Ladies’ Code

Members: Ashley, RiSe, EunB, Sojung, and Zuny

Year of Debut: 2013

Official Soompi Thread

 

Even before Ladies’ Code’s official debut, the members were making themselves known in various spheres of the entertainment industry. RiSe was known for participating in the Miss Korea 2009 pageant and then later appeared in “Star Audition: The Great Birth.” Sojung competed in the first season of “The Voice of Korea” and finished in the Top 8. Ashley was known for uploading dance covers to YouTube.

Created by Polaris Entertainment, Ladies’ Code made their debut on  March 7, 2013 with the release of their mini album  “Code#01” and music video for “Bad Girl.”

Video: Group teaser video for their debut track

Just starting their careers, the members selected the Brown Eyed Girls and the Wonder Girls as their role models, as they had a similar retro-pop style.

Five months after their debut they released the digital single “Hate You” as a pre-release track for their second mini album. “Code#02 Pretty Pretty” was released a month later in September. Featuring a catchy melody and funky sound for the song, Ladies’ Code continued to gain more recognition with each new release.

Despite the high level of competition between rookie idol groups, they went on to win “New Artist of the Year” at the Third Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards.

Video: Award + performance of “Pretty Pretty” from the Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards

Their first release of 2014 was their digital single “So Wonderful” which would become one of their best charting songs ever, at the time. It would be a few months later in August when they released their fifth single, “Kiss Kiss.”

On September 3, 2014 the group was involved in a fatal car accident, causing the death of EunB and RiSe and severely injuring the other members and staff.

Following the tragic news, the group received an outpouring of support from fans all over Korea, causing “Kiss Kiss” and an older ballad track, “I’m Fine Thank You,” to top several real time charts.

In April of this year it was revealed that Ashley, Sojung, and Zuny had returned to their dorm for training and psychological therapy. They finally returned to the stage at a memorial concert for EunB and RiSe on August 22. 

Earlier today, fellow artists from Polaris Entertainment released a tribute song and music video for EunB and RiSe.

Sojung, Ashley, and Zuny will be releasing a second memorial song, “Smile Even If It Hurts,” on September 7, the anniversary of the day that member RiSe passed away.

While there is no announcement regarding an official comeback, the fact that they are in their dorm and training is very encouraging for their future. Despite their loss, Sojung, Ashley, and Zuny plan to push on, following their dreams in the entertainment industry.

Check out page two for their featured discography of releases.

Editor’s note: For this feature, I wanted to celebrate the group’s entertainment career instead of focusing on the details of their tragic accident. Rather than September 3 being a day that we remember the terrible crash that took two bright stars from the world, we hope that it becomes a day when we can look back at Ladies’ Code’s time with EunB and RiSe and celebrate the smiles and the music they gifted us with, as well as look forward to the day that Ashley, Sojung, and Zuny make their courageous return to the stage, whenever that may be. Rest in peace, EunB and RiSe, we’ll never forget.