How the Ok-pop mastermind and NewJeans are doing issues in another way

Min Hee-jin, CEO of label Ador (All Doorways One Room), in 2010 stated in an interview with an area media outlet that “bodily CDs are now not one thing to be heard however seen,” as a result of “it’s by means of the CD covers that the buyer meets new music.”

Then the supervisor of SM Leisure’s visible directing staff, Min shared her technique to beat the drop in bodily album gross sales. As visible director, Min not solely designed the album cowl and types, however she turned the entire means of planning the album — its manufacturing and its promotions — right into a single, coherent visible storytelling.

Min’s concept was not solely an answer for the file business, however a game-changer for Ok-pop. Since then, Ok-pop has advanced into the visual-centered, narrative-building music style that the world is now acquainted with. 

Rule-breaking methods

Quick ahead 12 years, Min has provided one other game-changer, this time along with her self-produced woman group, NewJeans.

As she beforehand redefined the thought of bodily CDs as the very first thing that will seize the eye of listeners, Min took it her personal means this time to catch the general public’s eye.

Skipping the standard step-by-step means of media plugs, the band’s music and content material grew to become its promotional instruments. Even earlier than unveiling the names of the 5 members, Ador launched the official music video of NewJeans’ first single, “Consideration.” The next day, the bandmates’ names have been revealed by means of the second single, “Hype Boy,” which got here with 4 music movies — one every for Minji, Hyein, Hanni and a unit version for Danielle and Haerin.

NewJeans’ launch was extremely hyped, because it additionally marked Min’s debut as an govt producer. Fairly than being pushed by such public anticipation, Min strategically took benefit of it.

“The position of a teaser is to make individuals curious, but it surely had turn into extra like inertia, and I felt it was pointless,” Min informed Joongang Ilbo in an interview printed Aug. 10. “With no info revealed in regards to the members, individuals would carry on replaying the music video, and I anticipated this may make them proceed looking about them on-line. After watching the second music video, through which the members’ names are revealed, I anticipated that individuals would come again to the primary video to look them up.”

She was proper. By the point the self-titled debut album “New Denims” was formally launched on Aug. 8, virtually everybody had heard of the group. The EP racked up the best first-week gross sales for a lady group’s debut album, with over 440,000 offered and quite a few data set on native charts. NewJeans was the primary feminine Korean group to line up all 4 of its songs atop Spotify’s each day prime songs chart on Aug. 15 and to prime the each day prime artist chart on Aug. 16.

One thing new, however pure

Whereas Min’s works have at all times hit the general public as unique, satirically, reflecting the pure fantastic thing about artists and creating a method and narrative to match them is what she focuses on.

When she pitched the conceptual concept for Women’ Era forward of the group’s debut in 2007, she centered on the notion of “ladies.” Fairly than limiting the time period to only dainty, harmless or bubbly younger ladies, she seemed for one thing that might embrace many nuances — a recent and wholesome schoolgirl picture that match the age. This was realized by means of Women’ Era’s debut single, “Into the New World,” in line with Min’s previous interviews.

In a 2013 interview about SHINee’s third LP, “Dream Woman – The Misconceptions of You,” Min stated she shunned following traits and sometimes found inventive concepts spontaneously whereas working with artists on the bottom.

Within the 2013 interview she stated, “That is how we discover one thing solely we will do. They arrive to outline SHINee’s colours, and if individuals like what they see from SHINee, that will naturally result in a brand new development.”

Min utilized the identical rule in conceptualizing NewJeans.

Freed from the heavy make-up and flamboyant style that now reigns in Ok-pop, the bandmates — all of their teenagers — seem largely in T-shirts, pants and sneakers. Their hair is darkish and straight, like bizarre teenage ladies.

NewJeans’ music can also be simple listening, consisting largely of midtempo melodies and repetitive lyrics that thump softly on the ears, which in flip permits every of the 5 voices to ring out their distinctive qualities extra clearly. 

Min additionally tried to make the general manufacturing course of pure, particularly for the band’s members.

“A very powerful factor was to discover a concord that was not compelled. Everyone knows how exhausting it’s to work with a colleague who we don’t get together with. As necessary because it was for the women to indicate synergy of their seems to be, their characters additionally needed to mingle properly,” the Ador CEO informed Joongang Ilbo.

How the person bandmates have been educated and communicated with the producers additionally occurred in a snug atmosphere. Fairly than giving them a music and instructing them to observe, she performed the music to them by means of listening classes and requested for his or her opinions. The recordings have been made with no information vocalist, so they may sing in their very own types.

Music because the idea

If it was the strategic promotion and visuals that had enchanted the general public at first, ultimately it’s the music that can make listeners stick with NewJeans. This “good music” is what Min hoped to indicate to the world as an govt producer.

In July 2019, when it was introduced that Min had joined Hybe and would launch her personal label and woman group there, some considered it skeptically, particularly as they believed Min was not an professional in music.

Showing on the TV discuss present “You Quiz” in December, Min stated she had felt burnt out after ceaseless years of working. Though she had made her finest efforts to seek out the enjoyable, she nonetheless confronted obstacles and restraints on totally realizing her concepts.

Simply as she had expanded her position to in the end set up a complete new subject of inventive directing, Min is redefining the position of a producer with Ador. Fairly than being discouraged by the skepticism, Min turned her weak spot into her power.

“An ear for choosing good music isn’t straight associated to 1’s experience in making it,” Min stated. “I knew individuals had low expectations because of the preconceptions that I used to be not a musician, and I believed this was the purpose with which I may shock them.”

NewJeans’ debut and the astonishing data the group has set to this point are sufficient to show Min’s functionality to make good music by placing collectively all the proper parts. It’s indeniable that she is expert at successfully delivering music to listeners and amplifying their expertise with the correct mix of supporting parts.

The long run position of a producer is now not restricted to coaching and debuting a Ok-pop group to achieve success out there. It now goes past that to the producer cultivating a bunch of artists who will affect and encourage their technology, in line with tradition critic Kim Do-heon. Min’s makes an attempt with NewJeans would be the begin of such a change, Kim added.

“Ok-pop idols should now carry a message and philosophy, and this isn’t one thing you possibly can power upon them by means of short-term coaching. The corporate should have the ability to educate them to suppose properly,” Kim stated.

“CEO Min Hee-jin’s NewJeans has lately been a problem. In her interview, she stated greater than something, the members should be comfortable. She is making efforts to make new makes an attempt, and such values and an environment friendly system to again it up can be necessary.”

By Choi Ji-won ([email protected])