With Love, J

With Love, J
Cover artwork for the EP
EP by
Jessica
ReleasedMay 16, 2016
RecordedSeptember 2015 – March 2016
Genre
Length21:22
Language
LabelCoridel
Jessica chronology
With Love, J
(2016) 		Wonderland
(2016)
Singles from With Love, J
  1. "Fly"
    Released: May 16, 2016
  2. "Love Me the Same"
    Released: May 18, 2016

With Love, J is the debut extended play by South Korea-based American singer Jessica. The Korean-language edition consisting of six songs was released worldwide by Coridel Entertainment on May 16, 2016, while an English-language version featuring five songs (with the exclusion of "Dear Diary") was released on May 27, 2016. The EP was Jessica's first music release following her departure from South Korean girl group Girls' Generation in September 2014. The songs "Fly" and "Love Me the Same" were released as the album's singles on May 16 and 18, 2016, respectively.

Background and release

Jessica originally signed with SM Entertainment in 2000. In 2007, she was chosen as a member of the group Girls' Generation. On September 30, 2014, Jessica announced on her personal Weibo account that she was "forced out" of the group,[2] which was later confirmed by the record label itself.[2][3] Jessica's final song with Girls' Generation is "Divine", which was released as a part of the repackaged version of their first Japanese greatest hits album, The Best. On August 6, 2015, S.M. Entertainment released an official statement stating that Jessica had officially parted ways with the company.[4]

In February 2016, Jessica announced that her first solo album would be released under her new agency, Coridel Entertainment.[5][6] In April 2016, representatives announced that Jung would release her first album the following month in May.[7] On April 30, Coridel Entertainment released the track list which included the title track "Fly" featuring American rapper Fabolous. Jung wrote and composed four out of the six tracks.[8] The name of the extended play/mini album was revealed to be With Love, J.[9]

Promotion

The music video for the debut single, "Fly," was released on May 17, 2016. The music video for "Fly" amassed over 2 million views within 24 hours of its release. A video for the second single, "Love Me The Same," was released the following day on May 18, 2016.

The album was made available for pre-ordering by Coridel Entertainment via various online music services.[10] The first 60,000 copies of the album had been sold out one day prior to the release date on May 16, 2016, leading the label to produce additional copies.[11]

Reception

The album received mixed reviews from critics. Chester Chin from The Star rated the album 6/10,[12] noting its emotional depth but criticizing some of its production choices. The Straits Times rated the album 2.5/5,[13] highlighting both strengths and weaknesses in the composition and lyrical content. Despite these mixed reviews, the album resonated well with fans who appreciated the artist's heartfelt delivery and lyrical sincerity

Track listing

No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Fly" (featuring Fabolous)Jessica Jung
  • Jessica Jung
  • Karriem Mack
  • Eric Fernandez
  • Tatiana Matthews
  • John Jackson
  • Karriem Mack
  • Eric Fernandez
  • Jay Kim
4:12
2."Big Mini World"
Kim Eun-soo
T-SK
T-SK3:11
3."Falling Crazy in Love"Jessica Jung
  • Henrik Nordenback
  • Christian Fast
  • Lisa Demond
Henrik Nordenback4:01
4."Love Me the Same"Jessica Jung
  • Jessica Jung
  • Eric Fernandez
  • Karriem Mack
  • Julien Cross
  • Karriem Mack
  • Eric Fernandez
  • Jay Kim
3:24
5."Golden Sky"Jessica Jung
  • Jessica Jung
  • Karriem Mack
  • Tatiana Matthews
  • Liana Banks
  • Karriem Mack
  • Jay Kim
3:15
6."Dear Diary"
  • Jay Kim
  • D.EAR
  • Joo Dong-jun
D.EARD.EAR3:19
Total length:21:22

Note: The English version of the EP does not feature track 6 "Dear Diary".

Charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[14] 34
South Korean Albums (Gaon)[15] 1
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[16] 16
US World Albums (Billboard)[17] 4

Monthly charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
South Korean Albums (Gaon)[18] 3

Year-end chart

Chart (2016) Position
South Korea (Gaon)[19] 33

Release history

Region Date Edition Format Label
South Korea[20][21] May 17, 2016 Korean-language edition CD, digital download Coridel Entertainment, Interpark INT
Various[22] Digital download
Various[23] May 27, 2016 English-language edition Digital download Coridel Entertainment

References

  1. ^ Herman, Tamar (May 17, 2016). "Jessica Jung on Recording Solo After Girls' Generation: 'I Was Really Surprised I Could Have Input'". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2016.
  2. ^ a b SM states that SNSD will promote as eight without Jessica Mwave.interest.me (September 30, 2014). Retrieved on September 30, 2014.
  3. ^ SMTown's Official Statement SM Entertainment (September 30, 2014). Retrieved on October 1, 2014.
  4. ^ "Singer Jessica quits SM Entertainment". The Korea Times. August 6, 2015. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  5. ^ "Coridel Entertainment - Artists". www.coridel.com. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
  6. ^ "Jessica Jung To Release First Album After Girls' Generation — Signed Copies Free To Shoppers Buying $250 Worth Of Blanc & Eclare Cosmetics". The Inquisitr News. February 20, 2016. Retrieved February 21, 2016.
  7. ^ "제시카 측 "5월 컴백 맞다…막바지 준비·날짜 조율 중"". nate.com. April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  8. ^ coridelent1. "[제시카] 최종 트랙리스트 공개". CORIDEL ENTERTAINMENT. Retrieved May 11, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ coridelent1. "[제시카] 최종 트랙리스트 공개". CORIDEL ENTERTAINMENT. Retrieved April 30, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ Kaur, Gungeet (May 16, 2016). "Agency reveals change in countdown timing of Jessica Jung album 'With Love, J'". International Business Times. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  11. ^ Kim Da-hee (May 16, 2016). "Jessica Jung's first album sells out". The Korea Times. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  12. ^ "Malaysia Lifestyle Feature Stories | the Star".
  13. ^ Ng, Gwendolyn (July 20, 2016). "Hot Tracks". The Straits Times. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  14. ^ "オリコン週間 CDアルバムランキング 2016年05月16日～2016年05月22日 31～40位" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  15. ^ "2016 Weekly Album Chart - Week 21". Gaon Chart. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
  16. ^ http://www.billboard.com/charts/heatseekers-albums%7Ctitle=Heatseekers Albums|work=Billboard|archivedate=May 25, 2016|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160525035835/http://www.billboard.com/charts/heatseekers-albums
  17. ^ "World Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 25, 2016.
  18. ^ "Gaon Chart releases chart rankings for the month of May 2016". allkpop. June 9, 2016.
  19. ^ "Gaon Album Chart of 2016" (in Korean). Gaon Chart. Archived from the original on January 13, 2017.
  20. ^ "With Love, J – Buy CD" (in Korean). Hanteo. Hanteo Information Service. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  21. ^ "With Love, J by Jessica" (in Korean). Melon (LOEN Entertainment). Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  22. ^ "With Love, J (Korean Version) – EP". iTunes Store. Archived from the original on May 17, 2016.
  23. ^ "With Love, J by Jessica Jung". iTunes Store. May 27, 2016. Archived from the original on June 5, 2016.