Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me

Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me is the second part from the third full-length album of South Korean boy band Shinee, released on April 29, 2013, in South Korea. The first part Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You was released on February 19, 2013. Both albums contain 9 songs each, for a total of 18 songs combined – a compilation albums titled The Misconceptions of Us was released on August 8, 2013.[3][4] The second part is said to have a darker and dreamier feel to it compared to the previous part.[5] The album was produced by the record label of S.M. Entertainment and distributed by KMP Holdings.[6] As of 2013 the album has sold about 130,000 copies and as of 2016 the whole Misconceptions Series has sold around 360,000 copies in South Korea.[7][8][9]

Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me
Studio album by
Shinee
ReleasedApril 26, 2013
Recorded2012-2013
StudioS.M. Studios
Seoul, South Korea
GenreDance,[1] World music,[2] Pop
Length33:36
LanguageKorean
LabelSM Entertainment (record)
KMP Holdings (distribution)
Producer
Shinee chronology
Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You
(2013)		 Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me
(2013)		 Boys Meet U
(2013)
Singles from Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me
  1. "Why So Serious?"
    Released: April 26, 2013
Music video
"Why So Serious?" on YouTube

Background and release

On February 14, Shinee held an event called "Melon Premiere Shinee Music Spoiler" where the group revealed three songs off the second album through a medley, which were described to have a darker vibe compared to Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You. Jonghyun stated, "Why So Serious – The Misconceptions of Me will show our world views. It will have deep and rough sound. It embodies our groups unique personality and musical sensation".[10][11] Jonghyun stated "Spoiler" is the main song connecting the two albums, and in a video interview with Billboard, the group confirmed that the song titles to Why So Serious – The Misconceptions of Me were revealed in "Spoiler."[12]

About the making of the two connected album member Onew stated, "It’s our first full album that we’re releasing in a while, so we worked really hard. Minho and Key worked on the rapping, Jonghyun worked on the lyrics, and Taemin worked on the choreography." Taemin described the album as one where each member's individuality shines through their voices, “We know each other best so a lot of our opinions went into this album." Jonghyun additionally adds, "Taemin’s delivery of the lyrics is good. Minho's falsetto is really nice these days. Key is good at English. We know each other's strengths so we split the parts up according to who can shine on what. We had fun working on the album."[13][14] Fellow SM Entertainment artist Shim Changmin wrote the song "떠나지 못해" for the group, making this his first time writing outside a TVXQ release.[15]

Director Lee Sungsoo from S.M. Entertainments production department explained that the album is about "the misconception of me (Shinee)," "the dreams I slowly wanted for myself" and "the misconception of ideals." It evokes the gap between Shinee's reality and dreams and has an overall deep and dark sound, completely opposite of the preceding album."[16] At the event Director Lee also said that there are hidden keywords that connect the songs in the two albums and, "We included a fun point where you can search for keywords and put them together to create several interpretations." [17] On April 17, 2013, S.M. Entertainment confirmed that member Jonghyun would not be promoting in the beginning of the album promotion due to his car accident, stating "Jonghyun was discharged from the hospital [...], and until he is fully healed, he’ll be focusing on treatments."[18]

Promotional singles

"Why So Serious?" is a funk rock dance track that was chosen as the title track and lead single from the album. The song was written and produced by Kenzie and composed by Kim Cheong Bae, Andrew Choi and Kenzie.[19] It is a genre that combines the powerful and catchy melody of pop with electronica sounds. It talks wittily about a zombie that has lived in darkness for a very long time who falls in love with a human girl.[20] The accompanying music video was filmed in Cheongdam-dong and Namyangju in the beginning of April 2013, featuring the choreography by Devin Jamieson, who previously worked with the groups labelmates Super Junior.[21][22] Jonghyun didn't participate in the music video due to his injury.[23] Both the dance and the story present in the music video are reminiscent of the lyrics to the song. As "Why So Serious?" begins describing a zombie's awakening, Shinee lies down on the floor and reaches toward the sky.[24]

