Jimin reached the top of Billboard’s ‘Hot 100’, Jisoo set a new Initial Chodong record
Recorded a box office hit by showing a new side of himself that he did not know during group activities
BLACKPINK member Jisoo’s debut solo album ‘Me’ visual teaser. Provided by YG Entertainment
Members of K-pop leading groups such as BTS and Black Pink are succeeding in standing alone one after another. This is because both Jimin, the fourth member of BTS to go solo, and Jisoo, the last member of Blackpink to go solo, are bearing good results. It is said that he is making a soft landing as a solo artist, revealing his personality and inner world that were hidden during group activities.
Dominating the Billboard, achieving the Initial Chodong record… Solos writing history
Jimin of BTS, who released his solo album ‘Face’. Provided by Big Hit Music
Those who went solo are reaping achievements comparable to those of a group on domestic and international charts. Following J-Hope, Jin, and RM, Jimin released his first official solo album ‘Face’ in 10 years since his debut on the 24th. The title song ‘Like Crazy’ reached the top of Billboard’s ‘Hot 100’ on the 4th, becoming the first K-pop singer to step on the top of the ‘Hot 100’ as both an individual and a group. He also achieved the feat of ranking second on the Billboard 200, the highest ranking for a K-pop solo singer. Blackpink’s Jisoo also set a record for a K-pop female soloist by achieving 1,172,351 copies sold in the first week after the release of her first solo album “Me” on the 31st of last month. The title song ‘Flower’ reached the top spot on the iTunes album chart in 64 countries, including the US, and entered the music streaming platform Spotify at number 6, the highest ranking for a K-pop female soloist.
“Discover me that I didn’t know in the group” Opportunity to find a new self
It is said that those who have been hiding their stories for nearly 10 years to protect their group identity have finally become honest through solo activities. In particular, Jimin, who participated heavily in the production of this album, captured the emptiness and loneliness he felt during the COVID-19 crisis over the past two years in the lyrics. In an interview with the Hankook Ilbo, Jimin also revealed that he “fully faced his inner self through his solo work.” On the 7th, BTS’ Suga, who released the pre-released song ‘People Part 2’ from his solo album ‘D-Day’ and started to stand alone, also included an autobiographical story in the song. He introduced, “I wrote it while thinking that I lost everything during the Corona 19 incident.”
Through the work of facing themselves, they are looking for a new side of themselves as artists that they did not know when they were in a group. Jisoo said in an interview commemorating the release of her solo album ‘Me’, “I constantly developed myself to find music that I am best at and only I can do,” and “I found a new ‘me’ in it.”
Analysts say that successive box office hits as a solo artist are the result of the size of each member’s fandom growing larger than that of a group fandom. Popular music critic Kim Hun-shik said, “In the past, group fandom was strong, and in order to increase the group’s popularity and influence, only a few members with superior looks and singing skills started solo activities.” The method proves the fact that the individual fandom power is growing compared to the group.”
Eunseo Choi reporter silver@hankookilbo.com
