Monochrome (stylized in all caps) is the fifth studio album by South Korean singer-songwriter Lee Hyori. It was released on May 21, 2013, by B2M Entertainment and distributed by CJ E&M Music. The album, which has an analogue sound and retro feel, departs from her previous style of music. It is her first full-length release after a three-year hiatus since H-Logic (2010).
Unlike her previous work, Lee collaborated with foreign composers such as Norwegian songwriting team Dsign Music, who previously composed Girls' Generation's "Tell Me Your Wish (Genie)" and "I Got a Boy". She also worked with blues musician Kim Tae-chun, and her then-boyfriend Lee Sang-soon for the new record. Beenzino, a member of hip-hop duo Jazzyfact, Bak Ji-yong from vocal trio Honey G, comedian Ahn Young-mi, and Lee's companion dog Soonshim participated on the album as featured artists.
Monochrome contains a total of sixteen tracks, including the lead single "Bad Girls", the self-composed hit "Miss Korea", and "Show Show Show", a cover of "No No No" originally performed by German pop trio Monrose. A special edition of the album, featuring a 156-page photo book and limited to 5,000 copies, was available for pre-order starting on May 9, 2013.
The album sold about 17,000 physical copies and 2.75 million digital tracks in 2013, making it the 79th best-selling Korean album of that year. Lee bounced back as a musician thanks to the album's success, winning the award for Best Female Artist at 2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards.
Background
Lee's comeback was pushed back multiple times throughout 2012, until it was finally announced that she would return to the stage with her fifth studio album in May 2013. While recording, many rumors floated around on what the album would sound like. Lee rejected the rumors when she tweeted and urged people to "not to be deceived by any of fake information about the album", on February 7, 2013. Two days later, she posted on her official fan club, asking fans to "not to be bored even if there would be more than 10 tracks in her new album". Lee stated that she felt the "greed" to create an album with weighty quality.
Unlike her previous work, it was reported that she collaborated with foreign composers for the new record. According to an official from B2M Entertainment, Lee's agency, Monochrome will contain a number of acoustic and easy listening songs instead of her previous style of electronic pop music. However, the official also stated that the singer has made an effort to reach the nexus between her and the listeners by choosing a dance tune with a powerful group choreography as the title track of her album.
Release
On May 9, it was announced that the singer's fifth full-length album would be titled Monochrome, and its album cover was unveiled. Beginning on the same day, a normal edition and a special limited edition of the album were available for pre-order. Limited to 5,000 copies, the latter features a 156-page photo book, and was all sold out.
Monochrome was released both digitally and physically on May 21, 2013. The album peaked at number four on the Gaon Albums Chart. As of , Monochrome has sold about 17,000 copies in South Korea, with the sales of both editions combined.
Teasers
Vogue Korea announced that Lee would introduce her new song through "Show Girl", a fashion music video of her recent photo shoot with the magazine on April 19, 2013. With the concept of a circus show girl, she donned several sexy outfits in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by abandoned circus sets and props. "Show Girl" was sequentially released on the first of May via Vogue Korea'''s iPad app, the magazine's website, and then its YouTube channel. According to Lee's agency, the background music for the video was titled "Show Show Show" (), which is a cover of Monrose's "No No No".
Lee Hyori uploaded a photo via her official Twitter on April 22, 2013, with the sentence "I used to be the sweetest girl ever... 'til I found out being the baddest girl was better" superimposed onto it. Five video teasers were released for the album through B2M Entertainment's YouTube channel at noon the following day. Under the theme of "What Are You Doing, Hyori?" (), the series of teasers featured footage from Lee's daily life, and recording sessions and photo shoots for Monochrome, with the sound of brass instruments played as background music.