NU'EST (Korean: 뉴이스트; short forNew Establish Style Tempo) was a South Korean boy band formed and managed byPledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members:JR,Aron,Baekho,Minhyun, andRen.[1] They debuted on March 15, 2012, with the single titled "Face". The group disbanded on March 15, 2022, after Aron, JR, and Ren left Pledis Entertainment upon the completion of their 10-year contract.
Prior to their debut, NU'EST made appearances in their labelmates' music releases. They were backup dancers forAfter School Blue's "Wonder Boy", and featured in their label's Christmas release "Love Letter". They also released their own music video for "Love Letter" as Pledis Boys.[2]JR appeared inOrange Caramel's "Bangkok City" music video, and was also featured inUee's solo song "Sok Sok Sok".Baekho appeared in After School's "Play Ur Love" music video, andMinhyun starred in Orange Caramel's "Shanghai Romance" music video.
JR, Minhyun,Aron, andRen were also featured with After School'sLizzy in a commercial forNew Balance. JR and Baekho appeared on the KBS television programHello Counselor and were revealed by After School'sKahi as two members of the group. This drew attention from viewers and they became a topic of interest online.[2] Pledis Boys, now dubbed "After School Boys", later performed with After School at theSBS Gayo Daejeon.[3] Minhyun and Ren also gained attention modeling for designer Park Yoon-so's F/W 2012–13 Seoul Fashion Week show, titled 'Big Park'.[4]
2012–2014: Debut withFace,Action,Hello,Sleep Talking,Re:BIRTH and Japanese debut
NU'EST made their debut with their first single, "Face", on March 15, 2012.[5] Their debut stage was onM! Countdown on the same day.
The group began airing their own reality show,Making of a Star: NU'EST Landing Operation, during the promotional period.[6]
They returned with their first EP,Action, on July 11,[7] and became ambassadors forKorea's Scout Association.[8] During their promotional period and the rest of the year, NU'EST began to expand to the global market, holding events in Japan, Australia, other parts of Asia, and the United States, including performances atKCON.[9] In December, NU'EST began endorsements withMcDonald's.[10]
Baekho and Ren made acting appearances in the dramaJeon Woo-chi alongside label mate Uee in January 2013.[11] The group returned with their second EP,Hello, on February 13.[12] They held their first exclusive concert,Show Time NU’EST Time, on the same day to commemorate the release.[13][14] During the promotional period, they were cast forSBS MTV Diary along with their then-label mateHello Venus.[15] In March, NU'EST celebrated their first anniversary through a concert in Japan,NU′EST Debut 1st Anniversary Live Show Time.[14] On April 8, Aron became a DJ forArirang'sMusic Access.[16]
On August 22, 2013, NU'EST released their third EP,Sleep Talking, with the lead single of the same name.[17]
On July 9, 2014, NU'EST released their first full album,Re:Birth, with the lead single "Good Bye Bye".[19] They made their Japanese debut on November 5, with the single "Shalala Ring".[20]
NU'EST released the digital single "I'm Bad" on February 27, 2015,[21] with a limited edition physical release on March 15 to celebrate their third anniversary. Baekho did not participate in the lead single as he was recovering from vocal cord polyps surgery, but he did contribute to the B-side track, "A Scene Without You." On April 2, Minhyun collaborated with Korean indie artist Fromm on the single "The Aftermath". On April 19, Aron ended his position as a DJ at Arirang'sMusic Access. The group held their first solo showcase in North America in Dallas, put together by My Music Taste, on third May.[22]
NU'EST released their second Japanese single, "Nanananamida", on May 20.[23][unreliable source?] On August 14, Aron took up a position as a DJ onSBS PopAsia with his own showAron's Hangout.[24] NU'EST released their first Japanese studio album,Bridge the World, on November 18, after pre-releasing the tracks "Bridge the World", "Cherry", "Access to You", and "Ame Nochi Eien".[25][unreliable source?] "Cherry" was used as the theme song to the filmTheir Distance, which the members starred in as their Japanese film debut.[26]
Their fourth EP,Q is, was released on February 17, 2016, with the lead single "Overcome". They began promotions for the album the following day.[27] NU'EST released their fifth extended playCanvas and the accompanying single "Love Paint (Every Afternoon)" on August 29, 2016.[28] After four years of promotions, the group received their first music show nomination onThe Show. On October 6, 2016, the music video for "Daybreak", a duet between Minhyun and JR fromCanvas, was released.[29]
After the commercial decline of their previous releases and considerations of disbandment,[30][31] JR, Baekho, Minhyun, and Ren participated in the reality television seriesProduce 101 Season 2 during the first half of 2017.[32] During their appearance on the show, previously released albums, includingQ Is andCanvas, rose on South Korean album charts, reflecting a sudden surge in popularity of the group.[33][34]
After the final episode ofProduce 101 Season 2 aired, NU'EST's previous releases shot back up on music charts and topped the Gaon Chart.[35] Only Minhyun ranked within the top 11, earning a position in the temporary boy groupWanna One, and he promoted exclusively with them for 1.5 years.[36][37] The remaining members announced they would be promoting asNU'EST W until Minhyun's return.[38] Due to the group's sudden surge in popularity, they (as NU'EST W) returned to music shows to promote their single "Hello" (first released in 2013), and ranked number 11 onInkigayo.[39]
