My tee, five bucks. My pants, 10,000 won. Cortis has a song titled ‘FaSHioN’ in their debut EP, where they rapped about five-dollar tees and dressing like rockstars on a budget, and then they showed up to their entire GreenGreen era looking exactly like that.
I’ve been watching Cortis closely lately—not just as a group, but for the way their creative styling is moving. That inexplicable draw that they seem to have on their audience is one that many other fourth or fifth-gen boy groups struggle with: a creative direction that feels rooted and cohesive, yet not intentionally manufactured. With an image that appeals to the teenage boy gaze (oh, Rodrick Heffley would love them), Cortis’s debut in the K-pop scene feels like a breath of fresh air.
The nearly one-year-old boy band recently dropped their second EP titled GreenGreen—a comeback that arrived this May with four music videos, a rapidly growing international fanbase and 11 music show wins on the title track ‘RedRed’. Their GreenGreen era is rooted in the same Y2K thrift store energy the group has always gravitated toward, just more fully realised than ever before. Think vintage sportswear logos on zip-up jackets, graphic tees that look like they came off a five-dollar rail, leather jackets with a history and straight-leg denim worn in rather than bought that way. It is the “thrift store master” energy from ‘FaSHioN’ made completely and convincingly literal across every visual they’ve put out this year. If the Sex Pistols had a Seoul thrift shop on speed dial back in the ’70s, they would probably have dressed exactly like this too.
Each of the four music videos sets the group down in a completely different world, and somehow the wardrobe never feels out of place in any of them. ‘RedRed’, the title track, sets the tone in a samgyeopsal restaurant, an arcade and a thrift shop—ordinary, everyday spaces where the wardrobe feels completely at home. The members turn up looking like they raided their own closets: a graphic tee tucked into straight-leg jeans with worn-in sneakers, an oversized puffer vest paired with camo cargo shorts, a leather blazer thrown over a simple tee with boot-cut denim.
That same instinct just gets turned up rather than swapped out as the era progresses—the sports field and stairwell settings in ‘Tnt’, a high-energy track that became the EP’s breakout performance moment, calls for full sportswear conviction: Adidas tracksuits, vintage Nike windbreakers and an oversized hoodie that looks like it was bought at a market two decades ago.
‘Acai’, named after the members’ favourite snack and the EP’s most playful track, pushes the dial toward something more experimental—a bold fur jacket worn over a graphic tee, a striped cardigan as outerwear and oversized translucent capes billowing through a desert sequence, looks that should read as costume and somehow don’t. And then ‘Blue Lips’, a more introspective track that Martin penned during his trainee years, strips it all the way back to a poolside setting and simple tees—the quietest visual of the era and somehow one of the most affecting.
What ties GreenGreen together, across four wildly different settings and one very consistent group of five, is a kind of conviction that cannot really be manufactured. That coherence is what sets Cortis apart. In a genre where a new era almost always means new concepts, a new image and new styling briefs, Cortis’s clothes look like they belong to the people wearing them rather than to a mood board. That is rarer than it should be, and it is exactly why GreenGreen feels like such a genuine step forward for the group—not because the styling is more expensive or more elaborate, but because it is more clearly theirs. Below, check out the best looks from across the GreenGreen era—and consider them all green-lit for your own wardrobe. Or as Cortis would say, that’s green-green.
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Seonghyeon in the 'RedRed' music video
A North Face puffer vest over a navy hoodie, camo cargo shorts and Air Max 95s—Seonghyeon’s ‘RedRed’ look is the thrift shop scene made flesh, the kind of outfit that looks like it came together in five minutes and took years of good instinct to pull off.
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The North Face 1996 Retro Nuptse Unisex vest, $135
Available on Muse.
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Keonho in the 'RedRed' music video
A taupe bomber over a Supreme tee, wide-leg grey trackpants with pinstripe detail and an orange striped scarf—Keonho’s ‘RedRed’ look sits somewhere between completely considered and accidental, which is exactly where the best outfits live.
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Jaded London Grey Marl Baggy Monster Joggers, $167
Available at Jaded London.
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The North Face Vectiv™ Taraval Tech Everyday shoes, $135
Available at The North Face.
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Martin in the 'Tnt' music video
A vintage red Adidas jacket over a black graphic tee and navy track pants with white side stripes—Martin’s ‘Tnt’ look is vintage sportswear at it’s most specific, delivering the full athletic conviction that the high-energy setting of the music video called for.
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Maison Margiela Tabi Ankle boots, $2,525
Available at Maison Margiela.
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Juhoon in the 'Acai' music video
A mustard faux fur coat thrown over a tiger-print tee with a graphic overlay, paired with black leather trousers and a yellow belt—Juhoon owns one of the most maximalist combinations across the entire GreenGreen era, and it works because every piece is strong enough to carry its own weight.
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Rag & Bone Brenna Faux-Fur jacket, $443
Available at Saks Fifth Avenue.
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Dr. Martens 1461 Crazy Horse Leather Oxford shoes, $259
Available at Dr. Martens.
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James in the 'Acai' music video
A collage-print polo worn under a washed black denim jacket, finished with a gold chain bracelet and metalwork ring—James lets the print carry the look, keeping the layering underneath simple enough that the whole thing stays just on the right side of busy.
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Alexander Digenova Helicopter Parka jacket, $2,015
Available at Farfetch.
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Adidas x Gosha Rubchinskiy Track pants, $295
Available at Vestiaire Collective.
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Seonghyeon in the 'Acai' music video
A worn suede moto jacket layered over a vintage graphic tee and striped knit, finished with silver rings stacked across both hands. Against the backdrop of a more absurd, fever-dream setting, this is one of the more grounded combinations in the video, leaning on texture and layering rather than anything louder.
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Saint Mxxxxxx Paint-Splattered Printed Cotton-Jersey shirt, $565
Available at Mr Porter.
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Ralph Lauren Slim Fit Leather Moto jacket, $2,939
Available at Ralph Lauren.
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Balenciaga Men's Cropped Cargo pants, $2,290
Available at Balenciaga.
