aespa (Hangul: 에스파) is a four-member South Korean girl group under the record label SM Entertainment. The group consists of Korean members Winter and Karina as well as Chinese member Ningning and Japanese member Giselle. Known for their human members and virtual counterparts, the group is the first project of SMCU (SM Culture Universe). They debuted on November 17th, 2020 with the digital single “Black Mamba.”

The group’s name is a combination of the words “avatar” and “experience” (ae) as well “aspect,” representing the duality of the group. SM founder Lee Sooman described their concept as that of independent yet corresponding human and AI-powered virtual members who can bridge their separate worlds on October 27th, 2020 at the World Cultural Industry Forum. They opened their official fan club with the name “MY,” meaning “the most precious friend” in the language of Kwangya, the world where aespa’s “æ” avatars live. Teasers of the group’s debut were spotted in the music videos of their labelmates SuperM and NCT U.

In 2021, the group released “Next Level,” which became their most popular song. Their first mini-album titled Savage,, which has six songs on the tracklist, including its lead track was released later in the year.

In 2022, the group released their second mini-album, Girls. At the time, aespa focused on worldwide promotions, including a performance at GMA’s Summer Concert, another performance at the Jimmy Kimmel Show, as well as they attended the 2022 High-Level Political Forum.

In 2023, aespa came back with the pre-release single to their third mini-album, “Welcome to MY World,” featuring one of their storyline protagonists, nævis. This was followed by the release of their third mini-album MY WORLD, which was praised for production quality and spawned the summer hit “Spicy.” Later in the year, the group released their fourth mini album Drama.

Since their debut, aespa has earned their honorific nickname “Monster Rookie” and “Global Super Rookie” thanks to their internationally successful songs and albums. In 2023, the group embarked on their first world tour visiting cities in the US and Europe.