Purpose (Taeyeon album)
Purpose is the second studio album by South Korean singer Taeyeon. It was released through SM Entertainment on October 28, 2019. It features 12 tracks, including the Gaon number-one single "Four Seasons" and its B-side "Blue" alongside ten new tracks, including the title track "Spark". On January 15, 2020, a repackage edition of Purpose was released including three new songs, including title track "Dear Me“. Musically, it is a pop record that contains influences of ballad, R&B, blues and jazz. The album was originally set to be released on October 22, 2019, but was postponed until October 28 due to the passing of Sulli.
Purpose was met with generally positive reviews from music critics and debuted at number two in South Korea, selling over 154,258 copies. The album received nominations for Disc Bonsang and Disc Daesang at the 34th Golden Disc Awards, while its single "Four Seasons" won Digital Bonsang, and was also nominated for Digital Daesang. Purpose appeared on numerous year-end best music lists of 2019.
Background
The album features songs in a "variety of styles". The title is said to represent "Taeyeon's goals as both a person and singer and show how music has become the greatest purpose and direction in life".Promotion
On October 14, 2019, Taeyeon released teaser photos for the album featuring a "red-lit aesthetic" of her face and shoulders, which was called "sultry" by Gulf News. SM originally set the release date of the album on October 22, 2019, but the promotional schedule was temporarily halted due to the death of Sulli. The first teaser of the music video for the title track 'Spark' was released on the official SM Entertainment YouTube channel on 23 October, while the second teaser of the music video was released on 25 October 2019. The music video of 'Spark' was released on 28 October 2019, which was released simultaneously with the release of the album.Taeyeon will not appeared on any music shows and not engaging in any promotion for Purpose as she decided to pay respects to her late friend Sulli, and also take care of her mental health. On 13 January 2020, a teaser of the music video for the title track "Dear Me" was released on the official SM Entertainment YouTube channel, while the music video was released on 15 January 2020, which was released simultaneously with the release of the Purpose repackage.
Composition
The digital edition of Purpose contains ten songs, while the physical release includes twelve tracks including the Gaon number-one single "Four Seasons" and its B-side "Blue", which was released as a digital single on March 24, 2019. There are three versions of the physical edition–two regular versions with different covers and 1 deluxe edition with different covers and booklets.The album incorporates various genres that are "based on Taeyeon's unique vocals", including pop, ballad, R&B, alternative R&B, blues, and jazz. The title track "Spark" was revealed to be an alternative soul pop song.
Critical reception
Purpose received generally positive reviews from media outlets. Chester Chin from The Star lauded the album's musical styles with "the artistic confidence on Purpose feels intensely liberating, and it is one heck of a confident record – in soul, sentiment and sound" and "On Purpose, the Girls' Generation alumni delivers a larger-than-life performance on a deliciously darker and much more musically complex record". He additionally complimented on Taeyeon's vocals and labelled Purpose as "artistic clarity" follow-up to her previous studio album My Voice.| Critic/Publication | List | Rank | |
| Reddit K-Pop | Album of the Year 2019 | 5 | |
| Idology Korea | 2019: Album Of The Year | 8 | |
| Pitchfork : Sheldon Pearce | Best Kpop, 2019: Best Album | 3 |
Awards and nominations
| Song | Program | Network | Date | Ref. |
| "Four Seasons" | Show! Music Core | MBC | April 6, 2019 | |
| "Four Seasons" | Inkigayo | SBS | April 7, 2019 | |
| "Spark" | Music Bank | KBS | November 8, 2019 | |
| "Spark" | Show! Music Core | MBC | November 9, 2019 | |
| "Spark" | Inkigayo | SBS | November 10, 2019 |
Commercial performance
Within just a few hours of its release, "Purpose" took over iTunes charts in 22 regions. She had set a record taking over the number one spot on iTunes charts in most countries for a Korean female soloist. She broke her own record by landing on the top spot in 26 countries with Repackaged version. The repackaged album also rose to the top of China’s largest music site QQ Music, KuGou Music, and Kuwo Music’s album sales chart.In South Korea, Purpose debuted at number two on the Gaon Album Chart with 154,258 copies sold. The album became Taeyeon's sixth top ten album in the country, and broke the record for the largest first day sales for a female artist with 78,327 copies on Hanteo being hit days later by IU's Love Poem.
In Japan, the album debuted at number twenty-five on the Oricon Albums Chart and has sold over 3,000 copies as of October 2019. Purpose debuted at number nine the Billboard World Albums, becoming Taeyeon's fifth top 10 entry on the chart. It additionally charted at number 14 on the Top Heatseekers.