Wikipedia

Fifty Fifty (group)

South Korean girl group

Fifty Fifty (Hangul: 피프티 피프티; RR: Pipeuti Pipeuti; put in all caps) is a South Korean girl group made by Attrakt in 2022. The group has five members. They are Keena, Chanelle, Yewon, Hana, and Athena. It used to be a four-people group. Saena, Aran, and Sio left in 2023 following the ending of their contracts. They make music since November 18, 2022, with their extended play (EP) The Fifty.

Fifty Fifty
South Korean girl group Fifty Fifty in a colored photoshoot, circa April 2023
Fifty Fifty in April 2023
L–R: Sio, Saena, Aran, and Keena
Background information
OriginSeoul, South Korea
Genres
Years active2022 (2022)–present
Labels
Members
  • Keena
  • Chanelle
  • Yewon
  • Hana
  • Athena
Past member(s)
  • Saena
  • Aran
  • Sio
Websitetheattrakt.com/FIFTY_FIFTY

They became famous with their viral hit single "Cupid". The single was released in February 2023. It made Fifty Fifty the fastest K-pop group to enter the US Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart, within four months of letting out a song.[1] It also made them the first K-pop girl group to get to the top ten of the UK charts.[2] In 2023, they signed to Warner Music Korea.[2]

Later that year, in the middle of a long time of legal debates and claims surrounding the group's contracts and treatment by Attrakt, group members Saena, Aran, and Sio had their contracts ended. Keena was the only member left in the group. It was later decided that Fifty Fifty would re-debut in September 2024.[3] Four new members were added to the group.[3]

Name

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The group's name, Fifty Fifty, shows the state, in equal parts, of a hope-filled ideal and a difficult reality, as well as their hope to become a whole 100 with their fans.[4]

History

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Pre-debut

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In 2019, Attrakt CEO Jeon Hong-joon and the CEO of performance making company KAMP met in Singapore during a festival. They decided to work together to make a global K-pop girl group.[5] They put KAMP in charge of the overseas marketing.[5] The two companies were joined by one of KAMP workers and producers, Ahn Sung-il. Twelve trainees were hired by Jeon for a year. It was from December 2019 and was finally put down to four through monthly evaluations.[5]

In January 2021, KAMP left the project because of different views over the global strategy. In May, Ahn and two other KAMP workers who had been in the project left and made The Givers. Jeon was in charge of raising money. Ahn chose the music direction and trained the members in music theory, singing, dancing, rapping, acting and English.[5] More than a month were spent on the group, and more than a billion dollars was invested in the making of four music videos.[5]

Prior to the group's debut, Saena was a contestant on KBS' dancing competition show Dancing High.[6]

2022: Starting and debut with The Fifty

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Fifty Fifty's official logo (2022–2024)

After two years of training,[2] on November 14, 2022, Fifty Fifty said that they would be letting out their debut in November 2022. They let out the group's official logo image posted across all the group's social media accounts.[4] The same day, a pre-released music video for the song "Lovin Me" was let out on their official YouTube channel.[7] The members were shown on November 15 through the photo of their debut album.[7] It showed the names and the debut date, and official photos of the members for the first time.[7] A performance video of "Log In" was also let out the same day.[8]

Fifty Fifty let out their debut extended play (EP) The Fifty on November 18, 2022. "Higher" was the lead single. The album has the first journey of girls who want freedom beyond the troubles of reality and later move on to a utopia. It has four tracks – "Higher", which has an R&B pop feeling that sings about the world of ecstasy and dreams. Another track is "Tell Me", a city pop song. There is also "Lovin Me", which gives a message of comfort to people who are going through growing pains. There is also "Log In", which shows the movements of girls who rebel to escape from the real world with extreme performances.[9][10] Promotions for the extended play's let out began on November 22 with their music broadcast debut on SBS M's The Show. It ended on KBS2's Music Bank on December 2.[11][12] The EP did not go to the Circle Album Chart when it was first let out.[13] It debuted at number forty-four on the chart issue dated December 18–24, 2022.[13] It has 2,597 album sales.[13] Korean critic magazine IZM rated the album 4.5 out of 5 stars.[14] It was the highest rating the magazine had ever given to a girl group.[14] The writer, Son Seung-geun, said that Fifty Fifty "is a good example of what happens when great songs and good singers meet. Thanks to them, Korea has one more good girl group."[15]

