Jessi Returns with ‘P.M.S.’ as ‘Girls Like Me’ Ignites Global Buzz and Reclaims Her Hip-Hop Queen Status
Korean-American rapper and singer Jessi returns to the Korean music scene with her fourth mini album ‘P.M.S. (PRETTY MOOD SWINGS)’, marking her first EP release in about five years since ‘NUNA’. The project keeps her signature “strong unni” persona intact while adding a more mature emotional depth and melodic sensibility, reflecting the journey she has taken from the hip-hop underground to mainstream stages.
Built around the concept of “PRETTY MOOD SWINGS,” the EP turns shifting emotions and inner monologues into a cohesive musical narrative. It consists of five tracks: title song ‘Girls Like Me’, ‘Brand New Boots’, ‘HELL’, ‘Marry Me’, and the pre-release single ‘Newsflash’, whose music video features a special appearance by New York hip-hop legend Jadakiss. Jessi took part in writing and composing every track, using diverse rhythms and arrangements to portray confidence, vulnerability, the desire for stability, and the uneasiness that comes with growth.
The title track ‘Girls Like Me’ is a hip-hop anthem built around heavy drums and punchy bass, defining “girls like me” as women who refuse to conform and fully understand their own worth. Switching effortlessly between English and Korean, Jessi drives home lines like “I’m the unni, unni, unni,” transforming the confident persona she has cultivated on variety shows and stages into a musical statement. Korean outlets have described the track as a blend of bold, performance-ready production and an addictive hook that positions it as a strong contender to join her list of signature songs.
Visually, the ‘Girls Like Me’ music video underscores the idea of “hip-hop you can see.” It opens with Jessi breaking through front-page newspaper headlines, placing herself quite literally at the center of attention. She then cycles through a series of looks—from a sharply tailored suit to a white crop top paired with red gloves—balancing playfulness with authority. Futuristic all-white sets and large-scale military-inspired choreography amplify the track’s percussive groove, turning the video into a fully realized performance piece rather than a simple visual accompaniment.
Korean reports note that within the first 24 hours of its release, the ‘Girls Like Me’ music video entered the Top 9 of the most-watched music videos worldwide for the day, underscoring Jessi’s enduring pull in the global market. The clip quickly amassed millions of views on her official YouTube channel, drawing multilingual comments from fans across North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Korea who praised her commanding presence and long-awaited return.
Following the album’s release, Jessi has amplified the buzz around ‘P.M.S.’ through a string of international appearances. She has guested on channels such as shan on the street, haha podcast, Access Hollywood, Young Hollywood, BuzzFeed APop, Genius Korea, and Tim Chantarangsu’s show, discussing the making of the record as well as her experiences moving between the U.S. and Korea. In a short-form feature for Billboard, she teaches viewers Korean slang, while Rolling Stone Korea shares a dedicated greeting video for fans. Many of these clips have racked up seven-figure view counts, highlighting her role as a rare bridge between the English-speaking market and the K-pop scene.
On social media, the ‘Girls Like Me’ challenge has quickly taken off. Korean articles highlight how creators such as meteorologist-turned-anchor Nick Kosir and streamer Pokimane joined in on the chorus-based choreography challenge, helping the track reach audiences beyond the typical K-pop fanbase. Jessi’s own accounts continue to upload versions filmed with dancers, choreographers, and celebrity friends, turning this comeback into a hip-hop party that anyone can join.
Taken together, Korean media and international platforms portray ‘P.M.S.’ as a project that distills Jessi’s decade-plus career into one body of work. It preserves the candid humor and “unni” aura that made her a household name on TV while openly documenting the doubts and reflections that come with being a creator. With more music show stages, web variety appearances, and online content on the way, the EP serves not only as a flashy return but also as a self-written letter that closes one chapter and opens the next for long-time fans.
## KStarLoud Insight: With ‘P.M.S.’, Jessi upgrades from viral guest star to a fully fledged global hip-hop IP. What sets this comeback apart is that it doesn’t rely solely on one catchy single; instead, ‘P.M.S.’ is built on a three-layer design: an EP-level concept, coordinated international media campaigns, and social-media challenges that weaponize the title track’s choreography. ‘Girls Like Me’ is engineered to travel well on short-form platforms with its military-style group choreo and punchy hook, while features with outlets like Billboard and Rolling Stone Korea package Jessi’s long-standing variety persona and bilingual comfort into a coherent narrative that’s easy for global audiences to latch onto. For overseas listeners, she’s no longer just the outspoken Korean artist who happens to speak English, but a creator capable of sustaining her own hip-hop IP—someone who turns the unapologetic honesty seen on TV into lyrics, visuals, and repeatable challenges. In a K-hiphop landscape still often overshadowed by idol releases, ‘P.M.S.’ reads like a statement that figures like Jessi can operate as independent cultural nodes, moving fluidly between variety shows, street sensibilities, and mainstream global pop culture on their own terms.