F.T. Island

Infobox musical artist
Name = F.T. Island


Img_capt =
Origin = flagicon|South Korea South Korea
Alias = Five Treasure Island, FTI
Genre = K-pop, Pop-Rock
Label = F&C Music
Associated_acts =
Years_active = 2007 - present
URL = [http://www.ftisland.com/ FT Island's Official Site]
Current_members = Lee Hongki (Lead Vocal)
Lee Jaejin (Bass)
Oh Wonbin (Guitar, Soft Vocal & Rap)
Choi Jonghun (Guitar & Keyboard)
Choi Minhwan (Drums)

F.T. Island (Korean : 에프티 아일랜드), Five Treasure Island, or FTI, is the name of a South Korean rock ballad band. The name F.T. Island stands for 'Five Treasure Island', each of the five members being a treasure. [cite news | last = 이재환| first = | title = 아이돌 밴드그룹 에프티아일랜드 방송 직후 검색어 1위| pages = | publisher = 뉴스엔| date = 2007-03-19| url = http://www.newsen.com/news_view.php?news_uid=122505&search=title_content&searchstring=에프티%20아일랜드| accessdate = 2007-04-29 ] The band's official color is yellow, and their fans carry yellow flags known as "pentasticks." Their debut album, "Cheerful Sensibility", was the sixth best-selling album of 2007 in South Korea.

Career

Debut

F.T. Island's first album was scheduled to be released commercially in May 2007. [cite news | last = 한준호| first = | title = 에프티아일랜드, "데뷔도 안했는데 벌써 스타"| pages = | publisher = 스포츠월드| date = 2007-03-19| url = http://www.segye.com/Service5/ShellView.asp?TreeID=1052&PCode=0007&DataID=200703201105000033| accessdate = 2007-04-29 ] However, instead of releasing the album as planned, all of the members appeared on a television program called “Dugeun Dugeun Yeochinmandeulgi” (Korean : 두근두근 여친만들기) on the Korean television channel MNet. The program title is officially translated by MNet as "Wanna Be My Girlfriend?" although "두근두근" refers to the sound a heart makes. [cite news | last = 이정혁| first = | title = '꽃동산 장애인' 에프티아일랜드 , 여친 공개 모집| pages = | publisher = 네이버 스포츠조선 연예| date = 2007-03-19| url = http://sports.chosun.com/news/ntype.htm?ut=1&name=/news/entertainment/200703/20070320/73t76101.htm| accessdate = 2007-04-29 ] The band also performed on stage live at "Rolling Hall" and held their first official showcase at "Live House Melon-AX", Gwangjang-dong in Seoul on May 27 2007. [cite news | last = Mnet| first = | title = 핫데뷔 FTIsland! 첫 쇼캐이스에 여러분을 초대합니다| pages = | publisher = | date = | url = http://mnet.mnet.com/Event/MakingGirls/| accessdate = 2007-05-11 ] On June 7, 2007 F.T. Island performed their debut song on the music television program M!Countdown. [cite news | last = Yesasia| first = | title = F.T Island Vol. 1 - Cheerful Sensibility | pages = | publisher = | date = | url = http://global.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.aspx/code-k/section-music/pid-1004878589/| accessdate = 2007-06-08 ] Not only this but also they amazed people by winning their first best song award on M!Countdown by beating top artists such as Dynamic Duo and Fly To The Sky in just 2 weeks after debuting.

"Cheerful Sensibility"

Their first album "Cheerful Sensibility" combined 13 songs that can be divided into 2 parts: “Emotional Chapter” and “FT Island Chapter” respectively according to the style of the song in the album. For the “Emotional Chapter”, the genre is rock ballad oriented which produced by the composers who work for many songs of famous Korean singer such as SG Wannabe. The other part, “FT Island Chapter”, tend to be the upbeat pop- rock oriented style, which was produced by the Japanese famous composers participating with the Japanese band, SMAP. [cite news | last = Naver 뮤직| first = | title = 1집 Cheerful Sensibility
pages = | publisher = | date = | url = http://music.naver.com/album.nhn?tubeid=151632| accessdate = 2007-06-10 ] The album sold 79,786 copies in 2007, making it the sixth best-selling album of the yearMusic Industry Association of Korea. [http://www.miak.or.kr/stat/kpop_2007_2.htm 2007 album sales chart] . Retrieved January 15, 2007.] .

The album was re-released on December 3, 2007 and it was named "The Refreshment". In addition to three extra songs, the package also included various extras, including a photobook, a stack of photocards, and a mixing program called Music 2.0 which allows one to adjust the levels of the instruments and vocals accordingly. This edition sold 25,724 copies in December 2007

2008: Concerts abroad

The group was scheduled to hold their first concert in Malaysia on March 30 2008, at Sunway Lagoon Amphitheater. On the day before the concert, they held an autograph session at Damansara Cineleisure. A special version of their debut album has been released in mid-February. However, the concert was suddenly cancelled, with no explanation given.

On April 12 2008, the group held their first concert in Thailand, at the Royal Paragon Hall. In addition to playing material from their album, each member of the group had their own solos as well.

2008: Japanese Debut

F.T. Island's Japanese debut album, entitled "Prologue of FT Island", was released on 7th June 2008, with the first single released being "Soyogi". The album consists of 8 songs, 2 of which are newer versions of the original songs "FT Island" and "Primadonna". The last track, "Always Be Mine", is an English version of "First Kiss". However, the lyrics are not translated, but completely original. [name="Japanesedebutalbum">YesAsia. [http://us.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.aspx/code-w/section-index/pid-1010909920/ Prologue of F.T. Island Retrieved on accessdate = 2008-05-27] . ] A music video has been released for "Soyogi" and "Friendship".

"Colorful Sensibility"

Their second album reveals a more mature and angsty side of the band. Currently, they are promoting Lying Love(사랑후애), the first single off the album.

Other works

Member Lee Jae Jin was a castmember of KBS's sitcom "Unstoppable Marriage". The other members made a cameo appearance. In this sitcom Lee Jae Jin plays the role of Wang Sa Baek (Sim Mal Yeon's fourth son), and appears regularly on the show.

Member Lee Hong Gi debuted 6 years ago on a kid's sitcom KBS2's "Magic Kid Masuri" as the main character, Masuri. This sitcom gained explosive popularity among elementary school students.

Band Members

Lee Hong Gi

Choi Jong Hun

oundtrack

Awards

References