Lost in the LOONAverse: Keeping Up with All 12 Members

Image Courtesy: Bandwagon Asia

Within the K-pop world, LOONA is a group that has been pushing the envelope and reframing how we view the industry since the beginning. Originally rising to fame years before their official debut, this group formed from a brand-new company and started gaining traction for their “Girl of the Month” concept. All 12 girls had their own pre-debut solo, premiering in their own representative month. While it was a high-risk idea, putting millions of dollars into the group before officially debuting, it proved to reap a high reward, as LOONA became a prominent group both in Korea and internationally (even if you don’t know who they are, you’ve probably heard the term “Stan LOONA” before).

Having gained their footing in this competitive industry, LOONA reached high achievements, including music show wins, a world tour, and coming in second place on the Mnet show Queendom 2. Things were looking good for LOONA, and they cemented themselves as a group their fans believed would be around for years to come.

Image Courtesy: Kpopping

Everything took a turn when it was revealed that all 12 members of LOONA were suing their company, Blockberry Creative, for mismanagement and abusive contracts. While Blockberry Creative attempted to ignore the backlash they were receiving by forcing LOONA to release a new EP anyways, the fans were not having it, and their response changed the K-pop industry for the better. With pre-release numbers in the single digits by some distributors, the comeback was “indefinitely postponed,” making this the first successful boycott in K-pop history. Change is possible, and if fans stick together, they can support the members without blindly supporting the company they belong to.

The good news is that every member of LOONA won their lawsuit against Blockberry. The bad news is this left LOONA without a company. While their future as idols may have looked bleak at the moment, it became clear that LOONA had no intention of giving up on their dreams, and their fans wouldn’t let them fade into obscurity either. While the 12 members are not all currently working together, they each have their own projects that should be supported.

Image Courtesy: Kpopstarz

Five members of LOONA - HeeJin, HaSeul, JinSoul, Kim Lip, and Choerry - have signed under MODHAUS, a company headed by LOONA’s original creative director, Jaden Jeong. Three of the members - JinSoul, Kim Lip, and Choerry - have already begun releasing music under their old subunit name Odd Eye Circle. The trio has an EP out titled Version Up and has been promoting it internationally. The five girls are expected to re-debut under the name ARTMS. While there is no set date for this, HeeJin and HaSeul have been posting both on their personal social media and the official group’s account. MODHAUS has been promoting Odd Eye Circle well, so we can look forward to ARTMS without apprehension.

Most recently, another group of five members - Olivia Hye, GoWon, HyunJin, ViVi, and YeoJin - have debuted under the company CTDENM with the new name Loossemble (assembling the members of LOONA back together, get it?). Their self-titled debut EP has recently been released to a positive reception. Despite CTDENM not being a large company, the group worked with notable composers for each of their songs on the EP, and Loossemble is set to have a US tour starting in the next week. It is clear that these girls have found a company that has their best interests in mind.
Chuu was perhaps the most popular member of LOONA while the group was promoting. She was also the first to try and leave Blockberry Creative, setting off a chain reaction that allowed the rest of the members to also speak up. Chuu has signed with the company ATRP and is set to be making her debut as a soloist soon. While not much information is known, Chuu’s popularity is sure to make her debut successful.

Finally, we’re left with Yves, the only member without a clear future ahead of her as an idol. While fans were hoping she would sign under one of the companies that the other members joined, Yves stated that she was still looking and wanted to work as a soloist. While nothing is set in stone for Yves as an idol, she still posts frequently on Instagram and even has a writing and composition credit for the song “Strawberry Soda” on the Loossemble EP. She isn’t done yet, and fans anticipate supporting her in the future.

Image Courtesy: Rappler

LOONA’s journey as a group has never been ordinary. Through extreme highs and lows, their fans have been with them through it all. Some groups may have crumbled after leaving their company, while others may have never made it out of their abusive contracts at all. Although they aren’t all together, LOONA is alive and well. If you want to support these girls, you can watch Odd Eye Circle’s music video for “Air Force One” and Loossemble’s music video for “Sensitive” now, and be sure to keep up with each member on their personal Instagrams as well to see what they do next!

Strike Out,

Writer: Dana Liberto

Editor: Noelle Knowlton

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