The final lineup consists of: JYP Entertainment's Somi (소미), Jellyfish Entertainment's Sejeong (세정), Fantagio Music's Yoojung (유정), MNH Entertainment's Chungha (청하), Redline Entertainment's Sohye (소혜), Pledis Entertainment's Jieqiong (洁琼), MBK Entertainment's Chaeyeon (채연), Fantagio Music's Doyeon (도연), Jellyfish Entertainment's Mina (미나), Pledis Entertainment's Nayoung (나영) and Starship Entertainment's Yeonjung (연정).
Prior to Produce 101, some of the members of I.O.I gained recognition after appearing on other television shows: Sejeong was a contestant on competition show K-pop Star 2 in 2012, Somi was a member of 2015 reality survival show Sixteen and Yoojung appeared on web drama "To Be Continued". In September 2015, Chaeyeon debuted as a member of DIA but temporarily withdrew the group to join Produce 101. She also had a cameo appearance on 2015 web drama "Sweet Temptation".
They debuted on May 4, 2016 with a mini-album Chrysalis, accompanied by the title track "Dream Girls". Members Nayoung and Yoojung wrote rap lyrics for the track. Soon afterwards it was revealed that I.O.I would be disbanding in January of 2017.
At the start of their contract, I.O.I was in talks to have a special sub-unit song release. On June 10, 2016, YMC Entertainment revealed Nayoung, Chungha, Jieqiong, Sohye, Yoojung, Doyeon and Somi as members of I.O.I's unit group, slated to promote the group's second album during the summer of 2016. Members Mina and Sejeong were slated to be part of the unit group but declined in favor of debuting in their company's girl group gugudan. On August 9, 2016, the single Whatta Man was released. The album peaked at 2 on the Gaon Album Chart. On August 15, 2016, I.O.I released the digital single "Hand in Hand", a remake of the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics theme song.
On September 22, it was confirmed that I.O.I was recording their final album. The title track was revealed to be produced by Jin-young Park, the founder of Somi's agency, JYP Entertainment. On October 16, they released their final mini-album miss me? along with the music video for title track "Very Very Very". "Very Very Very" performed fantastically on the charts, winning I.O.I three music awards on Inkigayo, Show Champion, and M! Countdown. As per their contract, this album was promoted until January.
On January 17, YMC Entertainment announced that the group's final track before official disbandment would be "Downpour", written and co-produced by Seventeen's Woozi, labelmate of members Nayoung and Jieqiong. The ballad was personally chosen and recorded by all 11 members of the group. Later that month, I.O.I performed at their final concert Time Slip – I.O.I from January 20 to 22, 2017 at the same stage where they made their debut. On January 29, the group quietly disbanded following their last television show appearance and the closure of their fan cafe.
It was announced on January 31 that I.O.I's song "Downpour" won Inkigayo's final January 2017 trophy with no live broadcast due to Lunar New Year's Day.
After disbandment, the members of I.O.I went on to pursue other activities. Chungha released her first mini album Hands on Me on June 7, 2017. Nayoung and Jieqiong went on to debut in PRISTIN. PRISTIN officially disbanded on 24th May 2019. Nayoung terminated her contract with Pledis Entertainment while Jieqiong stayed on with the company. In 2019, Nayoung signed with Sublime Artist Agency. While previously debuting on June 2016 in gugudan, Mina and Sejeong later had a comeback with their group on February 27, 2017 with their second mini-album Act.2 Narcissus. gugudan disbanded on December 30th 2020. Yoojung and Doyeon debuted in Weki Meki on August 8, 2017. Yeonjung joined WJSN as its 13th member. Chaeyeon similarily joined DIA, and Sohye terminated her contract with her entertainment company in order to pursue acting. In August 2018, it was announced that Somi had terminated her contract with JYP Entertainment and had signed with a sub-company of YG Entertainment, called The Black Label. She debuted as a soloist on June 13, 2019, with the digital single Birthday.