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On February 24, 2023, the group let out its first album, The Beginning: Cupid, along with the music video for the title track "Cupid". The song was recorded both in Korean and English. It saw Keena writing part of the Korean lyrics.[16] Soon after, a fan-made sped-up song of the English version went viral on TikTok.[17] "Cupid" then went on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 27.[18][19] It made them the sixth group and the fastest K-pop group in history to do so.[18][19] The song went on to become the highest-charting song by a South Korean girl group in the history of the Pop Airplay chart.[20] It's also the second South Korean music act to land on the Adult Pop Airplay after BTS.[21]

On June 19, the members of the group wanted an order to stop their contracts with Attrakt, talking about the violation of in-contract duties, as well as the lack of truth in money settlements, and medical negligence, during the group's promotions.[22][23] They also wanted trademarks of the group's name and their stage names.[24] The news of the lawsuit was later shown to the public after Attrakt accused Warner Music Korea and Ahn Sung-il of trying to get the members to break their contracts to sign with another agency.[25]

 
Keena, the only member of Fifty Fifty to have returned to Attrakt.

The ongoing lawsuit ended in the ending of advertising contracts and the KCON LA 2023 appearance scheduled for August 19.[26][27] On October 17, one of the members, Keena, took away her lawsuit against Attrakt and returned to her original agency.[28][29] On October 23, Attrakt announced the ending of the contracts of the other three members (Saena, Aran, and Sio) as of October 19.[30]

On October 29, Attrakt said that Keena would be at the Billboard Music Awards for the group, with plans to put together the group in the future.[31][32] On November 2, it was said that the group would be going on again with a "second generation" of members, with Keena as part of the group, along with three new members.[33][34]

2024–present: Re-organization as 5-member group

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On January 8, 2024, it was said that auditions were made to recruit three to four new members to join Fifty Fifty alongside Keena, with a view to re-launch the group as a four or five-member girl group.[35] One of these auditions was set to take place from January to February 2024 in the Southeast Asian region, exactly in Singapore and Thailand, to get new members for the re-debut of Fifty Fifty, which was covered to take place in the second quarter of 2024. Attrakt's CEO Jeon Hong-joon and Singaporean K-pop singer David Yong (who is also CEO of a Singaporean company) are set to see the Southeast Asia audition as part of its judging panel.[36]

On June 14, it was said that Fifty Fifty would make their comeback in September 2024 as a five-member group, with four new members joining the new group with the current member Keena. A pre-release single is also said to be in the making, and made to be let out before their official comeback date.[37] On August 7, it was said that the group will let out their second EP on September 20, with a pre-release single to be let out on August 30.[38] Two days later, Chanelle, Yewon, and Hana were shown as the three of the four new members.[39][40] Before joining the group, Yewon and Chanelle were former trainees of Hybe Corporation and contestants of 2023 survival show R U Next?, which made the girl group Illit.[41] Hana was a 18-year-old former contestant of Mnet's children's song survival program We Kid in 2016.[42] On August 12, Athena was shown as the final new member.[43]

Members

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Videography

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Music videos

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Title Year Director(s) Ref.
"Lovin' Me" 2022 Byunghak Park, Sujung Lee [44]
"Log In" Performance Video Jin Juyi, Moon MinJoo (Zanybros, Rollcam Media) [45]
"Higher" Naive Creative Production [46]
"Tell Me" Official Lyric Video Danny JY Lee [47]
"Cupid" 2023 Myunghyun Bae (Zanybros) [48]
"Cupid" (TwinVer.) Official Lyric Video Danny JY Lee [49]

Other videos

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Title Year Director(s) Ref.
"What If" – Aran's Concept Film 2022 Un­known [50]
"What If" – Keena's Concept Film [51]
"What If" – Sio's Concept Film [52]
"What If" – Saena's Concept Film [53]

Filmography

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Web shows

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Year Title Note Ref.
2022–2023 Fifty Company Premiered on November 18, 2022 [54][unreliable source?]

