~ KIM CHUNGHA ~ 

Who is Kim Chungha? 

Kim Chungha, of her stage name Chungha, is a female soloist under MNH entertainment. Previously a member of the girl group I.O.I (formed after the 1st season of the Produce 101 series), she started her solo career on June 7, 2017 with the song "Why don't you know" from her first mini album "Hands on me". 

Chungha was born on the 9th of February, 1996 in South Korea, but lived in Dallas, Texas for 8 years. She studied at Sejong University and can speak Korean and English. 

She initially auditioned for YG entertainment before joining JYP as a trainee. She then left JYP and joined her current agency, MNH. She was a trainee for 3 years and 3 months and her specialties are Choreographs and Dancing. She confessed on the competition "Hit the stage" that her dance training period was close to 7 years and she was known on Produce 101 for her freestyle skills. 

Her role model is Lee Hyori, one of her favorite songs is "No tears left to cry" by Ariana Grande, and she would like to collaborate with Paul Kim and Camila Cabello. She is close to Stray Kid's Bangchan (they trained together when she was at JYPE) and her closest celebrity friends are the I.O.I members. 

Some fun facts about her: She has a dog named Bambi, she loves eating but isn't good at cooking, her favorite TV show is Animal Farm, she's not good at sports and is afraid of ball games, to relieve stress she eats something sweet and she likes lavender scent. 

Here are her official social media accounts:

• Instagram: @chungha_official
• Twitter: @CHUNGHA_MNHent
• Twitter (Japan): @chungha_japan
• Facebook: 청하 (CHUNG HA)
• Fan Cafe: MNH-Chungha
• Vlive: CHUNG HA
• YouTube: Chung Ha_Official
• TikTok: @official_chungha

Chungha's discography

From my perspective, Chungha has hands down one of the best female solo discography. 

I am not familiar with her debut album, but she definitely made herself noticed with her second mini album "Offset" with the title track "Roller Coaster" out on January 17, 2018. I personally didn't like Roller Coaster at all, but I definitely can see why it generally wasn't the case. The song is deeply anchored in the pop genre and the chorus is really catchy. The dance is also fun to do, and the MV is full of flashy/neon colours.

On January 2, 2019 she released her 2nd single XII (Gotta Go). This is the song that made me fall personally in love with her. First, her presence on screen got so much better. Second, her vocals are shining so beautifully in this song. Third, the budget for the MV was more consequent than in the "Roller Coaster" MV which made the song even better. And last, what makes this song so good for me is its choreography. This is one of her best choreographies and she executes it so well!

On June 24 of the same year, she released her 4th mini album "Flourishing" with the title track "Snapping". There's something there was in Gotta Go that was also in this song, but here the song's more dynamic and the dance more sassy in a sense and I absolutely loved the performances of this song. The MV is absolutely GORGEOUS, especially when she's in that black outfit with her blonde hair and only lights pointing at her. I was less conquered by the song but it's still a beautiful one. 

Towards the end of 2020, Chungha had planned to release her 1st studio album entitled "Querencia". However, as you all know, the pandemic happened and flipped everything upside-down. On April 27, Chungha released her 1st pre-release "Stay Tonight". It is an EDM track that makes you want to dance, and I really appreciate how the "fake drop" happens in the bridge of the song. Then, on July 6, she released her 2nd pre-release, "Play" featuring Changmo. This has to be my favorite of hers until now, because it's such a mood-maker song that makes you want to dance and just be happy. The MV is full of colours and screams summer, and the dance is really cool (especially the salsa part with her partner).

On November 18, Chungha announced that she will be also releasing two other pre-releases of her upcoming studio album: "Dream of you" scheduled for November 27, and "X" scheduled for December 10, the album being planned for January 4, 2021. And so, Dream of You was released on November 27 as planned. This song is an EDM track in collaboration with DJ R3HAB. There wasn't an official MV but a performance video showcasing Chungha's amazing dancing skills. She nailed both masculine and feminine dancing styles as well as clothes. 

Now this is where things got complicated. On December 9 it was announced that Chungha tested positive for Covid-19 and was therefore put under quarantine. It was later announced that the pre-release "X" was postponed for January 19, 2021 and the album for February 15, 2021. "X" is something I haven't seen from Chungha before. It has a very nostalgic melody and the MV is quite intriguing. Nostalgic songs always have a special place in my heart because I'm a very emotional person. 

On February 15, 2021, Chungha's first full-album "Querencia" was finally released with its title track "Bicycle". The album is quite long, it has 4 sides (side A, B, C and D), and a total of 21 tracks (some of them are transition tracks tho). This album is the best one she has released so far. Although I didn't like the title track as much as I thought I would (I explain why more in details in the article I dedicated to the whole release, click here to access it), some b-sides are amazing. I would cite "Chill", "Comes N Goes" and "Flying on faith" as my favourite b-sides.

What do I think of Chungha

The first impression I got from her wasn't really good. I saw some videos from produce 101 and was highly influenced by MNET's evil editing (please don't fall in the trap they show only what they want to show). I felt like she was overconfident and didn't care about her bandmates. I know, I was really wrong and I'm really ashamed of it now. 

Today I perceived Chungha as one of the most talented female soloist in the industry. She really has the whole package: Dancing, Singing, Stage presence, Artistry. Everything. Plus, she's an adorable human being. She makes me laugh so much, there's this video on Dinggo music where she dances on snapping and the rhythm keeps changing, she and her dancers are so lost but they're so funny. You can watch the video here.

Last but not least, Chungha is really a hard worker and a fighter. I know she suffered a lot because of her weight for a while. At some point in her career she was underweight and wasn't in her best health condition, and that's mainly the reason why people, including me, got worried when they heard she tested positive for the Coronavirus. People like her give me the strength to fight and not give up. 

And that's a wrap! I hope this article helped you in getting familiar with Chungha and her work ahead of her comeback. You can comment down below if you're a fan, what's your favorite song of hers and what are you expecting from her next upcoming comeback.

Take care and I'll see you all soon!

Love, Swan