SWAN is the Featured Group of November 2022
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| “ |
Find your LAKE. Hello, we are SWAN! |
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| —SWAN | ||
SWAN (Hangul: 스완, Seuwan) is a 6-member girl group under PHX Entertainment. The group is composed by members (in order of reveal): Chaewon, Eun Joo, Mi-Sun, Soul, Yeon and Choo. They debuted on October 31, 2021 with the single album LOCKED.
Background[]
The group was formed by Korean talent scout Ryan Iseul, which introduced the members to each other when they were in their trainee days. The company where both he and the girls were under agreed the choice of making them a group and make them train as a group. Following this event, Ryan became the group's manager. The name "SWAN" was chosen by Chaewon and Mi-Sun. The other girls and PHX Entertainment liked the name, so it became official. After the formal agreement on the members of the final line-up and the official name, SWAN's creative direction has been assigned to Jung Gwan.
History[]
Pre-debut (2021)[]
The group was announced on May 1, 2021 by PHX Entertainment and from June 1 to June 6 each member was revealed trough the company's SNS accounts. A week later, the pre-debut digital single "#SWAN1" was announced. It contains the title track "Change" and the B-side "Wo-hoo".
On June 21, "#SWAN1" was released.
On July 16, their management shared a letter to their fans through their SNS accounts, that said: "SWAN are currently working very hard on their official debut, please be patient and look forward our next releases. Thank you for understanding. - PHX Entertainment".
On July 17 the group's second pre-debut digital single, "#SWAN2" was announced, and its title track "You" was released. The full digital single was released a week later on July 23, and it includes the title track "You" and a remix of "Wo-hoo".
On July 31, SWAN revealed that a virtual concert on VLive called "#SWAN3: The Experience" would be held on August 21. At the concert they sung all their released songs, plus a solo cover for each member and a portion of an unreleased song called "LISTEN 2 ME".
On September 7, a letter was posted on SWAN's SNS account about Eun Joo's recent injury: "Good morning dear CYGNET, we are saddened to tell you that because of Eun Joo's recent injury, our debut comback has delayed. Send much love to Eun Joo who is currently in hospital. We love you, - SWAN"
On September 20, SWAN started to train again.
On September 21, member Mi-Sun confirmed in a group interview that their first single album is ready and that they will start to shoot the music video. Choo also confirmed that the photoshoot is almost finished.Debut with "LOCKED" and "TRAP" (2021-2022)[]
On October 3, a teaser titled "COMING SOON" was uploaded to the group's YouTube channel.
On October 15, SWAN's debut single album "LOCKED" was announced and the release date was set for October 31. On the same day album pre-orders started. From October 18 to October 23, a teaser for each member was uploaded to their SNS accounts.
On October 25, 27 and 29 three teasers were uploaded to the group's SNS accounts. On the following day, a 10-second snippet of the song was uploaded on swan.co.kr, to hype the release.
On October 30, SWAN held their debut showcase in Seoul, South Korea. They held a second showcase in Tokyo, Japan later on November 3.
On October 31, "LOCKED" was released along with the music video for the title track. The album sold 13,987 units in its first week. It debuted at #11 on the Gaon charts and peaked at #9. They also appeared in a variety of music award shows to promote the release. A music video for the B-side, "ALL THE GIRLS", was released on January 8, 2022.
On December 20, SWAN made their live debut at the Hallyu House Festival, performing 5 songs in total: "LOCKED", "ALL THE GIRLS", portions of the unreleased songs "TRAP" and "LISTEN 2 ME", and the unreleased song "EH AH OH" in full.
On December 27, the 7th edition of the Seoul Music Performance Awards happened, and the group earned 3 nominations and their first award win for "Female Special Mention". They later released a video on their YouTube channel in which they thanked their fans and the SMPAs.
On December 30, SWAN were nominated for "Female Rookie Of The Year" at the 1st edition of The Collective Performing Arts Awards.
On January 15 PHX Entertainment revealed that SWAN would make a comeback by the end of the month. On January 24 SWAN's second single album "TRAP" was announced. It was anticipated by three teasers and it was released on January 28. The album sold 26,055 units during its first week. It peaked at #8 on the Gaon charts and the title track "TRAP" debuted at #24 on the US chart Bubbling Under Billboard Hot 100. To promote the release SWAN appeared on many music award shows.Global promotion and story reveal (2022)[]
SWAN held their second virtual concert on VLive called "LOCKED IN THE TRAP" on February 12, and on February 20 they held their first fansign in Seoul, South Korea.
