Hot on the heels of Minah’s solo debut, Girl’s Day have returned as a foursome with their loveable and light track “Hello Bubble.” The girls have stuck to the cute concept that they are famous for, with “Hello Bubble” being a perfect uplifting summer tune.
The song is the ultimate feel-good song, with the perky video matching it perfectly. The girls are seen enjoying themselves and professing typical sentiments about being overwhelmed by love. Thematically and visually, this MV plays to Girl’s Day’s strengths, emphasising their cuteness and perkiness, with lots of bright colours and adorable expressions to highlight this.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lSJMKi184c]Whilst being eye-catching, the MV ends rather abruptly, leaving the audience unsatisfied. The unusually short length of the MV, however, makes sense when you realise it is, in fact, a commercial for Mise en Scene’s bubble hair dye. The strength of this video is that the product has been advertised subtly and seamlessly, meaning that the song and video are still enjoyable.
Marketing-wise, this is a great idea, as the song and MV are able to gain popularity due to their own merits, yet carry a subconscious message to promote ther product. While watching the MV, you never feel like you’re watching a commercial, even though in reality, the product is still being promoted.
However, the fact that it’s never obvious that this is an advertisement may suggest that it’s not a very effective ad after all, as the audience is never aware of the specific product that is being promoted.
Once you realise that the MV is an advertisement, however, the hidden messages in the lyrics become a little clearer. Throughout the whole MV, the members are seen sporting bold and bright hair colours, like Minah’s purple-red, Yura’s orange and Hyeri’s almost neon blonde. The lyrics also repeatedly refer to how happy the girls are to have beautiful hair that makes people stop and stare at them. They also play on words, with Hyeri singing that her personality is “bubbly”, referring again to the product they are promoting.
The song opens with Sojin singing “My hairstyle makes me feel good today, I can’t stop smiling,” attributing all her happiness to her hairstyle. The chorus joyously tells the viewer that they can attain “every colour of the rainbow,” emphasising the choice available to the consumer. Promising ‘happiness in a bottle’ is a common technique in marketing, which we can see in bucket loads in this MV.
Towards the end of the song, the girls sing that “You’ve changed me, you’ve made me more beautiful,” referring both to their love interest as well as the hair dye. By subtly attributing these K-pop idols’ beauty and happiness to their hair colour, the audience is made to think about how to ‘improve’ their appearance to achieve happiness.
Visually, the MV is fun and bright, in line with recent releases like “Darling,” but much more innocent than that MV. Although the girls dance in a very typical box set, the quirky and lively cuts that focus on each individual member injects the MV with some much needed personality.
The choreography is simple, as this MV focuses more on the girls’ loveable personalities rather than dancing. The chorus features some pretty standard dance moves, with plenty of hip movements and cute, joyful gestures. As the song has an overall cute vibe, the dance moves are kept pretty tame and sweet.
Each girl has their own set in the MV, helping to highlight their personalities and different styles. Sojin is seen relaxing in her bedroom, Hyeri fools around in her room using her famous aegyo, Minah is seen running desperately late (yet still looking effortlessly gorgeous) and Yura struts around in a glamorous, catwalk-style setting.
Yura’s rap stands out the most in the MV, with her set being the most different to the other members. Instead of fooling around in front of a bright or light-filled background, Yura instead struts sultrily down a dimly lit catwalk whilst rapping. The slight edge this gives ties into the marketing theme again, getting the audience to think about the diverse styles that the bubble hair dye can cater to.
“Hello Bubble” has succeeded in being a catchy song that is not too cheesy in its attempt at selling a product. The song’s popularity has many fans wishing for a proper comeback with a cute and sweet concept. The MV makes sure to showcase a variety of different colours, styles and cuts for instant inspiration, further encouraging the audience to buy their products and experiment with new looks. As mentioned above, the key strength of this MV is that this marketing message never seems forced, making the song enjoyable, and therefore increasing its appeal and potential customer base. Here’s to hoping for a full-length comeback from Girl’s Day!
Song: 3/5
MV: 3.5/5
(YouTube, Images via Loen Entertainment)
