FreakyFlyBri

I'm anticipating it simply because it's a chance for me to hear one of my favorite musical acts in the world perform music in English, with a chance to possibly see them live if they were to ever tour (obviously it's a tad hard for me to make it all the way to SK or Japan to see a showcase or concert haha), but as far as any belief that this will blow up to be a huge hit for them, I'm doubtful. That's okay though, because T-ara N4 will be in good company...plenty of other amazing K-Pop acts have made attempts to break into the U.S. market with less than stellar results. It doesn't mean it's the end of their careers, by a long shot. And there's always the chance that they will succeed. At the end of the day, though, my hope is that the girls enjoy their time in the U.S., have some fun, learn some things along the way, and if that happens then I'll call this venture a success. P.S. If Misunderstood is truly one of the songs that may make it onto their album I'm excited. Sounds like they're aiming for a sound similar to AFA, and I approve wholeheartedly!

This actually makes perfect sense...Qri becoming the leader of this group falls in line with T-ara's leader system, where everyone gets to be a leader at least once, and I think she'll do a good job. She's quiet, mature, professional, and very stylish. If she's in charge of coming up with the costume ideas for QBS, I think it'll be a smashing success as I've always thought her fashion sense was the best of any of the girls in the group. Obviously Soyeon was always going to be the main vocal, and Boram is perfect to be the main visual in Japan...she already kinda, sorta functions in that role in T-ara while promoting in Japan, and I've heard that a lot of Japanese girls fawn over Boram because of her pixie/doll-like features. I'm actually really excited to see what they come up with, for some reason I'm more excited about THIS sub-unit than T-ara N4, maybe because it's just a little more exciting seeing the three lesser-known members (minus Areum) getting their moment to shine. I will be cheering them on, and I honestly think they have a chance to do really well!

First of all, SNSD has had a full-length English album in the works for a couple of years now. There's no telling when or if that album will ever be released, and even if they do release albums in the same year, it's an entirely different ball game in the states...you said so yourself. SNSD and T-ara will more or less be on the same playing field. And I don't care that two SNSD members speak English fluently, it's not going to really help them all THAT much. Secondly, making it in the American music industry is all about who you know and how much faith your contacts have in you...nobody gives a damn how big somebody was back in their home country, it won't do them any good when they're trying to promote in the states. That has absolutely no bearing whatsoever when it comes to making it stateside; YG, JYPE, or SME make chump change compared to what labels such as Island Def Jam, Interscope, Epic Records, or RCA can take home. They can't help their artists when trying to make a U.S. advancement. Very few artists make it on pure talent or charisma alone, they have somebody behind them, pulling strings and opening doors for them. As much as I loathe Chris Brown, it is absolutely undeniable that he is the biggest star to have possibly voiced his interest in a K-Pop act thus far...far more relevant than will.i.am, Snoop Dogg, Akon, or any of the other current stars who have mentioned a Korean idol act (if CCM's stories are to be believed). As far as what Chris Brown did...I admit that I loathe him with a passion, but I'm also discerning enough to know that PLENTY of U.S. artists have collaborated with him recently and been none the worse for it...Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, Kanye West, the list goes on. The U.S. music industry isn't really like Korea in that if you're seen with an unlikeable figure you're automatically blacklisted due to guilt by association; business is, ultimately, business. Furthermore, nobody in the U.S. is going to give two flying ***** about T-ara's bullying scandal. That ridiculous excuse for a hater orgy never would have exploded the way it did, I can guarantee you that. That's what's so bass-ackwards about Korea...they focus on a scandal full of unsubstantiated allegations, yet when it comes to something that probably would be incredibly sensationalized by U.S. media outlets, such as Nichkuhn's drunk driving accident, it almost goes by completely unnoticed...for a bullying controversy? I mean, come on. That xxxx would have been pegged exactly like it was...discord within the group. Nothing more, nothing less. Ultimately, at this point I don't think T-ara have anything to lose by focusing on activities outside of Korea. JWD's poor performance on the Korean charts show that Korea's just not ready to forgive them right now, if ever. I doubt this collaboration will interfere much with their Japanese activities, as so far nothing has even been confirmed. Instead of focusing on a plethora of possible negatives, let's just see how it plays out. Ultimately this could just be more media play on CCM's part, but it's REALLY important to take into consideration the fact that, if something does indeed happen for the group in the U.S., it's not even remotely similar to anything in Korea.

The sub-unit rumors weren't necessarily proven to be false...it could have been that CCM just wasn't ready for the news to be announced yet, and obviously the mention of Double Sidekick being the primary producer was incorrect. The girls are sticking with Shinsadong Tiger for their producer for the track. And yes, Hwayoung was expelled from the group, but of course they aren't going to put that in their official announcement for this sub-unit. Which sounds better, being expelled or withdrawing from the group? Haha. Like someone else in this thread said, "Rural Life" sounds like it could be a very rough translation at this point, so who knows? Or maybe it has to do with their concept. Either way, it sounds intriguing, and with Shinsadong Tiger behind it you know it's going to be a catchy, glittery dance-pop song. As far as the press release stating that it will "mend people's hearts," it's more or less saying that this is CCM's way of slowly reintroducing the group back into the public eye. At one point, EunJiMin were the group's three most popular members, so of course CCM wants to remind people of why they were considered the holy trinity in the first place, and Areum is the new kid in town, so she's in the unit to get more exposure as well. Ultimately, it's like some people were saying...I don't think T-ara really has anything to lose in Korea at this point. People are going to hate regardless of what they do, but people will also still buy their music and support them if their output is good. Just look at Sexy Love, it may have not done as well as their past releases, but they put out arguably one of the best songs of their careers and killed their performances, and the song did pretty damn good. I think this sub-unit is a good way of testing the waters, so to speak, and I'm sure that it doesn't hurt that sub-units are the big thing in K-Pop right now, like you said; if this goes well, we'll get a song from the full group in a month or two, and if it fails, we'll have a bit longer to wait than we thought. I'm inclined to believe that it will do well though.

