Masterpiece (EP) explained

Masterpiece
Type:EP
Artist:Misamo
Cover:MiSaMo Masterpiece cover art.png
Caption:Regular edition cover
Genre:J-pop
Length:22:23
Language:Japanese
Label:Warner Japan
Next Title:TBA
Next Year:2024

Masterpiece is the debut extended play by MiSaMo, a sub unit of girl group Twice. It was released by Warner Music Japan on July 26, 2023. The EP contains seven tracks, including the lead single "Do Not Touch" and pre-released single "Marshmallow".

Background

Momo, Sana, and Mina released the song "Bouquet" for TV Asahi's television series on January 25, 2023.[1] On February 9, JYP Entertainment announced that the trio would debut as MiSaMo with an extended play of six tracks, including "Bouquet", on July 26.[2] On June 14, they confirmed Masterpiece as the title and revealed the tracklist, which now included seven songs. "Marshmallow" was pre-released digitally on June 16, alongside its music video.[3] [4] [5] The lead single, "Do Not Touch", was pre-released digitally on July 14 with an accompanying music video.[6] [7]

Composition

Masterpiece was in development for over a year, with MiSaMo contributing to the sound and creative concept of the album. In an interview with NME, they revealed that R&B track "Do Not Touch" was chosen as the lead single after "days of agonising over whether or not it was the right choice", and the vocals were recorded right before the North American leg of Twice's Ready to Be World Tour. The lyrics, written by Park Jin-young and Mayu Wakisaka, are a play on the phrase "do not touch" often displayed near works of art in museums, and highlight the importance of consent and boundaries in relationships.[8] [9] Jazz-inspired "Behind the Curtain" was not originally part of the track list, and was added later because it would be a great opening song for MiSaMo's debut showcase.[10] "Marshmallow", the pre-release single, is a chill song with hip hop elements and positive lyrics that encourage self-love.[3] [5]

Each member co-wrote lyrics for a track on the EP, with Momo choosing "Funny Valentine" because she could imagine a performance stage with the song. Mina's lyrics for "It's Not Easy for You" were inspired by comments from fans, and the song is about "being totally obsessed with something, like being stuck in a swamp".[11] Sana was inspired by Twice's "Cry for Me" (2020) when writing the lyrics for "Rewind You", a melancholy R&B song. The closing track, "Bouquet", conveys the positive message of "it's okay to be me".[12]

Promotion

To promote the EP, MiSaMo performed "Do Not Touch" on TV Asahi's Music Station, on July 21.[13] All seven tracks from the EP were performed during the group's debut showcase, "MiSaMo Japan Showcase 2023", held in Osaka and Yokohama over five days with a total audience of 40,000 fans.[14] On August 19, the group performed "Behind the Curtain", "Marshmallow", and "Do Not Touch" on Venue101 Presents MiSaMo Masterpiece Show, a special live broadcast of NHK's music program Venue101.[15]

Commercial performance

Masterpiece debuted at number 1 on the weekly Oricon Albums Chart with 154,880 copies sold.[16] This was the highest first week album sales for a female artist in 2023.[17] The EP also topped the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart, selling 200,986 copies and 1,529 downloads.[18]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2023)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Japanese Combined Albums (Oricon)[19] 1
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[20] 1

Monthly charts

Chart (2023)! scope="col"
Position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[21] 3

Year-end charts

Chart (2023)! scope="col"
Position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[22] 25
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[23] 25

