Romeo (EP)

Romeo (Korean: 로미오) is the second EP by South Korean boy group Shinee. It was released on May 25, 2009, in South Korea under the seal of the label SM Entertainment. The EP consists of six tracks including the title song "Juliette" and is Shinee's first Korean release after a seven-month hiatus. On August 29, 2011, a Japanese version of "Juliette" was released as Shinee's second Japanese single with the original Japanese song "Kiss Kiss Kiss" as a B-side. The release peaked at number three on the weekly Oricon chart.^[1]

Romeo
EP by Shinee
Released	May 25, 2009 (2009-05-25)
Recorded	March – May 2009
Genre	K-pop
Length	23:14
Language	Korean
Label	SM
Producer	Lee Soo-man
Shinee chronology
The Shinee World (2008) Romeo (2009) 2009, Year of Us (2009)
Singles from Romeo
"Juliette" Released: May 18, 2009

The album was commercially successful in South Korea—it topped the Hanteo Album Chart for three consecutive weeks.^[2][3] However, there are no known cumulative chart records for albums sold in 2009. Prior to the establishment of the Gaon Music Chart in 2010, South Korea's music charts were supplied by the Music Industry Association of Korea (MIAK), which stopped compiling data in 2008.^[4] According to Gaon, the EP has sold over 20,000 copies since 2011.^[5]

Background and release

Romeo was Shinee's first Korean release since the reissue Amigo on October 31, 2008. The EP was originally scheduled for release on May 21^[6] but was delayed to May 25 due to Onew damaging his teeth.^[7] The choreography for the title song is the work of Rino Nakasone, who also choreographed previous Shinee songs such as "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen".^[8] The lead single "Juliette" is a remake of "Deal with It" by Jay Sean and Corbin Bleu. Executives at SM Entertainment bought the rights to the song from Hollywood Records. The song was slightly re-arranged by Cutfather and, as the original song's lyrics were not purchased, the Korean lyrics were penned by Shinee members Jonghyun and Minho.^[9][10] On May 22, the group started their official promotions and performed the title song for the first time on Music Bank.^[11] The Korean music video was released on May 22 and features f(x)'s Krystal as the female lead,^[12] while the song's Japanese music video features actress Go Ara. The Korean music video was shot in early May in Seoul and Ilsanseo-gu and was directed by Lee Sang-kyu.^[13]

Concept and composition

"We want to showcase music that is colourful and yet full of personality, and a group that leads the trend and brings to everyone many different unique sides."

–Jonghyun about the group's new album.^[6]

The album concept was inspired by William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet. The band members portray the Romeo of the 21st century, confessing their love to their Juliet. The album consists of six tracks, and songwriters such as Kenzie, Young-hu Kim, Jung Yeop and Eco Bridge participated in their composition.^[10][11] Two of the six songs are named after Romeo and Juliet—the title song "Juliette" and the last track on the album, "Romeo + Juliette". The title track, which is described as an urban dance song with "sophisticated" rhythm and acoustic drums, is written by Jonghyun, who took on the job of writing lyrics for the first time since debut.^[14] He stated that after listening to the demo of the title track he went to look for a romance story that "will make everyone interested but also a story which everyone can identify with" and was inspired by the classic movie Romeo and Juliet.^[15]

SM's creative director Min Hee-jin, who had worked with the group since the beginning, called Romeo a turning point for the group, visually as well as musically, saying, "The visualisation of the album reflected their identity the best. I aimed to put the group's signature colour (pearl aqua) on the map, as well as each member's individual style." In the music video for the title song "Juliette", the members wear bright clothes and clashing accessories to accentuate their youthfulness.^[16]

Track listing

Romeo track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Arrangement	Length
1.	"Talk to You" (Korean: 니가 맘에 들어; RR: Niga mam-e deul-eo; lit. I Like You)	Tesung Kim (Iconic Sounds)	Carol Borjas	Borjas	3:27
2.	"Juliette" (Korean: 줄리엣; RR: Julliet)	Jonghyun Minho	Mikkel Remee Sigvardt Jay Sean Mich Hansen Joseph Belmaati	Cho Yong-hoon Jeon Hong-sung	3:25
3.	"Hit Me" (Korean: 차라리 때려; RR: Charari ttaeryeo; lit. Might as Well Just Hit Me)	Young-hu Kim	Borjas	Borjas	3:56
4.	"Señorita" (Korean: 세뇨리따; RR: Senyoritta)	Kim Jeong-bae [ko]	Kenzie	Kenzie	3:32
5.	"Please, Don't Go" (Korean: 잠꼬대; RR: Jamkkodae; lit. Sleep Talking) (Jonghyun & Onew)	Jungyup	Jungyup Eco Bridge [ko]	Eco Bridge	4:10
6.	"Romeo + Juliette" (Korean: 소년, 소녀를 만나다; RR: Sonyeon, Sonyeoreul Mannada; lit. Boy Meets Girl)	Lee Sung-soo	Lee	Lee Jeon	4:44
Total length:					23:14

