She Is
Studio album by
Jonghyun
ReleasedMay 24, 2016 (2016-05-24)[1]
Genre
Length29:52
LanguageKorean
Label
ProducerJonghyun
Jonghyun chronology
The Collection: Story Op.1
(2015)		 She Is
(2016)		 The Collection: Story Op.2
(2017)
Singles from She Is
  1. "She Is"
    Released: May 24, 2016
Music video
"She Is" on YouTube

She Is (Korean: 좋아; RR: Joh-a) is the debut studio album[3] by South Korean singer-songwriter Jonghyun. It was released on May 24, 2016, by SM Entertainment and distributed by KT Music, and is the only studio album to be released during Jonghyun's lifetime.[1] The album was commercially successful, reaching number one on South Korea's Gaon Album Chart, and received acclaim from music critics. It was nominated for an Album Bonsang at the 31st Golden Disc Awards.[4]

Background and release

Jonghyun released the album through a variety of music sites on May 24 and officially began promotions with his appearance on Mnet's M Countdown on May 26.[3] The album consists of nine songs and is described by Jonghyun as the album where "one can feel his passion as a singer-songwriter the most" and covers various genres such as electro-punk, EDM and R&B. Eight out of the nine songs are composed by the artist himself.[5][6] Jonghyun's fashion style for the promotions reflect elements of Shinee's known trend, including colourful outfits and skinny jeans, demonstrating a 1990s-inspired look.[7]

Composition

Jonghyun decided to emphasise storytelling on this album, adopting the persona of a "sweet, witty and sly" man who has fallen in love.[8] Each song is from the perspective of this character. He cited Prince, Jamiroquai and Maxwell as musical influences.[9][10] The lead single, "She Is", is an electro-funk song with future bass elements. It contains a repetitive melody and lyrics so the listener can easily sing along.[8][11] "White T-Shirt" is an uptempo song that blends tropical house with urban pop and features a country-style piano melody.[8][11] In "Orbit", Jonghyun uses space imagery to portray a romantic relationship; he describes himself orbiting his lover like a celestial object.[12] "Moon" is a "dreamy" yet "sensual" electro R&B song that was inspired by a lucid dream.[9][11][13] "Aurora" belongs to the neo soul genre.[13] "Dress Up" is an uptempo EDM track that contains distorted vocals, synths, and "thumping electro-hip-hop beats".[13][14] "Cocktail" is an R&B ballad in which Jonghyun compares falling for his lover's charms to drinking a cocktail.[13] "Red" is an urban R&B song that was inspired by traffic lights.[9][13] Jonghyun described the song "Suit Up" as being about the "first night after marriage."[15] It is a downtempo R&B song influenced by future bass.[13]

Commercial performance

In South Korea, She Is entered and peaked atop the Gaon Album Chart on the chart issue dated May 22–28, 2016.[16] The album spent a total of three weeks in the top 10 of the chart[17][18] and a total of five weeks in the top 100.[19] In the US, She Is entered and peaked at number four on Billboard's World Albums during the week of June 11, 2016, being the highest ranking debut of the week.[20] On the same week, the album entered and peaked at number 20 on Billboard's Heatseekers Albums.[21] She Is entered at number eight on the Gaon Album Chart for the month of May 2016 with a total of 45,415 copies sold.[22] For the month of June 2016, the album placed at number 10 with 10,574 copies sold.[23] The album has sold 90,790 copies since release.[24]

Critical reception

She Is was met with positive reviews by music critics. Taylor Glasby of i-D labelled it one of the best releases of the year, praising it as "a remarkably cohesive experience that's both mature—such as the gloriously sensual track "Moon"—yet playfully able to pack the dancefloor ("White T-shirt")".[9] IZM critic Jo Hae-ram noted that Jonghyun utilised his voice like an instrument to embody the character of each song; in "She Is", he changes his tone to match the electro-punk beat, while in "Orbit", his pronunciation is deliberately slurred and sticky. Jo described the album as a "masterpiece of contemporary R&B", concluding that the "idol" label can be removed from Jonghyun.[25] Writing for Weiv, Mimyo felt that the organic integration of future bass and future R&B elements placed the album one step ahead of mainstream pop music. He stated, "This album may be a rediscovery of a singer-songwriter whose strength is that he started out as an idol".[26] Kim Hak-seon of The Hankyoreh praised the album's consistency and was impressed by the collaborations with songwriters such as Deez. He situated it within the wider context of idol songwriting, arguing that Jonghyun was the artist who best exemplified the growing trend for idols to write their own music.[27] According to Billboard, "a sense of vibrancy permeates each listen of Jonghyun's first LP, offering up a kaleidoscopic listening experience that is part sunshine, part desire, and all good." They named it one of the best K-pop albums of the 2010s.[28]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Jonghyun

She Is track listing
No.TitleMusicArrangementLength
1."She Is" (Korean: 좋아; RR: Joa; lit. I Like It)
  • Jonghyun
  • Crush
  • Philtre
  • Wefreaky
Philtre03:11
2."White T-Shirt"
  • Henrik Meinke
  • Jonas Kalisch
  • Alexsej Vlasenko
  • Jeremy Chacon
  • Ilanguaq Lumholt
  • Marcus Winther
  • Meinke
  • Kalisch
  • Vlasenko
  • Chacon
  • Lumholt
  • Winther
02:58
3."Orbit" (Korean: 우주가 있어; RR: Ujuga isseo; lit. There's a Universe)
  • Jonghyun
  • Wefreaky
  • Coach & Sendo
  • Coach & Sendo
  • Wefreaky
03:17
4."Moon"
LDN Noise02:44
5."Aurora"
  • Jonghyun
  • Deez
Deez03:54
6."Dress Up"
  • Jonghyun
  • LDN Noise
LDN Noise03:05
7."Cocktail"
  • Jonghyun
  • Bryan-Michael Cox
  • Clifford Henson
  • Cox
  • Henson
03:39
8."Red"
  • Jonghyun
  • Wefreaky
  • Ryan Kim
  • Chase
  • Im Kwang-ok
  • Kim
  • Chase
03:14
9."Suit Up"
  • Jonghyun
  • Wefreaky
  • Score
  • Score
  • Wefreaky
03:50
Total length:29:52