References

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  1. ↑ Ahn, Byung-gil (April 1, 2023). "피프티 피프티, 英 오피셜차트 뚫었다" [Fifty Fifty breaks through the British Official Charts]. Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved April 1, 2023 – via Naver.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Raycraft, Molly (May 5, 2023). "Cupid's arrow: how Fifty Fifty became the rare K-pop band to pierce the UK Top 40". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "피프티 피프티, 9월 컴백...키나 포함 5인조 확정". Dispatch via Naver. June 14, 2024. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Jung, Bit (November 14, 2022). '4인조 걸그룹' 피프티 피프티, 가요계 도전장...4세대 코어 유망주 노린다 ['4-member girl group' Fifty Fifty, a challenge to the music industry... Aiming for 4th generation core prospects]. The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on May 23, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Kim, Da-eun; Kim, So-jung (July 4, 2023). "[D-eye] "안성일 저작권 지분은 95%"...피프티 피프티, 외부세력의 실체" [[D-eye] "Ahn Sung-il's copyright stake is 95%"... Fifty Fifty, the reality of external forces]. Dispatch (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Naver.
  6. ↑ Lee, Eun-ho (March 28, 2023). "'중소돌' 깜짝 반란...피프티 피프티 흥행 비밀". Kukinews (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Kim, Ji-hye (November 14, 2022). '新 걸그룹' 피프티 피프티, 멤버 베일 벗었다..신비+청순 비주얼 ['New girl group' Fifty Fifty took off the member veil.. Mystery + Innocent visual]. HeldPop. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  8. ↑ Kim, Min-ji (November 15, 2022). '데뷔 D-1' 피프티 피프티, 비주얼 포토·'로그인' 퍼포먼스 영상 공개 ['Debut D-1' Fifty Fifty, visual photo and 'Login' performance video released]. News1. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  9. ↑ Kim, Min-ji (November 17, 2022). '데뷔 D-1' 피프티 피프티, 데뷔곡 '하이어; 티저 1탄 공개...명곡 예감 ['Debut D-1' Fifty Fifty, debut song 'Higher; Teaser 1 released... Masterpiece Presentiment]. Seoul Shinmun. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  10. ↑ Cho, Eun-bin (November 18, 2022). 피프티 피프티, 18일 데뷔...새나·아란·키나·시오 '4色 매력' 베일 벗는다 [Fifty Fifty debuts on the 18th... Sana, Aran, Kina, Shio take off the veil of '4 color charm']. KStarNews. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  11. ↑ Choi, Hye-jin (November 18, 2022). 피프티 피프티, 완성도 높은 데뷔 앨범..호평 릴레이 [Fifty Fifty, a debut album with high perfection]. StarNews. Archived from the original on July 21, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  12. ↑ Lee, Deok-haeng (December 2, 2022). 피프티 피프티, 글로벌 호평 속 'Higher' 활동 성료 [Fifty Fifty successfully completed 'Higher' activities amid global acclaim]. StarNews. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Cumulative sales of The Fifty:
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "걸그룹 열풍인데 '중소의 기적' 타이틀은 누가?..컴백 기대되는 유망주 [Oh!쎈 레터]". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). February 10, 2023. Archived from the original on August 31, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  15. ↑ Son, Seung-geun (January 2023). "The Fifty (2022) 피프티 피프티 (FIFTY FIFTY)". IZM (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 4, 2023. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  16. ↑ Yeo, Gladys (February 24, 2023). "FIFTY FIFTY on joining K-pop's new wave of powerhouse girl groups: "We wanted to show ourselves and stand out"". NME. Archived from the original on March 3, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  17. ↑ Ziwei, Puah (March 28, 2023). "FIFTY FIFTY's viral hit 'Cupid' debuts on Billboard Hot 100". NME. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Anderson, Daniel (March 28, 2023). "FIFTY FIFTY becomes the fastest K-pop group in history to enter the Billboard Hot 100". NextShark. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Lee, Jin-soo (March 28, 2023). "빌보드 신기록 세운 걸그룹 멤버 넷 다 한국인?". GQ Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  20. ↑ McIntyre, Hugh (June 7, 2023). "Fifty Fifty Beats One Of Blackpink's Most Impressive Billboard Chart Records". Forbes. Archived from the original on June 14, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  21. ↑ McIntyre, Hugh (June 5, 2023). "Fifty Fifty Joins BTS As The Only Two K-Pop Acts To Reach One Of Billboard's Radio Charts". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  22. ↑ "FIFTY FIFTY seeks suspension of contracts with agency ATTRAKT". RAPPLER. June 28, 2023. Archived from the original on October 25, 2023. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  23. ↑ "Girl group Fifty Fifty in dispute with agency over exclusive contracts". The Korea Times. June 28, 2023. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  24. ↑ Kang, Kyung-yoon (July 7, 2023). "[단독] 피프티피프티, 독자활동 노렸나?...팀명+멤버명으로 상표권 등록" (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 30, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  25. ↑ Go, Seung-hee (June 26, 2023). "어트랙트 "피프티 피프티 멤버 불법 강탈"...워너뮤직코리아에 내용증명 발송" (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  26. ↑ Cho, Yong-jun (July 5, 2023). "Fifty Fifty cancels KCON LA performance amid disputes with agency". Archived from the original on October 29, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  27. ↑ Ji, Seung-hoon (July 4, 2023). "[단독] 피프티 피프티, '바비' OST 뮤비 촬영 무산...