On April 15, PHX Entertainment replied to a fan tweet asking for a SWAN lightstick. The label said "Good morning. We are pleased to announce that the official SWAN lightstick will be sold soon. Stay tuned - PHX Entertainment". Three weeks later, on April 30, it was announced that the group's first lightstick, called "Cygnstick", would release on May 22. On the following day pre-orders opened and the lightstick was sent to physical stores on May 23.
On May 29, the group was announced to be newest entry of IDOLCHU, an entertainment application specialized in artist-to-fan communications, fan-to-fan communications and fan club memberships through subscription.
On June 4, PHX Entertainment revealed though SNS that SWAN's concept story would start from their first mini-album that would be released "soon". PHX also revealed that the story would be based around a magical lake where six swans live. The Cygnstick resembles the lake.
On June 18, SWAN held their first fan event called "DISCOVER:SWAN" in Seoul, South Korea. On June 25, it was held in Busan, South Korea. Respectively on July 2, 9, 16 and 17 it was held in Sao Paulo (Brazil), New York City (USA), Berlin (Germany) and Helsinki (Finland).
First mini-album "THE BLACK SWAN" (2022)[]
On May 27, a teaser titled "B L A C K" was uploaded to SWAN's YouTube channel.
On June 6, a second teaser titled "S W A N" was uploaded to SWAN's YouTube channel.
On June 10, it was announced through every SNS of PHX Entertainment and SWAN that their first mini-album, "THE BLACK SWAN" would be released on July 1. This will be the first release to follow the SWAN storyline.
From June 15 to June 18 a video teaser for each member was released, while on June 19 a teaser with the full group was released. On the following day the album jacket and packaging was revealed and the pre-orders for a limited holographic version of the album started.
From June 21 to June 26 photo teasers for each members were released, and on June 27 a full-group photo teaser was released, and on June 23, the first trailer for the title track's music video, "BAD BAD BAD", was published on SWAN's YouTube channel. A second and a third trailer were published on the following two days. The album's official tracklist poster was posted on June 26 and its highlight medley was posted on June 29.
On July 1, SWAN's first mini-album "THE BLACK SWAN" was released along with the official music video for "BAD BAD BAD". This comeback made SWAN famous to the public, and reached intenational prominence. The album sold 55,763 copies in South Korea during its first week, doubling their previous release. A day prior to the album release, they held a showcase in Seoul, South Korea performing the full record.
"THE BLACK SWAN" debuted at #4 on the Gaon charts and "BAD BAD BAD" peaked at #10 on the US chart Bubbling Under Billboard Hot 100. SWAN peaked at 100 on the Billboard Artist 100.
To promote the release the group appeared in a variety of music chart shows, Korean TV programs, and on YouTube channels as guests. On music shows, the track "EH AH OH" was used as a promotional b-side.
On July 2, the group appeared as guests on the variety show Pumpkin House.
On July 9, choreography videos for "BAD BAD BAD" and "EH AH OH" were uploaded to SWAN's YouTube channel. Respectively on July 16 and 23 choreography videos for "GOTCHA" and "SLOW" were released.
On the next day, SWAN earned their third music show win on the program The Shining Star. After their win was announced, a bloopers compilation video of the "BAD BAD BAD" music video was uploaded on the group's IDOLCHU and YouTube channels.
SWAN performed at the SGA Summer Blast Festival 2022 on July 11, the opening day, and on July 15th, the final day. There, they performed all their released songs except for "Change". They also performed two covers, "Rumor" by H.I.N.P (Hot Issue of Ntl. Producers) on both days, and "Halo" by Beyoncé on July 15 only.
On July 24, the group held their showcase in Busan, South Korea. There, they performed their mini-album in full and an unreleased track called "SEE THE STARS".
On July 26, SWAN were announced as part of the PLUM+ Verified Artist project. PLUM+ is a free social media-like extension of the Plum app that allows user to share posts and interact with idols, and more.
