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Wonder Girls
For the American rock band, see The Wondergirls.

The Wonder Girls (Korean: 원더걸스) are a South Korean girl group.[1][2] They are produced by singer-songwriter Park Jin-Young and are signed to his talent agency, JYP Entertainment.[2] Each of the five original members were selected through auditions. Debuting in early 2007, they became popular in the fall of that year with the song "Tell Me."[3]

Since then they have scored 3 consecutive #1 hit singles with "Tell Me", "So Hot", and "Nobody",[4] and in 2008, won two Daesangs ("Artist of the Year" Awards).[5][6]

History

Debut

Wonder Girls performing "Irony" at Hanyang University in May 2007. From left to right: So Hee, Hyeona, Ye Eun, Sun Ye and Sun Mi.

As a group, the Wonder Girls were introduced through the program called MTV Wonder Girls which was filmed and directed by MTV. The first four episodes outlined the characteristics and profiles of each member and showcased their schedules for the day. Not long after selecting Ye Eun as the fifth member, the Wonder Girls had their showcase in the MTV Studio. In the showcase, they performed a cover of "Don't Cha" by the Pussycat Dolls and their own songs, such as "Irony" and "미안한 마음" ("A Sorry Heart"). Sun Ye did the solo by singing Destiny's Child's "Stand Up for Love" while Hyun-a showed off her dancing skills with a solo dance. The other three members — Ye Eun, Sun Mi and So Hee — performed a cover of Janet Jackson's "Together Again".

The Wonder Girls officially debuted in early 2007 on MBC's 쇼! 음악 중심 ("Show! Music Core"), singing "Irony", the hip-hop single from their debut mini-album, The Wonder Begins. The mini-album sold 11,454 copies in 2007.[7] The Wonder Girls official fanclub was established, with the name of "Wonderful".

Throughout the rest of 2007, however, members of the Wonder Girls were beset by various injuries and health problems. On June 25, Sohee was sidelined for a month after tearing a knee ligament falling off a motorcycle during the filming of 뜨거운 것이 좋아 ("I Like It Hot").[8] The remaining four members continued performing until late July, when Hyuna was removed from the group by her parents due to their concern over her health—in particular, chronic gastroenteritis and fainting spells.[3]

Rise to popularity

Wonder Girls performing "Tell Me" at Halla University

In the autumn of 2007, Good Entertainment, the talent agency sent their trainee Yubin to JYP Entertainment as a replacement for Hyuna. She made her debut three days later in the group's live performance of "Tell Me" on Music Bank .[9]

Their first full-length album, The Wonder Years, was released the following week with "Tell Me." Due to the last-minute addition of Yubin, the album version does not contain her part. However, the performance version of the song was reworked to include a bridge with rapping by Yubin. The single was a hit and reached number one on various Korean television and internet music charts, including KBS's Music Bank.[citation needed]

The choreography for the song was simple and widely imitated: by October, many fan performances of the dance circulated on video sharing sites such as YouTube and Daum,[10], including one by a group of policemen who were eventually profiled on SBS's Star King. The dance became so popular it was known as the "Tell Me Virus" and earned them the title of 'Korea's Little Sisters'.[citation needed] Videos of the dance came from fans in France and the Philippines, and the song also went to Number 1 in Thailand.[3]

The Wonder Girls had an extensive promotional schedule for their album and in late 2007 they began performing the second single from the album, "이 바보" ("You Fool"). They made numerous appearances on variety and game shows, sang live on radio, at music festivals, on music shows, and in special joint performances with other groups such as Big Bang. MTV has also aired three seasons of The Wonder Life, a reality TV series starring the girls.

2008: More singles & continued popularity

Wonder Girls performing "So Hot" at the M Super Concert in June 2008.

