On October 27th, CHAI, known primarily as 이수정, released her new single Wondering on all streaming platforms.
The song features a constant electric bass, that maintains a slow and captivating rhythm. An acoustic guitar, an electric guitar and a drum are part of the base, too. The bass is in opposition to CHAI’s subtle voice. Her voice alternates “solo” moments and harmonisation moments.
TV Show K-pop Star 5
Wondering is the first single of the South Korean singer 이수정 under the name CHAI. In fact, before changing it in CHAI, she used to perform with her Korean name. At that time, CHAI used to be a Kpop artist. As a matter of fact, she started obtaining success in her career when she joined and won the SBS’s TV show program K-pop Star 5. In this show, the genre of Kpop was central. The genre of Kpop first got in touch with western culture through the influence of South Korean band BTS.
Since then, CHAI has released different singles and earned a lot of success. But she wasn’t satisfied. “I am grateful for the opportunity & things I got to experience on KPOP Star but I’ve never identified with my Korean name,” she said. “The only time I heard the name was when […] I was getting yelled at as a kid.” The show created an image of me I felt like didn’t really encapsulate who I am. So, in order to put that behind me, I am debuting with the stage name that I’ve had since starting my music career even before the show.”
In fact, her new single Wondering is largely distant from K-Pop, and develops into the genre of R&B and soul.
The reason why CHAI changed her name
The artist described in an Instagram story the process that brought her from her Korean name 이수정 to “CHAI”.
“I don’t drink coffee so I had an obsession with Chai tea and wanted to know what that word meant. In most languages it means ‘tea,’ but in Hebrew chai means ‘life,’ ‘living’ or ‘alive’, and as corny as it sound[s], music really was something that gave me life [and] helped me hold onto it. Putting my own emotions and colour into music to make it unique was and still is something that makes life that more interesting.”