On July 29, the group released their first English-language digital single: the English version of "BAD BAD BAD". Its release was announced a week prior to the official release, on July 22, followed by concept pictures for each member posted to the group's SNS pages on July 24. Countdown posters were posted from July 26 to the single's release date, July 29. The track managed to appear on the Billboard Global 200 chart peaking at the 186th position, and it also peaked at #116 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart. On July 31, a remix of the song by the soloist and DJ Démon was released as a gift to fans that gave love to the previous release.Comeback with "Dijkstra Theory" (2022)[]
On September 8, an anonymous sasaeng of Choo revealed in a forum dedicated to SWAN that the group was recording new music set to release later that year, and not in 2023 as it was speculated by fans.
On September 13, a teaser picture titled "drawaline #1 ~ source (node)" showing member Chaewon was posted without any notice on the group's SNS. Another two teaser pictures titled "drawaline #2 ~ visit" and "drawaline #3 ~ path (found)" showing Mi-Sun and Yeon respectively, were posted on September 26 and on September 27.
On the same day, PHX Entertainment's database and website were hacked, revealing information regarding some of the company's artists including SWAN. The format of the album and the release date were leaked.
On October 1, it was officially announced that SWAN would make their comeback with their 3rd single album "Dijkstra Theory", revealing its digital cover and its release date.
On October 3, a mood sampler for the album was shared on the group's SNS accounts. Two days later, on October 5, the first teaser for the title track's "draw-a-line (Dijkstra Theory)" MV was uploaded to YouTube, and second teaser was uploaded a day later.
On October 7, the official music video for "draw-a-line (Dijkstra Theory)" was released. At the same time, pre-orders for the physical copies of the album opened.
On October 17, the single album "Dijkstra Theory" was released digitally and physically. It managed to sell 49,480 copies during its first week and 79,421 copies in total. Two days later, SWAN managed to earn their first win for the song in that week's K-Pop On Top episode.Debut concert "THE LAKE" (2022)[]
Charity work and "Night Trip" (2023)[]
On May 2, 2023 PHX Entertainment reported that members Chaewon, Soul and Mi-Sun would start volunteer work regarding children's schools in Laos, and that they would stay there for two months, before returning back to South Korea in order to prepare their long awaited comeback.
On May 19, it was announced that members Eun Joo, Yeon and Choo would release the surprise, self-produced unit single "Night Trip" three days later. It was released on May 21, along with a music video.Unreleased second mini-album, MYSTŒRY, Miracle (2023)[]
On June 27, a cryptic photo teaser captioned "SO FAR FROM PERFECTION / WISH THAT I COULD TRANSFORM MY / REFLECTION / SEE THROUGH IMPERFECTIONS / ALL IN MY MIND, SO HARD TO HIDE" was posted in all of SWAN's social media accounts. This was supposed to be the first teaser for the group's second mini-album, which "will never see the light of the day", accordingly to the group's creative director Jung Gwan.
On the same day, Jung Gwan started a live video on Instagram where he claimed that he would have answered some questions about SWAN, but the live was abruptly interrupted by the company after he pinned a comment saying "FREE SWAN FROM PHX".
On July 3, PHX Entertianment announced that member Choo would be going on an hiatus for health reasons related to her anxiety and that for the time being the group would promote as five. On the same day Choo herself announced that the comeback that the group was supposed to have in July was postponed, without any further explanations.
After more than a year without any full group muscial activity, on December 9, Mi-Sun posted an handwritten note on social media, which could read:The letter, that was posted at 9:22 AM KST time on SWAN's Instagram account, was deleted just a few minutes later. However, many people were able to share it before it was taken down.Hi Cygnet,
I know it's hard to be waiting for all this time
We've been working hard lately to make you happy
This wait will be repaid
Two sub-units will be introduced, which together form SWAN
The SWAN is alive, please don't worry
The six members of SWAN love each and every single Cygnet
Stay safe,
Sang-mi
On the same day, PHX Entertainment trademarked the name "MYSTŒRY", which will be the name of the first sub-unit, as confirmed by the founder of the company through a reply to a fan's post on X.
On December 24, the Christmas digital single "Miracle" was dropped as a surprise festive gift for fans that have been waiting so long for a comeback. The song doesn't include Choo, that is still in hiatus. The group would later release a video on their YouTube channel wishing happy holidays to their fans.