대형 CF도" (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 18, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  28. ↑ "Keena exits Fifty Fifty's lawsuit against Attrakt, seeks to rejoin agency". The Korea Times. October 17, 2023. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  29. ↑ "Fifty Fifty's Keena returns to label, ending contract dispute". The Korea Times. October 17, 2023. Archived from the original on October 30, 2023. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  30. ↑ "Agency terminates contracts with 3 Fifty Fifty members". October 23, 2023. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  31. ↑ "Keena from FIFTY FIFTY set to grace the 2023 Billboard Music Awards; ATTRAKT announces group 'Reorganization' plans". The Times of India. October 29, 2023. Archived from the original on October 29, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  32. ↑ ""그룹 재정비"...피프티 피프티 키나, 홀로 소속사 복귀→빌보드 뮤직 어워드 참석". TopStarNews. October 29, 2023. Archived from the original on October 29, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  33. ↑ "어트랙트 전홍준 대표 "피프티피프티 2기 나온다면 키나 포함 4인조, 확정은 NO"". TV Daily. November 2, 2023. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  34. ↑ "어트랙트 측 "피프티피프티 2기 아닌 빌드업 개념, 키나 중심 4명"[공식]". Newsen. November 2, 2023. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  35. ↑ "Fifty Fifty recruiting new members to join Keena". Korea JoongAng Daily. January 8, 2024. Archived from the original on February 10, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  36. ↑ "Want to join K-pop girl group Fifty Fifty? Singapore audition takes place on Feb 3". The Straits Times. Singapore. January 11, 2024. Archived from the original on February 14, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  37. ↑ "K-pop girl group Fifty Fifty announce comeback with five members in September". The Straits Times. Singapore. June 17, 2024. Archived from the original on July 8, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  38. ↑ Lee, Min-ji (August 7, 2024). 피프티 피프티, 9월 20일 컴백...스포일러 담은 로드맵 공개 [공식] [Fifty Fifty, comeback on September 20... roadmap containing spoilers revealed [Official]]. News1. Archived from the original on August 7, 2024. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  39. ↑ Oh, Gi-ppeum (August 9, 2024). 피프티 피프티, 새 멤버 공개 [Fifty Fifty reveals new member]. Vogue Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 9, 2024. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  40. ↑ "Fifty Fifty unveils new members for fresh start as quintet". The Chosun Daily. August 9, 2024.
  41. ↑ 어디서 봤더라? 드디어 공개된 피프티 피프티 2기 멤버 [Where have I seen you? Fifty Fifty 2nd Generation Members Finally Revealed]. Elle Korea (in Korean). August 9, 2024.
  42. ↑ "New members of Fifty Fifty unveiled". The Korea Herald. August 9, 2024.
  43. ↑ Yoon, Ki-baek (August 12, 2024). 피프티 피프티, 마지막 히든 멤버는 '아테나' [Fifty Fifty, the last hidden member is 'Athena'] (in Korean). E Daily. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Naver.
  44. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Lovin' Me' Official MV. November 14, 2022. Archived from the original on January 12, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  45. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Log in' - PERFORMANCE VIDEO. November 15, 2022. Archived from the original on December 29, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  46. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Higher' - Official MV. November 18, 2022. Archived from the original on January 14, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  47. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Tell Me' Official Lyric Video. November 20, 2022. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  48. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Cupid' Official MV. February 23, 2023. Archived from the original on June 8, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  49. ↑ FIFTY FIFTY (피프티피프티) - 'Cupid' (TwinVer.) Official Lyric Video. February 27, 2023. Archived from the original on September 20, 2023. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
  50. ↑ "WHAT IF" - ARAN's CONCEPT FILM | FIFTY FIFTY. December 5, 2022. Archived from the original on June 15, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  51. ↑ "WHAT IF" - KEENA's CONCEPT FILM | FIFTY FIFTY. December 6, 2022. Archived from the original on June 15, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  52. ↑ "WHAT IF" - SIO's CONCEPT FILM | FIFTY FIFTY. December 7, 2022. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  53. ↑ "WHAT IF" - SAENA's CONCEPT FILM | FIFTY FIFTY. December 8, 2022. Archived from the original on June 15, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  54. ↑ FIFTY COMPANY. December 8, 2022. Archived from the original on June 15, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.

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