Iz*One made their official debut on October 29, 2018, with their firstextended play (EP)Color*Iz. The EP was commercially successful upon release, selling over 225,000 units and peaking at number two on the South KoreanGaon Album Chart. In addition, the EP and its lead single "La Vie en Rose" charted onBillboard World Albums and World Digital Songs, respectively.[7] The early success subsequently earned them as the New Artist of the Year title at several awards ceremonies, includingGolden Disc Awards andSeoul Music Awards.
Iz*One released two studio albums (one Korean and one Japanese) and seven extended plays (four Korean and three Japanese). Despite initial talks of a possible contract extension, the group officially disbanded on April 29, 2021.[9][10]
The group's name, Iz*One (stylized inall caps), was suggested bynetizens through the officialProduce 48 website and chosen byCJ ENM.[11] "IZ" is anumeronym for the number 12, a homage to their twelve members, while "One" implies their unity as a group. The asterisk between "IZ" and "One" symbolizes theastrological signs of thezodiac.[12][13]
Iz*One was formed through the reality competition showProduce 48, which aired onMnet from June 15 to August 31, 2018. The show was billed as a collaboration between the KoreanProduce 101 franchise and the Japanese idolAKB48 Group. Out of ninety-six initial contestants, the final twelve were announced via live television broadcast.[14][15]
In September 2018, Off the Record announced that they would be taking over the management of Iz*One fromStone Music andPledis Entertainment.[31][6] All three Japanese members took hiatuses from their respective groups to promote with Iz*One.[32]
The group's debutextended play (EP)Color*Iz was released on October 29, 2018, with "La Vie en Rose" as its lead single.[33][34][35] A debut showcase concert, the Color*Iz Show-Con, was held in conjunction with the album's release at theOlympic Hall in Seoul, South Korea; tickets were sold out within one minute.[36][37] Iz*One's first music program performance aired on November 1 on Mnet'sM Countdown.[38] They garnered their first music program win one week later onM Countdown, ten days after their official debut, breaking the record for the fastest girl group to receive a music program win at the time.[39] The EP recorded sales over 34,000 units in its first day of release, setting a new record for the highest number of albums sold on the first day of a girl group's debut release;[40][41] the music video for "La Vie en Rose" was viewed more than 4.5million times in its first 24 hours onYouTube, making it the most-watched debut music video by a Korean act in 24 hours at the time.[42]Color*Iz peaked at number two on theGaon Album Chart and sold over 225,000 copies.[43][44] It received a platinum certification from theKorea Music Content Association (KMCA) on July 9, 2020, 20 months after release, after surpassing 250,000 shipment figures.[45] The group ended promotions forColor*Iz on November 23 onKBS'sMusic Bank. With the group's early commercial success, Iz*One won the New Artist of the Year category at several awards ceremonies, including theMnet Asian Music Awards,Golden Disc Awards, andSeoul Music Awards.[46] Their debut was considered byBillboard to be one of the best K-pop debuts of 2018.[47] On December 5, Iz*One performed at the2018 FNS Music Festival in Japan, the group's first overseas activity.[48]
On December 6, Off the Record announced that Iz*One had signed a recording contract withUniversal Music Japan'sEMI Records label in preparation for their Japanese debut, which was revealed to be on February 6, 2019.[49] On December 15, Sakura Miyawaki and Nako Yabuki returned to Japan for HKT48's eighth anniversary concert. Although the news received criticism initially, Off the Record responded that the two would participate in the concert as Iz*One members.[50]
2019: Japanese debut, subsequent releases and temporary hiatus
Iz*One held their Japanese debut showcase atTokyo Dome City Hall on January 20, where they performed their debut Japanese single "Suki to Iwasetai" for the first time.[51] The music video for the single was released on January 25, five days after the event, while the single itself was released on February 6.[52] It peaked at number two on both the Oricon Singles Chart andBillboard Japan Hot 100, selling over 200,000 copies in its first week.[53][54] On March 8, it was certified platinum by theRecording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) with over 250,000 unit sales, the group's first platinum certification.[8]
On March 9, English DJ and producerJonas Blue released a new version of his 2018 hit single "Rise", featuring Iz*One's vocals.[55]
The group released their second EP,Heart*Iz, on April 1.[56] Domestic pre-orders for the EP exceeded 200,000 copies.[57] Upon release, it topped in both the Gaon Album and Oricon Overseas Album Charts and sold more than 130,000 copies in its first week, a new record for a K-pop girl group at the time.[58][59] The EP was certified platinum on October 10 by the KMCA;[60] it peaked at number six onBillboard World Albums chart.[61] Meanwhile, the lead single "Violeta" peaked at numbers 18 and five on Gaon Digital Chart andBillboard K-pop Hot 100, respectively.[62][63] It also charted at number eight on theBillboard World Digital Songs chart.[61] The song received its first music program win on SBS MTV'sThe Show on April 9.[64]
IZ*ONE in 2019