Members[]
| Name | Birthdate | Nationality | Color | Positions | Representative Animal[1] | Representative Fruit[2] | Story Role | Activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chaewon (채원) | January 31, 1999 | Korean-Japanese | Broken Black | Leader, FOTG, lead vocalist, visual, sub-rapper, unnie | Cursed Angel | 2021–present | |||
| Eun Joo (은주) | April 12, 2002 | Korean-Dutch | Mediator Violet | Main dancer, visual, sub-vocalist, sub-rapper | Mediator | 2021–present | |||
| Mi-Sun (미선) | March 8, 2000 | Korean | Birth Apricot | Lead vocalist, visual, center | Lost Girl | 2021–present | |||
| Soul (솔) | November 17, 2001 | Korean | Death Nectarine | Main vocalist, visual, center | Dark Helper | 2021–present | |||
| Yeon (연) | December 1, 2003 | Thai | Mediator Green | Lead rapper, dancer, sub-vocalist, visual, maknae | Mediator | 2021–present | |||
| Choo (쵸) | February 22, 2002 | Korean | Void White | Main vocalist, dancer, visual, sub-rapper | Angelic Guide | 2021–present | |||
Lines[]
Discography[]
Korean[]Mini albums[]
Single albums[]
Digital singles[]
Singles[]
OSTs[]
Other[]
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English[]Digital singles[]
Other[]
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Sales[]
Korean sales[]
| Album | 1st week sales | Total sales |
|---|---|---|
| LOCKED | 13,987 | 31,388 |
| TRAP | 26,055 | 68,127 |
| THE BLACK SWAN | 55,763 | 97,634 |
| Dijkstra Theory | 49,480 | 79,421 |
Japanese sales[]
| Album | 1st week sales | Total sales |
|---|---|---|
| LOCKED | 1,658 | 2,086 |
| TRAP | 1,556 | 1,556 |
| THE BLACK SWAN | 2,399 | 2,909 |
| Dijkstra Theory | 2,000 | 2,022 |
Chinese sales[]
| Album | Total sales |
|---|---|
| LOCKED | 20,101[3] |
| TRAP | 48,281[3] |
| THE BLACK SWAN | 114,075[3] |
| Dijkstra Theory | 34,929 |
United States sales[]
| Album | Total sales | |
|---|---|---|
| LOCKED | 3,000+[4] | |
| TRAP | 2,000+[4] | |
| THE BLACK SWAN | 7,500+[4] | |
| Dijkstra Theory | 6,000+[4] | |
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Awards & Nominations[]
This is a list of awards and nominations received by SWAN.
Awards[]
| Year | Award show | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Seoul Music Performance Awards | Best New Female Group | SWAN | Nominated |
| Rookie Song Of The Year | LOCKED | Nominated | ||
| Female Special Mention Award | SWAN | Won | ||
| The Collective Performing Arts Awards | Female Rookie Of The Year | Nominated | ||
| Asia Rising Artist Awards | Top 10 Fan Choice Artist | Won | ||
| Artist Of The Year | Won | |||
| 2022 | Shining Groove Awards | Best Artist | Nominated | |
| Song Of The Year | BAD BAD BAD | Won | ||
| The Collective Performing Arts Awards | Song Of The Year | draw-a-line (Dijkstra Theory) | Nominated | |
| Seoul Music Performance Awards | Best Female Group | SWAN | Won | |
| The Orign Awards | Best Female Artist | Nominated | ||
| Artist Of The Year (Female) | Nominated | |||
| Best Dance Performance | draw-a-line (Dijkstra Theory) | Won | ||
| Asia Rising Artist Awards | Top 10 Fan Choice Artist | SWAN | Won | |
Total nominations: 14 | ||||
Music shows wins[]
| Date | Show | Song |
|---|---|---|
| July 24, 2021 | Tune In! | "You" |
| January 30, 2022 | Tune In! | "TRAP" |
| July 10, 2022 | The Shining Star | "BAD BAD BAD" |
| October 18, 2022 | K-Pop On Top | "draw-a-line (Dijkstra Theory)" |
Videography[]
Music videos[]
| Year | Title | Director(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Change | Unknown |
| You | ||
| LOCKED | ||
| 2022 | ALL THE GIRLS | |
| TRAP | ||
| BAD BAD BAD | Double Edge Productions | |
| Dijkstra Theory | Death Productions | |
| 2023 | Night Trip | Unknown |
Choreography videos[]
| Year | Title | Director(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Change | Unknown |
| You | ||
| LOCKED | ||
| 2022 | ALL THE GIRLS | |
| TRAP | ||
| BAD BAD BAD | ||
| EH AH OH | ||
| GOTCHA | ||
| SLOW | ||
| Dijkstra Theory |
Performance videos[]
| Year | Title | Director(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | LISTEN 2 ME | Unknown |
