GFriend

GFriend
GFriend in August 2017
From left to right: Sowon, Eunha, Yerin, SinB, Umji, and Yuju
Background information
Origin Seoul, South Korea
Genres
Years active 2015 (2015)–present
Labels
Website facebook.com/gfrdofficial
Members
Korean name
Hangul 여자친구
Hanja 女子親舊
Literal meaning Girlfriend
Revised Romanization Yeoja Chingu
McCune–Reischauer Yŏja Chingu

GFriend (Hangul: 여자친구; RR: Yeoja Chingu) is a six-member South Korean girl group formed by Source Music in 2015.[2] The group consists of Sowon, Yerin, Eunha, Yuju, SinB and Umji. They made their debut with the EP Season of Glass on January 16, 2015. GFriend won several 2015 female rookie awards and has garnered momentum since their debut, despite coming from a small company.[3] In 2016, they continued their success with their third EP Snowflake and won first place on many music shows with the title song "Rough". They released their first full-length album LOL in July 2016. In 2017, GFriend made a comeback with a new concept with their fourth EP The Awakening and the pre-orders for the album exceeded 100,000 units.[4] GFriend released their fifth EP Parallel in August 2017 and the extended play was re-released a month later under the title Rainbow. In 2018, GFriend held the first concert since debut called Season of GFriend[5] and later their first Asia Tour with the same name.[6]

History

2015: Season of Glass, Flower Bud, and rise in popularity

GFriend in 2015

On January 15, 2015, GFriend released their five-track debut EP Season of Glass.[7] The promotional track "Glass Bead", composed by Seo Yong-bae and Iggy, debuted at number twelve on Gaon's weekly chart.[8][9] The group started promotions for their album on January 16 on KBS's music program Music Bank.[10] According to YouTube, the M/V of "Glass Bead" ranked number nine in top ten "Most Viewed K-Pop Videos Around the World in January 2015".[11] On January 28, 2015, Billboard named GFriend as one of "Top 5 K-Pop Artists to Watch in 2015".[12]

GFriend released their second EP Flower Bud and the music video for title track "Me Gustas Tu" on July 23, 2015.[13] GFriend started their group promotions on the same date as the album release, July 23, 2015 on Mnet's M Countdown.[14]

The group garnered international attention after a fan-taken video of GFriend members continuing and completing a performance of "Me Gustas Tu" despite continuously falling on a slippery stage went viral in September 2015. The group was praised for their professionalism, especially Yuju, who fell a total of eight times and suffered a twisted finger during the performance.[15][16]

On September 17, 2015, GFriend made headlines again as the only girl group to be nominated in the 2015 MTV Europe Music Awards "Best Korean Act" category alongside boy groups B1A4, BTS, Got7, and VIXX.[17]

"Me Gustas Tu" was named the longest charting song by an idol group on Melon Top 100 with 63 weeks. "Me Gustas Tu" and "Glass Bead" were also ranked 18th and 44th respectively in the 2015 Bugs Year-End Top 100.[18]

2016: Snowflake, first music show wins and LOL

On January 25, 2016, GFriend released their third EP titled Snowflake with the title track "Rough". "Rough" is the last song to complete GFriend's high school concept trilogy along with "Glass Bead" and "Me Gustas Tu". During their fan-meeting after the EP's showcase release, GFriend announced their fandom name to be "Buddy". GFriend started the promotions for Snowflake on January 26 on SBS MTV's music program The Show. The album debuted at number ten on Billboard's World Albums Chart,[19] and the music video of "Rough" on YouTube ranked number three in top ten "Most Viewed K-Pop Videos Around the World in January 2016".[20]

GFriend on stage during KCON16 LA, on July 30, 2016.

On February 2, GFriend received their first music show win for their song "Rough" on The Show. They subsequently won another fourteen awards on the music shows including winning their first triple crowns on M Countdown, Music Bank, Show Champion, and Inkigayo. With a total of 15 wins, it placed second with the number of wins for girls groups, behind Apink who recorded a total of 17 wins with "Luv".[21][22] Their song "Rough" was also ranked first in Gaon Chart's First Half of 2016 chart rankings.[23]

On June 15 it was announced that GFriend will star alongside Mamamoo on a new season of Showtime. On June 29, Source Music started teasing for GFriend first studio album LOL, signifying at the same time "Laughing Out Loud" and "Lots of Love". LOL was released on July 11 with the title track "Navillera", and reportedly had more than 60,000 pre-ordered copies worldwide.[24] On July 19, GFriend earned their first music show win for the album's single "Navillera" on The Show.[25]

