Beyond the Music: Meet Lapillus' Bessie, A Seriously Gifted Songstress & Rapper

Meet Bessie. She’s known from a young age that she wanted to be a singer and debuted as Lapillus’s main vocalist. While she loves to sing, she is passionate about all aspects of performance and attended TNS Vocal & Dance Academy. 

We sat down with Bessie ahead of Lapillus’ Latin America promotions to talk about her dreams, what motivates and inspires her, and her goals for Lapillus this year. Get to know this talented vocalist with a passion for rapping as she answers our questions below. 

Hello! Thank you for taking the time to speak to OK-What. Can you introduce yourself to our readers?

Hello, I am Bessie. I am the main vocal and rapper in Lapillus. It’s nice to meet you.

You’ve mentioned that you have wanted to be a singer since you were young. If you weren’t an idol today, what career could you see yourself in?

I would most likely be in the fashion scene because I enjoy styling and creating my image. I can see myself doing anything related to makeup, hair, or clothes in the fashion scene.

What is your dream cover song to perform, and why?

I have two songs that I want to cover. One of them would be “Solo” by Jennie seonbaenim. It’s a song where you can sing and rap and a song I used to audition for this company. I really want to try a cover for it now. The other song would be one from iKON seonbaenim. I would choose one of their songs because their music is what started my interest in rapping.

If you could have any musician (not just a K-Pop idol) as your mentor for a day, who would it be and why?

I would choose CL seonbaenim as my mentor because of her sense of style and  uniqueness. One of my favorite phrases is “You’re good at performing,” and she embodies that. Whenever I see her performing, I think of how good she is at it. I would appreciate any advice from her.

How would you describe your style? Has it changed being surrounded by these stylists and veteran K-Pop idols?

There’s an amusing story about this! I usually like muted colors. After debuting with Lapillus, I’ve had a lot of bright songs where we usually wear bright colors. So, I’ve tried bright pink and even changed my hair color to yellow to match our bright concepts. As a result, I’ve realized I look good in bright colors, which is one way my style has changed.

How do you prepare for a performance?
These days I have started a new way of preparing for performances. I like to put on my earphones, listen to the songs, and focus before I go on stage.

What motivates you?
People motivate me, such as our members and those in the company. I say our members because we are all in it together. We understand each other, learn the same things, and always try to depend on each other. They motivate me. The people in our company, like our President, Vice President, and other members, always try to help us, take good care of us, and give us good advice. Seeing how much they care for us motivates me to do better.

Speaking of the people around you, who would you say is your biggest fan?

Let’s see. I have a group of 4 friends that I went to school with. These friends came to our recent guerilla concert. Now that they are 20 years old, they can come to Seoul more often. They will message me to say, “You look pretty,” or to tell me that they heard about an event I’m doing, and they will try to go. They are indeed the kind of friends who always support my friends and me. I feel I can rely on them.

Your training period was the shortest in the group at almost seven months. During this time, what was your key focus area and why?

Even before joining this company, I didn’t have that much of a training period. When I joined this company, I came in with a new mindset since I had a fresh start. I thought of what I could show and tried to focus and study how to sing and rap better. In terms of dancing, it is essential to synchronize as a team, so I tried to remove the habits I had for Lapillus to move as one.

I hear that you like movies, so what is your favorite movie of all time?

Yes, I really, really like movies! Among my favorites would be those with Halloween themes, special effects, and animation. For example, Ghost Bride. I enjoy movies in the Halloween genre.

Do you get scared easily?

Not at all! It’s not scary.

Finish these sentences: 

My favorite word/phrase is: You’re good at performing.

I’m really passionate about:  Rap and rapping!

The top three places I’d love to visit are: The Philippines, Spain, and Mexico

On a rainy day, you will probably find me . . . writing rap lines and lyrics!

Three songs currently on my playlist are: 

ATEEZ “Wave”

Lapillus “Queendom”

Pitbull & J Balvin “Hey Ma ft Camila Cabello”

Lastly, can you please share a message for Lapis?

Since this is a new year for 2023, I hope we can visit more countries like the Philippines. We want to visit more places to perform live in front of our fans. I hope that our group can always represent together with all six members. We want to perform and have more events, such as fan signs, to meet our fans. I hope our Lapis, our fans, will expect more from us, continue to wait for us, and keep supporting us.

You can follow Lapillus on the following platforms: 

Official Twitter | Member Twitter | Official Instagram | Member Instagram | YouTube | TikTok