Charts

Awards and nominations

Music program wins
Song Program Date Ref.
"She Is" The Show May 31, 2016 [32]
Show Champion June 1, 2016 [33]

Release history

Release history and formats for She Is
Region Date Format Label Ref.
South Korea May 24, 2016 [3]
Various
  • Digital download
  • streaming
 SM Entertainment [34]
Taiwan July 1, 2016 CD Avex Taiwan [35]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "STARHOME > Discography". Jonghyun Official Website. SM Entertainment. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Genre according to korean music site". Archived from the original on October 29, 2016. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 Ko, Sujin (May 23, 2016). "SHINee's Jonghyun Proves His Songwriting Abilities". Mwave. CJ E&M enewsWorld. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  4. ↑ "31st Golden Disc Nominees – Album Nominees". Golden Disc Awards. Archived from the original on December 5, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  5. ↑ Kim, Soo-hyang (May 22, 2016). "Jonghyun to hold showcase". Kpop Herald. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  6. ↑ Ahn, Woorim (May 15, 2016). "Jonghyun to Release His First Official Album". BNT News. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  7. ↑ Choi, Shin-ae (June 6, 2016). "Shinee's Jonghyun Shows his Fashion Sense". Mwave. CJ E&M enewsWorld. Archived from the original on June 6, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Kim, Jae-heun (May 24, 2016). "Shinee's Jonghyun releases first solo album". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Glasby, Taylor (June 21, 2016). "Standing alone, Kim Jonghyun is unlike any other K-pop idol". i-D. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  10. ↑ Kim, Hyun-jung (August 19, 2016). '푸른밤' 종현, 성공한 덕후 등극…맥스웰과 다정샷 ['Blue Night' Jonghyun becomes a successful fan... Friendly shot with Maxwell]. Xports News (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023 – via Naver.
  11. 1 2 3 Chung, Joo-won (May 23, 2016). "Shinee's Jonghyun rises high with first full solo album". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  12. ↑ Lee, Ji-hyun (December 18, 2019). [Opinion] 그의 이야기 [음악] [[Opinion] His story [Music]]. Art Insight (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hong, Se-young (May 20, 2016). 종현 첫 솔로 정규1집, EDM부터 R&B까지 '장르 집합체' [Jonghyun's first solo studio album, from EDM to R&B, 'a set of genres']. Sports Dong-a (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023 – via Naver.
  14. ↑ Herman, Tamar (December 20, 2017). "Jonghyun's 15 Best Songs: Critic's Picks". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 7, 2022. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  15. ↑ Park, So-yeon (May 24, 2016). "SHINee ジョンヒョン、ソロ曲「Suit Up」は"初夜の話"…メンバーとファンは歓呼" (in Japanese). KStyle News. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  16. 1 2 "Album Chart – Week 22, 2016". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  17. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Archived from the original on June 25, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  18. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  19. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Archived from the original on August 13, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  20. 1 2 "World Albums: June 11, 2016". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  21. 1 2 "Heatseekers Albums: June 11, 2016". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  22. 1 2 "Album Chart – May 2016". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 3, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Album Chart – June 2016". Circle Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  24. ↑ Cumulative sales for She Is:
  25. ↑ Jo, Hae-ram (January 2017). 좋아 - The 1st Album. IZM (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  26. ↑ [SHORTLIST] 6월 상반기: 종현, 빈지노, 루나, 사비나앤드론즈, 쏜애플 외 [[Shortlist] First Half of June: Jonghyun, Beenzino, Luna, Savina & Drones, Thornapple, etc.]. Weiv (in Korean). June 20, 2016. Archived from the original on June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  27. ↑ Kim, Hak-seon (June 19, 2016). '샤이니' 종현의 빛나는 재능을 담다 ['Shinee' Jonghyun's shining talent]. The Hankyoreh (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  28. ↑ "The 25 Greatest K-Pop Albums of the 2010s: Staff List". Billboard. December 17, 2019. Archived from the original on June 7, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  29. ↑ "週間 アルバムランキング 2016年06月06日付" [Weekly Album Ranking – June 6, 2016] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  30. ↑ "Hot Albums [2016/06/01 公開]" [Hot Albums [Released on 2016/06/01]]. Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  31. ↑ "2016 Album Chart". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  32. ↑ "[포토엔화보]샤이니 종현 '1위 차지, 꽃가루가 한가득'". Newsen (in Korean). May 31, 2016. Archived from the original on February 28, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  33. ↑ "종현, '더쇼' 이어 '쇼챔' 1위…벌써 2관왕[TV종합]". Nate via TV Report (in Korean). June 1, 2016. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  34. ↑ "iTunes - She Is - The First Album by JONGHYUN". iTunes Store. May 24, 2016. Archived from the original on November 27, 2017. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  35. ↑ 首張正規專輯『喜歡』台壓版 [She Is – The 1st Album (Taiwan version)]. Avex Taiwan (in Chinese). Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
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