Towards the end of the year, YouTube revealed the top 10 K-pop MVs most beloved by South Koreans in 2016. "Rough" and "Navillera" were ranked 2nd and 10th respectively in that list.[26][27] "Rough" and "Navillera" were also ranked 2nd and 11th respectively in the 2016 Bugs Year-End Top 100.[28] "Rough" was also ranked 13th in Billboard's 20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2016: Critic's Picks.[29] At the end of the year show 2016 KBS Song Festival, the peak viewer ratings for the whole show were recorded during GFriend's "Rough" performance at 10.3%.[30] "Rough" also became the most downloaded song in 2016 according to Gaon Chart's 2016 Year End Download Chart.[31]

2017: The Awakening and Parallel

On February 23, 2017, Source Music announced that GFriend is set to make a comeback on March 6.[32] On February 27, 2017, it was revealed that their fourth EP will be titled The Awakening with the title track "Fingertip".[33][34] The Awakening global pre-orders exceeded 100,000 copies, which is higher than their past album LOL at 60,000.[4] Additionally, the album also debuted at No. 5 on Billboard's World Album chart.[35]

On August 1, 2017, GFriend released their fifth mini album, Parallel, with the title track "Love Whisper".[36] In September, they released the repackage album Rainbow with the title track "Summer Rain".[37]

2018–present: First solo concert, Time for the Moon Night, Japanese debut, Sunny Summer, and Memoria

GFriend started the year with their first solo concert since debut, titled Season of GFriend, on January 6 and 7, 2018.[38] GFriend signed with King Records.[39][40]

Their sixth mini-album, Time for the Moon Night, set a new record for the group, taking the top spot in 10 countries around the world on iTunes, debuting at number #1 on top Download, Album & Social chart on Korea's top chart Gaon,[41][42][43] and selling more than 76,000 copies in Korea.[44] The following week, it was reported that the group tied with Girls' Generation and TWICE as the girlgroups with the most entries in the Top 10 of the Billboard World Albums Chart, with 5 entries each.[45] In the second week of album promotion, GFriend won six awards in South Korean music programs, making "Time for the Moon Night" the first song of 2018 to win all the prizes in musical programs.[46][47]

In late May, the group boarded for Japan to promote the compilation-album "GFriend 1st Best" which was released on May 23.[48][49] GFriend Japan's debut album peak at no. 10 in Oricon weekly album chart.[50] On July 19, GFriend released a summer mini album, Sunny Summer.[51] GFriend made a debut in Billboard's Social 50 chart at no. 30, a week after the release of the album.[52]

GFriend caps off the Season of GFriend Asia Tour after the visits at Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the Philippines with encore concerts at SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium on September 9 and 8, 2018.[53] The concert tour approximately attended by 25,000 to 30,000 people.

On October 10, GFriend released their first Japanese single album, "Memoria /夜 (Time for the moon night)".[54] The single album debut at no. 5 in Oricon daily single chart.[55]

Members

  • Sowon (소원)
  • Yerin (예린)
  • Eunha (은하)
  • Yuju (유주)
  • SinB (신비)
  • Umji (엄지)

Discography

Filmography

DVDs

  • 2016 Season's Greetings "Girl Next Door"
  • GFriend, Where Are You Going?!
  • 2017 Season's Greetings
  • 2018 Season's Greetings "Season of GFriend"
  • GFriend 2018 First Concert "Season of GFriend"

Reality shows

Year Title TV Network Note
2015 GFriend! Look After Our Dog Skytv 12 episodes[56]
One Fine Day MBC Music Filmed on Cebu, Philippines, 4 episodes[57]
2016 GFriend - Where R U Going?! iMBC, V Live, MBCkpop Filmed on Jeju Island, 7 episodes[58]
MAMAMOO x GFriend Showtime MBC Every 1 8 episodes[59]
GFriend Loves Europe skyTravel Filmed in Austria, Hungary, and Slovenia, 8 episodes[60]
2017 The Friends in Adriatic Sea KStar, Cube TV, E! Asia Filmed in Italy and Slovenia, 5 episodes[61]

