Let’s Travel Down the IZ*ONE Road

Even though there were rumors about a possible contract extension, a couple of days ago Mnet announced that IZ*ONE will disband on April 29 when the original project plan is over. Since their debut, the girl group released two studio albums, seven EPs, and two promotional singles which conquered the hearts of global K-Pop fans. If you have been with IZ*ONE for a while now, walk down a little memory lane with us, and if you are new to the group, let us introduce you to the exciting two and a half years with the 12 members.

The Beginning

IZ*ONE is a project group created through Mnet’s survival show Produce 101’s third season, Produce 48, where the top 12 contestants got a chance to debut as a temporary group that would promote for two and a half years. Even those K-Pop listeners who don’t follow survival programs know the season’s song, “Pick Me (내꺼야).”

The final twelve contestants Jang Wonyoung, Miyawaki Sakura, Jo Yuri, Choi Yena, Ahn Yujin, Yabuki Nako, Kwon Eunbi, Kang Hyewon, Honda Hitomi, Kim Chaewon, Kim Minju, and Lee Chaeyeon debuted as IZ*ONE on October 29, 2018 with their first mini album COLOR*IZ, featuring seven tracks which broke several records and put the group’s name on global charts, resulting in world-wide success. The album set a new record at the time for the highest number of albums sold on the first day of a girl group's debut with over 34,000 sales, while the music video for lead single “La Vie en Rose” broke records as the most-viewed Korean debut music video on the first day (over 4.5 million views). Later, the song peaked at No. 11 on Billboard’s K-Pop 100 list. The tickets for their debut showcase sold out in just minutes, already anticipating a big success for IZ*ONE. Just about a week later, they received their first music program win on M!COUNTDOWN, making them the fastest girl group to receive a music program win at the time. All of these quick achievements culminated in several “New Artist of the Year” awards. 

The Downhill

After the fast and continuous success of IZ*ONE, in 2019, just days before their announced comeback, a voting manipulation scandal around Produce 101’s two latest seasons (including Produce 48) broke out, which resulted in the other project group X1’s disbandment. This rightfully made IZ*ONE fans around the world worried about the girl group that was put on a temporary hiatus at the time, with an album release and a Japanese concept film release being indefinitely postponed. Due to the ongoing issue, the group lost award nominations, but still received the most votes at the 29th Seoul Music Awards “Main” category, showing that they still had the public’s support. 

The Peak

A little over three months later, in February 2020, their first full studio album BLOOM*IZ was released and sold over 175,000 copies on the first day, making it the highest selling album of a girl group within its release week in just 24 hours. The album also broke two Hanteo records in Korea, with the highest first-week sales numbers (356,313 copies) and making them the first girl group to surpass 300,000 sold copies at the time.

Several members co-wrote or arranged parts of the tracklist and its lead single “Fiesta,” IZ*ONE’s highest ranking song on Billboard’s K-pop 100 list, peaked at No. 2 just a few days after release. Their following mini album Oneiric Diary was released in June 2020 and broke the first week sales for a girl group record once again, showing a continuous growth in the group’s popularity around the globe. Meanwhile, through the support of local fans, the title song “Secret Story of the Swan” received a total of seven wins on Korean music shows.

In December of the same year, they debuted their new title song “Panorama” during the Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) where they also won the “Favorite Female Group” award, and they were named the “Year's Artist” at the Fact Music Awards 2020. The always popular group clearly received more love than ever in the past few months and released what seems to be their last original song, “D-D-Dance" in early 2021. 

The Goodbye

A two-day online concert One, The Story took place on March 13 and 14, 2021 with two different sets for each day. With saying that their story began when they became ONE, the online concert trailer and concept photo resemble their debut music video’s opening shot, making it seem like a form of closure. Just three days before the first concert, Mnet officially announced that IZ*ONE will disband in April according to the original two-and-a-half year plan. The girl group is currently at their peak and probably more popular than ever all around the world, but it seems like sometimes “quit when still on top” can be applied to K-Pop groups as well. 

The members are expected to continue their activities separately.

Look back at their debut MV, “La Vie en Rose,” down below: