K-Pop newcomer and Neo-City Pop idol YUKIKA just released her first full-length album titled “SOUL LADY,” taking you through her journey on becoming a true lady in the city of Seoul. As YUKIKA, who is originally from Japan, left everything behind to make it as a star in South Korea’s ever-growing entertainment industry.
“With a single ticket in my hands
All the dreams in me are precious
The scent of the city wraps around me today
It keeps making my heart flutter”
English translation of lyrics from “SOUL LADY”
To kick things off, “Yesterday” was released as a pre-release single along with its charming choreography video, giving us a taste of what’s in store for the album to come.
Following up to “Yesterday“, is the eponymous “SOUL LADY” that speaks on her journey from leaving her home behind to start anew and become a Seoul lady. The title track is accompanied by a flashy music video which takes you on a stroll through the city of Seoul while featuring two very different sides sides of YUKIKA. We see a projected image of her in various Seoul locations, wearing vintage dresses reminiscent of those worn by Japan’s biggest stars from the 80’s, versus a present self with a modern-chic K-Pop style. Perhaps showing how she feels on the inside as opposed as to who she is on the outside, or it simply representing the fusion between City Pop and K-Pop. Could she be a time-traveling pop star from the 80’s? That’s up for the viewer to decide. Take a peek below!
YUKIKA had her early beginnings as an actress and model in her native Japan. After wrapping up her studies at university, she embarked to South Korea in order to make it as an actress and singer. She had her start with the Amazon Original Korean drama “The Idol M@ster.KR,” where she was picked from hundreds of girls who auditioned to become not only an actress in the drama, but also debuting with its tie-in girl group known as Real Girls Project.
[Promo image for the final line-up of “Real Girls Project” with YUKIKA]
After three years with the group, she signed with label ESTIMATE Entertainment. YUKIKA revealed in an interview with The Korea Herald that she bonded with ESTIMATE Entertainment’s CEO over 80’s City Pop music from Japan, which ultimately resulted in the concept of her solo debut with the first single of the record, “NEON.” The single was released in February of 2019 along with its gorgeously nostalgic music video directed by Digipedi, known for working with other K-Pop acts such as LOONA.
Five months after her debut single, she released the follow-up single titled “Cherries Jubiles“, which is also found on the album. Being her second single, she reassured her fans that she was keeping the iconic retro sound and aesthetic. The music video starts off with the acoustic version, giving us a feel of YUKIKA’s lovely voice, later transitioning into the original mix of the song in all of its City Pop-sounding glory.
“Seoul lady, there’s a certain feel
I guess it’s obvious, I did study a bit
You’ll melt from my smile, you’ll get addicted
Even my accent has gotten more natural”
English translation of lyrics from “SOUL LADY”
The album is backed up by a team of prominent producers such as GDLO/MonoTree (notably known for LOONA, Lovelyz, Stellar), TAK (known for Lovelyz, Infinite), MosPick (known for CLC, IZ*ONE), OREO (known for GFriend, LOONA, Chung Ha), PRISMFILTER (known for IZ*ONE), with her in-house producers ESTi (known for Dreamcatcher), and seibin.
“SOUL LADY” proves to be a very solid debut album for YUKIKA, which will be enjoyed by K-Pop fans and Japanese City Pop fans alike. Proving to be one of the top underground K-Pop artists to be following in 2020. Although the record mostly presents in its City Pop style, it doesn’t fail to fuse with its versatile parent genre [K-Pop], as shown in the album track “pit-a-pet” where City Pop meets Dance-House.
You can stream “SOUL LADY” on Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube Music. But if you want to grab physical copy of the album, it will be released in a special limited edition on August 10, so make sure to pre-order at your favorite K-Pop store!
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