''Us'' (stylized in
all caps
In typography, all caps (short for "all capitals") refers to text or a font in which all letters are capital letters, for example: "THIS TEXT IS IN ALL CAPS". All caps may be used for emphasis (for a word or phrase). They are commonly seen in l ...
) is the first
mini-album by South Korean singer
Moon Jong-up
Moon Jong-up (; born February 6, 1995), also known mononymously as Jongup, is a South Korean singer, dancer, and actor. He debuted as an idol in the six-member group B.A.P under TS Entertainment, where he served as a sub-vocalist from 2012 to i ...
. It was released on July 8, 2021, by Big Ocean ENM and distributed by
Sony Music Korea. Following the release of his debut
single album
''Single Album'' is the fourteenth studio album by the American punk rock band NOFX, released on February 26, 2021. It is the band's first studio album in nearly five years, since 2016’s '' First Ditch Effort'', marking the longest gap betwee ...
''Headache'' and its title track in May 2020, Moon focused on defining his musical direction, which resulted in him working on the record for a year. He crafted an album which incorporates pop, hip hop, and dance music.
Preceding the mini-album's availability, "Find" featuring Moon Sujin was issued as a single a week prior. Following a series of photo and video teasers, ''Us'' and its lead single of the same name were concurrently released. Moon promoted the song by performing it on
music chart programs across various television networks. The mini-album peaked at number 47 on South Korea's national
Gaon Album Chart.
Background
Moon released his debut solo
single album
''Single Album'' is the fourteenth studio album by the American punk rock band NOFX, released on February 26, 2021. It is the band's first studio album in nearly five years, since 2016’s '' First Ditch Effort'', marking the longest gap betwee ...
''Headache'' and its title track on May 7, 2020.
He attributed the long gap between releases to working with his agency to mold his musical direction, expressing regret in the greed to release his debut single with a new company.
With the inclusion of songs demonstrating diverse stories and genres, he intended to "show my colors as a solo artist".
He described ''Us'' as a his real start because it "has more of 'me' in it." The album title was chosen to reflect the songs' theme of a love confession.
The project was recorded over the course of a year and Moon participated in the songwriting of the new material.
He was also involved in the making of the album cover, as well as bringing together the music video and dance teams. Feeling a gradual rise in his weight, the singer lost in preparation for the forthcoming promotional cycle.
Moon's first performance of "Photo" took place while he was a member of
B.A.P
B.A.P (; an acronym for Best Absolute Perfect) was a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 under TS Entertainment.
B.A.P made their musical debut with the single "Warrior" on January 26, 2012, followed by the release of their debut EP ''Warrio ...
during their Live on Earth 2016 World Tour. It had not previously been issued on any of the group's albums. When discussions for the track's inclusion on his solo record occurred, he thought about having former bandmate
Bang Yong-guk
Bang Yong-guk (born March 31, 1990), also known mononymously as Yongguk, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and best-selling author who served as the leader of boy group B.A.P up until his departure from TS Enterta ...
take part in the song. Towards the end of Bang's tenure in
mandatory military service, the pair communicated about constructing the piece.
Moon crafted a version with a new arrangement and, following Bang's discharge, they further developed the song; it was re-recorded with Bang providing a rap verse.
After making his debut as a soloist, Moon contacted Moon Soojin, both of whom are alumni from the same middle school, and learned that she also ventured in music. The two became acquainted and jointly worked on "Find".
They crafted the song with MIN, Moon Jong-up's longtime friend.
Moon worked with songwriter
Ryan S. Jhun, who previously co-wrote
IU's "
Celebrity
Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...
" and
Oh My Girl
Oh My Girl (, also stylized as OH MY GIRL and OMG) is a South Korean girl group formed by WM Entertainment. The group is composed of six members: Hyojung, Mimi, YooA, Seunghee, Yubin and Arin. Originally an eight-piece group, JinE left the gro ...
's "Dolphin".
The singer received songs from Jhun and chose "Us" as his favorite among them.
When penning the lyrics, Moon wanted to "embody the feeling of when someone confesses to the other and the progression of their relationship."
The song was then completed with the composers.
In 2019, Moon was a contestant on the survival reality show ''Signhere'', where he collaborated with the MBA crew and met rapper EK. Moon contacted him to work on "Go Up" together.
Music structure
''Us'' comprises various music genres, including pop, hip hop, and dance music.
