BTS’s J-Hope is releasing his first solo album “Jack in the Box” on July 15th.
BTS, who has been focusing on group activities for 9 years, will wrap up the “first act” of their career and start the “second act” focusing on solo activities that can further highlight each member’s capabilities and individuality. In the meantime, several solo songs of the members, including mixtapes, collaboration songs, and OSTs, have been released. However, J-Hope is the first member to officially start his solo activities by releasing an album. J-Hope has already released a pre-released song called “MORE” on July 1st, and will release his solo debut album “Jack in the Box” on the 15th.
J-Hope’s “Jack in the Box” contains the songs “Intro,” “Pandora’s Box,” “MORE,” “STOP,” “Equal Sign,” “Music Box: Reflection,” “What If…,” “Safety Zone,” “Future,” and “Arson.” These 10 tracks will show fans what the music world will be like for “Solo J-Hope.”
The album started pre-ordering on the 27th of last month and became a hot topic for not having a real CD. Unlike most K-pop singers, J-Hope will release an album with a card holder, one photo card A and B each, and only one QR card. This is a Weverse album that is being released by HYBE, and you can enjoy contents such as all of the songs and exclusive photos only when you install an application.
When asked why “Jack in the Box” was made into a simple CD-free album, Big Hit Music told CBS No-Cut News, “As it is the Chapter 2 of BTS’s career, we plan to show the individuality and different charm of the seven members.” J-Hope’s solo album, which marks the beginning of this phase, also made a new and bold attempt to show his own color. I would appreciate it if you could see the release of an album in a different form as one of the original attempts.”
When asked about the characteristics and advantages of a Weverse album, Big Hit Music explained, “It allows fans to enjoy high-quality music like cd-albums and high-definition photo content in digital form instead of printed pictures in paper form.” Although there are no real CDs, Weverse albums are also reflected in major domestic music charts such as Circle (formerly Gaon) and Hanteo.
In the case of the Weverse album, J-Hope is the first among BTS members, but SEVENTEEN‘s fourth full-length album “Face the Sun” and fromis_9‘s fifth mini-album “from our Memento Box” have already been released as Weverse albums.
However, the difference between SEVENTEEN and fromis_9 is that J-Hope only releases the Weverse album. SEVENTEEN’s “Face the Sun” offers 5 photo books and 13 versions decorated with each member’s face, fromis_9’s “from our Memento Box” offers a variety of physical albums with 3 photo books and 2 kino albums, and 10 versions of Jewelcase at the same time.
BTS’s members are preparing their own activities to open a new chapter of the group, which has been active for 9 years, and J-Hope’s album, which shot the signal, has been produced only based on digital content, raising regrets and complaints among fans. In addition, some people are wondering about the two-week gap between the album’s release date on music sites (July 15) and on sales sites (July 29). CBS No-Cut News also inquired about this, but did not receive any response.
Source: Daum
