Weekly K-Pop Music Chart 2011 - March Week 1

Listen to all the songs here  :[Listen] Soompi Chart Top 50 – March 2011, Week 1

It is only the beginning of March but IU has already scored her second No. 1 song this year with “Story Only I Didn’t Know” moving up eight spots in only its second week on the chart. The young singer no doubt is one of the fastest rising stars in Korea. Together with G.na who won the top spot last week with “Black & White”, they provide a major boost to the female soloist lineup which is traditionally a weak link in K-pop. This is the first time in almost two years that the top two spots of our chart are occupied by female soloists.  The last time was May week 2 in 2009 when Son Dam Bi’s “On Saturday Night” was No. 1 and Younha’s “1,2,3” were No. 2.

2011 might just be the year of female soloists. In this week’s top 10, we have six songs by female soloists, including the two new entries Kan Mi Yeon’s “Paparazzi” and Kahi’s “Come Back You Bad Person”. In an industry that is dominated by groups, this is a rare scene.

However, that is going to change next week.  The top two debuts this week just outside the top 10 are by popular boy bands Big Bang and MBLAQ.  Watch for Big Bang’s “Tonight”.  This song is expected to make a big jump next week, perhaps even challenging for the top spot.

SOOMPI CHART for 2011, Month 3, Week 1

1. (+8) IU – 나만 모르는 이야기 (Story Only I Didn’t Know) ***1st Week @ No. 1***
Score: 910
Genre: Pop Ballad

Music: Yoon Sang / Lyrics: Kim Ina
Album: IU mini-plus album – Real + | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

2. (-1) G.na – Black & White
Score: 871
Genre: Pop/Dance

Music: Kim Do Hoon, Lee Sang Ho / Lyrics: Yangpa
Album: G.na Vol. 1 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

3. (+2) Lee Hyun – 내꺼 중에 최고 (You Are The Best Of My Life)
Score: 815
Genre: R&B Ballad

Music: Hitman Bang / Lyrics: Hitman Bang
Album: Lee Hyun mini-album Vol. 2 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

4. (-2) Secret – 샤이보이 (Shy Boy)
Score: 762
Genre: Pop/Dance

Music: Kang Ji Won, Kim Ki Bum / Lyrics: Kang Ji Won, Kim Ki Bum
Album: Secret Single Album – Shy Boy | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

5. (-2) Mighty Mouth – 톡톡 (Tok Tok)
Score: 714
Genre: Hip-hop

Music: Rhymer, Dong Ne Hyung / Lyrics: Mighty Mouth
Album: Mighty Mouth Vol. 2 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

6. (-2) Navi – 잘 된 일이야 (Well Done)
Score: 519
Genre: Pop Ballad

Music: Lee Ki, Lee Hyun Seung / Lyrics: Kang Eun Kyung
Album: Navi Vol. 1 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

7. (-1) Jewelry – Back It Up
Score: 514
Genre: Pop/Dance

Music: Ryan Kim, Chris Golightly, Blue Apple Global / Lyrics: Kim Ina, Ryan Kim, Chris Golightly, Blue Apple Global
Album: Jewelry digital single “Back It Up”
Watch: MV

8. (+28) Kan Mi Yeon – 파파라치 (Paparazzi)
Score: 492
Genre: Pop/Dance

Music: Hitman Bang / Lyrics: Hitman Bang
Album: Kan Mi Yeon mini-album Vol. 1 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

9. (-1) Kim Bo Kyung – 하루하루 (Day By Day)
Score: 428
Genre: Pop Ballad

Music: Kim Tae Sung / Lyrics: Kim Tae Sung, Jang Yeon Jung
Album: Kim Bo Kyung mini-album Vol. 1 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

10. (+5) Kahi – 돌아와 나쁜 너 (Come Back You Bad Person)
Score: 405
Genre: Pop/Dance

Music: Kim Tae Hyun / Lyrics: Kahi
Album: Kahi mini-albuim Vol. 1 | Purchase this Album
Watch: MV

THIS WEEK IN 2009:

In this segment we go back in time to re-visit charts of the same week in past years.  Soompi music chart begins in January 2005.  At first we had only 20 songs and later expanded to 50 songs.

March week 1 in 2009 we had two of the most popular girl groups now battling for the top spot. SNSD’s “Gee” already spent all of February 2009 (4 weeks) at No. 1, while Kara’s “Honey” just debuted at No. 21 a week before. 

At the end “Gee” remained on top for the fifth straight week, while “Honey” settled for No. 2 and eventually went to the top next week.  “Gee” was probably the defining hit for SNSD, a song that put them over the top as one of the premier girl groups in Korea. 

As for Kara, they pretty much flopped with their debut in 2008, so not much was expected on them with their new release. To everyone’s surprise, the switch to a cuter image suited Kara and had their career take off.  “Honey” eventually became their first No. 1 song. After that, almost all of Kara’s releases became big hits. 

Fast forward to now and as we look back we can say both “Gee” and “Honey” were classic hits for SNSD and Kara, a song that put both groups popularity up several levels on the way to the top.

To re-visit soompi’s music chart of 2009 March Week 1, click here.

About the Soompi Music Chart:

Soompi Music Chart is unlike any other music charts or television rankings.  It takes into account not only sales and rankings by various other charts in Korea, but also airplays of each song, the number of live performances and appearances, making it an unbiased and objective tally of what’s going on in the world of K-pop.  Our chart is composed of the following sources:

Air Monitor Chart – 15%
GAON Music Chart – 15%
Various Internet charts (Dosirak, Bugs, Melon, Naver, Monkey3, Daum, Cyworld, Soribada) – 15%
ChartKorea – 5%  
Hottracks Weekly Album Sales (1 weeks lag) – 10%
SBS (Inky Gayo Take 7 + SBS Mill weekly rankings) – 10%
MBC Inky Top 100 Chart – 10%
KBS Music Bank K-Chart – 10% 
MNet M!Countdown – 5%
Gasoo appearance  on gayo shows  (MBC Music Core, SBS Inky Gayo, KBS Music Bank, M!Countdown) – 10%

Thanks to Mardi09 for helping on this week’s internet chart research.