Marionette (song)

"Marionette" (Hangul: 마리오네트) is a song recorded by South Korean girl group Stellar for their first mini album of the same name. It was released as the album's second single on February 12, 2014.[1] The song was subject of controversy due to its provocative choreography, which was censored on many music shows.[2] It is Stellar's best-selling single thus far, having reached the top 40 on the Gaon Digital Chart.[3]

"Marionette"
Single by Stellar
from the album Marionette
ReleasedFebruary 12, 2014 (2014-02-12)
Recorded2014
Genre
Length3:31
LabelThe Entertainment Pascal
Songwriter(s)
  • Lee Joohyung
  • G-High
Producer(s)
  • Lee Joohyung
  • Hong Seunghyun
  • G-High
Stellar singles chronology
"Study"
(2013)		 "Marionette"
(2014)		 "Mask"
(2014)
Music video
"Marionette" on YouTube

Background and release

After their comeback with the digital single "Study" in 2013,[4] Stellar revealed on February 10, 2014, they would be releasing their first mini album Marionette and announced a song of the same name as its title track.[5] "Marionette" was released on February 12 as the second single from the album, which also came out on the same day.[1]

Composition and lyrical interpretation

"Marionette" is described as a retro dance song with groovy drum lines and guitar sounds.[1] It was composed by Lee Joohyung and G-High.[6] The title of the song refers to the lyric's analogy of being pulled around like a puppet for still being in love with someone who is no longer around.[1]

Music video

On February 11, 2014, Stellar released a teaser of the music video for the song,[7] which was fully premiered the next day, on February 12. The video, which was directed by Park Seunghun, features the girls dancing at indoors sets and being sexy while performing day to day actions, such as drinking milk and bathing.[8] On February 15, a "no cut" version of the video was released, showing the full choreography for the song entirely filmed in one shot.[9] The video gained 2 million views on YouTube during its first week.[10] It is Stellar's most watched music video and has gathered over 16 million views as of 2018.

Promotion

In order to promote the single, the group performed it on a few music shows. The first stage was held on Mnet's M Countdown on February 13, 2014.[11] The promotions continued through KBS's Music Bank on February 14,[12] SBS MTV's The Show on February 18,[13] and MBC Music's Show Champion on February 19.[14] They also performed the song during the 7th SGC Super Live in Seoul on September 13, 2014, along with the singles "Mask" and "Study".[15]

Commercial performance

After only 3 days of sales, the song managed to debut on the Gaon Digital Chart at number 42 on the issue dated between February 9 and February 15, 2014,[16] selling 45,463 digital copies.[17] It peaked at number 35 on the following week, becoming Stellar's highest charting single.[3] For the month of February, the song appeared on the monthly edition of the Gaon Digital Chart at number 65,[18] with 106,631 copies sold.[19] On the week of March 1, 2014, "Marionette" appeared on the Billboard's K-Pop Hot 100 at number 34.[20] The song had sold over 153 thousand downloads as of March 2014.[19][21]

Controversy

During the release of the album's promotional material, The Entertainment Pascal received criticism for involving the group on a "stripping game", where the fans had to like posts on Stellar's official Facebook page in order to reveal parts of their bodies in blurred out photos. According to the agency, the activity was part of the song's concept of being a marionette and doing whatever the puppet master wants you to do. Despite the explanation, the game was compared to sexual exploration, which caused the agency to delete all the posts related to the issue.[22]

Ban and censorship

As soon as the music video for "Marionette" was released, it became restricted to ages above 18 in all South Korea and on YouTube. It was also banned from local television due to its provocative choreography and the members' revealing clothes.[23] The controversy also affected the group's appearances on music shows. For most of their stages, portions of the dance had to be toned down as they were considered too vulgar,[2] one of them being the infamously known "butt-rub" move, where the girls scratch their butts to the audience.[24] Despite the overall censorship, the group was allowed to perform the original choreography for the song on their Show Champion stages.[14]

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (2014) Peak

position

 Ref.
South Korea (Gaon Digital Chart) 35 [3]
United States (K-Pop Hot 100) 34 [20]

Monthly charts
Chart (2014) Peak

position

 Ref.
South Korea (Gaon Digital Chart) 65 [18]

Release history
Region Date Format Label Ref.
South Korea February 12, 2017 Digital download The Entertainment Pascal [6]
Worldwide [25]
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References
  1. E&M, CJ. "[Mnet] 마리오네트 - 스텔라(Stellar)". Mnet (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  2. "| 논란의 스텔라, '엠카' 컴백 무대서 안무 일부 수정텐아시아". 텐아시아 (in Korean). 2014-02-13. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  3. "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  4. E&M, CJ. "[Mnet] 공부하세요 - 스텔라(Stellar)". Mnet (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  5. "스텔라, '걸그룹 섹시 전쟁' 정리하러 출격". news.jtbc.joins.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  6. E&M, CJ. "[Mnet] 마리오네트 - 스텔라(Stellar)". Mnet (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  7. E&M, CJ. "[Mnet] 마리오네트 (Teaser) | 스텔라(Stellar)". Mnet (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  8. E&M, CJ. "[Mnet] 마리오네트 | 스텔라(Stellar)". Mnet (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  9. 크랙, 미스터 (2014-02-15). "[스텔라] 스텔라 '마리오네트' 노컷(No Cut) Ver. MV 공개". 미스터 크랙의 깨는 블로그. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  10. "스텔라 '마리오네트' 뮤비, '19금'에도 유튜브 200만 뷰 돌파". 이데일리 (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  11. "태연-종현·스텔라·방탄소년단, '엠카운트다운' 컴백 신고식 - 뷰티한국". www.beautyhankook.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  12. "'뮤직뱅크' 이민우 컴백…태연·종현, 소유·정기고 듀엣무대". 중앙일보 (in Korean). 2014-02-14. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  13. "스텔라, 가슴골 드러나는 절개 의상에 깜짝…'손이 어디로'". plus.hankyung.com. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  14. "스텔라 마리오네트 19금 안무 버전". Dark benz 스마트한 정보 (in Korean). 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  15. topstarnews.net (2014-09-13). "[HD포토] 스텔라, '헉 소리나는 뒤태' (서울걸즈컬렉션), #스텔라 - 톱스타뉴스(TopStarNews.Net)". 톱스타뉴스(TopStarNews.Net) (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  16. "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  17. "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  18. "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  19. "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  20. "Korea K-Pop Hot 100 : Page 1". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  21. "GAON DOWNLOAD CHART | gaon music chart". 2014-04-13. Archived from the original on 2014-04-13. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  22. "'너무 야한' 스텔라 마리오네트, 페북도 '옷벗기기 게임' 논란". 서울신문 (in Korean). 2014-02-12. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  23. "엉덩이로 방아 찧고 돌린 '스텔라' 19禁 판정…"쉿! 케이블에선 다 보여줄게"" (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  24. "Stellar's "Marionette" is Getting Criticized for Being Racy but It's Like Every Other Sexy Concept (and that's why people hate it)". Yellow Slug Reviews. 2014-02-16. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  25. "Marionette by Stellar on Apple Music". itunes.apple.com. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
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