| FIRST IMPACT |
First Impact (stylized as FIRST IMPACT) is the debut and first mini album[1] by Kep1er. It was released on January 3, 2022 at 6pm KST, with WA DA DA serving as the title track.
Official Description
Global fan-made group ‘Kep1er’ releases their debut album ‘FIRST IMPACT’! ‘Catch your eye! Catch your mind!’ Sortie to capture the hearts of global fans!
4th generation super rookie ‘Kep1er’ will release their first mini album ‘FIRST IMPACT’ on January 3, 2022.
‘Kep1er’ is a group composed of TOP 9 members selected through Mnet ‘Girls Planet 999’ in 2021. The program, which became a hot topic with girls from three countries, Korea, China and Japan participated in the global voting, and fans from 175 countries around the world participated in the global voting, and the cumulative number of votes during the broadcast time was 12.97 million votes. The related YouTube video also surpassed the total cumulative number of views of 460 million views, and the final episode ranked No.
‘Kep1er’ is a combination of ‘Kep’ meaning ‘caught a dream’ and the number ‘1’ meaning that nine girls will gather as one to become the best. It contains the aspirations of girls. It also touches the will of the girls to continuously grow and challenge themselves in response to the expectations of global fans.
The worldview of ‘Kep1er’ also catches the eye. Two suns coexist on the planet where the girls who set out on an adventure to achieve their dreams live. This means ‘girls' dreams’ and ‘fans' love’, respectively. Using these two suns as a driving force, the girls explore the unknown and actively leave for a new world. Wherever there are these two suns, it can turn into ‘Kep1er’.
The debut album ‘FIRST IMPACT’ consists of 6 songs containing the vast worldview of ‘Kep1er’ and the colorful charms of girls. The title song ‘WA DA DA’ with energetic and lovely charm, the sophisticated and stylish coupling song ‘MVSK’, and the intro song ‘See The Light’ that arouses curiosity with a dreamy atmosphere, each contain K-Pop's representative songs. Composers Prism Filter, e.one, and producer Park Woo-sang participated in supporting the first start of the super rookie ‘Kep1er’ and added strength.
In addition, the signal song ‘O.O.O (Over&Over&Over)’, which drew a lot of attention as the main character left a killing part, ‘It's me!’ in ‘Girls Planet 999’, and the final mission song, stand out for its lively and bouncy charm. The dance song ‘Shine’ and the ballad song ‘Another Dream’, which received a favourable response from fans for their lyrical melody and emotional lines, were re-recorded in the ‘Kep1er’ version so that we can meet again on the album.
The splendid performances along with the high-quality music are also sufficient to satisfy the expectations of global fans. Choreographers Jang Ju-hee and Baek Koo-young, the top K-Pop performance makers in Korea who were active as dance masters for ‘Kep1er’ members, and Chae Dasom, a choreographer for multi-in-one girl groups, participated as choreographers for ‘Kep1er’ 1st mini album. It raises expectations further.
9 girls who became one through the selection of global fans. The adventure story of ‘Kep1er’, where dreams become reality, begins now.
Tracklist
History
Pre-Release Promotions
On November 22, 2021, Kep1er SNS accounts a website link saying "hello-kep1er.com" and "Kep1er : Connecting ..." as the caption. The website contained a countdown that was set to end on November 27, 2021 at midnight KST.
On November 24, the release date of their debut was officially revealed, along with the first set of concept photos showcasing members Yujin, Mashiro and Xiaoting.[2] On the 25th, concept photos showcasing Chaehyun, Dayeon, and Hikaru were revealed and finally on the 26, concept photos showcasing the last three members Bahiyyih, Youngeun and Yeseo were revealed.
On November 27, the website was updated to say "404 not found." If the user dragged each digit so that the number read "999," an audio message would appear which says: "Do you copy? We are looking for your signal. Please copy if you can hear me."[3]
On November 29, the name of the mini album was revealed along with the second set of concept photos showcasing members Yujin, Xiaoting, and Mashiro. On this day, if the user dragged each digit so that the number read "999," a new locked section would appear stating "searching... detecting..." at the bottom of the container. The section was unlocked a few hours later. The new updated contained 3 coordinates, with passcodes revealed in each one. All of the passcodes contained a video with the Connect 0 concept and a different member's voice saying: "Be ready to recieve your signal. We have now come to together as Kep1er and are ready to make the FIRST IMPACT." The last sentence was in Chinese, Korean or Japanese depending upon the passcode entered, and roughly translated to "Starting now, listen to our signal." The letter in the passcode related to the coordinate location in which the passcode was recieved from, while the four-digit number was the sum of the birth dates in MM/DD format (excluding birth year) of all of the Kep1er members from that country.
Some hours later (1PM KST) the pre-release information for the physical album was released[4], revealing that the third and final concept would be named Connect 1.
Delay of Release
On December 5, 2021, it was announced that the album's promotional schedule would be postponed due to a staff member testing positive for COVID-19.[5] Three days later the new debut date was revealed to be on January 3, 2022. The final group concept photo was released on December 12th.
Resumption of Promotions
On December 25, 2021, the schedule poster for the debut was announced. Two days later, on December 27, 2021, the Connection Film, a concept film featuring the WA DA DA music video's sets and concepts, was posted on Kep1er's official YouTube channel. The first WA DA DA music video teaser was posted the following day.
Release & Reception
The album released at 6pm Korean Standard Time on January 3, 2021. It sold 150,153 copies on the Hanteo Chart that day, making Kep1er the girl group with the highest first-day sales on a debut album, as well as the first girl group debut to exceed 150,000 copies sold on the first day.[6]
Physical Album
Album Preview
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Videos
Trivia
- It is the first debut album of a group formed by an Mnet survival show to have more than two versions of the physical release.
- As of December 27, 2021, FIRST IMPACT has pre-sold over 200,000 copies of the physical release.[7]
- At the time of release, FIRST IMPACT was the highest-selling girl-group debut in Hanteo history.[6]
References
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 | |
|---|---|
Hikaru • Huening Bahiyyih • Youngeun • Yeseo | |
| Full Albums | Kep1going On |
| Mini Albums | FIRST IMPACT • DOUBLAST • TROUBLESHOOTER • LOVESTRUCK! • Magic Hour • TIPI-TAP |
| Digital Singles | SUGAR RUSH |
| Full Albums | Kep1going |
| Mini Album | AGAINST THE WORLD |
| Singles | FLY-UP • FLY-BY • FLY-HIGH |
| Reality Shows | Kep1er View • Kep1er Zone • Kep1er Zone 2 • Kep1er School • Kep1er-unner |
| Television Appearances | Girls Planet 999 (Pre-debut) • Queendom 2 |
| Youtube Series | Kep1us • Kep-chup • KEPture • KEPtain Heroes • Kep1ayer |
| Concerts | Kep1er Japan Debut Showcase Live • Kep1er Japan Concert Tour 2023 'Fly-By' • Kep1er Japan Fan Concert 2024 'Fly-High' • Kep1er Japan Concert 2024 'Kep1going' |
| Fanmeeting | Kep1anet • Kep1er‘s Strange Market • Fairy Fantasia |