I knew that GOT7’s exclusive contract with JYPE was up but somehow I had not internalised that it would actually be right now, ha. I don’t follow my faves outside promotions which means I don’t follow any fandom content either, I just don’t have the time for that $hit anymore. Otherwise I would have been more aware of the situation at hand. I knew of course that the chances of them re-signing were pretty slim, so the news didn’t come as any sort of surprise. Can’t deny that I’m a bit sad though. It’s another end of an era for me.
JJ Project brought me to GOT7 and their 7for7 album made me a ‘fan’. Even though I like them as a group a lot, it’s the music I fell in love with. I’ve loved every single album from then on and they have given me so much joy over the past three years. I’ve always been a “multi” when it comes to music in general but only couple of groups have turned out to be proper favorites, my ‘ult’ tier I guess. π As my initial faves left the scene one by one, disbanding, going on exteded hiatus or just quietly disappeared, I no longer followed the scene as closely as I used to when I was a noob. Too many new groups deputed each year and I just had no time to check them out. So for a while I was kind of without any real favorite. Until GOT7 came along and slowly became The Group to pay attention to. It’s such a pity they didn’t get the attention and resources from JYPE they deserved. The promotions for the last comeback were a joke. Had GOT7 been with a company that actually cared for their career, they probably would have re-signed, at least for a couple of more years. Maybe up till the time the Korean members have to go do their military service. But that’s water under the bridge now.
Well, I’m wishing the members all the best at their individual endeavours. Maybe we’ll even see some collaborations in the future, if not group activities. Even though there has so far been no talk of disbanding, it’ll probably be rather difficult for them to continue performing as a full group. I think only Shinhwa has been able to achieve that after the memebers signed for different companies, and even they have been mostly inactive for the past couple of years.
A Touch of Drama 
Aww, i immediately thought of you upon reading the news, since you are probably the only GOT7 fan that i know of in my blogging/SNS circle.
I was pretty surprised to read that certain members were possibly switching agencies a few days ago, because they’re purportedly one of the tightest groups in current kpop scene not to mention one of the biggest in the agency. But then since they’re all leaving and there’s no disbandment rumors, that leaves room for them ‘regrouping’ under a different label, i guess? Not sure how high the chance is, though.
Yeah, I do feel a bit sad as they are kinda special. π I’m going to miss them but as they haven’t actually announced disbandment, there is a chance they’ll get together from time to time. I’ve read that they now own the rights to the GOT7 name and some of the music too, though I’m not sure how accurate that is.
I’ve been aware for some while that them leaving JYPE was highly possible. The agency just wasn’t interested in giving them the sort of support they deserved. The fandom on the whole seems to be really happy that the guys are now ‘free’. π
….and I just became an Ahgase last month. I was in a whole emotional funk yesterday. I’m happy for them though, and I’m really excited to start my GOT7 collection as well.
I haven’t been a fan for that long myself, so the news did hit a bit hard. Even if I knew it was coming. I’m going to miss them, sepecially as at the moment there is no other group whose music resonates so well with me. And I absolutely love them as performers. Sigh.
GOT7 has a pretty extensive discography, though most of their albums are extended plays. Their music style has also changed quite a bit over the years. I believe 7for7 was the “great divider” as they were allowed to have more say in how the album would turn out and they all contributed to the songs as well. It was also the first time when JB was one of those behind the title track. Their early style is not really my cup of tea but I do have a soft spot for some of the songs, like A and Just Right. I don’t know how many of their MVs you have seen but just for fun watch their debut ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’ and ‘Last Piece’ from the last album. The difference, LOL! Well, they grew up as people are wont to do. π