Concerts

Headlining tours

GFriend 1st Asia Tour: Season of GFriend

Date City Country Venue Attendance
January 6, 2018 Seoul South Korea Olympic Hall 6,000[62]
January 7, 2018
February 28, 2018 New Taipei City Taiwan Xinzhuang Gymnasium 5,000[63]
August 26, 2018 Quezon City Philippines Kia Theatre 3,000
September 1, 2018 Hong Kong Hong Kong Kowloonbay International Trade & Exhibition Centre 4,000
September 8, 2018 Seoul South Korea SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium 10,000[64]
September 9, 2018

Awards and nominations

They won their first award, "Best New Female Artist", on November 7, 2015 at Melon Music Awards.[65] Their first music show win was on The Show with "Rough" on February 2, 2016, after which the group went on to receive a total of 15 music show wins during the song's promotion. During their "Navillera" promotions they got a total of 14 music show wins, making them the girl group with most wins gained within a year with a total of 29 wins.[66]

References

  1. ↑ "GFRIEND artist page". King Records.
  2. ↑ "New Rookie Group GFriend Makes Debut with ′Glass Bead′ MV". Mwave. January 16, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  3. ↑ "GFriend Spills on SNSD Comparisons, Role Models and More". Newsen. January 31, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Min, Susan (March 6, 2017). "GFriend′s ′The Awakening′ Sells Over 100,000 Copies in Pre-Sales". mwave.interest.me. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Gfriend to hold first solo concerts". Yonhap News. Nov 28, 2017. Retrieved Jan 11, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Gfriend to hold first-ever Asia tour". Yonhap News. Jan 11, 2018. Retrieved Jan 11, 2018.
  7. ↑ "여자친구, 데뷔앨범 하이라이트 메들리 공개..'소녀감성'" (in Korean). Chosun. January 14, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  8. ↑ "여자친구, 오늘 데뷔 앨범 발표 '풋풋함 물씬'". SBS. January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  9. ↑ "South Korea's Gaon weekly chart for January 11-January 17, 2015" (in Korean). Gaon Chart. January 17, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  10. ↑ Kim Ha-jin. "여자친구, 데뷔곡 '유리구슬' 티저+뮤비 유튜브 조회수 20만 돌파 '대박'". Herald Economy (in Korean). Herald Corporation. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Most Viewed K-Pop Videos in America & Around the World: January 2015". February 11, 2015.
  12. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (January 28, 2015). "Top 5 K-Pop Artists to Watch in 2015".
  13. ↑ "GFriend reveals their new song "오늘부터 우리는" on Mnet M Countdown". StarNews. July 23, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  14. ↑ "GFriend reveals new song "오늘부터 우리는" on Mnet M Countdown". StarNews. July 23, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  15. ↑ Regan, Helen (September 7, 2015). "This Video of a K-Pop Singer Falling 8 Times in 1 Song Will Inspire You to Keep Going No Matter What". Time. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  16. ↑ Jang Mi-ran. "GFriend′s Yuju Talks About Viral Video of Her Falling on Stage". Mwave. CJ E&M Corp. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  17. ↑ "여자친구, MTV EMA 韓최우수 가수 부문 후보..'걸그룹 유일'" (in Korean). September 17, 2015.
  18. ↑ "2015 벅스 연말 종합 TOP100". 벅스PD. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  19. ↑ "GFriend moves into Top 10 of Billboard World Album Chart with 'Snowflake'". February 3, 2016. Archived from the original on May 5, 2017.
  20. ↑ "Most Viewed K-Pop Videos in America, Around the World: January 2016". February 11, 2016.
  21. ↑ Park Se-jin (March 2, 2016). "G-Friend dominates Korean music scene". Aju Business Daily. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  22. ↑ jhkim@ktimes.com (March 2, 2016). "It's GFriend Time". koreatimes.co.kr. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
  23. ↑ Jackson, Julie (July 17, 2016). "GFriend dominates Gaon Chart in first half of 2016". The Korea Herald. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  24. ↑ Kim Yu-young (June 30, 2016). "GFriend releases teaser photos for new album". koreaherald.com. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
  25. ↑ Lee Gyu-yeon (July 20, 2016). "[화보] 여자친구, '너 그리고 나'로 컴백 후 첫 1위…'눈물 펑펑'" [[Pictorial] GFriend, first number one after 'You and I' comeback... "crying tears"]. Sports Hankook (in Korean). Retrieved July 20, 2016.
