FLY TO THE SKY

HWANHEE AND BRIAN

Fly to the Sky “Recollection” ~2008~

Musical career
The duo was formed in late 1998 by SM Entertainment. Brian Joo auditioned while he was attending Holy Spirit High School in New Jersey. Hwang Yoon-Suk, later to be known as Fany, was encouraged to audition by a staff member working for the label at his high school festival. Fly to the Sky officially debuted on November 21, 1999 at the LOG-IN H.O.T. Concert and SM Festival Concert ‘99.

Soon after, the duo released their debut album Day by Day on December 9, 1999, and made their first official television appearance two days later. Unlike their predecessors on their label, popular teen idols at that time, they shied away from upbeat techno and dance music, opting for mid-tempo ballads. The debut became highly successful selling over 250,000 copies. The duo acquired status as the next-generation stars as they won Best New Artist award in 2000. At the same time, the duo failed to rise to instant stardom unlike their predecessors such as H.O.T., whose album sales have passed the one million mark.

Their popularity rapidly climbed with the release of their second album The Promise in 2001, which featured more diverse genres than its predecessor. With more upbeat tracks, it peaked at #2, but quickly disappeared from the charts. In the same year, they held a joint concert with Korean R&B singer Kim Jo-Han.

2002-2004: Musical transition
n April 2002, their third album Sea of Love was released while Joo was in New Jersey attending Rutgers University. As a result, Hwang began to perform by himself until Brian returned to Korea. The lead single from the album was the title track, a poppy ballad, and it became a summer hit. Their second single “Condition of my Heart” was written by American singer Brian McKnight; in contrast to the first single, “Condition” was a heavier ballad. The single signaled the duo’s musical transition from bubblegum music to R&B. Along with their music, their image began to change as the duo traded in their “bishōnen” look for a more masculine image.

Their 2003 studio album Missing You featured more tracks that departed from bubblegum music and emphasized their vocal skills for an image as serious artists. Performing commercially well, the album gave the duo many awards including “Bonsang” award from SBS Gayo Daejun and Korea Music Awards. This period is remembered for the highly publicized death of their manager, who was also the manager of BoA, another Korean singer. On a variety show, both members recalled this incident as an emotionally hard time for them. Fany was especially shocked, because he was on the same vehicle with his manager just hours before the incident.

In November 2004, the duo released their fifth and last studio album under SM Entertainment, Gravity. The album received little promotion, and became the duo’s lowest-selling studio album, selling just below 90,000 copies. Nevertheless, they held their first official concert successfully in Jamsil Arena on December 21, 2004, and received “Best R&B Artist” award from SBS Gayo Daejun. A controversy rose as critics questioned their eligibility for the award, because the album was released only two months before the show. They challenged the credibility and fairness of SBS Gayo Daejun in its entirety as the artists who boycotted SBS such as YG Family or those who were not present did not receive any awards. They scorned the show as “a party for only those who were present.”

The release of their Greatest hits album Eternity in 2005 coincided with the release of the soundtrack of Korean drama Fashion 70s which featured the duo. The popular Korean show made their song “가슴 아파도” (“Although My Heart Aches”), the theme song of the show, an unexpected hit. Eternity is the last Fly to the Sky album released by SM Entertainment.

2004-2006: Leaving SM Entertainment and personal struggles
After Fly to the Sky’s contract with SM Entertainment expired in November 2004, the duo signed on with PFull Entertainment. The duo stated that they wanted a smaller label that was willing to promote them as musicians and focus less on commercial success. Under this label, Fly to the Sky released their sixth studio album Transition after a year-long hiatus in January 2006. The album became massively successful, selling over 160,000 copies.

The duo embarked on their first nationwide tour, “Fly To The Sky: 2006 The Twice Tour”. Starting from Jamsil Arena in Seoul in May 2006, they held concerts in Busan, Daegu, Junju, and Kwangju. Including the number of audiences in the encore concert in Seoul, the tour garnered more than 50,000 people.

To commemorate the success of Transition, Fly To The Sky released a special new edition, which included music videos, deleted scenes and the additional tracks “Hwan Sang (Illusion),” “Hot and Cold,” and “When I Say.”