The Wonder Girls returned to Korea in spring of 2008. In May a picture of each member was released over five days starting with Ye-eun and ending with Sohee. A preview track from the upcoming single was then released. There were rumours that past member Hyuna would be returning to the group; JYP Entertainment confirmed that this was not the case.[11]

Their new single, "So Hot", was released on May 22, 2008; the song topped online charts soon after.[12][13] They then performed in mid-2008 on MBC's Music Core, performing "So Hot" and "This Time". The full single was released soon after containing the title track, the rap version of "Tell Me", "This Time", and "You're Out". Due to vocal cord problems, Yubin temporarily lip-synched her parts under doctor's orders[13].

Wonder Girls performing "Nobody" at the 2008 BICHE opening ceremony in October.

The full music video for "Nobody" was released in the early autumn of 2008, and the single was digitally released at the same time. They performed the following weekend on Music Core, Music Bank, and Inkigayo. The song went to #1 on KBS' Music Bank, staying there for four consecutive weeks,[14] and also won Cyworld's "Song of the Month" award in September and October 2008.[15] Like "Tell Me", "Nobody" also sparked a dance craze.[16]

At the 2008 MNet KM Music Festival Awards, the Wonder Girls won three awards, including "Song of the Year" and "Best Music Video" for "Nobody", and "Best Female Group".[6] The group also won an award at the 2008 Golden Disk Awards for high digital sales.[17] At the 18th Seoul Music Awards, the Wonder Girls won the Daesang ("Artist of the Year" award) for "Nobody", along two other awards.[5]

Overseas promotional activities

Wonder Girls at a May 2008 fan meeting in Bangkok.

The Wonder Girls have had several showcases in China shortly after their debut in 2007 and have been receiving Chinese language lessons.[18]

In February 2008, the Wonder Girls joined their producer Park Jin-young for his month-long concert tour through Korea and the United States (including New York City and Los Angeles) as special guests, and took the opportunity to film the music video for "Wishing on a Star" while in New York City.[19] Park had stated that the concerts were also meant to be a showcase for his other protégés, such as Min, G-Soul, and Lim Jeong Hee.[20]

In September 2008, the Wonder Girls was selected as a top girl group by Virgin Media, which put them amidst girl groups such as the Pussycat Dolls, Girls Aloud, and Danity Kane.[21] At the end of 2008 the Wonder Girls had earned ₩12 billion (equivalent to $9 million US) as a group.[22]

2009: International tour and American debut

The Wonder Girls tour started on February 28, 2009 in Bangkok, Thailand. The Wonder Girls, along with mentor JYP, then held concerts in the United States, visiting Los Angeles, La Mirada, and New York City.[23] The group then returned to South Korea, holding concerts in late March.[24] After the end of the tour, the Wonder Girls debuted a music video for "Now", a cover of Fin.K.L's single from their third album. Created for a commercial for LG, a version featuring only the dance was released online on April 9, 2009.[25]

Wonder Girls started their official MySpace Music account.[4] The page confirmed that the group would launch in the United States with the official release of an English version of "Nobody" sometime this summer.

In June 2009, JYP Entertainment announced that the Wonder Girls would be joining the Jonas Brothers on the North American leg of the Jonas Brothers World Tour 2009.[26] The company also announced that "Nobody" would be the first English single, followed by "Tell Me",[26] and that an English album would be forthcoming.[27] It was later revealed that in order to concentrate on their American debut, both So-hee and Sun-mi dropped out of high school as it was not possible to attend while in the United States.[28][29]

The Wonder Girls released an English version of their single "Nobody" on June 26, 2009

Member profiles

A former member, Hyun-a, left shortly before the release of "Tell Me" due to health complications.[3]

Yubin

  • Birth name: Kim Yubin (Hangul: 김유빈; Hanja: 金瑜斌)
  • Date of birth: (1988-10-04) October 4, 1988 (age 35)[30][note 1]
  • Additional Notes :
    • Made a cameo in 2PM's 10 Points out of 10 music video and in MBC's sitcom, 'That Person Is Coming'.
    • Featured in Chun G's song 'Weak Man' and Kim Bum Soo's song, 'Do You Know That'. Also featured on Andy's first album.
    • Wrote the rap for her part in Kim Bum Soo's song.

