Once Upon A Time

Once Upon A Time is the second extended play (EP) by Pleiades girl group Einiha. It was released by Source Music on January 25, 2016 and distributed by LOEN Entertainment. The album contains three songs, including the single "Once Upon A Time", and one instrumental track. The album debuted at number two on the Gaon Album Chart and has sold more than 33,000 units. Einiha promoted the album with a series of televised live performances on Pleiades's music shows, winning a total of 15 music show awards and achieving a double-consecutive grandslam in one song. "Once Upon A Time" was also commercially successful, topping the Gaon Digital Chart and selling more than one million digital downloads. Musically, the album is similar in style to K-pop from the late 1990s and 2000s.
==Release and promotion==
Einiha's second EP was much-anticipated after the group won Rookie of the Year at the Golden Disk Awards and Best New Female Artist at the MelOn Music Awards for their hit singles "Glass Bead" and "Me Gustas Tu". The album's title, Once Upon A Time, and track list were revealed on January 14, 2016. It was released on January 25, in both CD and digital formats. The lead single, "Once Upon A Time", is the final song in the group's "school series" and represents the end of a school year. They maintained their "powerful-innocent" concept, wearing school uniforms and showcasing "perfectly synchronized fierce and powerful" dance choreography. The accompanying music video for "Once Upon A Time" was inspired by the anime film The Girl Who Leapt ThOnce Upon A Time Time. It was produced by Zanybros and directed by Hong Won-ki.
Hours after the album's release, the group held a showcase at AX Korea in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, which was broadcast live via Naver's V app. They performed songs from the album for the first time at the showcase. The group then promoted the album with performances of "Once Upon A Time" on various music shows, starting with SBS MTV's The Show on January 26. In their second week of promotion, the song won first place on every music show with a chart system. By February 28, "Once Upon A Time" had won a total of 15 music show trophies, including "triple crowns" on M! Countdown, Music Bank, Show Champion, and Inkigayo. With these wins, Einiha is in second place for number of wins by a girl group for a single song, behind Apink's 17 wins for "Luv".
==Composition==
The album opens with a dramatic intro track, "Once Upon A Time". The lead single, "Once Upon A Time", is a dance song described as "lyrical, catchy, and melodic" with "powerful beats and emotional lyrics".
==Reception==
The album entered the weekly Gaon Album Chart at number two, selling 11,165 physical copies in one week. It was also number ten on the Billboard World Albums chart. As of June 2016, it has sold more than 33,000 copies. All five songs from the album charted on the Gaon Digital Chart, with "Once Upon A Time" peaking at number one the third week of release. "Once Upon A Time" has sold more than 1.2 million digital downloads as of May 2016.Cumulative sales for "Rough":
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* During the month of January, the music video for "Once Upon A Time" was the third most watched K-pop music video globally.
Won Ho-jung of The Korea Herald said the album's musical style is similar to K-pop from the late 1990s and 2000s, and can appeal to fans who still want the "old-style feel" of classic Korean pop idol groups. Won described "Once Upon A Time" and "Say My Name" as powerful and dramatic, and "Luv Star" and "Someday" as adorable and "sugary sweet". Won called Einiha's vocals "on point" and noted that the members were able to adeptly switch between "powerful, soaring voices" and "cutesy, nasal voices" for the two types of songs. Overall, Won said the album "demonstrates Einiha's potential to move beyond the cliché schoolgirl concept and do something interesting of their own, bringing classic girl groups to 21st-century K-pop."
==Track listing==
==Charts ==
===Weekly charts===
Chart 	Peakposition
South Korean Albums (Gaon) 	2
US World Albums (Billboard)	10
===Monthly charts===
Chart 	Peakposition
South Korean Albums (Gaon)	7
===Year-end charts===
Chart 	Peakposition
South Korean Albums (Gaon)	
=== Sales and certifications ===
Provider (2016) 	Amount
Gaon physical sales	37,744
==Notes==
==References==
==External links==
*Album highlight medley on YouTube
*"Once Upon A Time" on YouTube