In 2004 and 2005, the duo’s uncertain future after their contract with SM Entertainment led to a speculation that they would disband. Brian Joo publicly addressed the rumours on SBS show “Yah Shim Man Man,” which aired on July 10. He admitted that the two had difficulties in the early days of their career and said that he had been troubled by feelings of inferiority to Fany, because he received more attention and praise than him. Despite their status as a duo, he felt that he was not given his due or the same amount of attention as Hwang. Eventually he found this difficult to bear, and suggested to him that they pursue their separate paths. Hwang responded angrily and the matter escalated into a serious fight nearly leading to disbandment. The two reconciled soon after, and said they “grew to better understand each other and realized that they both needed each other. Afterwards, the pair decided to try to better understand each other in order to solve their problems together and to support each other. After reflecting on this incident, Joo’s eyes were brimming with tears.

Since 2006, the duo has been seen frequently on variety shows and pursued individual careers. Hwang appeared on Korean television drama “Over the Rainbow” during summer of 2006, and Joo released his solo album The Brian in December 2006. As they appeared more often on non-music programs, the duo saw an increase in their popularity and backlash from critics at the same time as they felt the duo were compromising their image as artists.

Brian Joo ~ Solo activities

From Recollection ~2008~

When he was 16 years old attending Holy Spirit High School, a friend signed him up for an audition with Brothers Entertainment without Joo’s knowledge. The company have discovered other Korean Americans who wish to pursue an entertainment career in South Korea in the past. After several months of training, he was sent to SM Entertainment in Korea, and on December 9, 1999, made his debut as a member of Fly to the Sky, at the age of seventeen. Joo later went on to attend Rutgers University, but only completed his freshman year. Attending school in the States while simultaneously being a recording artist in Korea became too demanding, and Joo decided to cease his education in the States and return to Korea. While back in Seoul, Joo enrolled in Dongguk University, where he graduated from the Department of Theatre and Film.

During September 2006, Joo announced that the release of his debut solo album, The Brian. Originally scheduled for released in November 2006, the album was postponed to December. The album incorporates such diverse genres such as classic pop, soul, and jazz. With this album, Joo hopes to gain more respect as an artist, rather than being known as “Fly to the Sky without Fany”. He describes the reason for the solo album as,
“ First of all, I just wanted to do it. I also wanted to show that I could [be successful] as Brian (sic). When (Fly to the Sky) sang, many think Fany is the main vocal, and that I am the second vocal and a rapper. I won’t mention his name, but one producer once said to Fany, “You are a really good singer”, when he only said “Good job”, to me. So I wanted to prove that I could do it too. ”

Originally, the album was to be fully recorded in English; due to lack of time, however, all tracks are in Korean, excluding the English track “All I Know”. Joo performed his first single, “Gajima” (Don’t Go), on Mnet Countdown on December 7. He released three songs from the album to music website Melon.com. Released on December 18th, the album debuted at #7 behind TVXQ and sold 15,376 copies in the first month. On January 21, “Gajima” was selected as the “Mutizen Song” on SBS Inkigayo. Due to hectic schedule, Joo has been suffering from vocal fold nodule.

Joo is interested in pursuing an acting career, and said his dream was to be a star in Hollywood. Brian is interested in breaking into the American music industry, as Rain and Se7en are doing, but is waiting for the right opportunity.

Most recently, Joo starred (as himself) in the English segment of the mini-series, Homey Korean, presented by Arirang. Joo – along with co-star and real life friend, Chris Pemberton – teach basic Korean language as well as discuss the culture, landmarks, popular tourist sites, and daily life of Korea to English-speaking foreigners.

Hwang Yoon Suk ~ Solo activities

From Recollection ~2008~

Known as Hwanhee or Fany (pronounced the same), is an actor and a member of South Korean R&B duo Fly to the Sky

He graduated from Gwang Moon High School before his debut. Hwang was encouraged to audition by a staff member working for the label at his high school festival. Officially debuting on November 21, 1999, he rose to fame with the release of album Day by Day alongside fellow member Brian Joo.

His acting debut was in 2006, when he starred alongside Kim Ok-bin in Korean drama Over the Rainbow as cocky rock star Rex. The rating of the show had been mediocre throughout its airing, plummeting to 7% at one point. His performance received mixed reviews. (SBS)

He recently participated in the 2008 drama ‘Saranghae-I Love You’ alongside actor Ahn Jae Wook.

On the 14th of September 2008, he appeared on the show We Got Married 우리 결혼했어요!​ together with Hwayobi, as one of the 3 new couples. They have been confirmed as a permanent couple on the show.

Thanks to wikipedia for all the information.