Ye Eun (Yenny)

  • Birth name: Park Ye Eun (Hangul: 박예은; Hanja:朴譽恩)
  • Date of birth: (1989-05-26) May 26, 1989 (age 35)[30] [note 1]
  • Additional Notes:
    • Featured in H-eugene's song "Baby I Love You" and One Two's song "Bad Girl".
    • Composed and wrote the lyrics for "Saying I Love You" and "For Wonderful"

Sun Ye (Sun)

  • Birth name: Min Sunye (Hangul: 민선예; Hanja: 閔先藝)
  • Date of birth: (1989-08-12) August 12, 1989 (age 35)[30] [note 1]
  • Additional Notes:
    • Featured in Mighty Mouth's song "Energy".
    • Sang "일월지가" ("Sun and Moon") for "Han Sung Byul Gok".
    • Composed the "Man Won" song.
    • Featured in Lee Byul's music video 'Forever'.
    • Featured in JYP's song 'Breakup In The Daylight'.

Sun Mi (Mimi)

Sohee

  • Birth name: Ahn Sohee (Hangul: 안소희; Hanja: 安昭熙)
  • Date of birth: (1992-06-27) June 27, 1992 (age 32)[30] [note 1]
  • Additional notes:
    • Sohee was in the movie I Like It Hot.
    • Featured as the lead actress in 8Eight's music video "Without a Heart".
    • Made a cameo in MBC's sitcom, 'That Person Is Coming'.

Discography

Wonder Girls discography
Singles"Irony", "미안한 마음(It's Not Love/A Sorry Heart)"
Wonder Girls discography
Singles"Tell Me", "이 바보" ("You Fool"), "Wishing On A Star"
Wonder Girls discography
Singles"So Hot", "This Time"
Wonder Girls discography
Singles"Nobody"

Television Shows

  • Wonder Girls Season 1 (2006)
  • Wonder Girls Season 2 (2007)
  • Wonder Girls Season 3 (2008)
  • Wonder Bakery (2008)
  • Welcome To Wonderland (2009)

Awards

Year Awards
2007
  • Cyworld Digital Music Awards (February): Rookie of the Month[35]
  • Cyworld Digital Music Awards (October): Song of the Month ("Tell Me")[36]
  • 2007 Mnet KM Music Festival: Best New Female Group[37]
  • 2007 National Assembly of South Korea Pop Culture & Media Awards: Pop Music Award[38]
  • Korean Music Arts Festival: Female Photogenic Award[39]
  • 2007 Golden Disk Awards: Digital Music Bonsang[40]
  • 2007 Golden Disk Awards: Popularity Award[40]
2008
  • 17th Seoul Music Awards: Rookie of the Year[41]
  • 2008 Nick Korea Kids Choice Awards: Best Female Singer
  • 20th Korean Producers & Directors Awards: Best Singer Award[42]
  • 5th Korean Music Awards: Best Dance & Electronic Song Award[43]
  • Cyworld Digital Music Awards (June): Song of the Month ("So Hot")[44]
  • M.Net 20s Choice: Hot Schoolgirl (Sohee)
  • M.Net 20s Choice: Hot Club Music ("So Hot")
  • Cyworld Digital Music Awards (September): Song of the Month ("Nobody")
  • Cyworld Digital Music Awards (October): Song of the Month ("Nobody")
  • 2008 Mnet KM Music Festival: Best Female Group Award[6]
  • 2008 Mnet KM Music Festival: Best Music Video Award ("Nobody")[6]
  • 2008 Mnet KM Music Festival: Song of the Year ("Nobody")[6]
  • 9th Korea Visual Arts Festival: Most Photogenic Singer Award
  • 25th Korea Best Dresser Awards: Best Dresser Award for Singer Category
  • 23rd Golden Disk Awards: Digital Bonsang ("Nobody")[17]
  • 2008 Korea Fashion & Design Awards: Style Icon of the Year
2009
  • 2009 Asia Model Festival Awards: Asia Star Award
  • 18th High1 Seoul Music Awards: Daesang Award ("Nobody")[5]
  • 18th High1 Seoul Music Awards: Bonsang Award ("Nobody")[5]
  • 18th High1 Seoul Music Awards: Digital Music Award ("Nobody")[5]
  • 6th Annual Korean Music Awards: Group of the Year

