''The Collection: Story Op.2'' (

Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The le ...

: 소품집 : 이야기 Op.2; RR: ''Sopunjib: Iyagi Op.2'') is the second compilation album by South Korean singer-songwriter Jonghyun, following his first compilation album '' Story Op.1''. It was released on April 24, 2017, by

SM Entertainment SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency. It is one of South Korea's largest entertainment companies where it was established in 1995 by record executive and record producer Lee Soo-man. The company ha ...

, and was the last album to be released during Jonghyun's lifetime.

Background

Jonghyun's first compilation album '' Story Op.1'' was released in 2015, consisting of songs Jonghyun had written for his radio show ''Blue Night''. On April 18, 2017,

announced that the follow-up, ''Story Op.2'', would be released digitally on April 24, with a physical release the next day. ''Story Op.2'' contains five previously released songs. Four of these songs ("1000", "Just Chill", "Love is So Nice", "Our Season") were initially revealed between July–October 2016 during the "Man Who Composes" corner on Jonghyun's ''Blue Night'' radio broadcasts. Another previously released track ("Elevator") was revealed on the second episode of

Mnet M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

's ''Monthly Live Connection'' in 2015 and later released online. Rearranged versions were included on the album, in addition to five new tracks. All of the songs were written by Jonghyun. The lead single " Lonely" is a duet with Girls' Generation member

Taeyeon Kim Tae-yeon (; born March 9, 1989), known mononymously as Taeyeon, is a South Korean singer. She debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-selling artists in South Korea and on ...

. Jonghyun and Taeyeon had previously collaborated in 2014 as a part of their record label's project

SM The Ballad SM the Ballad (stylized as S.M. THE BALLAD) is a South Korean ballad project group composed of singers from SM Entertainment. The group released its first extended play, ''Miss You'', in 2010 and its second extended play, ''Breath'', in 2014. H ...

with the Korean-language version of the song "Breath".

Composition

The album is structured according to the flow of the four seasons. Lead single "Lonely" is a midtempo piano

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

with a "soft, snapping beat" and "twinkling synths". It describes feelings of intense loneliness. "1000" features acoustic guitar and romantic lyrics. "Just Chill" was inspired by Jonghyun's inability to take a break and rest. "Love is So Nice" belongs to the R&B genre. "Blinking Game" is a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

song about the intimacy of making eye contact with a lover. "Elevator" is a ballad with a piano-guided melody, stripped back production and strings. In the lyrics, Jonghyun describes not being able to meet his eyes in the elevator mirror due to deep self-loathing and loneliness. "Let Me Out" is a "guttural" power ballad with anguished lyrics. It alternates between heavier and softer moments, and features "heavily Auto-Tuned belts and piercing high notes" over "throbbing beats, distorted strings, and grating synths". "Fireplace" is a

neo soul Neo soul (sometimes called progressive soul) is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from soul and contempo ...

song about a painful break-up. "Our Season" is a midtempo pop song that describes Jonghyun's affection for winter and its unexpected warmth. Bonus track "Where Are You" is a humorous song in which Jonghyun bemoans his lack of a romantic partner, complaining that even cockroaches have lovers, but not him.

Promotion

A music video for "Lonely" was released simultaneously with the album. Jonghyun did not promote on music shows, but performed "Lonely" with Taeyeon on ''

You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook ''You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook'' () is a South Korean talk show and live music television program airing from April 24 2009 until July 22nd 2022. It was hosted by You Hee-yeol, also known as his one-man band, Toy. The program has aired since April ...

''. He performed songs from the album at his concert The Agit: The Letter in May–July 2017.

Commercial performance

''Story Op.2'' debuted at number two on South Korea's Gaon Album Chart. It was the sixth best-selling album of April 2017, selling over 37,000 copies. In the United States, ''Story Op.2'' debuted at number seven on the '' Billboard'' World Albums chart, becoming Jonghyun's fourth top ten entry. Following Jonghyun's death in December 2017, it re-entered the Gaon Album Chart at number ten, and achieved a new peak of number five on World Albums, selling almost 1,000 copies in the week ending December 21.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2017 compilation albums Kim Jong-hyun (singer) compilation albums SM Entertainment compilation albums Korean-language compilation albums