Maps of Music
I Burn (2021)
Where the lyrics of I Burn take you, and where it was really made.
This EP was the group's last release as a sextet, just months before Soojin's hiatus and her August 2021 departure.
View on the mapKey places
Recorded at Cube Studio, Seoul (2021)
Recording site CUBE STUDIO — The recording credit for I Burn lists Cube Studio in Seoul. The credit gives the studio, not the exact dates of each session. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Album story
Overview
- I Burn: fourth Korean EP and sixth overall by South Korean girl group (G)I-dle
- Released January 11, 2021 by Cube Entertainment and Republic Records
- Three physical versions: Winter, Flower and Fire; six tracks including lead single 'Hwaa'
- Fourth entry in the 'I' series that started with the debut album I Am (2018)
- Final release as a sextet, before Soojin's hiatus and her departure in August 2021
Background
- December 9, 2020: Newsen reported a mid-January comeback
- December 27: Cube released a visual film announcing the comeback on the group's YouTube channel
- January 11: online media showcase hosted by broadcaster Oh Jung-yeon
- Members Minnie, Soyeon and Yuqi took part in composing and writing
- The album covers the various emotions felt while regaining happiness after a separation
Recording
- Recording credit lists CUBE STUDIO in Seoul
- Mixing credit lists GLAB Studios
Cover
- Winter version: white dresses, antique props, lace and lit candles in a cold, lonely winter mood
- Flower version: dresses with colourful patterns set against a cold blue background
- Fire version: shaking images of fire spreading through pitch-black darkness
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Tracklist
| 1 | 한(寒) | 2:55 |
| 2 | 화(火花) | 3:17 |
| 3 | MOON | 3:20 |
| 4 | Where is love | 2:57 |
| 5 | LOST | 3:01 |
| 6 | DAHLIA | 3:10 |
Sources: musicbrainz.org
Artist
Formation
- Formed by Cube Entertainment in 2018 as (G)I-dle, a six-member girl group; renamed I-dle in May 2025.
- Debuted on May 2, 2018 with EP I Am and lead single "Latata".
- Soojin departed on August 14, 2021, leaving five members.
Members
- Current members: Miyeon, Minnie, Soyeon (leader, rapper), Yuqi, Shuhua.
- Former member: Soojin (2018–2021).
Career
- Praised for musicality and for self-producing their material, breaking idol stereotypes.
- "Tomboy" (2022) from debut studio album I Never Die became a viral hit and topped the Circle Digital Chart.
- "Nxde" also topped the chart; the group was the only artist with two perfect all-kills in 2022.
- "Queencard" from EP I Feel (2023) marked a third consecutive number-one single in South Korea.
- Second studio album 2 and EP I Sway were released in 2024; contracts were renewed the same year.
- Describes an artist with self-written material and a fanbase called "Neverland".
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
At release
- Billboard's Gab Ginsberg and Jason Lipshutz singled out 'Dahlia' as the closing track, describing it as a striking piece about love that outside critics cannot taint
- Billboard's Heran Mamo praised the mix of musical arrangements and Eastern instrumentation, which describes the aftermath of a painful breakup
- Elite Daily's Michele Mendez called it a breakup album that everyone needs to hear
- Beats Per Minute: JT Early gave the album 75 out of 100
- The Kraze magazine gave the album 7.5 out of 10 and 8.6 out of 10 overall including the lead single and music video, praising the production by Soyeon, Minnie and Yuqi
- The Quietus: Verónica A. Bastardo called it a theatrical EP flooded with grandiloquent orchestral instrumentals mixed with pop structures and EDM drops
Reappraisal
- South China Morning Post included the album in its mid-year list of the best K-pop albums of 2021, calling it short and sweet
Records
- Hanteo daily album chart: number 1 with 75,510 copies sold on the first day
- Gaon Retail Album Chart: number 1 with 59,086 copies
- Gaon Album Chart: number 3 for the week of January 10-16, 2021; best one-week sales of 115,500 copies
- Commercially surpassed 200,000 copies, the group's first project to do so
- iTunes Top Album charts in 52 regions around the world
- Billboard: number 10 on World Albums, number 20 on Heatseekers Albums, number 22 on Top Current Album Sales, and number 54 on Top Album Sales, its first entry on that chart
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- Minnie said the songs are linked from the first track to the last, so the story of getting burned by a breakup and growing stronger is easy to follow.
- The album begins with 'Hann (Alone in Winter)' and ends with 'Dahlia', a track named after a flower.
- The title track 'Hwaa' is a moombahton song that adds a cool sensibility to an oriental instrument.
- iTunes Top Album charts listed the album in 52 regions around the world, reported on January 13.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
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