Filmography[]
| Year | Title | Role | Genre | Platform | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | SWAN Debut Concert: THE LAKE (Behind The Scenes) | Themselves | Reality | YouTube | [5] |
Online shows[]
| Year | Title | Role | Genre | Platform | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | SWAN VLOG | Themselves | Reality | YouTube | [6] |
| 2022 | LAKE TV | [7] | |||
| SWAN-STAN | IDOLCHU | [8] | |||
| 2023 | #LAKE_Cover | Music | YouTube | [9] |
Fan events[]
Fanmeetings[]
- DISCOVER:SWAN (2022)
- June 18: Seoul, South Korea
- June 25: Busan, South Korea
- July 2: Sao Paulo, Brazil
- July 9: New York City, USA
- July 16: Berlin, Germany
- July 17: Helsinki, Finland
- UNCOVER:SWAN (2023)
- July 15: New York City, USA
- July 16: Los Angeles, USA
- July 22: Tokyo, Japan
- July 23: Shangai, China
- July 24: Paris, France
- July 25: London, UK
- July 29: Seoul, South Korea
- July 30: Busan, South Korea
- LAKE Theory Spin-off Study Group (2023)
- August 20: Seoul, South Korea
Fansigns[]
- SWAN First Fansign (2022)
Concerts[]
Concerts[]
- #SWAN3: The Experience (VLive, 2021)
- LOCKED IN THE TRAP (VLive, 2022)
- THE LAKE (Olympic Hall of Seoul, 2022)
Event appearances[]
Official SNS[]
Korean SNS[]
- Website: swan-official.co.kr
- Fanclub website: swancygnet.com
- YouTube: SWAN OFFICIAL
- Instagram: swan.official
- Twitter (X): swan_official
- TikTok: swan_official
- VLive: SWAN (스완)
- IDOLCHU: SWAN
- I-CONNECT: SWAN
- PLUM+: SWAN
- Facebook: SWAN_Official
- Naver Band: swan_official
- KakaoStory: swan.story
- Daum Cafe: swanofficial
Japanese SNS[]
- Website: swanjapan.co.jp
- Fanclub website: swancygnet.co.jp
- Instagram: swanjp_official
- Twitter (X): swanjp_official
- Line: swanjp_official
Chinese SNS[]
- Website: swanchina.cn
- Weibo: swan_officialgroup
Trivia[]
- Their fandom name is "Cygnet", which means "the baby swans (Cygnet) that create a net around the mother swan (SWAN)"
- The main and more frequent concept of SWAN is girl crush
- All of the group's members are visuals
- They're often dubbed as "visual killers" or "visual all-kill"
- Their lore has been in development since 2018, right after their company was founded
- They can be considered a multinational group, since one out of six members is Thai and two are half Korean
- SWAN is considered an all-rounder group
- SWAN's name means "to SWallow A Nectarine". The nectarine will be a key object during the group's storyline, as explained in the fan event DISCOVER:SWAN, it allows Soul to get in contact with Mi-Sun right after she was kidnapped by the villains
- That is also why Soul's representative color is Death Nectarine
- SWAN's Chinese name, "酸", means literally "sour", that in Chinese slang means "envy"
- This was architected in order to be connected to lore elements
- SWAN are often praised for their vocal ability and their vocal range
- They are also praised for their writing skills
- They are on SGA Radio every Monday from 11:00 am to 12:30 pm
- During their time on the radio, they often give puntualizations about the lore, talk with the hosts and answer fan questions
- SWAN has received a lot of success since their beginning because most of the members were also popular pre-debut
[]
Notes[]
- ↑ Note: The group has two types of representative animals: "Rebirth" (official) and "Damnation"
- ↑ Note: The group's representative fruit is the nectarine, depicted through emojis as a peach (🍑)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Note: Digital sales
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Note: sales are an approximate according to Billboard
- ↑ Behind-the-scenes film of the group's first concert
- ↑ 2-minute videos of SWAN's daily life, uploaded on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays
- ↑ 10 to 20-minute videos focusing on SWAN's daily life and promotions, uploaded on Wednesdays and Sundays
- ↑ Self-cam videos uploaded by members without a set schedule or duration
- ↑ Series of song cover videos that show the member's private lives while they're covering a popular song