TWICE (트와이스) is undeniably one of the most popular idol girl groups in K-Pop right now. Sweet, charming, and full of energy, there’s nothing these girls can’t pull off.
Formed through “Sixteen” in 2015, a girl group survival program produced by JYP Entertainment and Mnet, the 9-piece group is made up of leader Park Jihyo, Im Nayeon, Yoo Jungyeon, Dahyun, Chaeyoung, Japanese members Mina, Momo, and Sana, as well as Taiwanese member Tzuyu. On 20th October 2015, they made their debut with their 1st mini-album, “The Story Begins”, which held the title track, “Like OOH-AHH” (OOH-AHH하게).
Since their debut, TWICE has dominated music charts, sparked controversies (namely Tzuyu’s nationality controversy), and earned exclusive CF contracts. They have also cinched many major awards, including those offered by Melon Music Awards, Golden Disk Awards, Seoul Music Awards, Gaon Chart K-pop Awards, and Mnet Asian Music Awards.
The girls kickstarted their 1st solo concert, “TWICELAND: The Opening”, in Seoul last week and the concert has expanded into an Asia tour, going to countries like Thailand and Singapore.
And that’s not all. TWICE has once again taken the spotlight with their latest release, “TWICEcoaster: Lane 2”. Featuring bubbly tunes and infectious melodies, the album topped the iTunes albums charts in Singapore, Taiwan, and Malaysia. Needless to say, they’re currently K-Pop’s It Girls.
Want to know more about TWICE? Here are some interesting facts about the colourful group:
1. “Like OOH-AHH” made K-Pop YouTube history
The music video for TWICE’s “Like OOH-AHH” became the most-viewed debut music video of all time, surpassing 2NE1’s “Fire” and NU’EST’s “Face” (페이스). The clip, which was released on 19th October 2015, surpassed 100 million views last November. The song was composed by Black Eyed Pilseung, a popular South Korean songwriting duo.
2. Jungyeon, Nayeon, Jihyo, and Sana were initially set to debut under “6mix”
Prior to TWICE’s debut, JYP announced that they would introduce 6mix, a new idol girl group, in February 2014. It was also reported that members Jungyeon, Nayeon, Jihyo, and Sana were all part of that group’s line-up. Unfortunately, the debut was cancelled when 2 trainees – Lena Ahn (who competed for Miss Korea later on) and Cecilia – left the entertainment powerhouse.
3. Some members was featured in other artistes’ music videos
Besides singing, the girls also tried their hand at acting by starring in their label mates’ music video. For example, Nayeon, Dahyun, and Sana appeared in GOT7’s “Girls Girls Girls”, “Stop Stop It”, and “A” respectively while Mina was featured in 2PM member Wooyoung’s “R.O.S.E”. Last year, Momo played Super Junior’s Kim Heechul and singer Min Kyung Hoon’s love interest in the duo’s digital single, “Sweet Dreams”.
4. “TWICEcoaster: Lane 1” was the best-selling girl group album in 2016
The group’s 3rd EP (extended play), titled “TWICEcoaster: Lane 1”, sold 350,852 physical copies last year, making it the highest-selling album in South Korea released by a girl group in 2016. It consists of 7 tracks including hits “Like OOH-AHH”, “Cheer Up”, and “TT”. Besides that, TWICE’s 2nd EP, titled “Page Two”, managed to surpass the 100,000 club with over 150,000 unit sales. According to JYP representatives, the pre-order of 30,000 limited edition albums sold out before its official release.
5. Jihyo was a JYP trainee for more than 10 years
Before debuting as a member of TWICE, 20-year-old Jihyo, who is the group’s leader and main vocalist, trained under JYP for over 10 years. When she was a 3rd grader, the idol competed in a Junior Naver contest, in which she won 2nd place. In July 2005, she joined the agency as an official trainee.
“I was a trainee for a long time, and it would be a lie to say that I was always happy during that time. There were times when I wanted to give up, and lots of painful moments as well. I’m so happy right now because it feels like the moment I’d dreamed about is happening right now,” she said tearfully during TWICE’s first world tour, “TWICELAND – The Opening”.
6. Mina studied ballet for 11 years
Japanese-American member Mina studied ballet for 11 years before joining Urizip dance school in Osaka, Japan to learn modern dance. On the first episode of “Sixteen”, she impressed Park Jin Young, founder of JYP, with her graceful performance “The Nutcracker”. She previously expressed that her favourite ballet production is “Le Corsaire” (The Pirate).
7. Momo was personally chosen by Park Jin Young to join TWICE even after elimination
On episode 6 of “Sixteen”, Momo was eliminated due to her lack of singing abilities. But when the final members of TWICE were being selected on the last episode, Park Jin Young himself announced that Momo will be added to the group. This sparked controversy among fans and viewers.
After the survival programme ended, Park explained that Momo has something other TWICE members do not have – powerful dance skills. The agency stated, “Momo is exceptional in dance and performance. We believed that she will be a great addition to really complete TWICE.”
8. Jungyeon and Jihyo changed their birth names
Jungyeon’s birth name was originally Yoo Kyungwan (유경완). Apparently, she was often teased by her friends because Kyungwan sounded like a boy’s name. With the help of her mother, she legally changed her name to Jungyeon when she was 9 years old. She is also the sister of K-Drama actress Gong Seungyeon. On the other hand, Jihyo was born Park Jisoo (박지수). Although the reason is unknown, she legally changed it to Jihyo before filming “Sixteen”.
9. TWICE’s fans are known as Once
For the uninitiated, the name of TWICE’s fan club is “Once” and their official group colours are Apricot (Pantone 712 C) and Neon Magenta (Pantone 812 C). In an heartfelt Instagram post, the girls explained that a lot of fans liked the name and that “Once” goes very well with TWICE.
They wrote, “If you love us even ‘Once’, we’ll repay you with TWICE our love. It’s difficult to connect with people, and getting people to love is the most difficult of all. We’ll work hard so that you can look at us once, and fall in love with us TWICE. Be with us until the end. We love you.”
We certainly hope that we didn’t make you fall even more in love with them than you already are ?
For more information on TWICE, hit up their website, Facebook page and Twitter.
Sources: Soompi (1), (2), (3), Billboard, Too Much Tzuyu’s Tumblr, All Kpop, Wikipedia.
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