Maps of Music

Reality in Black (2019)

Where the lyrics of Reality in Black take you, and where it was really made.

Mamamoo's Queendom finale song "Destiny" ended up on this album, which came out two weeks after the group was named the winner of the show.

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.

Reality in Black: second Korean studio album and third overall by Mamamoo
Released 14 November 2019 by RBW, distributed by Kakao M
Eleven songs, including lead single "Hip" and "Destiny", the Queendom finale song
K-pop album with R&B, dance and hip hop influences

March 2019: ninth EP White Wind, fourth and final installment of the "Four Seasons, Four Colors" series
Shortly after, fifth concert tour 4Seasons F/W, which visited Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong as well as South Korea
July 2019: Mamamoo joined Queendom, a competition among six trending female K-pop acts for a comeback showcase on Mnet
"Destiny" was released within the competition and later included on the album
31 October 2019: Mamamoo declared winners in the last episode of Queendom
1 November 2019: impending album announced through official social media
BLACK partly stands for "Bless Life and Carry Knowledge"
Concept pictures and video teasers showed members in alternate universes in which they were not part of Mamamoo

Longtime partners Kim Do-hoon and Park Woo-sang worked with several producers and songwriters on the album
Kim Do-hoon and Park Woo-sang co-wrote "Hip" alongside member Hwasa

Title, album cover and release date were revealed through the group's official Twitter account on 2 November 2019

Formed and managed by RBW; four members: Solar, Moonbyul, Wheein, Hwasa.
Name intended to symbolize a baby babbling for the first time, reflecting their aim to make music familiar worldwide.
Debuted June 18, 2014 with the EP Hello and lead single "Mr. Ambiguous".
Collaborated with several artists before debut, including Bumkey, K.Will, Wheesung, and Geeks.

Breakthrough in 2015 with "Um Oh Ah Yeh" (Pink Funky), peaking at number three on the Gaon Chart.
Debut full album Melting (2016) led to first number-one single "You're the Best".
Purple (2017) with "Yes I Am" gave them first number one on the Billboard World Albums chart.
"Four Seasons, Four Colors" project (2018–2019) produced hits including "Starry Night", "Egotistic", and "Gogobebe".
"Hip" from Reality in Black (2019) became their first number-one on the Billboard World Digital Song Sales chart.
Won the Mnet reality show Queendom (2019); first global concert tour My Con World Tour (2022–2023).
Entered a hiatus after 2023; returned in 2026 with "4 Flowers" and the 4ward World Tour.

Debuted atop the Gaon Album Chart, Mamamoo's third number-one album in South Korea after Yellow Flower and White Wind
"Hip" debuted at number 20 on the Gaon Digital Chart and peaked at number four in its third week
"Destiny" reached number 68 in South Korea

Billboard World Albums chart: debuted at number 12, peaked at number 11 the next week
Best-selling album of the group to date: 102,171 copies in November 2019, over 120,000 by October 2020
"Hip" certified platinum by KMCA for surpassing 100 million streams in November 2020, the group's second certification after "Starry Night"
"Hip" peaked at number one on the Billboard World Digital Songs Sales chart, the group's first number one on that chart
"Destiny" peaked at number seven on the US World Digital Songs Sales chart

"Universe" contains an uncredited sample of Ariana Grande's "NASA".
For this album's promotion, the group swapped their handheld microphones for headsets to focus on choreography.
"I'm Your Fan", track 11, is a song written by Solar and was first revealed on her birthday, 21 February 2018, through the fan cafe.
"Hip" choreography was described by Solar as the most complex and difficult the group had learned up to that point.