H.O.T were active for 5 years, and though Shinhwa made their debut 2 years after H.O.T did, they have already gone on to celebrate their 10th anniversary this year, and will be holding their 10th anniversary concert on 29 & 30 March.
Shinhwa made their debut in 1998 under SM Entertainment, the same company that managed H.O.T, and Shinhwa was content to be No.2 then. Moreover, their path to success was also obstructed by Sechskies, a key competitor of H.O.T.
There were also other idol groups under SM that came and went, but Shinhwa did not disband like H.O.T did, neither did they put a stop to their group activities like G.O.D did, and in fact conquered all obstacles that most idol groups face.
The first reason behind Shinhwa's longevity as a group is their change of management company. After their contract with SM ended in June 2006, they signed on to GoodEMG, which gave them a newfound confidence. In SM, Shinhwa was just one of the many idol groups that was under the company, but to GoodEMG, Shinhwa is their everything.
Another reason is Shinhwa's strategy of "apart but together", similar to that of top Japanese group SMAP. When SMAP first made their debut, their results were less than satisfactory too, but their impressive performances on variety shows helped them to gain a lot of popularity.
Similarly, after the release of their 7th album Brand New, the 6 members of Shinhwa also strengthened their approachable images through variety shows such as Love Letter and Xman.
The splendidly-choreographed Brand New managed to sell a whopping 325,000 copies and was an overwhelming success with the audience. If it wasn't for the declining state of the music industry, industry experts were saying that sales might well have exceeded 1 million copies. That year, they won the Seoul Gayo Daesang for the first time in their 7 years together, and all 6 members were moved to tears. It was also after this that their solo activities began to take off.
Eric and Kim Dongwan took up acting, to great success - Eric through Bulsae and Dongwan through Goodbye Sadness. Eric even went on to become a highly valued CF star. At the same time, Lee Minwoo and Shin Hyesung became solo artistes, and their solo activities help to keep Shinhwa in the limelight.
Shinhwa didn't burst onto the scene to great success, but instead took a long and winding course of 7 years before they reached their peak. They faced disbandment crises and other situations in the 7 years, but their unity grew amidst these obstacles, and the bonds between the members gradually grew to that of brothers.
However, the lessened group activities have had its bad points as well. Their 8th album State Of The Art, released in 2006, had reviews that said that it seemed like a project album more than something that they had injected effort into.
Since 2005, the members have been occupied with individual activities as well as the Shinhwa concert tour and solo concerts. Facing brand new challenges such as these, Shinhwa members are still able to regroup the moment they shout "Urineun Shinhwa imnida (We are Shinhwa)".
Members Kim Dongwan, Eric, Lee Minwoo, Junjin and Andy are all due to enlist for the army, which implies that the next reunion will take another 3-4 years. Thus 2008 is an especially meaningful year for Shinhwa.
Source: dacapo
Chi trans: julias@bestshinhwa
Shinhwa made their debut in 1998 under SM Entertainment, the same company that managed H.O.T, and Shinhwa was content to be No.2 then. Moreover, their path to success was also obstructed by Sechskies, a key competitor of H.O.T.
There were also other idol groups under SM that came and went, but Shinhwa did not disband like H.O.T did, neither did they put a stop to their group activities like G.O.D did, and in fact conquered all obstacles that most idol groups face.
The first reason behind Shinhwa's longevity as a group is their change of management company. After their contract with SM ended in June 2006, they signed on to GoodEMG, which gave them a newfound confidence. In SM, Shinhwa was just one of the many idol groups that was under the company, but to GoodEMG, Shinhwa is their everything.
Another reason is Shinhwa's strategy of "apart but together", similar to that of top Japanese group SMAP. When SMAP first made their debut, their results were less than satisfactory too, but their impressive performances on variety shows helped them to gain a lot of popularity.
Similarly, after the release of their 7th album Brand New, the 6 members of Shinhwa also strengthened their approachable images through variety shows such as Love Letter and Xman.
The splendidly-choreographed Brand New managed to sell a whopping 325,000 copies and was an overwhelming success with the audience. If it wasn't for the declining state of the music industry, industry experts were saying that sales might well have exceeded 1 million copies. That year, they won the Seoul Gayo Daesang for the first time in their 7 years together, and all 6 members were moved to tears. It was also after this that their solo activities began to take off.
Eric and Kim Dongwan took up acting, to great success - Eric through Bulsae and Dongwan through Goodbye Sadness. Eric even went on to become a highly valued CF star. At the same time, Lee Minwoo and Shin Hyesung became solo artistes, and their solo activities help to keep Shinhwa in the limelight.
Shinhwa didn't burst onto the scene to great success, but instead took a long and winding course of 7 years before they reached their peak. They faced disbandment crises and other situations in the 7 years, but their unity grew amidst these obstacles, and the bonds between the members gradually grew to that of brothers.
However, the lessened group activities have had its bad points as well. Their 8th album State Of The Art, released in 2006, had reviews that said that it seemed like a project album more than something that they had injected effort into.
Since 2005, the members have been occupied with individual activities as well as the Shinhwa concert tour and solo concerts. Facing brand new challenges such as these, Shinhwa members are still able to regroup the moment they shout "Urineun Shinhwa imnida (We are Shinhwa)".
Members Kim Dongwan, Eric, Lee Minwoo, Junjin and Andy are all due to enlist for the army, which implies that the next reunion will take another 3-4 years. Thus 2008 is an especially meaningful year for Shinhwa.
Source: dacapo
Chi trans: julias@bestshinhwa
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