References

  1. ^ Yi, Dong-jun (2007-03-13). "원더걸스, "남자 가수로 구성된 팬클럽 있다!"" (in Korean). Paran Media. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  2. ^ a b "《On Air》代言人神秘美女5人组" (in Chinese). Eastday. 2007-03-07. Retrieved 2007-03-19.
  3. ^ a b c d Yang, Jeff. ASIAN POP: Next stop, Wonderland. San Francisco Chronicle. April 9, 2008. Retrieved March 2, 2009.
  4. ^ a b Wonder Girls on MySpace. Retrieved March 2, 2009.
  5. ^ a b c d e 원더걸스, `서울가요대상` 대상 (Wonder Girls, "Seoul Music Awards" Artist of the Year). Joins.com. February 12, 2009. Retrieved February 12, 2009.
  6. ^ a b c d e Kim, Shi-eun. ‘MKMF 3관왕’ 원더걸스 “변치 않는 원더걸스 되겠다” (MKMF Triple Winner Wonder Girls "Will Never Change"). HanKyung.com. November 16, 2008. Retrieved November 16, 2008.
  7. ^ a b "MIAK: 2007 Sales Summary" (in Korean). Music Industry Association of Korea. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  8. ^ Park, Eun-kyung (2007-06-25). "원더걸스 소희, 촬영 중 오토바이 사고" (in Korean). Joynews24. Retrieved 2007-08-27.
  9. ^ Kim, Won-gyum (2007-09-05). "원더걸스, 새멤버 공개..19세 김유빈" (in Korean). Star News. Retrieved 2007-10-08.
  10. ^ "[2007연예결산]올해의 사자성어 '원더걸스(原多渴水)'" (in Korean). Gonews. 2007-12-31. Retrieved 2007-01-19.
  11. ^ Kim, Hyeong-u (2008-05-21). "원더걸스 전 멤버 현아,복귀" (in Korean). Paran. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  12. ^ "원더걸스 'So Hot', 온라인 3관왕". Retrieved 2008-05-29.
  13. ^ a b "Wonder Girls' Yubin Suffers Vocal Cord Injury". KBS World. 2008-05-28. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
  14. ^ 원더걸스 JYP 선배 비 제치고 뮤직뱅크 1위 등극. Newsen/Joins.com. October 24, 2008. Retrieved November 6, 2008.
  15. ^ 원더걸스 2달 연속 싸이월드 어워드 수상 ‘총5회 빅뱅과 동률’. Newsen/Joins.com. November 6, 2008. Retrieved November 6, 2008.
  16. ^ Nobody sparks dance craze. The Straits Times. May 17, 2009. Retrieved June 13, 2009.
  17. ^ a b Jin, Hyang-hui.추락하는 `골든디스크상`…10만장으로 `티격태격`? (Falling "Golden Disk Awards"...Bickering over 100,000?). Maeil Gyungjae. December 10, 2008. Retrieved December 10, 2008.
  18. ^ Kim, Gyeong Min (2007-04-11). "완벽한 그녀들, 원더걸스 중국 쇼케이스 현장" (in Korean). ETN. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
  19. ^ "Wonder Girls to Enter U.S. Market". KBS WORLD. 2007-12-20. Retrieved 2007-12-31.
  20. ^ Yang, Jeff (2008-04-09). "Next stop, Wonderland". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
  21. ^ Girl groups: the ones to watch. Virgin Media. Retrieved January 19, 2009.
  22. ^ 원더걸스 `돈방석` 올 120억 벌었다 (Wonder Girls "Cash Cow", Have Earned 120 Billion). HanKyung.com. November 4, 2008. Retrieved November 6, 2008.
  23. ^ [http://www.asianjournal.com/fil-am-news/3-filamnews/1445-the-jyp-tour-2009-with-jyp-and-wondergirls.html The JYP Tour 2009 with JYP and Wondergirls. Asian Journal. March 18, 2009. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
  24. ^ Wonder Girls Pull Off First Concert With Success. The Korea Times. March 29, 2009. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
  25. ^ Kim, Hyeong-woo. 원더걸스 ‘나우’ 미공개 댄스버전 뮤비 공개 (Wonder Girls "Now" Dance Version MV Debuts). Joins.com. April 9, 2009. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