Iz*One embarked on their first headlining tour, Eyes on Me, at theJamsil Indoor Stadium in Seoul, South Korea.[65] After tickets for the first two initial dates (June 8 and 9) sold out, Off the Record added an additional concert show on June 7.[66] During the tour, they performed two new songs, "Ayayaya" and "So Curious", in sub-units.[67] The group visited eight cities in five territories, with a total attendance of 81,000 people. On July 6, the group participated in the annual music festivalKCON, held at theMadison Square Garden inNew York City, their first U.S. performance.[68]
The group released their second Japanese single, "Buenos Aires", on June 26.[69] It debuted atop on both the Oricon Singles Chart andBillboard Japan Hot 100,[70][71] receiving a platinum certification from the RIAJ in July 2019.[72] On September 25, Iz*One released their third Japanese single, titled "Vampire".[73] Like the previous release, it topped both domestic charts in Japan with first week sales exceeding 200,000 copies,[74][75] leading to a gold certification from the RIAJ.[72] "Vampire" was also the group's only Japanese release to chart onBillboard K-pop Hot 100, peaking at number 52.[76] Following their commercial success, the group became Oricon's best-selling new artist for the first half of 2019,[77] accounting for an estimated ¥510 million (₩5.5 billion) of total sales in Japan between December 10, 2018, and June 9, 2019.[78][79] Iz*One participated in the 2019Tokyo Girls Collection events in three cities, the first guest performer to do so.[80]
The group was scheduled to release their first studio album on November 11.[81] However, the release was postponed due to theMnet vote manipulation investigation.[82][83] Investigations revealed that theProduce 48 producer Ahn Joon-young had selected the twelve members of Iz*One from the top 20 just before the airing of the finale.[84] As a result, Iz*One's showcases, promotions, and several guest appearances were cancelled or put on hold,[85][86][87][88][89] which included the release of their concert film,Eyes on Me: The Movie,[90] and their Japanese promotions.[91][92]
2020–2021:Bloom*Iz,Oneiric Diary,Twelve,One-reeler / Act IV, final concert and disbandment
On January 6, 2020, the Iz*One members' agencies andCJ ENM reached an agreement that the group would resume promotional activities.[93][94] On February 17, the group released their first studio albumBloom*Iz alongside lead single "Fiesta".[95][96] On February 23, the album broke the then-record for the highest first-week sales on Hanteo for an album by a girl group, selling 356,313 copies; it also became the first album by a girl group to surpass the 300,000 copies mark in Hanteo history.Bloom*Iz was certified platinum by the KMCA on April 9, selling over 390,000 units in shipments.[97][98]Bloom*Iz also topped Oricon Overseas Album Chart.[99]
On June 15, Iz*One released their third EP,Oneiric Diary, and its lead single "Secret Story of the Swan". The single's music video was originally scheduled to be released on the same day as the EP but was postponed to June 16. The group held a comeback showcase to promote the EP on Mnet's second channelM2.Oneiric Diary peaked at number two on theGaon Album Chart and has recorded over 510,000 sales. It was one of the first two albums by a girl group to be certified double platinum by the KMCA (the other the one beingTwice'sMore & More).[100][101] On September 13, Iz*One held their first online concert, titled Oneiric Theater.[102] On October 21, they released their first Japanese studio album,Twelve.[103] The album debuted atop the Oricon Albums Chart.[104] On December 7, Iz*One released their fourth EP,One-reeler / Act IV, accompanied by its lead single "Panorama".[105] The EP debuted at number one on the Gaon Album Chart.
On January 26, 2021, Iz*One released a promotional single titled "D-D-Dance" for the mobile application Universe. On February 11, the group announced that they would hold their final online concert—One, the Story—on March 13 and 14, ahead of their contract expiration in April. The announcement on its extension was not yet announced.[106] On February 15, 2021, five Iz*One members (Kwon Eun-bi,Sakura Miyawaki,Kim Min-ju,Jo Yu-ri andJang Won-young) participated in the release of a promotional single, "Zero:Attitude", with singerSoyou (who previously trained the group inProduce 48) and rapperpH-1. The song was released in collaboration withPepsi andStarship Entertainment as a part of their Pepsi X Starship campaign. Iz*One participated in the compilation albumRewind : Blossom and remadeRoo'ra's popular song 3!4!.[107][unreliable source?]
Iz*One's official fanbase, Wiz*One, began an initiative called Parallel Universe on April 21, 2021, in an attempt to prevent the group's upcoming disbandment. The name "Parallel Universe" was chosen to pay homage to a song of the same name that was released during theOne, the Story concert. The initiative raised ₩1,000,000,000 (roughly US$900,000), its funding goal; however, Iz*One disbanded as planned on April 29, 2021.[108][109]
On June 19, 2021,CJ ENM confirmed that discussion with the Iz*One members' agencies was underway to potentially relaunch the group.[110] Negotiations ultimately fell through in July, and the group's reunion was cancelled.[111]
Korean members are listed inEastern name order. Japanese members are listed inWestern name order with both Japanese and Korean transliterations in parentheses.
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