Accolades

Music program awards

Song	Program	Date	Ref.
"Juliette"	Music Bank	June 5, 2009	[17]
		June 19, 2009	[18]
	Inkigayo	June 28, 2009	[19]
		July 5, 2009	[20]

Release history

Release dates and formats for Romeo

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
South Korea	May 25, 2009	CD digital download	SM	[21]
Taiwan	June 28, 2009	CD	Avex	[22]
Japan	July 29, 2009	CD+DVD	Rhythm Zone	[23]

References

1. "Shinee Juliette－ORICON STYLE" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. Retrieved February 24, 2011.
2. Kang Seung-hoon (June 16, 2009). "샤이니, '로미오' 한터차트 3주 연속 1위". Asia Economic Daily (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
3. Lee Kyung-ran (June 16, 2009). "샤이니 '로미오' 연속 3주 음반 판매 1위". Nate (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
4. Han, Sang-hee (February 23, 2010). "Korea Launches First Official Music Charts Gaon". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on August 4, 2010. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
5. Cumulative sales for "Romeo":

   • "December 2011 Sales" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
   • "July 2012 Sales" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on February 12, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
   • "February 2013 Sales" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
   • "October 2015 Sales - see #393" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on September 26, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
   • "July 2016 Sales" (in Korean). Gaon Charts. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
6. "최고 연하남 SHINee, 21세기 로미오로 화려한 컴백!". Chosun (in Korean). May 12, 2009. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2011.
7. Im, Lim (May 20, 2009). "Shinee's Onew Injures Front Teeth Two Days Before Comeback Performance". MyDaily (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved February 24, 2011.
8. "少女時代、美脚ダンスの振り付け担当は日本人ダンサー・仲宗根梨乃". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). October 20, 2010. Archived from the original on October 23, 2010. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
9. Kang, Seung-hoon (May 20, 2009). "Onew's Extraordinary Injury Causes 1-2 Week Delay". Joins.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2011.
10. Park Se-yeon (May 18, 2009). "'로미오' 변신 샤이니 '줄리엣' 노래하다..21일 2nd 미니앨범 공개". Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 19, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
11. "샤이니(SHINee) 2번째 미니 앨범 '로미오', 21일 발매". Chosun (in Korean). May 18, 2009. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
12. "샤이니, '줄리엣' 뮤직비디오서 로미오 변신 (동영상)". Nate (in Korean). May 24, 2009. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
13. "'로미오 변신' 샤이니 화제 뮤비 22일 공개". Nate (in Korean). May 22, 2009. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
14. Lee, Jung-ah (May 15, 2009). 샤이니, 18일 신곡 음원 공개 [Shinee releases new song on the 18th]. Osen (in Korean). Retrieved June 22, 2022 – via Naver.
15. Kim, Hyung-woo (May 18, 2009). 샤이니 종현 '줄리엣' 첫작사 비화 "고전영화 로미오와 줄리엣 영감" (인터뷰) [Shinee Jonghyun's first time writing lyrics for 'Juliette': "The inspiration was the classic movie Romeo and Juliet" (Interview)]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
16. Taylor Glasby (July 18, 2018). "Looking back at K-pop group SHINee's extraordinary 10-year career". Dazed. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
17. Jeon, Hyung-hwa (June 5, 2009). "샤이니, 컴백 무대 '뮤직뱅크'서 1위". StarNews (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
18. Kim, Hyun-rok (June 19, 2009). "샤이니, '줄리엣'으로 '뮤뱅' 2번째 1위". StarNews (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
19. Kim, Hyung-woo (June 28, 2009). "'줄리엣' 샤이니 인기가요 뮤티즌송 수상 '지상파 차트 1위 석권!'". Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
20. Kim, Ji-yeon (July 5, 2009). "샤이니, 2주연속 '인기가요' 1위..종현 '눈물 펑펑'". StarNews (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
21. "Romeo". SM Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 16, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
22. 第二張迷你專輯 [羅密歐] [Second Mini Album [Romeo]]. Avex Taiwan (in Chinese). Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
23. ロミオ [Romeo]. Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.