XOX

XOX (aka Kiss Hug Kiss) are a boy band formed in Japan in 2014. All of the members work as models and were chosen to be part of the band during the Boys Grandprix 2014 audition competition held by Sony Music and the Japanese fashion company WEGO. The band, particularly their former leader Toman Sasaki, is part of the jendaresu-kei (genderless style) fashion movement that uses make-up and a mix of gendered clothing to achieve an androgynous look. XOX's debut single 'XXX' was released in December 2015, featuring catchy melodies, upbeat rhythms and disco stylings with the occasional English lyric. This single set the template for future releases from the band, including 'Ex Summer' and 'Skylight' in 2016 plus 'High School Boo!' and 'Pinky Baby' in 2017, all reaching the top ten in the Japanese singles chart. In 2017, Toman left the group and was replaced by Yuta Osumi and Yasui Kazuma, former members of the disbanded J-pop group Dress_No. Following this change of line-up, the band released the singles 'Shanghai Honey', 'Chroma' and 'Kassoro Ni Saku', displaying a more contemporary production style with influences from trap and EDM. In 2019, XOX released 'The One,' an album that gathered together all of their previous single releases.