''Real'' is the third Korean-language extended play (EP) by South Korean singer-songwriter IU. It was released and distributed by

LOEN Entertainment Kakao M Corp. (; formerly Seoul Records, YBM Seoul Records and LOEN Entertainment) was a South Korean entertainment company established by Min Yeong-bin in 1978. It was one of the largest co-publisher companies in South Korea. The company opera ...

on December 9, 2010. The special edition of the album was sold out during pre-order, which revealed the high anticipation for the album. IU collaborated with some of the top vocalists and producers in South Korea such as

Yoon Jong-shin Yoon Jong-shin (; born October 15, 1969) is a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, and the CEO of Mystic Story. Early life and education Yoon completed high school at Daewon Foreign Language High School and studied Korean Language ...

Kim Hyeong-seok Kim Hyeong-seok (; born September 27, 1966) is a composer, lyricist and record producer in South Korea who is known for producing R&B, ballads, rock, dance and idol music. Since beginning his career in 1989, Kim has composed or produced more than ...

, Lee Min-soo,

Kim Eana Kim Eana (; born April 27, 1979) is a South Korean lyricist. She is best known for writing the lyrics to hit K-pop songs, including "Abracadabra" performed by Brown Eyed Girls, and " Good Day" performed by IU. She has been active since 2003. ...

Shinsadong Tiger Lee Ho-yang (June 3, 1983 – February 23, 2024), known professionally as Shinsadong Tiger, was a South Korean music producer and songwriter. After debuting in 2001 at the age of 18, he still worked several odd jobs to fund his music career. H ...

, and Choi Gap-won to work on the album. The album's success strengthened the singer's position as the "Nation's little sister" in her native country. In November 2019, ''Billboard'' magazine compiled a list of the 100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of the 2010s, with the single " Good Day" ranking at number one.

Background and release

''Real'' consists of six songs and an instrumental of the title track, "Good Day". The album came in two different versions, normal and special edition. IU had worked with composers of hit songs such as "

Abracadabra ''Abracadabra'' is a magic word, historically used as an Apotropaic magic, apotropaic incantation on amulets and common today in stage magic. The actual origin is unknown, but one of the first appearances of the word was in a second-century work ...

", "

Nagging Nagging, in interpersonal communication, is repetitious behaviour in the form of pestering, hectoring, harassing, or otherwise continuously urging an individual to complete previously discussed requests or act on advice. The word is probably borro ...

", and " Irreversible" to develop this album.

Composition

The album reflected the natural image of IU, as described by the album title. The title track is "Good Day" includes a musical combination of violin, wind instruments, guitar, and piano. It also displays her powerful vocals. The lyrics describe a story of a girl who doesn't have the courage to confess to her

crush Crush may refer to: * Infatuation or limerence, the romantic attraction to another person * Puppy love, feelings of love, romance, or infatuation felt by young people Crush may also refer to: Film * Crush (1972 film), ''Crush'' (1972 film), a H ...

, the sweetness and tension of a first love. IU also tried out a new music genre,

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

, in this album ("This Is Not What I Thought"). Other songs in this album includes "The Night of the First Breakup", a story about the day of a panicking girl who just broke up with her boyfriend; "Alone in the Room", expressed the emotions of an 18-year-old girl as IU co-wrote the lyrics to this song; "The Thing I Do Slowly", a ballad that describes a girl trying to forget her love after a breakup; and "Merry Christmas in Advance", a confession from IU to the fans, which was composed by Shinsadong Tiger. It features rapping from

Thunder Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

, who has been friends with IU since pre-debut, and the tune is a love song which brings everyone love during Christmas. Update: IU to release 3rd mini album "Real" on December 9th
. koreaboo. Retrieved on March 13, 2012.

Promotion and reception

IU made her official comeback through KBS's ''

Music Bank ''Music Bank'' () is a South Korean music program which airs every Friday at 17:15 KST on KBS2. the show is also broadcast in more than a hundred countries through KBS World. Episodes are filmed at the KBS New Wing Open Hall in Yeouido-dong, Ye ...

'' on December 10, 2010. As of 2012, the album has sold more than 85,000 copies.

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Recording and mixing * Loen Studio – recording studio * T Studio – recording studio * Booming Studio – recording studio * Musicabal Studio – recording studio, mixing studio * K-Note Studio – recording studio * Vitamin Studio – mixing studio * W Studio – mixing studio Staff * Cho Young-cheol – producer * Choi Gap-won – producer * Myung-gap Son – recording engineer * Young Seon – recording engineer * Eun-sook Heo – recording engineer * Young-hee Choi – recording engineer * Il-ho Kim – recording engineer * Ji-yeon Park – recording engineer * Min-hee Kim – recording engineer * Hyunjeong Ko – mixing engineer * Junseong Jo – mixing engineer * Seungwook Ko – mixing engineer * Jeon Hoon at Sonic Korea – mastering * Namgoong Chan – management director * Jo Chun-ho – management director * Bae Jong-han, Park Jeong-hyeon, Park Joo-won, Park Seong-woo – management assistants * Kim Jin-myeong – A&R (repertoire) *

– A&R (repertoire) * Oh Yu-kyung – A&R (repertoire) * Hye-sun Park – marketing * Si-won Park – marketing * Soo-hyun Ahn – marketing * Changsu Kim – alliance marketing * Jeongmin Lee – administration support * Hwang Soo-ah – visual director * Choi Hye-ryun – stylist * Kim Jeong-han – hair * Goh Gyeong-gyeong – makeup

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

Footnotes

References

{{Authority control 2010 EPs IU (singer) EPs Korean-language EPs 2010s Korean-language albums Kakao M EPs