Following the conclusion ofProduce 101 Season 2, JR and Ren also became models for the cosmetics company Labiotte.[40] Subsequently, Baekho and Aron also joined their groupmates in promoting the brand. Ren joined the JTBC variety showLearning the Hard Way, of which he is a fixed member.[41] Aron featured onRaina's single "Loop".[42]
While Minhyun's Wanna One contract officially ended on December 31, 2018, he did not officially return to NU'EST until a month later.[43] This was due to Pledis and Swing Entertainment coming to an agreement that allowed Minhyun to attend scheduled year-end shows and award ceremonies throughout January 2019 as a member of Wanna One.[43] Minhyun's final Wanna One activity before returning to NU'EST was a final concert (titledTherefore) that was held across four days, ending on January 27, 2019.[43]
After reuniting for the first time in almost two years, NU'EST announced their contract renewal with Pledis Entertainment.[44][45] On March 15, 2019, they released a special digital single "A Song For You" to celebrate their seventh anniversary since debut.[46]
On April 3, Minhyun released a digital solo single "Universe" as the pre-release single from the upcoming NU'EST album.[47] The single is accompanied by the music video shot in Budapest and Milan.[48] The group held their first solo concert in six-years titled "Segno" on April 12–14 to an audience of 36,000.[49][50] Their sixth EPHappily Ever After was released on April 29 with the lead single "Bet Bet".[51] It is their first release in three years and the last in the three-part series of "Knights searching for the Queen" narrative which began with their fourth EP in 2016.[52] The EP secured triple crowns on Gaon Chart for the week of April 28 – May 4 by topping the album chart, digital download chart, and BGM chart after its release.[53] In May 2019, NU'EST released an official audio recording of the song "Blessing", which had been recorded as a candidate for their debut song in 2012.[54]
On October 21, the group released their seventh EPThe Table with the lead single "Love Me".[55] The single went on to win in all five major music broadcast shows, which also marked the group's first win since debut onShow! Music Core andInkigayo.[56]
Seven months after their last comeback, the group released their eighth EPThe Nocturne with the lead single titled "I'm in Trouble" on May 11, 2020.[57] The album topped the Album Sales, Retail Album, Download, and BGM charts on Gaon's Weekly Chart.[58] "I'm in Trouble" also debuted at no. 6 on Gaon's Digital Chart, becoming the complete group's first lead single since debut to break into the Top 10, excluding their singles as NU'EST W.[59]
On October 7, NU'EST released their second Japanese-language album, "Drive". The song "Drive" is the group's first Japanese album release in 5 years after "Bridge the World".[60]
2021–2022:Romanticize, solo projects,Needle & Bubble and disbandment
On April 19, 2021, the group released their second studio album,Romanticize, with the lead single "Inside Out".[61] Only four members participated in full promotions for the album as Aron went on a brief hiatus in January 2021 due to anxiety issues (but performed with the group in music shows), eventually rejoining the group in June.[62] The album topped Hanteo's weekly album sales chart and earned two crowns on theGaon Music Chart.[63] The lead single also went on to score wins onM! Countdown,Music Bank,Show! Music Core, andInkigayo, earning the group its second music show grand slam since their single "Love Me" in late 2019.[63]
The group held their first live in-person concert in 2 years titledThe Black from November 26 to 28, 2021 at theJamsil Indoor Stadium in Seoul.[71] On December 2, the group performed in and won the Best Achievement award at the 2021Asia Artist Awards.[72] Later that month, they performed at the 2021KBS Song Festival andSBS Gayo Daejeon, held on December 17 and 25, respectively.[73]
After nearly a year of no new releases, it was announced on February 28, 2022, that the group's exclusive contract with Pledis Entertainment will end on March 14.[74] It was also announced that members Aron, JR, and Ren will leave the agency at the conclusion of their contract, while Baekho and Minhyun opted to renew.[75] With the news of their contract expiring, the group confirmed their disbandment through handwritten letters to their fans, announcing their decision to pursue individual projects.[76] A compilation album,Needle & Bubble, was released on March 15 to mark the group's 10-year anniversary as they officially disbanded on the same day.[77][78]
To mark their seventh debut anniversary, the group donated funds to The Snail of Love in March 2019 to covercochlear implant surgery and language rehabilitation therapy for children.[79] The donation also helped fund music education programs to help people with developmental disabilities connect with the world through music.[80]
From 2013 to 2014, NU'EST-M was formed as a sub-group in collaboration withYuehua Entertainment to exclusively target the Chinese market.[81] All five members participated in NU'EST-M with the addition of Jason, a Chinese trainee from Yuehua Entertainment.[30][81] The group recorded Chinese versions of the lead singles "Face" and "Sleep Talking."[82]
From July 17, 2017, to December 31, 2018, the remaining members of NU'EST promoted as a sub-group,NU'EST W, while Minhyun exclusively promoted withWanna One.[83] NU'EST W released a total of three EPs before ending promotions in 2018.
^Jeong, Hee-yeon (February 28, 2022)."뉴이스트 해체→5人 손편지 공개 "각자의 길, 그룹 떠난다" [공식]" [NU'EST disbanded → 5 people's handwritten letter released "Each road, leaving the group" [Official]] (in Korean). Donga.Archived from the original on February 28, 2022. RetrievedFebruary 28, 2022 – viaNaver.
^ab"NU'EST、中国活動ユニットNU'EST-Mを結成".Osen (in Japanese). KStyle. November 8, 2013.Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. RetrievedDecember 29, 2019.
