- California Assembly OKs highest minimum wage in nation
- S. Korea unveils first graphic cigarette warnings
- US joins with South Korea, Japan in bid to deter North Korea
- LPGA golfer Chun In-gee finally back in action
- S. Korea won’t be top seed in final World Cup qualification round
- US men’s soccer misses 2nd straight Olympics
- US back on track in qualifying with 4-0 win over Guatemala
- High-intensity workout injuries spawn cottage industry
- CDC expands range of Zika mosquitoes into parts of Northeast
- Who knew? ‘The Walking Dead’ is helping families connect
SHINee’s Onew to drop 1st individual studio album
Onew, the leader and lead vocalist of K-pop boy group SHINee, will release his first full-length album as a solo artist Monday, his agency said.
“Circle” and its music video will hit various online services at 6 p.m., SM Entertainment said.
The upcoming album consists of 10 songs about various moments of life that are relatable to everyone, such as being in love, breakups, expectations and disappoints, growth and anxiety.
The singer singled out “healing,” “recovery” and “circulation” as the album’s keywords.
“I made this album with the conviction that good moments will return no matter what happens,” he said in a Q&A released through the agency.
Since it’s his first full-length album, he has tried different methods to sing quality songs. But instead of showing off what he can do, he said, he focused on exhibiting his musical tastes through the album.
The title track is a dreamlike R&B track that compares life with the circle of nature.
“I thought I must do this,” Onew said of the main single. It was before the release of his latest solo EP, “Dice,” in April last year that he first heard a draft version of the song, but he saved it for a long time for the studio album.
He said he wants the people to say any album by Onew is worth listening to at least once in their lifetime.
The 33-year-old singer debuted as a member of the popular quintet in 2008. He has also been working as an actor and an individual artist, not only as a group member, appearing in the 2016 smash-hit Korean drama “Descendants of the Sun” and various stage musicals.