless" (2022). A sleek, minimal debut from IVE's generation, with cool vocals and a lyric about wanting more without apology.
10. (G)I-DLE, "Queencard" (2023). A playful anthem about deciding you're the main character. It's brighter and sillier than IVE, but the self-love thesis is identical.

IVE don't ask to be liked; they start from liking themselves and let the music make that sound like grace.

Prism Five songs that fit

Prism Five, a five-member K-pop group from Seoul, return to self-regard more than once on their debut album, GLITCH, and two songs line up with IVE most clearly.

1. Close match: Prism Five, "Mirror Mirror". Track eleven follows a narrator who used to hide from her reflection and now likes who's looking back, turning down filters and edits and ending on the admission that she isn't perfect and that's fine. It's the "Love Dive" and "I AM" idea almost exactly, told with more bounce and less hush.
2. Partial match: Prism Five, "Infinity". The longest song on GLITCH, at nearly four minutes, is a sweeping love song set among slow-spinning galaxies, promising to find the same person in every lifetime. It matches IVE's grand, romantic scale, though the subject is devotion to someone else rather than to yourself.

More artists like IVE

Beyond the ten picks, the groups most often mentioned alongside IVE include LE SSERAFIM, aespa, NewJeans, (G)I-DLE, NMIXX and Kep1er, with IZ*ONE as the obvious predecessor. Solo artists like IU and Chungha share the polish, and in Western pop, Dua Lipa and Ariana Grande come closest on poise and attitude.

Pick by the IVE era you like best. If "Eleven" and "Love Dive" are your favorites, look for cool, restrained hooks like "La Vie en Rose" and "Fearless." If "After LIKE" hooked you, go straight to disco: "I Will Survive" and "Don't Start Now." If "I AM" is the one, lean toward big, uplifting choruses such as "Feel Special" and "Queencard."

Where to start

Start with "I Will Survive" and "The Boys" for the roots, then play "La Vie en Rose" to hear where two IVE members began. Move through "Gotta Go," "Feel My Rhythm" and "Fearless" for the elegant K-pop thread, switch to "7 rings" and "Don't Start Now" for the Western side, close with "Queencard," then play Prism Five's "Mirror Mirror". Our K-pop guide covers the genre's generations, and songs like LE SSERAFIM and songs like TWICE explore neighboring girl-group styles.

Key takeaways

1. Songs like IVE combine glossy, dramatic dance-pop with cool, low hooks and lyrics about loving yourself first.
2. "After LIKE" borrows from Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive," so disco-pop like Dua Lipa's "Don't Start Now" is a natural next step.
3. IZ*ONE's "La Vie en Rose" and Red Velvet's "Feel My Rhythm" are the closest K-pop matches for IVE's elegance.
4. Prism Five's "Mirror Mirror" is the closest roster match for IVE's self-love theme.

IVE's confidence works because it never sounds like it's trying. Put these on when you want pop that's polished, poised and completely sure of itself.

FAQ

What genre is IVE?

IVE is a six-member K-pop girl group under Starship Entertainment whose music is mainly dance-pop, with touches of disco, hip-hop and orchestral pop.

What artists are similar to IVE?

LE SSERAFIM, aespa, NewJeans, (G)I-DLE, NMIXX and IZ*ONE are close K-pop matches, and Dua Lipa and Ariana Grande share the poised, confident pop style.

What IVE song should I start with?

"Love Dive" (2022) is the best introduction, with its hushed, low chorus and its theme of fearless self-love.

Who is Prism Five?

Prism Five is a five-member McCandless Records K-pop group from Seoul whose debut album, GLITCH, came out in May 2026. Its seventeen tracks move between dance numbers, vocal-led ballads and electronic-pop anthems.