Chungha first debuted in 2016, through the temporary group I.O.I., which also launched the careers of soloist Jeon Somi and actors Kim Sejeong and Kang Mina. As a soloist, she debuted with Why Don’t You Know in 2017 after I.O.I. ‘s disbandment.

Here are my credentials: I’d consider myself a casual fan of Chung Ha, who I know mainly through her friend Sunmi. I’ve heard a decent amount of her title tracks, and a few b-sides, but I’m looking forward to hearing more of her songs and forming a more accurate opinion of her work as a whole.

EP #1: Hands On Me

Why Don’t You Know is surprisingly chill with its acoustic guitar and lighthearted whistling effects, but has a calm kind of tropical summer catchiness that’s honestly pretty effective. It’s not an instant classic, as it does sound a lot like other tropical-inspired songs, but I did like it, minus the rap, which felt a bit too harsh for a song like this. (Also, can I say, I love that yellow, green, and red cardigan she wears in the MV! It’s stunning.)

From the EP, I enjoyed Hands On Me, which is a fun, jazzy little opening, and I wish it was longer. It reminds me of a 9Muses track in the best way possible. Make A Wish continues that jazziness with a self-assured, smooth Chicago-esque showmanship that I really appreciated. It’s definitely a shoulder-dancing song, if you know what I mean. Cosmic Dust is a pretty traditional ballad, but provides a nice showcase for Chung Ha’s vocals.

EP #2: Offset

Roller Coaster is pretty minimalistic at its beginning, and I was a bit worried that it’d be boring, but it turns out that those worries were unfounded. By the chorus, it spirals into an engaging dance floor bop that had me nodding my head. My only gripe is that I wish it took its high points a little higher, with perhaps more vocalizing or more of a cathartic point at the end of the chorus (a la TXT’s Chasing That Feeling), but overall that’s a small critique.

From the EP, Offset, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Do It at the beginning but I grew to appreciate its energy. I liked Bad Boy a lot, though I enjoyed the fast-paced verses and pre-choruses more than the chorus. Its last minute got me, though, and it became a solid hidden gem of mine. It was a bit of whiplash, though, to go from the fun of Bad Boy to the abject heartbreak of Remind Of You, a good lesson that not every album necessarily needs a ballad if it doesn’t fit in.

EP #3: Blooming Blue

Love U is a song that I hadn’t realized I’d actually heard before, since I’d only heard the chorus. The opposite of Roller Coaster, its intro starts with a hard-hitting trap beat, while the song itself feels more like Why Don’t You Know with its bright summery energy. I enjoy the background vocalizing and the underlying drum beat too, though I feel like the chorus is a bit too empty for me to like as much as I did Make A Wish or Bad Boy.

From the EP, Blooming Blue, I enjoyed the bright call-and-response of “I’m in love, I’m in love” from Cherry Kisses and the bass guitar contrasted with Chung Ha’s high voice in Drive.

Single #1: Gotta Go

Gotta Go is a single, and intrigued me right from its unique flute-meets-trap sampling, that matches with Chung Ha’s signature synthy background. The chorus is very interesting, because it both is and isn’t an anti-drop; it doesn’t exactly release the tension of the song, but it doesn’t let it fall away either. Instead, it’s a little like a Taemin track in that the tension never really goes away. I do like the high note before the last chorus, though I wish that there was more of a bridge. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this one. It’s not a favorite, but I don’t hate it, and I don’t think I’d skip it if it showed up on my shuffle.

EP #4: Flourishing

Snapping picks up similarly to where Gotta Go left off, with a beat in the middle of a lot of k-pop; not a super invigorating one, but not boring by any means. I’m glad that the anti-drop was left until the end of the chorus, as if it was the entire thing, I would be disappointed. I do really like the “now I let you go.” As is, I don’t mind this one, and I wouldn’t skip it, but I wouldn’t search it out either.

From the EP, Flourishing, I had a clear standout in Chica. Clearly taking influences from Latin Pop and some Spice-Girls-esque feel-good-you-can-do-it-babe Girl Power, it’s hard not to smile when you hear it, especially at the “chica, chica, see you’ve got it all; chica, chica, see you’re beautiful!” All in all, it’s a delightful addition to my playlist. I also liked the song Flourishing itself, especially its pre-choruses.

Album #1: QUERENCIA

Album Side #1: Noble

Now, we start Chung Ha’s 20-song epic Querencia, which has four sides, Noble, Savage, Unknown, and Pleasures, and each has a title track. Side A, Noble’s, is Bicycle, a sing-talk track that leads with a trap-beat background and melds K-pop girl crush with Ariana Grande-esque lyrics. I…really do not like this song. I have a very low tolerance for “I’m cooler than you” music in general, but when it’s pared with such an empty chorus and feels like a recycled Blackpink b-side? Yikes. Sorry, Chung Ha.

From Side A {Noble}, I liked the subtle Latin-pop influences and interesting percussion of Masquerade and the great, chugging beat that’s so great at leading Flying On Faith (a rare completely English song that I loved).

Album Side #2: Savage

Stay Tonight is Querencia’s second single, and thankfully returns to her signature synthpop. The verses had me nodding my head—a huge improvement from Bicycle—and had me excited for the chorus. But, after the great high note in the pre-chorus, the chorus itself didn’t feel like enough of a payoff, instead feeling more meandering and unengaging. While I absolutely liked it more than Bicycle, it’s not in my top 10 of her singles.

From Side B {Savage}, I enjoyed the way-too-short a-capella section at the beginning of the choruses and the “don’t make me, don’t make me dream of you” in Dream Of You (another English language track I enjoy). I also liked the breathy vocalizations in both Bother Me and Chill, Chill especially.

Next time, we’re onto Part 2. Tschüss!