The record opens with "Photo", which features Bang Yong-guk. "Find" is an
R&B song that features vocalist Moon Sujin.
It is a slow-tempo piece with a "chill vibe" that incorporates rough drums over a soft piano. The lyrics convey the yearning to form relationships with others, including family and friends. "Us" is a minimalist
Scandipop Nordic popular music, also referred to as Scandinavian popular music, includes pop and rock music of the Nordic countries. The musical scene is known for its biggest bands like ABBA, Roxette, A-ha, Michael Learns to Rock, Ace of Base, Aqua, and B ...
track with R&B vocals centered around a guitar and
bass groove.
The mini-album closes with the pop-
funk number "Headache" featuring Yunhway, which Moon described as refreshing and bright.
Release and promotion
On June 24, 2021, Big Ocean ENM posted a teaser poster across
social networking services announcing Moon's forthcoming mini-album entitled ''Us''. A promotion scheduler was published the following day to initiate a countdown leading up to the album's release. For the next two consecutive days, the agency uploaded separate pre-review videos: in the first, Moon's former bandmates
Yoo Young-jae
Yoo Young-jae (; born January 24, 1994), also known mononymously as Youngjae, is a South Korean singer and actor. He debuted as an idol in the six-member group B.A.P under TS Entertainment, where he served as the main vocalist from 2012 to its d ...
and
Zelo
Choi Jun-hong (Hangul: 최준홍; born October 15, 1996), better known by his stage name Zelo, is a South Korean rapper, singer, beatboxer and dancer best known as the former member of the South Korean boy group B.A.P. He made his recording de ...
reacted to the title track; three fans of
B.A.P
B.A.P (; an acronym for Best Absolute Perfect) was a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 under TS Entertainment.
B.A.P made their musical debut with the single "Warrior" on January 26, 2012, followed by the release of their debut EP ''Warrio ...
participated in the second session. Big Ocean ENM published a music video teaser for "Find" on June 30, which was made available on
digital music store
A digital music store is a business that sells digital audio files of music recordings over the Internet. Customers gain ownership of a license to use the files, in contrast to a music streaming service, where they listen to recordings without ...
s as a pre-release the subsequent day. From July 2, a concept film for ''Us'' and three sets of dual concept photos were posted in four successive days.
A fan meeting entitled Summer in the Moon: Moon Jong-up took place on July 3, where he performed album tracks and unveiled the music video for "Us". A highlight medley of ''Us'' was shared two days ahead of its release, as well as a music video teaser on the ensuing day. The mini-album and its title track were concurrently issued on July 8. Moon began promoting "Us" on weekly
music chart shows
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...
that same day. He performed the single on
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 ''
M Countdown'',
KBS2
The Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) () is the national broadcaster of South Korea. Founded in February 1927, it is one of the leading South Korean television and radio broadcasters.
KBS operates seven radio networks, ten television channels, a ...
's ''
Music Bank
Music Bank may refer to:
* ''Music Bank'' (TV program), a South Korean music program by KBS
**''Music Bank World Tour
The ''Music Bank'' World Tour is a worldwide live concert tour of South Korean music show '' Music Bank'' by the Korean Broa ...
'',
Seoul Broadcasting System's (SBS) ''
Inkigayo'',
SBS MTV's ''
The Show'',
MBC M
MBC M (formerly MBC Music) () is a South Korean specialty television channel owned by MBC Plus Media. The cable channel primarily broadcasts programming related to music.
The channel opened on February 1, 2012, with a new music program '' Sho ...
's ''
Show Champion'', and
MBC's ''
Show! Music Core''. Moon completed promotions on July 26.
Critical reception and commercial performance
''Us'' received favorable reviews from all three critics from TV Daily. Kim Ji-ha felt that the song selection suited Moon well, while Park Sang-hu took note of his musical growth. Kim Han-kil stated that the album proved Moon's capabilities to perform as a soloist.
On the chart dated July 4–10, 2021, ''Us'' debuted at number 47 on South Korea's national
Gaon Album Chart.
Track listing
Notes
* "Go Up" is stylized as "GOUP".
Chart
References
External links
* {{YouTube, bwvFpnzfTko, ''Us'' highlight medley
2021 EPs
Dance music EPs
Hip hop EPs
Korean-language EPs
Moon Jong-up EPs
Pop music EPs
Sony Music EPs