"Shine (Medusa I)" is powerful dance track that "combines high quality lyrics that express the love of fans as a ‘shine’ together with tough drum sounds to add enjoyment to listeners".[25] It was chosen as the second promotional single from the album and was performed on various broadcast music shows. Teddy Riley, Andrew Choi and Kim Tae-seong composed the songs whereas Misfit and member Minho penned the lyrics.[26]

"Can't Leave" is a ballad song accompanied by bittersweet tunes of piano.[27] The song was produced by a Canadian songwriter, Matthew Tishler, in his debut collaboration with Shinee, and Im Kwang Ok. Shim Changmin of TVXQ penned the lyrics while Shinee's resident rapper Minho yet again contributed to the rap portion. Its first performance was on their 'Music Spoiler' Dream Girl premier that on February 14, 2013 at Olympus Hall.[28] The song was also the only track to be performed during the Dream Girl Showcase held on February 20, 2013.[10]

Commercial performance

"Why So Serious" peaked at number 15 on the Gaon Singles Chart[29] and number 21 on China's Baidu Singles Chart.[30]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the official homepage.[31]

No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Nightmare"Kim Bu-minHitchhikerHitchhiker3:37
2."Why So Serious?"Kenzie
Kenzie3:40
3."Shine" (Medusa I)
  • Riley
  • Red Rocket
  • Tae-sung
  • Choi
3:49
4."오르골" (Music Box)
  • Farquharson
  • Lee-Joe
  • Paavola
  • Anquetil
3:26
5."Dangerous" (Medusa II)
  • Cho Yoon-kyung
  • Jong-hyun
  • Riley
  • Red Rocket
  • Tae-sung
  • Choi
  • Riley
  • Red Rocket
  • Tae-sung
  • Choi
3:32
6."Like a Fire"Min Yeong-jae
  • Troelsen
  • Crichlow
3:42
7."Excuse Me Miss"
  • Nunoo
  • Fyne
  • Jhun
3:42
8."Evil"
  • Kenzie
  • Fridolin Nordsoe Schjoldan
  • Frederik Tao Nordsoe Schjoldan
  • Kenzie
  • Fridolin N. Schjoldan
  • Frederik T. N. Schjoldan
  • Kenzie
  • Fridolin N. Schjoldan
  • Frederik T. N. Schjoldan
3:27
9."떠나지 못해" (Sleepless Night)
  • Shim Chang-min
  • Minho[a]
  • Kwang-wook
  • Yu-min
  • Tishler
4:41
Total length:33:36

Notes

  • ^[a] Minho is credited for the rap lyrics
  • ^[b] Key is credited for the rap lyrics
  • ^[c] JQ is credited for the rap lyrics

Charts

Album chart
Country Chart Peak
position
South Korea Gaon[32] 1
Taiwan G-Music Asia Chart[33] 1
United States Billboard World Albums[34] 1
Billboard Heatseekers[35] 5