  26. ^ a b Template:Ko icon Kim, Hyeong-wu. 원더걸스 미국 데뷔 성공 가능성 얼마나 될까 (What are the Wonder Girls' Chances of Succeding in American Debut?). Joins.com/Newsen. June 5, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009.
  27. ^ Wondergirls to Make US Debut. The Korea Times. June 6, 2009. June 13, 2009.
  28. ^ Template:Ko icon Jin, Hyang-hee. `원더걸스` 소희-선미, 고교 자퇴.. 왜? (Wonder Girls' So-hee & Sun-mi, High School Dropouts...Why?). Maeil Kyeongjae. June 14, 2009. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  29. ^ Han, Sang-hee. Two Members of Wonder Girls Quit School for US Debut. The Korea Times. June 15, 2009. Retrieved June 18, 2009.
  30. ^ a b c d e "Wonder Girls' official profile" (in Korean).
  31. ^ "MIAK: 2008. 05. Sales Summary" (in Korean). Music Industry Association of Korea. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
  32. ^ a b 6월 가요음반 판매량집계. Recording Industry Association of Korea. Retrieved July 16, 2008.
  33. ^ 8월 가요음반 판매량집계. Recording Industry Association of Korea. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  34. ^ a b 6월 가요음반 판매량집계
  35. ^ Park, Eun-gyeong (2007-03-20). "원더걸스, 디지털 뮤직어워드 '신인상' 수상" (in Korean). Joynews24. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  36. ^ Nam, An-u (2007-11-19). "원더걸스, 상복 터졌다…'10월의 노래'상도 접수" (in Korean). Mydaily. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  37. ^ Kang, Ji-hun (2007-11-17). "'텔미' 열풍 원더걸스, MKMF 신인상 수상" (in Korean). Mydaily. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  38. ^ Jung, Gyeong-hwa (2007-11-29). "원더걸스, 2007 국회대상 대중음악상 수상" (in Korean). Mydaily. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  39. ^ Choi, Hyeon-u (2007-12-07). "대한민국 영상대전, 유재석-원더걸스 등 '포토제닉'" (in Korean). OSEN. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  40. ^ a b Shim, Jae-geol (2007-12-14). "[골든디스크] 원더걸스, 본상-인기상 '텔미'로 싹쓸이" (in Korean). Sportsseoul. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  41. ^ "원더걸스, 서울가요대상 신인상 수상!" (in Korean). Joongang. 2008-01-31. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  42. ^ Ahn, Hyo-eun (2008-02-28). "원더걸스, '한국PD대상' 가수부문 수상" (in Korean). Mydaily. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  43. ^ Gil, Hye-seong (2008-03-05). "원더걸스, '텔미'로 한국대중음악상 '최우수 댄스&일렉트로닉 노래상' 수상" (in Korean). Starnews. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  44. ^ Park, Se-yeon (2008-07-09). "원더걸스 이달의 노래 영예.. '텔미' 넘은 '소핫' 열풍 뜨거워" (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved 2008-07-10.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e Note: ages are reckoned in the standard western manner. In many East Asian regions, age is reckoned differently; see East Asian age reckoning. As a result, certain references aimed at Korean readership may have ages listed that differ by one to two years from ages calculated from the birth dates listed. This does not indicate an error in either this article or the reference, but rather a cultural difference in the way that ages are determined.
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