Retrospective: Short But Sweet "JUSTICE" Promotions Provide Challenges And Memorable Moments
"JUSTICE" era was short with a few hurdles, but Dreamcatcher did well, as can be expected from a group used to overcoming challenges.
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After over seven years of following their promotions for albums, I've come to expect a lot of things from Dreamcatcher, whether that is a fun relay dance video or memorable moments from members who I expect to do one thing or another, or more. Despite it being this long, I've always found something new and interesting in what they decide to do during them.
Promotions for 10th Mini Album "VirtuouS" were no different in this regard. There were things I saw that I hadn't seen from the group before, and generally, I enjoyed them a lot. Yet there were unique challenges this time around to go with all the memories as well, things which made these promotions different than others. That said, with the attitude which has allowed them to triumph over adversity, Dreamcatcher endured and made the most of things.
Let's take a look back at some of what I noticed about Dreamcatcher's first comeback of 2024!
The absence of Main Vocalist Siyeon was felt but was covered well by Dreamcatcher's deep vocal talent.
The news that Siyeon would be taking a break and thus not participate in the whole of "JUSTICE" era promotions after a medical examination revealing poor health and anxiety hit Dreamcatcher fans hard, especially as this was the first of an absence of this nature. While just about everyone agreed with Dreamcatcher Company's decision to let Siyeon rest and allow her to take the time she needed to recover, questions nevertheless lingered about how "JUSTICE" era would go with a song that had a powerful chorus.
Yet as promotions proceeded, it was clear that even if Siyeon was absent, performances had no less power or stage presence than before. JiU spoke at the press showcase that the remaining members resolved to do the work needed to cover for Siyeon, and results showed in many music show performances and appearances throughout the era.
Both Handong and SuA got to flex their vocal chops, covering for Siyeon's parts with their own singing skill and benefitted in different, yet positive, ways. Handong, officially labeled a sub-vocalist, showed how far she'd improved since her return from China in 2021. We'd seen flashes of this during her "Winter" solo and in Special clips such as her Chinese version medley of Dreamcatcher B-sides as well as in concert performances of SNSD's "Twinkle" and Chung Ha's "Snapping", not to mention more prominent roles in title tracks like "BEcause" and "VISION", so this was just another logical step forward.
For SuA, who I've long thought of as Dreamcatcher's all-rounder, this seemed at first one of those "of course" moments for her ability to cover for Siyeon, but as someone who is primarily known for their dancing ability, the opportunity to go full vocal this time around was one she seemed to approach with relish. There's another layer here as well - for those who don't know, the presence of and treatment to deal with nodules on SuA's throat in 2018 messed with her ability to produce vocal power, something she was still coping with even in 2021. So for her to rebuild her ability to both manage her voice and deliver such consistent weight to the last portion of "JUSTICE" has been nothing short of amazing to me, and as if that wasn't enough, capping that off with an appearance with Main Vocalist Hwiseo on hello82's "Secret Duet" to show off her talent covering David Guetta and SIA's "Titanium" drives the point home.
Even the media seemed to recognize how well Dreamcatcher covered for their missing member, with SBS putting up a video about how they'd been able to compensate.
All that said, it isn't as if fans had to go the entire era of promotions without Siyeon entirely. A limited number of appearances were filmed prior to Siyeon's break, including their return to MBC's it's Live for a band-backed "JUSTICE" full group performance. We got a small hint of what the song would be like live with a full roster of Dreamcatcher members, and with upcoming travels to Latin America, Europe, and the United States, soon everyone else will get to see it for themselves for real (provided Siyeon is comfortable enough to formally return to activities). The few check-ins we've seen from Siyeon (and a small return in a mid-August variety appearance) show that she's working her way back towards being 100% and being able to re-join activities when she's able, so like everyone else, I wish her well and for her to take all the time she needs to get back - Dreamcatcher, it seems, will do their best to fill the gap in the meantime.
Shortened scheduling and external circumstances meant norms were broken, but the most was made of promotional opportunities - some of them new ones.
Scheduling a comeback always has a lot to factor in, especially in an increasingly saturated K-pop market, and sometimes adjustments are made. This era's comeback had a number of notable changes - the normal fan portion of the showcase being unable to be held (with video being substituted), a break in a streak of promotions with both Weekly Idol and radio appearances, and an abbreviated set of music show appearances with a mostly fansign-heavy back portion of the schedule.
