Roo'ra

Roo'ra
OriginSouth Korea
Genres
Years active1994–2001; 2009
Past members
Korean name
Hangul
룰라
Revised RomanizationRulla
McCune–ReischauerRulla

Roo'ra (Korean룰라) was a co-ed hip hop and dance-pop vocal group from South Korea who was one of the country's most popular musical acts of the 1990s. The group debuted in 1994 with the hit album Roots of Reggae.[1] Their second album, The Angel Who Lost Wings (1995), sold 1 million copies in record time.[2] Roo'ra disbanded in 2001, then reunited in 2009 to release their ninth and final album, A9ain.[3][4]

History

The group caused significant controversy in 1996 through the discovery of their unattributed sampling of a Japanese track called "Omatsuri Ninja" (Japanese: お祭り忍者) by boy group Ninja directly in their own song "Cheon sang yu ae" (Hanja: 天上有愛; Hangul: 천상유애).[5]

This incident raised a heated debate "[...] about the nature of "Korean-ness in popular music"[6] and pushed this pointy but long dormant issue to the forefront in the mid-1990s. The group nearly split in 1996 due to the controversy,[6] but eventually only came to an end in 2001 after the release of a final album.[7]

In 2008, the group was reunited with Lee Sang-min, Go Young-wook, Kim Ji-hyun, and Chae Ri-na to work on an upcoming album.[8] In the middle of the project, Shin Jung-hwan and Go Young-wook formed a temporary duo group, "Roo'ra Man", and released a single, "The Reason Why I Hate Winter" in December 2008. The single was produced by Lee Sang-min. Roo'ra's last album, Again, was released in July 2009 with "Going Going" as the first single.[9]

Members

The original members of the group were Lee Sang-min, Go Young-wook, Kim Ji-hyun, and Shin Jung-hwan. In 1995, Shin Jung-hwan left the group to fulfill his military service requirement, and was replaced by Chae Ri-na.[10] In 1997, Kim Ji-hyun left the group to pursue a solo career,[2] and was replaced by temporary vocalist Mikey Romeo.[11] Kim Ji-hyun returned for the release of the group's next album in 1999.[12] After Roo'ra disbanded in 2001, members Lee Sang-min, Chae Ri-na, Go Young-wook, and Kim Ji-hyun reunited in 2009.[13]

Discography

Studio albums

Title Album details Peak chart positions Sales
KOR
[14]
Roots of Reggae
  • Released: July 1, 1994
  • Label: Daewoo Records
  • Format: CD, cassette
No data No data
Roo'ra & TwoTwo's Christmas
  • Released: December 1, 1994
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
The Angel Who Lost Wings
  • Released: March 28, 1995
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
  • KOR: 1,000,000+[2]
Reincamation of the Legend
  • Released: December 16, 1995
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
No data
All Systems Go
  • Released: June 15, 1996
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
The Final
  • Released: January 24, 1997
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
Six 'n Six
  • Released: February 26, 1999
  • Label: World Music Co.
  • Format: CD, cassette
3
A Song of the Wind
  • Released: June 12, 2000
  • Label: A&B Production
  • Format: CD, cassette
3
Best & Last
  • Released: July 27, 2001
  • Label: EMI Records
  • Format: CD, cassette
12
A9ain No data No data
The Recording Industry of Korea album chart was established in 1999 and discontinued in 2008.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
1994 Seoul Music Awards Main Prize (Bonsang) N/A Won [18]
1995 Grand Prize (Daesang) N/A Won
Golden Disc Awards Main Prize (Bonsang) The Angel Who Lost Wings Won [19]
1999 Popularity Award Six 'n Six Won
2000 Mnet Asian Music Awards Best Mixed Group "A Song of the Wind" Nominated [20]
2001 "Clear Away" (정리) Nominated [21]
2009 "Going Going" Nominated [22]

References

  1. ^ Kim, Samuel (March 6, 2015). "룰라, 신정환-고영욱 없이 '엠카' 무대…'날개' 잃은 천사". JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "[초점]'룰라' 고영욱, 어쩌다 이 지경…전자발찌 차는 톱스타". JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). April 10, 2013. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  3. ^ "'90년대 인기그룹' 룰라, 9집 앨범으로 컴백". Daily Sports (in Korean). May 12, 2009. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  4. ^ "김효진 기자 - 룰라 김지현-이상민-채리나, 최근 공개된 단체샷 보니…"뭐 하던 걸까요"". Top Star News (in Korean). September 1, 2018. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  5. ^ Keith Howard Korean Pop Music: Riding the Wave 2006 - Page 96 "Similarly, Roo'ra split after they were caught ripping off a Japanese song at a time when Japanese pop was banned; to many this made them heroes not villains."
  6. ^ a b Jung, Eun-Young (2004). "Interpreting Musical Traffic:Influences of Japanese Popular Music on Korean Popular Music since the mid-1990s". Society for Ethnomusicology 49th Annual Conference. Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  7. ^ Chrissy (August 11, 2001). "NEWS NEWS NEWS". kpopmusic.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2009.
  8. ^ "Lee Sang-min: "Roo'ra will reunite this year."". Soompi. January 23, 2008. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  9. ^ "YESASIA: Roo'Ra Vol. 9 - a9ain CD - Roo'Ra, Kakao M (Loen Entertainment) - Korean Music - Free Shipping - North America Site". www.yesasia.com. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  10. ^ "[XP이슈] 채리나·김지현, 산전수전 겪은 20년우정…앞으로는 '꽃길'만". X Sports New (in Korean). November 18, 2016. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  11. ^ "유키스 알렉산더-룰라 마이키로메오 닮은꼴? '폭소만발'". Newsen (in Korean). December 7, 2009. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  12. ^ "그룹 룰라 화려한 복귀…6집「6&6」인기 『쑥쑥』". DongA Ilbo (in Korean). March 10, 1999. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  13. ^ "고영욱-신정환 빠진 채리나 김지현 3인 룰라, 엠넷 '날개잃은 천사' 무대". Chosun Biz (in Korean). March 6, 2015. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  14. ^ "K-pop Album Sales Volume" (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Archived from the original on July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  15. ^ "April 1999 K-pop Album Sales Volume" (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  16. ^ "August 2000 K-pop Album Sales Volume" (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Archived from the original on July 10, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  17. ^ "July 2001 K-pop Album Sales Volume" (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Archived from the original on May 9, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  18. ^ "명예의 전당" [Hall of Fame]. Seoul Music Awards (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 18, 2014. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  19. ^ "역대수상자" [Past Winners]. Golden Disc Awards (in Korean). Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  20. ^ "2000 MMF part 1". MAMA. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  21. ^ "2001 MMF part 1" Archived June 15, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. MAMA. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  22. ^ "2009 Mnet Asian Music Awards Part1" Archived October 25, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. MAMA. Retrieved December 18, 2014.