[Blog] The Soloist J-Trinity

Today is a short and light blog post that sort of doubles as a spotlight-esque article. We'll see how I feel about it and go from there if I have similar ideas in the future. We all know the J-Trinity that is Twice's Mina, Momo, and Sana. But there's another trio of J's who are nowhere near as popular or discovered, and that's a damn shame. These three are all underrated soloists that don't get anywhere near as much love as they deserve, for reasons (mostly) beyond my understanding.

Juniel is a sweetheart, and her delicate voice sustains itself across her ballad and pop songs. She's not a common name, and to be honest, with a departure from FNC Entertainment, I don't see that changing in her favor. Her resume is littered with great songs: from the debut "Illa Illa," eerily beautiful "Bad Man," and more generic cute tunes of "I Think I'm In Love." What may be holding her back outside of being with a popular label is that her style of songs all tend to fall under the same category, but she has showed an ability to change things up with the newly released "Pisces."

Joo's own "Bad Man" was (back in 2011) one of the best goddamn ballads I've ever heard. After bouts of inactivity and leaving the JYP label, she has struggled in the intermediate period, before signing with Woollim Entertainment. Joo is special because her sings carry an immense amount of emotion, almost to the point where she sounds shaky at times, but she always seems to make it work. I was lucky enough to even know about her transition to a new label and "Cry & Blow" from last fall. Here's hoping she appears back on the scene soon.

And lastly, there's J-Min. J-Min is an exceptional talent that continues to be wasted by being signed under S.M. Her limited work in Korea is outstanding - "Shine" brings plenty of rock vibes, and her OST releases like "Stand Up" are really damn good, plus her track record in Japan adds another layer of depth. But she constantly gets shafted in opportunities (like the lack of appearance in the Japanese "Breath" which was practically unforgivable). She finally got some activity this year with "Way Back Home" and Station, thankfully, but needs to be used more in the future. Otherwise I hope she bails.

So whether it's a result of being under the wrong management label, inconsistent activity, music that is too specific, or any combination of these (plus more) factors, these girls are criminally underrated. Or worse, people don't even know about them or their talents at all. They are by all rights extremely capable vocalists and soloists who should be fiercely competing with the likes of Younha and Ailee. The female soloist game isn't a two woman show. At least, that isn't as fun or interesting. Hopefully J-Min, Juniel, and Joo all see their future fortunes be on the rise in 2016.