With Hyomin having made her very last solo performances at the 2014 DMZ Peace concert, and T-ara already begun teasing us for their group comeback,  it brings a successful close to the T-ara solo ventures. So how did you feel about Jiyeon and Hyomin’s solo debut? Did it live up to your expectations? Did you absolutely love it? Or were you let down? Here’s a review of what we got with each of their debuts.

The Song

Jiyeon was the first to make her debut of the two solos. She came out with the song Never Ever (1분1초) produced by Double Sidekick. Never Ever has a very sultry sound to it that is not explosive but easy to listen to. I initially was not so favorable of the whole song, feeling it was a bit on the safe side but it eventually came to grow on me (the prowess of K-Pop music after all.) The song however did very much suit Jiyeon’s tone, however I can’t help but wonder if the final composition was still missing an element to give it that wow factor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYs_GMfCqTI

Hyomin’s song was quite different from Jiyeon, being of a more fun nature. Produced by Brave Brothers, Nice Body featured a very funky tune and similar to Jiyeon’s, while not innovative it still succeeds in being an enjoyable listen. Hyomin’s singing is very sweet to listen to but Nice Body doesn’t completely allow her to show off the extent of her vocal abilities. The song was followed by some backlash from international audiences due to the controversial lyrics. While half were passive about it, the other half were quite vocally upset. It is worth noting beauty standards in Korea are quite differing from other regions, why Korea did not bat an eyelash at all at the lyrics. Everyone’s view on the lyrics may differ, at this point I can only say in my opinion, the song was never intended to cause upset or degrade anyone. Hyomin has only ever advised on how one can become healthy, never once speaking of “how to attract the opposite sex.”

The Mini Album

Jiyeons mini consists of the songs Cherry Blossom Road and Marionette. Much like the title track, while not inventive, they are engaging to listen to. Cherry Blossom Road, my favorite of the mini, is of a sweet tune accompanied by Jiyeon’s sweet voice with a simple but infectious beat featuring cowbells and a summertime-like melody. Marionette has a great jazz like rhythm, starting off slow but picks up the pace with the chorus. Overall, all three songs are very uniform, matching each other very well to create a well compiled mini and serving as a good start to Jiyeon’s solo career.

Hyomins mini consists of Fake It and Overcome. Fake it ended up being arguably more preferred than Nice Body. It is a track I wouldn’t have minded as the title track. Featuring Chakun from Electroboyz, it has a delightful melody and addicting synths added with Hyomin’s silk vocals. Overcome, Hyomin’s self-written song, is just great and is the long awaited return of Hyomin as a rapper. Her rapping is strong but I feel the song could’ve possibly done well without the heavy drums. The song was followed by some controversy as it borrowed lyrics written by Block B’s Zico. Though Zico clarified he had given permission, his fans were enraged due to the lack of credit. Even if Zico did not demand credit, being a song promoted as Hyomin’s own, some form of mention should’ve been provided. An avoidable mistake I would hope they learn from as it’s a shame this controversy possibly affected the chances of Hyomin performing Overcome on stage.

The Concept

Before Jiyeon’s debut, CCM teased fans with news of Jiyeon’s solo debut style to follow that of Park Ji Yoon’s Coming of Age Ceremony. I understood the reference as we clearly got to see a whole new, ‘grown up’ Jiyeon. The debut’s concept as a whole was sexy, dark and dramatic, her song relaying the story of heartbreak. It was a good concept to showcase Jiyeon’s growth. However, there is some disappoint in me after Jiyeon revealed her solo was originally an androgynous concept. I feel such a concept would’ve been so interesting and perhaps give room for more artistry. But alas, here’s hoping Jiyeon receives more control whenever she wishes to make a solo comeback.

Hyomin’s concept was bright and edgy. She cut her hair short and dyed blonde to add to the edginess. Opinions were mixed in regards to her hair, but in terms of conceptually, it worked well. She delivered a variety of outfits which were enjoyable to see. To go with the song, which relayed of beauty and being fit, elements such measuring tapes and food items were thrown in. While her look was great and the concept wasn’t terrible (please note I am one of the more passive one in terms of the lyrical contents) but there was a lot of unused potential. Hyomin has become the group’s resident ‘sexy member,’ something I’m sure we all enjoy, however I feel it has placed a great restriction on Hyomin as we who know her best know she is much more than that. This is what disappointed me about Hyomin’s debut. Despite that I really like the song, we didn’t get to see Hyomin branch out her full potential and ideas, which was what I was initially excited for when news of the solo debuts were first revealed. Instead, CCM constrained her to her usual concept.

The Music Video

Jiyeon’s music video was great and creative, making great use of some minimal stop motion. It had a plot to it which was nicely done. To interpret on said plot; Jiyeon is living a seemingly normal, routine life, waking up in the morning, making breakfast, watering her plant etc. These actions are repeated, emphasizing the “normal, routine life” until it comes to the point Jiyeon realizes something is amiss and that is a loved one who had left her. Jiyeon’s sense of her reality begins to break apart and we discover she had been in a mental institution this whole time (as hinted by the scarf she was knitting on her bed) likely due to the departure of her loved one causing her, for lack of better words, to lose it.

Hyomin’s music video is basically her being pretty… well, there is a slight plot, if it can be called so. A much full figured Hyomin is depicted going at a mass of snacks and dancing around. She falls asleep and dreams of a magical donut that causes her to obtain a ‘nice body.’ She is then living in her dream land being hot and having fun (while still alluding to her true self.) Hyomin’s music video is very bright and fun, literally eye candy as all the various color has me thinking of candy.

The Dance + Performance

Right off the bat, Jiyeon’s choreography featured a move that had Queen’s going crazy, where she sways her hip while up against a wall. The dance features sexy, strong moves, along with a creative use of a prop mirror. My favorite however would be the moves to the chorus where she lifts up her jacket by the corners, alluding a similar appearance to Batman (or woman in this case.) On music shows, and this is perhaps my favorite thing about her whole debut, Jiyeon’s performance are powerful. During her debut performance, I could only think of how our youngest member had truly grown, able to command the stage completely on her own.

Hyomin’s choreography seems like a complete workout but a fun one at that and not necessarily of complicated steps (minus the ‘twerking.’) The dance’s main point comes in the chorus where Hyomin rolls her chest and hips accompanied with a measuring tape. You could say the whole dance is to showcase one’s body in a sense with the various steps. Her performances were energetic, colorful and entertaining to watch. Like Jiyeon, Hyomin is able to perform well on her own and keep all eyes on her.

The Conclusion

All in all, I enjoyed Jiyeon and Hyomin’s solo debuts. There were elements I really liked and some I were vary of but it gave the girls a great start to possible future careers as solo artists. The performed decently on digital charts and brought in similar first month physical sales (Jiyeon with 8k and Hyomin with 8.8k.)

The solo era was very new and interesting to Queen’s, whom before had never experienced a debut/comeback with just one member. I enjoyed the experience and I look forward to Jiyeon and Hyomin’s return as solo artists. I definitely would not mind see the other girls tackle a solo venture as well.

So how did you feel about Jiyeon and Hyomin’s debut? Did you enjoy the music? Were you satisfied with the concepts and what would you like to see them take on next time? Tell us your thoughts!

This review expresses the opinion of the author alone and does not reflect Diadem’s as a whole.