It’s a good day to be a boy band enthusiast because K-pop group ENHYPEN have just dropped a special cover of One Direction’s 2011 debut hit single “What Makes You Beautiful.”
Earlier this week reports about ENHYPEN’s cover of the fan-favorite, nostalgic track started circulating online, building up the anticipation between both ENGENE and Directioners. The BELIFT LAB septet finally unveiled the cover of “What Makes You Beautiful” on February 23. The cover comes by way of The Seasons: Lee Hyori’s Red Carpet, a new South Korean television talk show airing on KBS and available to stream globally on Viki, Kocowa+, and Apple TV+.
Lee Hyori, who first debuted as a member of girl group Fin.K.L back in 1998 and then went on to become a soloist, stepped up as host of the fourth season of The Seasons show, featuring her trademark red carpet format earlier this year, tapping BLACKPINK’s Jennie Kim and AKMU’s Lee Chanhyuk, among others, for her first-ever show. The members of ENHYPEN appear on Lee Hyori’s Red Carpet during the show’s eighth episode, alongside LE SSERAFIM, who are currently promoting their new album Easy, and ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo.
Ahead of the episode release, ENHYPEN unveiled their “What Makes You Beautiful” cover on streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, releasing both a full-cover version and an instrumental-only version. ENHYPEN’s rendition of “What Makes You Beautiful” is slightly shorter than the original, clocking in at 2:18 minutes instead of 3:18. The one-minute loss is due to the septet skipping the second verse and chorus.
Aside from releasing the studio version of the cover, ENHYPEN also performed “What Makes You Beautiful” live during the actual episode of Lee Hyori’s Red Carpet, which was pre-recorded prior to its airing. Though even shorter than the studio version, the septet made up for it by serenading the host and even gifting her a rose mid-performance. You can watch ENHYPEN's “What Makes You Beautiful” performance on Lee Hyori’s Red Carpet below:
This is not the first fan-favorite track ENHYPEN has covered recently. (Long live boybandception!) Earlier this month, the septet also made headlines after releasing a cover of BTS’s “I Need U” with Spotify Singles. What will ENHYPEN surprise us with next? Only time will tell, but you can bet we are keeping our eyes (and ears) peeled.
