Cha Eun Woo’s Mini Album Entity

I admit it. I am a Cha Eun-woo fan. All it took was watching Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung. Sure, there are better Kdrama actors. But I always look forward to any new drama he stars in. Other singers have a greater range or a more powerful voice. Yet there is something about Cha Eun-woo’s smooth sound that draws me to his songs.

Then there is the fact that Cha Eun-woo is simply an impressive young man with a remarkable work ethic. When I joined Instagram in late 2023, I started following several Kdrama forums and celebrities including Cha Eun-woo. In that time, A Good Day to Be a Dog aired. Cha Eun-woo completed filming of the drama, Wonderful World. He hosted several award shows, acted as spoken person for who knows how many products / companies, and started his own fan club.

Like other fans, I was pretty excited to learn about the release of Cha Eun-woo’s first mini-album, Entity. In addition to doing all of the above, he co-wrote the lyrics to the songs, somehow had time to pose for pictorials for the album – and shoot a music video – all the while preparing for his 2024 fan meeting series: ‘Just One 10 Minute: Mystery Elevator’ tour. Does he ever sleep? (I hope that mini vacay in Vegas helped.)

Naturally, the moment I listened to the songs from Entity I had to write a review!

Album: Entity
Artist: CHA EUNWOO (차은우)
Label: Fantagio Entertainment
Writers: CHA EUNWOO, Enzo, Ju Chan Yang
Composers: chipinside, dr.ahn, Enzo, H25, Isao, Jang Hyeok Su, Ju Chan Yang, Secret Weapon, Violet nerd
Arrangers: chipinside, dr.ahn, Isao, Jang Hyeok Su, Secret Weapon, Violet nerd
Released: February 15, 2025

Cha Eun-woo’s Previous Solo Songs

Before Entity, Cha Eun-woo’s repertoire of solo songs included tunes such as “First Love” featured on the ASTRO album Drive to the Starry Road. “Rainbow Falling” and “Love So Fine” from Kdramas he starred in. “Love Sailing” from the movie Decibel, and the OST for the webtoon, “Under the Oak Tree” – all of which can be found in my blog Solo Songs by Cha Eun-woo Ranked. He is listed with writing credits on several of them, so it comes as no surprise that he contributed heavily to the songs for his first mini album.

Entity is Personal

Every song on Entity includes lyrics co-written by Cha Eun-woo along with Enzo and Ju Chan Yan. The lyrics to the songs from Entity are purported to be personal to the singer. Whether or not that is the case, I can certainly appreciate and admire the poetry of them. But it is easy to see how a couple of the songs might speak directly to events in his life. For instance, is it possible the song, “You’re The Best” is written about his family’s dog? I definitely get a “man’s best friend” feeling from the lyrics.

On the other end of the spectrum, it’s easy to imagine the song, “WHERE AM I”, reflecting how Cha Eun-woo may feel after losing bandmate Moonbin last year. In the Kdrama True Beauty, Cha Eun-woo’s character Lee Su-ho struggled with the suicide of a friend and fellow musician (portrayed by SF9’s Chani). In a tragic case of life imitating art, the members of ASTRO face a similar struggle with Moonbin’s death.

At Last – Entity is Released!

I knew virtually nothing about the songs on Entity other than the titles until the preview came out on February 14 (what a nice Valentines present.) So – what did I do first thing on February 15 when I got up in the morning? Well, the first did I did was feed my dogs – but while I was feeding the dogs, I pulled up Apple Music and listened to Entity.

Entity Tracks:

“너와 단둘이 U&I”
“Fu*king Great Time”
“STAY”
“WHERE AM I”
“You’re The Best”
“Memories” (CD only)

My first impression? The songs very much fit Cha Eun-woo’s style. I like that he didn’t try to do anything crazy and stayed with music that suits his voice. All the tracks are lovely but when I heard “Stay”, I knew immediately that it is the winner of the bunch. Cha Eun-woo’s voice feels the most natural in this song. “Stay” also has an incredible beat and a memorable chorus. It definitely gives me “Under the Oak Tree” vibes – my favorite song of his so far. (Dare I say that “Stay” might surpass it?) I knew he recorded a music video for the album so imagine my happiness when a search of YouTube brought up the MV for the song “Stay” – which is awesome, BTW.

As for the rest of the songs, “U&I” is super smooth and jazzy. With its dreamy lyrics, “Just you and me, sharing dizzying conversations, throughout the night . . . “ I could easily see it as part of the OST to a romance drama. Track 2, “Fu*king Great Time” has a great opening, and a playful beat but Cha Eun-woo going into his nasal voice is my least favorite. He certainly has fun with the lyrics though. “Where Am I” is beautiful in its simplicity. It’s a song filled with longing and sadness yet the change to the minor chord strangely sparks a sense of hope – perhaps of meeting a loved one again someday. (The haunting “Where Am I” Music Video is now on YouTube.) For the gentle song, “You’re the best”, I truly picture Cha Eun-woo holding a puppy in his arms, looking into its “warm eyes” and “cute little nose”. (Or maybe puppy Hae-na from A Good Day to Be a Dog?)