Maps of Music

Absolute First Album (2009)

Where the lyrics of Absolute First Album take you, and where it was really made.

The fans' poll picked "Like the First Time" as the lead single, but the label overruled it and chose "Bo Peep Bo Peep" instead.

Place unknown

Do you know where this album was recorded, or where its cover was shot? Tell us and we will add it to the map.

Absolute First Album: debut studio album by South Korean girl group T-ara
Digital release on November 27, 2009; physical release on December 4, 2009, through Core Contents Media
Concept: two different charms, one embracing a "trendy" image and one leaning toward a "classic" aesthetic
Result: a modern dance record with traces of retro influences
Contributors: Shinsadong Tiger, Cho Young-soo, Choi Kyu-sung (now of Black Eyed Pilseung), Wheesung and "Hitman" Bang
Mainly a dance-pop and electronic record
Lead track "Bo Peep Bo Peep" became a breakthrough single and one of T-ara's signature songs
"Like the First Time" was the album's b-side and was later released as its fourth single on January 15, 2010

T-ara was formed by Core Contents Media CEO Kim Kwang-soo
Debut single "Lies" released July 27, 2009, as a maxi single; its old-school trot influence did little to appeal to core girl group fans
The debut came amid an influx of girl groups on the Korean pop scene
The group used a "girlish and pure" image during its early run
The Supernova collaboration "TTL (Time to Love)" was marketed as a "180-degree transformation" with a "sexier" image
In October 2009 the group announced plans for a mini-album, which grew into a full-length album announced days before its late November release
Core Contents Media brought in Shinsadong Tiger and "Hitman" Bang to produce songs
Marketing centered on the dual concepts, with the title track backed by a "charismatic" image and the b-side billed as "colorful yet classic"
An online poll of nearly 9,000 respondents favored "Like the First Time" by 53 percent, but management chose "Bo Peep Bo Peep" to present the intended image change
The group first performed "Bo Peep Bo Peep" on Music Bank on December 4, 2009
Main vocalist So-yeon contracted H1N1, and promotion for the album as a whole stopped

T-ara is a South Korean girl group formed in 2009 under Mnet Media, training together for nearly three years before debut.
The original pre-debut five members were Jiae, Jiwon, Eunjung, Hyomin and Jiyeon; Jiae and Jiwon left in 2009 over differences in music style.
Boram, Soyeon and Qri were added shortly before the debut single "Lies" in 2009; the group moved to subsidiary Core Contents Media in July 2009.

The group is known for its frequent lineup changes; Hwayoung joined in 2010, and Areum joined in 2012.
Areum left in July 2013, returning the group to its original debut lineup, and the group continued as six members until 2017.
Soyeon and Boram left in 2017, and the remaining four members have since reunited in 2021 as a group of four.

The group's hook-heavy dance-pop was closely tied to composer Shinsadong Tiger, and it was called the "Chameleons of K-pop" for its shifting concepts.
"Roly-Poly" (2011) became the Gaon chart's best-selling single of the year and the most downloaded girl group single to date.
The group expanded into Japan and China, including a 2011 Japanese debut single that topped the Oricon weekly singles chart.
After a 2012 controversy and a 2017 end to the six-member era, T-ara released the single album Re:T-ara in 2021 and has since held fan meetings across Asia.

Sohu Music columnist: marked the album as a "clear improvement" over the debut single
The same columnist criticized the album for lacking identity, saying T-ara could follow trends but had yet to find a suitable music style
The columnist still picked "Falling U" as a standout track
K-pop Archive critic Seo Jung-min said the group's music could not be considered to have its own grammar
Seo called the album's sound mechanical and simplistic, and expressed ambivalence toward girl group hook songs flooding the 2009 scene
Sina Entertainment writer: the album was full of youthfulness and T-ara's color
Bugs! staff writer: the album makes listeners feel the charm of T-ara across its fourteen tracks
Bugs! singled out "Apple is A" as sweet and refreshing and "Tic Tic Toc" as a body shaker

SBS PopAsia's Jacques Peterson (2017) named "TTL (Time to Love)", "You Drive Me Crazy" and "Like the First Time" among the group's best singles
Peterson said the album still stands as one of the best, if not the best, Korean girl group albums of the past five years
SBS PopAsia listed the album as one of 10 "Essential Modern K-pop Albums You Need to Hear" in 2018
Amazon Music included "Falling U" at 17th and "TTL" at 35th on its list of the greatest K-pop hits of the 2000s

Over 25,000 pre-orders within less than a week
Ranked number one on the Hanteo real-time charts for three consecutive days
Peaked at number two on the newly launched Gaon Album Chart in January 2010
"Bo Peep Bo Peep" topped major real-time charts in 2009 and peaked at number four on the Gaon Digital Chart in 2010
"Bo Peep Bo Peep" was the 82nd best-selling single of 2010 with over 1.6 million downloads
"Like the First Time", originally a b-side, debuted at number ten on Gaon and was one of the best-selling singles of 2010

Fans' online poll picked "Like the First Time" by 53 percent, but management kept "Bo Peep Bo Peep" as the lead track.
The lead track's cat dance became a craze in the country.
Over 2,000 fans applied for the planned first fan signing at Synnara Records, so the venue moved to Young poong Books in Jongno for safety.
The title is meant to be read "Bo Pe" in Korean but was pronounced "Bbo-ppi" to suit the song's character.
Main vocalist So-yeon's H1N1 infection halted promotions for the album.