  26. ↑ Kim Mi-hwa (December 8, 2016). "트와이스, 2016 유튜브 韓인기 뮤비 1위..여자친구 2위" (in Korean). StarNews. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  27. ↑ "2016 최고 인기 뮤직 비디오 (국내)". YouTube Rewind (한국). December 7, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  28. ↑ "2016 벅스 연말 종합 TOP100". 벅스PD. December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  29. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff; Oak, Jessica (December 22, 2016). "20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2016: Critic's Picks". Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  30. ↑ Jang Kyung-suk (December 30, 2016). "KBS '가요대축제' 시청률 6.5%, SBS '가요대전' 시청률 살짝 못 미쳐" (in Korean). NAVER Corp., MoneyS. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
  31. ↑ "2016년 Download Chart". Gaon Chart. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  32. ↑ "GFriend to release new EP next month". Yonhap News Agency. February 23, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  33. ↑ "GFriend gears up for triumphant return". Yonhap News Agency. March 3, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
  34. ↑ ""리즈 경신"..컴백 앞둔 여자친구, 컴백 티저 깜짝 공개" (in Korean). star.mt.co.kr. February 27, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  35. ↑ "GFriend Earn First Top 5 Entry on World Albums With 'The Awakening'". Billboard. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  36. ↑ "GFriend drops new EP, joins summer music chart battle". Yonhap News Agency. August 1, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  37. ↑ "Repackaged albums: Better value or shameless money grab?". Yonhap News Agency. September 10, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  38. ↑ "Gfriend to hold first solo concerts". Yonhap News Agency. November 28, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  39. ↑ "'Powerful' GFriend, will debut in Japan in May..." Naver. February 23, 2018. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  40. ↑ "GFriend plans Japan debut in May". Yonhap News Agency. February 23, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  41. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  42. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  43. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  44. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  45. ↑ "GFriend Score Fifth Top 10 Entry on World Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  46. ↑ "여자친구 '밤' 음악방송 6관왕 '올킬'…2018년 첫 그랜드슬램 쾌거" (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  47. ↑ "[SW이슈] 여자친구, 거침없이 음방 6관왕… 끄떡없는 대세 행보" (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  48. ↑ "GFRIEND「今日から私たちは…日本デビュー」　韓国で今年初の"グランドスラム"達成". ORICON NEWS (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  49. ↑ "[Oh! 재팬] 여자친구, 빗속 日 정식 데뷔.."응원해준 팬들 기뻐"" (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  50. ↑ "週間　アルバムランキング". ORICON NEWS (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  51. ↑ "GFriend rolls out plans for its 'Sunny Summer'". Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  52. ↑ "Social 50". billboard.com. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  53. ↑ "GFriend confirms Sept. 8-9 concert to cap off Asia tour". Korean Herald. June 21, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  54. ↑ "GFRIENDが日本1stシングルリリース、ジャケット3種＆新アー写公開". Natalie Music (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  55. ↑ "デイリー　シングルランキング". oricon.com. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  56. ↑ "여자친구, 데뷔 2달 만에 단독 리얼리티 출격 '강아지를 부탁해'" (in Korean). heraldk.com. March 22, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  57. ↑ "'여자친구의 어느멋진날' 여자친구 숙소 방송 '최초' 공개" (in Korean). news.zum.com. November 17, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  58. ↑ "여자친구, 몸빼 바지 입고 제주도 감귤 소녀로 변신 '어디 감수광'" (in Korean). pop.heraldcorp.com. February 2, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  59. ↑ "'쇼타임' 마마무X여자친구, 소녀들의 상큼함이란 이런 것" (in Korean). entertain.naver.com. July 1, 2016. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  60. ↑ Lee, Jung-ha (November 2, 2016). "'여자친구가 사랑한 유럽' 제작발표회 개최" (in Korean). ajunews.com. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  61. ↑ "여자친구, 데뷔 1000일 우정 여행…29일 이탈리아 출국" (in Korean). Naver. October 16, 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
  62. ↑ "여자친구, 첫 단독콘서트 3분 만에 전석 매진..'퍼펙트'" (in Korean). OSEN. December 9, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  63. ↑ "여자친구, 대만 첫 단독 콘서트 성황…'5천여팬 열광'" (in Korean). Sports Chosun. March 1, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  64. ↑ "여자친구, 앙코르 콘서트 2분만에 8000석 전석매진" (in Korean). OSEN. July 28, 2018. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
  65. ↑ Chung Joo-won (20 November 2016). "BTS, EXO, TWICE top 2016 Melon Music Awards". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  66. ↑ "[뮤직톡톡]'걸그룹 새 역사'…여자친구, #29관왕 #트리플 #더블텐" (in Korean). entertain.naver.com. 14 August 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
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