With “Air“, ITZY member YEJI makes her solo debut via the mini-album of the same name, the first member of her group to do so. While she had established her persona and image within ITZY that made the solo’s concept unsurprising, what her sound would be was a mystery going into “Air”, but she thankfully locks down an identity and provides an addictive song to boot.
Somewhat amusingly considering my uncertainty, “Air” ends up being an easy sell to me, as YEJI hits the listener with a simple formula of an upbeat synth-pop groove and an array of catchy hooks. One of those is done over a rubbery synth without much else, for emphasis, which leads into the highlight melody of “air air air, all of my air” and ends up making for an effective, fleshed-out chorus. The pumping beat feels like a heart at the core of the song, while the rest of the slinky production lithely maneuvers around her vocals, not unlike YEJI’s choreo. Speaking of those vocals, while her quality as a performer was never in doubt, I did wonder how her vocals might sound on their own, but it’s a confident showing that demonstrates a solid range of emoting, from vulnerability to defiance.
“Air” is the type of song that runs the risk of getting a bit repetitive, but once that thought entered my brain, it shifts into a bridge (which I wish had more to it) and rousing reprise of the chorus that adds electric guitar. This helps the song hold up much better on repeats, as there’s something it builds towards rather than just recycling until the end.
More than having high expectations, what I wanted out of this YEJI solo debut was for her to establish an identity as a soloist. Well, she did exactly that with a charismatic showing, securing her place as a rising competitor among the (pleasantly growing in number) dance-pop female soloists, and as a treat “Air” is an addictive introduction as well. Based off the strength of this debut, I can only hope YEJI gets many more opportunities to build on this and develop as an artist because she certainly seems to have a promising future as a soloist.