While some fans expressed concern and even a bit of criticism at the shorter schedule and fewer promotional appearances overall, looking at the greater picture I can understand why. The presence of the Summer Olympics, for example, was a factor in music shows (as it was during "BEcause" era in 2021), but the more obvious item was the presence of an encore concert in Kaohsiung, Taiwan in the middle of the promotions schedule. Concerts require extensive practice, logistical preparation, and as much energy as can be saved up for them, so it's no surprise that we saw shorter music show scheduling and a less intensive schedule in the lead-up to ensure that Dreamcatcher was at as high of an energy level as they could be. The post-concert, fansign-heavy schedule also seemed to reflect more care for the group's overall health and stamina, as fansigns carry a fraction of the time commitment of an entire day of music show work and variety appearances. Given that there were a couple of minor health incidents that required SuA and Handong to sit out of activities for a day, this strategy seemed warranted.
It's not as if we didn't get some of what a promotions era has given us before either. An M2 Relay dance, Justice Dance Practice video, MV reaction, and more were still a part of what media was released for fans and Dreamcatcher's Notes and fansigns still carried the usual shenanigans and fun bits that we're all used to.
And even with a shorter schedule with fewer appearances, Dreamcatcher found plenty of new to do, including a return to 1thek to do a mostly raw-audio version of "JUSTICE" (with Siyeon), a photoshoot and accompanying video with fashion entertainment magazine The Star, and interviews with a number of international K-Pop channels and publications. After seven years, it can get challenging to keep up content for promotions while also expanding your network, yet Dreamcatcher continues to do so.
[Hanteo] Monthly Album Chart, August 2024
— Dreamcatcher Data (@deukaeKdata) September 1, 2024
#50 VirtuouS 6,095 copies
Total sales : 82,984 copies#드림캐쳐 #Dreamcatcher
Through a much more competitive and shifting K-pop industry, Dreamcatcher continues to endure.
In K-pop we tend to get caught up a bit in the numbers, and from a certain perspective you can see why since the industry is so numbers-driven. This comeback, we saw that the numbers, at least after a couple months, appear to be just a slight bit lower sales-wise. Last comeback's 91k Hanteo for VillainS will appear to be not met, as VirtuouS, despite "JUSTICE" being less polarizing and generally well-received by fans in the circles I run with, will end up with close to 83k (with 110k Circle vs. 165k Circle last comeback), a small dip.
With few exceptions, and looking at the extensive sales summary directory maintained by the koreansalestwt account on X/Twitter, it seems the last couple years have seen a dip in physical sales, which Dreamcatcher appears to reflect. Some examples at least in the girl group front include Billlie going from 91k to 43k Circle, LE SSERAFIM going from 1.4 million to 1.1 million Circle, Purple Kiss going from 34k to 28k Circle, Nayeon going from 555k to 459k Circle, ITZY going from 1.2 million to 581k (!) and IVE going from 1.4 million to 1.1 million.
Whether it's the economy, less desire to create waste through production of and purchase of duplicates of albums, or some other speculative factor, physical sales are down. Frankly, given the dips I'm seeing above, I'll take a less-than-10k drop any day.
And even though timing and charting kept Dreamcatcher from a music show win this era, looking at other numbers I'm mostly ok with where Dreamcatcher is at right now. While any fan, including myself, would love for Dreamcatcher to be as huge as some of the S-tier numbers some girl groups are producing, they continue to occupy a unique and well-established niche - one that, after the experimentation that seemed to occur during last era's "OOTD", they've come back to.
That comfortable wheelhouse of cohesive, mostly rock-style songs on "VirtuouS" has resulted in title track "JUSTICE" getting to 25 million views in a fraction of the time "OOTD" did with the same apparent length in YouTube ad buys - 14 days versus 73 days for both tracks, respectively. With this and other tidbits tracked by places like the DeukaeKData account on Twitter that note "JUSTICE" maintains consistent streaming interest, it's clear that Dreamcatcher continues to have a core of fans who appreciate what they release, even all these years later and in a much more difficult landscape to be sustainable. As with all Dreamcatcher comebacks, it's a bit tough to predict the future, but they do occupy a nice space where they are considered veteran seniors and one of the last remaining groups of other 3rd generation that have fans who continue to support them. In this industry, there are worse places you could be.
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