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
South Korea April 26, 2013 Digital download KMP Holdings [36]
April 29, 2013 CD
Philippines May 25, 2013 Universal Records
Taiwan May 22, 2013 Avex Taiwan [37]
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References
  1. "Shinee's Discography- Why So Serious". Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  2. "SHINee The 3rd Album Chapter 2 'Why So Serious?'". SM Entertainment. 2013-04-29.
  3. "3집 The misconceptions of us" (in Korean). Naver. August 8, 2013. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
  4. Grace Danbi Hong. "SHINee Combines Two Chapters Together for 'Misconceptions of Us'". CJ E&M enewsWorld via Mwave. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
  5. 이니 "샤이니, 정규 3집 수록곡 최초 공개 ″청량하게, 혹은 거칠게…역시 샤이니!″(종합)" (in Korean). asiatoday.co.kr. 2013-02-14.
  6. "Shinee – Why So Serious". S.M. Entertainment. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
  7. "Year-end Sales for 2013" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on 2015-01-09. Retrieved 2015-04-27.
  8. "Gaon Album Ranking Monthly (2/2014)" (in Korean). Gaon Chart.
  9. "Gaon Album Ranking Monthly (6/2015)" (in Korean). Gaon.
  10. 이니 "샤이니, 정규 3집 수록곡 최초 공개 ″청량하게, 혹은 거칠게…역시 샤이니!″(종합)" (in Korean). asiatoday.co.kr. 14 February 2013.
  11. 샤이니 3집, ’앨범 그 자체‘에 담긴 샤이니스러움의 결정판 (in Korean). reviewstar.hankooki.com. 15 February 2013. Archived from the original on 15 October 2013.
  12. Jeff Benjamin, Jessica Oak and Billboard Korea Staff (2013-03-12). "SHINee on 'Dream Girl,' MJ Comparisons and K-Pop Globalization: Exclusive" (in Korean).
  13. news.sportsseoul (2013-02-14). 샤이니 "멤버들 보컬 개성 가장 많이 담긴 3집입니다" (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2013-12-16.
  14. news.naver.com (2013-02-14). 샤이니의 방식으로 본 현실·꿈 담았죠 (in Korean).
  15. 샤이니 정규 3집, 최강창민 작사곡 수록…26일 음원 공개 (in Korean). news.nate.com. April 25, 2013. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  16. dispatch.co.kr (2013-02-14). "자신감 있는 미리보기"…샤이니, '핫'한 뮤직 스포일러 (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2013-12-16.
  17. dispatch.co.kr (2013-02-14). ""자신감 있는 미리보기"…샤이니, '핫'한 뮤직 스포일러". Archived from the original on 2013-12-16.
  18. view.asiae.co.kr (2013-04-17). "샤이니, 정규 3집 Chapter 2 출시··4人 체제로 활동" (in Korean).
  19. "3집 SHINee The 3rd Album Chapter 2. 'Why So Serious?-The Misconceptions Of Me`" (in Korean). music.naver.com. 2013-04-26.
  20. "SHINee The 3rd Album Chapter 2 'Why So Serious?-The misconceptions of me'". Sm ENtertainment. 2013-04-29.
  21. 샤이니 무대는 왜 더 '어려워' 보일까?. Nate via Osen (in Korean). April 20, 2013. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  22. 샤이니, 신곡에 어셔·마이클 잭슨 안무가 참여 (in Korean). star.mt.co.kr. 2013-04-24.
  23. 샤이니, 4인조 체제 컴백.."종현 치료 전념" (in Korean). m.news.naver.com. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  24. 샤이니 신곡, 장난기+유쾌함 가득..'누웠다 벌떡' (in Korean). osen.mt.co.kr. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  25. "SHINee The 3rd Album Chapter 2. `Why So Serious? (Album Introduction)". SM Entertainment. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  26. "SHINee The 3rd Album Chapter 2. `Why So Serious? (Track Information)". SM Entertainment. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  27. "Shinee Chapter 2. 'Why So Serious? – The misconceptions of me'" (in Korean). Naver. April 26, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  28. "SHINee Releases 'Music Spoiler' Videos from Premiere Event". M! Wave. February 18, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  29. "Why So Serious (2013)". April 28 – May 4, 2013. Archived from the original on July 5, 2016.
  30. "Baidu Music Charts" (in Chinese). Baidu. Retrieved 2013-06-15.
  31. "Shinee's Official Homepage – Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me". SM Entertainment. August 25, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
  32. "Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me (2013)". April 28 – May 4, 2013. Archived from the original on July 5, 2016.
  33. "G-Music Albums Chart: May 3-9, 2013" (in Chinese). G-Music. Archived from the original on May 15, 2013.
  34. Billboard Charts
  35. Billboard Heatseekers Albums
  36. "Shinee – Why So Serious" (in Korean). S.M. Entertainment. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  37. "Shinee – Why So Serious" (in Chinese). Avex Taiwan. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
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