Bunny Style! is holding up quite well in the Oricon top twenty...not their best performance, but it's doing a great deal better than their last two singles (Sexy Love dropped like a rock in the second week, but its first week sales were pretty decent, and Lovey-Dovey remains their worst-selling single in Japan). I can see this song eventually selling 80 to 90 thousand, putting it right around Bo Peep's sales. At this rate I think it's more encouraging to realize that their fanbase still remains strong enough in Japan to continue selling as well as they do.

I know how you feel, I've been dying to hear T-ara's Effect for months now, but I guess I'm just happy that the project is still a go at this point. I was starting to worry that we would never hear it! Although I do think a name chance for the album is in order, I can see netizens having a field day with their "effect." All in all it will have been nearly eight months since T-ara released any sort of material in Korea, and while I'm excited to hear what they come up with I can also understand why you would think it would be too soon. To be honest I would be happy if they were just able to promote solely in one territory or the other; with them picking up some steam in Japan with Bunny Style! I was kind of hoping that they would stay over there a while, release another single, then an album, then tour, THEN come back to Korea...no more of this sloppy promotional style where T-ara's in Japan a few days and then tries to promote in Korea on weekends, like with Cry Cry and J-Yayaya. That was a mess and it wore the girls slap out. They're obviously still CCM's main money maker, I think they proved that even with the scandal and decreased support from the Korean public they still are popular enough in other territories that taking a break now and then wouldn't affect their popularity all that much. But it is what it is. And yeah, I'm kind of trying to figure out exactly how the YMCA dance is going to be incorporated into their new dance. Haha.

^I think we'll see them all together later on in the year, Miss_Taken. I know many fans are still anticipating T-ara's Effect, and knowing CCM they won't simply shelve the project, haha. Although I am wondering if the rumors of the album going the dubstep route are true...

I think this is great news for the four mentioned...CCM is sort of having to "reintroduce" T-ara slowly back to the Korean public, so this gives them a chance to show their stuff and remind people why they were considered the most popular members of the group in the first place. As for Areum, it gives her some much needed exposure. I think they'll do well. I just think we need to remember that at this point it's probably a pipe dream to hope for Lovey-Dovey/Roly-Poly sized numbers, if their song can break 2 million in Korea I'll call it a success. I do think that something similar needs to be done in the near future for Boram, Qri, and Soyeon though. I know Boram and Soyeon got a lot of the hate post-controversy (and, in Soyeon's case, she even became involved with a second scandal with the whole Kakao Talk mess). Then again that might be why CCM's letting them sit this one out. Hopefully they get a chance to show their stuff in the near future as well. At any rate, it looks like their schedule's picking back up again! They're going to be extremely busy, I'd imagine that around the time they head back to Japan in preparation for their tour they'll also be readying a new single and album to be released to tie in with the concert. I just wonder where Dani fits into all of this, haha.

I will say that while T-ara suffered a pretty big blow to their popularity domestically, they seem to have gained a lot of new fans the world over! 2013 looks like it will be a great year for them, hands down...Areum is getting all sorts of love, their performances at the year-end awards shows were fantastic, and given a bit of time I think that T-ara's Effect will be the comeback album that helps them put all the controversies they suffered from in 2012 completely behind them, especially if CCM allows them to release the album later on in the year instead of pitting them against the likes of SNSD and other highly anticipated comebacks. This was definitely a year of growing pains for our girls but the light is finally at the end of the tunnel, and I think next year we'll see T-ara's star power return to its former glory if not grow even brighter!

I think this controversy is going to mark a significant transition in T-ara's career...namely, spending considerably less time promoting in Korea while focusing primarily on the Japanese market for the time being. This controversy has been much less damaging abroad than it has been domestically for the girls as evidenced by sales for Sexy Love in Japan (not a runaway hit but still comparable to their other singles in terms of sales) and the less chilly reception they have received from both the press and the general public. Netizens are obviously not ready to let this issue go yet, and I doubt that KKS or CCM is willing to give the girls any sort of hiatus, so it wouldn't surprise me if instead of releasing new Korean material at the beginning of next year we get a Japanese single first. Next year I predict T-ara will spend most of the year in Japan with maybe one comeback in Korea later in the year to test the waters to see how things go, and honestly, I think that would be their best course of action...they've outgrown Korea and have pretty much peaked in terms of the success they could hope to achieve in their homeland at this point, while in Japan they have much more opportunity for growth and continued success if they are committed to making it happen. Long story short, I hope that this controversy serves as the catalyst that allows the girls to simply break away from Korea for a while to focus on truly breaking in to the Japanese market. In doing so perhaps they can find even greater success in that market while salvaging and repairing their tarnished reputation in Korea.

I was really disappointed in the vid, but at the same time I guess I understand why they ultimately decided to recycle so much of the Korean version as well. Time constraints and the fact that they probably didn't have as big a budget as they usually do due to the controversy (and the uncertainty that they were going to land a decent hit afterward) probably played a big role in the resulting end product. Hopefully after T-ara recovers a bit more we'll get back to seeing more variety in their videos since that's one of my favorite things about them.

I remember seeing fancams for this event a few weeks back! Boram killed Hyomin's part, she's done really well this era.

This article is obviously a jab at the netizens who are questioning Soyeon's "determination" after the accident. To be honest I hope she does just take this time to rest and relax, car accidents are no joke, especially one as serious as the one she was in, but I can't help but feel like the article is CCM's subtle way of trolling the netizens, especially after their extremely foolish behavior over the last two days.