‘XO, Kitty’ Returns For Season Three, New Soundtrack

There’s no place quite like KISS Academy. But on April 2, the Netflix original series XO, Kitty will return for its third season — and this time, its characters are starting to think about life after their glamorous international high school. Before the premiere, Rolling Stone can exclusively reveal a first look at the soundtrack accompanying the show’s fast-paced new episodes.

“This show is a really healthy balance of fun, drama, and emotion,” co-music supervisor Lindsay Wolfington says. “Whether that’s falling in love, heartbreak, friendship, dance parties — all those things you love to do when you’re young.”

XO, Kitty was the first spin-off in author Jenny Han’s adaptation empire, which started with the film To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and the love story of its main character Lara Jean Song- Covey (Lana Condor). It’s since expanded to include the hit television series The Summer I Turned Pretty and its highly anticipated feature film conclusion. Set in Seoul, Korea, XO Kitty follows Lara Jean’s little sister Kitty Song-Covey (Anna Cathcart) as she moves from the U.S. to attend the Korean Independent School of Seoul (KISS). Past seasons of XO, Kitty have shown the high schooler’s shift from a bumbling American out of her depth to a KISS student with strong friendships and brand new information about the mother she never got to know. But just because she’s settled doesn’t mean she has it all together.

Wolfington and Laura Webb are the team behind the series’ sound, which takes the energy from the To All the Boys movies and adds a modern, K-pop direction. The duo worked on the music for all three films — To All the Boys(2018), P.S. I Still Love You (2020), and Always and Forever (2021). They tell Rolling Stone that history allows them to tap into the heart of the story, something that continues through Han’s work.

“Kitty has her own journey than Lara Jean. But they’re both teenage girls, so we keep in mind those parallels. Since we worked on all three movies, there’s just a Rolodex in the back of our head of songs that match certain moments,” Wolfington says. “We talk about [Kitty] being fun and mischievous. I feel like the mischief is giving way to more reflectiveness, and getting to that in the music feels like a transition we’re making this season. “

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It wouldn’t be XO, Kitty, or a Han project, if there wasn’t romance involved. While friends Yuri (Gia Kim), Quincy (Anthony Keyvan), Juliana (Regan Aliyah), Dae (Choi Min-yeong), and Madison (Jocelyn Shelfo) try to figure out what they’re doing when high school ends, Kitty finally has to address the will-they-won’t-they energy between herself and heartthrob Min-ho Moon (Sang Heon Lee).

“The season does a really good job of touching on that [time] where everyone’s questioning and making life choices, which is very healthy,” Webb adds. “Maybe the world is smaller because they all know each other and they’ll always have this connection. But also they really may never see each other again, and that’s part of the gravity of that decision too.”

The third season of XO, Kitty will also come with a confirmed cameo from Condor’s character Lara Jean. The newest trailer from Netflix confirms the star will appear when her little sister desperately needs some advice — and a night of junk food. “Movie three is Lara Jean’s senior year. So looking back on our work on season three, we can’t believe Kitty’s at that stage,” Wolfington says. “History is repeating itself in a cool way.”

“We love looking for the songs for Kitty and the gang, and we love being a part of this continuation,” Webb adds. “We want this universe to go on forever.”

Season Three of XO, Kitty premieres April 2 on Netflix.