Notes and References

  1. News: Cho . Yong-jun . Girl group Twice's first subunit, MiSaMo, to debut in Japan in July . August 11, 2023 . . February 9, 2023.
  2. Web site: Chin . Carmen . February 9, 2023 . TWICE's Sana, Momo and Mina drop trailer for Japanese sub-unit debut as MISAMO . June 18, 2023 . NME . en-GB.
  3. Web site: June 16, 2023 . Twice's sub-unit MiSaMo to drop 'Marshmallow' before its debut . June 18, 2023 . . en.
  4. News: TWICE日本人メンバーユニットMISAMO、初MV「Marshmallow」に反響「予想超えてきた」「8年目で新たな一面」 . July 3, 2023 . Oricon News . June 16, 2023 . ja.
  5. News: Ji . Min-kyung . 트와이스 첫 유닛 미사모, 日 앨범 수록곡 'Marshmallow' 선공개 . June 16, 2023 . OSEN . June 16, 2023 . ko.
  6. News: TWICE日本人ユニットMISAMOが名画に 「Do not touch」MVに反響「最高傑作すぎる」「日本の宝」 . July 14, 2023 . Oricon News . July 14, 2023 . ja.
  7. News: Ziwei . Puah . TWICE’s MISAMO drop edgy music video for ‘Do Not Touch’ . July 14, 2023 . NME . July 14, 2023.
  8. Web site: Haddad . Hanan . TWICE's Sub-Unit, MiSaMo are Works of Art in Their Latest MV, "Do Not Touch" . L'Officiel Singapore . March 10, 2024 . July 14, 2023.
  9. News: MISAMO Pre-releases Japanese Debut Song 'Do not touch' . March 10, 2024 . Dispatch . July 13, 2023.
  10. December 20, 2023 . MiSaMo Japan Showcase "Masterpiece" . Blu-ray . 11 . . We had initially planned to release a total of six songs. But we ended up with a total of seven songs because we decided to include 'Behind the Curtain'...Yes [response to 'Were you looking for a song that would be a great opener for this showcase?'], especially since MiSaMo is a new unit, and this would be our first stage performance, we thought 'Behind the Curtain' would be the ideal song to show a new beginning..
  11. Web site: MINA「It’s not easy for you」Lyrics Behind+Snippet . Twice Japan Official YouTube Channel . July 5, 2023 . March 10, 2024 . video . YouTube.
  12. News: TWICE、MOMO&SANA&MINAが歌う「Bouquet」が山崎育三郎主演の医療ドラマ『リエゾン』の挿入歌に決定 . March 10, 2024 . The First Times . January 12, 2023 . ja.
  13. News: TWICEユニットMISAMO&NiziU、JYP日本人メンバー同士の交流明かす MOMOとRIOは初電話で1時間 . July 29, 2023 . Oricon News . July 21, 2023 . ja.
  14. News: TWICE日本人ユニットMISAMO初ショーケースは応募総数60万超の大盛況 最終日はナヨン観覧のサプライズ . July 29, 2023 . Oricon News . July 27, 2023 . ja.
  15. News: MISAMOが「Venue101」スピンオフ登場、生パフォーマンスやメンバー思い出の地を巡るロケOA . July 29, 2023 . Natalie . July 29, 2023 . ja.
  16. Web site: Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2023-08-07 . . August 7, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230802031541/https://www.oricon.co.jp/rank/ja/w/2023-08-07/ . August 2, 2023 . ja.
  17. News: TWICEの日本人ユニット・MISAMO、「アルバム」初登場1位 女性アーティスト今年度最高の初週売上【オリコンランキング】 . August 7, 2023 . Oricon News . August 1, 2023 . ja.
  18. News: MISAMO『Masterpiece』が総合アルバム首位獲得 . MISAMO's "Masterpiece" topped the overall album charts. August 7, 2023 . . August 2, 2023 . ja.
  19. Web site: Oricon Top 50 Combined Albums: 2023-08-07 . . August 4, 2023. ja.
  20. Web site: Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of August 2, 2023. Billboard Japan. ja. August 2, 2023.
  21. Web site: Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2023-07 . . August 9, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230809065558/https://www.oricon.co.jp/rank/ja/m/2023-07/ . August 9, 2023 . ja.
  22. Web site: https://www.oricon.co.jp/special/66026/3/. ja:【オリコン年間ランキング2023】King & Prince、「シングル」「アルバム」ともにミリオン達成で「音楽」3ジャンルで首位 YOASOBI「アイドル」が3冠. December 20, 2023. Oricon. 3. ja. https://web.archive.org/web/20231220012310/https://www.oricon.co.jp/special/66026/3/. December 20, 2023. live. December 19, 2023.
  23. Web site: Billboard Japan Hot Albums Year-End 2023. Billboard Japan. December 24, 2023.