𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐕𝐄 came back four months later with another EP, 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄(𝐃), and the title track 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐁𝐋𝐄, which was better received than their debut. Similarly to their debut EP, 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄(𝐃) explores the overbearing feelings of love, betrayal, and heartbreak. 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐁𝐋𝐄 in particular is about realizing that the person you thought you loved isn’t who you believed them to be. The song reached a peak of 97 on the charts, which isn’t at all impressive, but a decent improvement from their debut, along with 15 million views on YouTube. While the track included stronger vocals than their debut did, overall the EP held a more electronic sound with b-sides like 𝐌𝐀𝐘𝐁𝐄, 𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐒𝐇, and 𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔.

Their first studio album 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐗, provided a mixture of what made 𝐃𝐎 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐄 and 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄(𝐃). The fourteen track Alt-Pop record replaces the idea of a God Complex with an Angel Complex—someone who believes they can never do any wrong. Instead of taking the blame for their own actions, the girls place it on the audience and portray themselves as the victim. The title track of the same name received massive success, climbing up in the top 5 on the charts and earning praise from the general public for its innovative sound. 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐕𝐄 earned their first music show win on Music Bank and earned a total of 3 wins for the track. 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐗 also earned the number 1 spot on the 25 Best K-Pop Albums of 2023 by Billboard. The album officially sold 1 million copies on the one year anniversary of its release, becoming their best selling record to date.

Following their newfound success, the girls started 2024 with a Japanese debut and the song &&&& (commonly known as 𝑨𝑵𝑫). The song went viral in Japan, becoming popular amongst students for sonically capturing a mix of fear, excitement, loneliness, and hope that comes with growing up and moving forward. &&&& reached number 7 on the Oricon singles chart and number 3 on the Billboard Japan Top 100.

Their next Korean comeback would be in October with 𝐂𝐔𝐋𝐓 𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐂. The tracks from this EP fell into a more “mainstream” sound (as much as they could get with their concept), being noticeably more digestible to the general public despite 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐗 doing well. 𝐂𝐔𝐋𝐓 𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐂 features the title track, 𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐉𝐔𝐈𝐂𝐄, which performed well commercially and earned six music show wins. Saerim also notably made her songwriting debut this era, being the sole lyricist on the b-side 𝐒𝐄𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐀… The song sparked conversation about her acting career prior to debuting in 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐕𝐄, as she stated that the song was about how she’d been treated in the industry since her acting debut.

The 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐑𝐄 EP came in May of 2025. Included in the release of 𝐁𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐒 and the music video was also a 12 minute Director’s Cut version, in which the girls received heavy backlash for the graphic depictions of murder, suicide, and self harm featured in the extended version. Netizens went so far as to boycott, make petitions, and send trucks to the company building demanding the group to disband. Knowing how involved the members seem to be in their concept, they weren’t shielded from the backlash and received the brunt of it. 𝐁𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐒 became known as one of their worst performing eras—charting low, earning zero music show wins, and having both videos banned from broadcasting, despite the original video being tame. Any normal company would take a step back, throw out an apology, and learn from the situation moving forward…

𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋𝐒, 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐃 was their next released, being their second studio album where the girls and their label doubled down on the controversy. The title of the album is a reference to the memoir ‘Girl, Interrupted’ by Susanna Kaysen, and the painting ‘Girl Interrupted’ by Johannes Vermeer. 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋𝐒, 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐃 delves into themes of feeling disconnected, a loss of adolescence, and the mental damage that comes with being in the public eye. Along with the album, 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐕𝐄 released an hour long documentary that not only detailed the comeback preparations, but also directly addressed the controversy, and the members’ involvement in their concept. The group’s leader, Saerim, notably stated:

“Everything we create is intended for a mature audience and we do our best to make sure that people are aware of that. There are so many movies and TV shows that cover these topics. Why can’t we? It’s just a form of art.”