Tell Me (Wonder Girls song)

Infobox Single
Name = Tell Me


Artist = Wonder Girls
from Album = The Wonder Years
B-side =
Released =
Format = Digital download, Radio single
Recorded = September 2007
Genre = K-pop, Dance Pop
Length = 3:37(album version)
3:37(rap version)
Label = JYP Entertainment, Seoul Records
Writer =
Producer = Park Jin-young
Certification =
Last single = "Irony"
(2007)
This single = "Tell Me"
(2007)
Next single = "이바보" ("This Fool")
(2007)

"Tell Me" was the lead single from the Wonder Girls' first full-length album, "The Wonder Years". Sampling Stacey Q's "Two of Hearts", "Tell Me" was a strong hit for the group, topping various online and offline charts. The song notable for its dance, which was widely imitated and featured on various online video sites.

History

When producer Park Jin-young first introduced the song to the group, the Wonder Girls felt that the song was too different and would not be successful. However, once they were used to the song, they eventually believed it could be a strong single.

This was the first single to feature Kim Yoobin, the replacement for former member Kim Hyun-ah, who was removed from the group by her parents due to health issues. On September 5 2007, Good Entertainment, the talent agency for the popular boy band Shinhwa, sent their trainee Yubin to JYP Enterainment as a replacement for Hyun-ah. She made her debut three days later in the group's live performance of "Tell Me" on "Music Bank ". [cite news |last=Kim |first=Won-gyum |title=원더걸스, 새멤버 공개..19세 김유빈 |url = http://star.moneytoday.co.kr/view/star_view.php?type=1&gisano=2007090508020097127 |publisher=Star News |language=Korean |date=2007-09-05 |accessdate=2008-07-18]

Due to the last-minute addition of Kim Yoobin, the album version does not feature her; however, the version released and promoted by the group contained a rap verse performed by Kim Yoobin. The single was a hit and reached number one on various Korean television and internet music charts, including KBS's "Music Bank".

The choreography for the song was simple and widely imitated: by October, many fan performances of the dance circulated on video sharing sites such as YouTube and Daum [cite news |title = [2007연예결산] 올해의 사자성어 ‘원더걸스(原多渴水)’|url = http://news.mk.co.kr/newsRead.php?sc=30100005&cm=&year=2007&no=712446&sel
|publisher = Gonews |date = 2007-12-31 |accessdate = 2008-07-18 |language = Korean] , including one by a group of policemen who were eventually profiled on SBS's "Star King". Many celebrities, including Shin Hye Sung, Kim Heechul and Hong Kyung-min, also sang and danced to the song at their own fan meetings.

Although the rap version was not initially given a release, it was eventually released as a B side on the Wonder Girls' follow-up single "So Hot".

References