Ping Pong
I.O.I Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Oh no no no no no)
이번엔 누가 먼저 당겨올까 지는 건 싫은데
겨우 알아낼 만큼 그냥 슬쩍슬쩍
건드려도 네가 훅 다가와 줬으면
근데 넌 쉽지가 않아 boy
자꾸만 머리 아파지게 만들어
그 안에 담긴 설레임은 좋지만
사실 잡고 싶어 그 공 내가 먼저라도
근데 그렇게 못해
기다리기만 하다가 이렇게
오늘도 너와 ping pong
하루 종일 왔다 갔다
난 계속 너와 ping pong
머릿속이 바빠 바빠
분홍 빛깔 작은 공들이 (톡톡톡)
이제 그만하고 싶어 (no no no more)
오늘도 너와 ping pong
이쯤에서 져주면 안 되겠니 (oh oh oh oh oh)
또 시작됐어 너와 나 사이 줄다리기 게임
(Oh no no no no no)
이번엔 내가 먼저 당겨볼 테니 내게 와줄래 (oh oh)
네가 눈치챌 만큼 내가 슬쩍슬쩍
다가가면 네가 훅 알아봐 줬으면
근데 넌 쉽지가 않아 boy
자꾸 날 답답하게 만들어 baby
우리 마음속 테이블 위로 움직이는 공
그 안에 담긴 설레임은 좋지만
사실 잡고 싶어 그 공 내가 먼저라도
근데 그렇겐 못해
기다리기만 하다가 이렇게
오늘도 너와 ping pong
하루 종일 왔다 갔다
난 계속 너와 ping pong
머릿속이 바빠 바빠
분홍 빛깔 작은 공들이 (톡톡톡)
이제 그만하고 싶어 (no no no more)
오늘도 너와 ping pong
이쯤에서 져주면 안 되겠니 (oh oh oh oh oh)
너의 높은 네트 위로
나의 맘을 smash smash (smash)
끝이 없는 랠리는 지루해
공격 개시 개시 (dash)
마침 때가 됐어 우린 game point
너도 바라잖아 함께인 걸
팽팽한 균형을 깨버리고 싶어
근데 또 ping pong
오늘도 너와 ping pong (oh)
하루 종일 왔다 갔다 (나 왔다 갔다)
난 계속 너와 ping pong
머릿속이 바빠 바빠 (바바바 바빠)
분홍 빛깔 작은 공들이 (톡톡톡)
이제 그만하고 싶어 (no no no more)
오늘도 너와 ping pong
이쯤에서 져주면 안 되겠니 (oh oh oh oh oh)
The Korean girl group I.O.I's song "Ping Pong" is about a romantic relationship, a push-and-pull between two people who like each other, but are too afraid to make the first move. The lyrics describe their feelings toward each other as a game of ping pong - one person serves, the other responds, and they keep going back and forth. The song's chorus emphasizes this cycle, with the line "today, you and me, ping pong," expressing the feeling that their relationship is like a never-ending game.
The lyrics express frustration with this dynamic, with lines like "it's not easy, boy, you keep making my head hurt" and "I want to stop now, no no no more." However, there is also a hopeful sense that maybe today will be the day when one of them finally makes a move - "will you let me win this time?"
The metaphor of ping pong highlights the uncertainty that comes with developing feelings for someone. The back-and-forth of the game mirrors the back-and-forth of their emotions as they navigate their attraction to each other. Ultimately, the song captures the excitement and frustration of falling in love, with all its highs and lows.
Line by Line Meaning
또 시작됐어 너와 나 사이 줄다리기 게임
We're playing tug-of-war again, you and me.
(Oh no no no no no)
Oh, this is not good.
이번엔 누가 먼저 당겨올까 지는 건 싫은데
I don't like predicting who's going to win.
겨우 알아낼 만큼 그냥 슬쩍슬쩍
I can barely figure it out, sneaking around.
건드려도 네가 훅 다가와 줬으면
But if I touch you, you come close to me easily.
근데 넌 쉽지가 않아 boy
But it's not easy for you, boy.
자꾸만 머리 아파지게 만들어
You keep giving me a headache.
우리 마음속 테이블 위로 움직이는 공
A ball moving on the table in our hearts.
그 안에 담긴 설레임은 좋지만
The excitement inside it is nice, but
사실 잡고 싶어 그 공 내가 먼저라도
I want to catch that ball, even if I have to do it first.
근데 그렇게 못해
But I can't do that.
기다리기만 하다가 이렇게
So, I just keep waiting like this.
오늘도 너와 ping pong
Today, too, I'm playing ping pong with you.
하루 종일 왔다 갔다
Coming and going all day.
난 계속 너와 ping pong
I keep playing ping pong with you.
머릿속이 바빠 바빠
My mind is busy, busy.
분홍 빛깔 작은 공들이 (톡톡톡)
The pink-colored small balls (tuk-tuk-tuk)
이제 그만하고 싶어 (no no no more)
I want to stop now (no no no more)
이쯤에서 져주면 안 되겠니 (oh oh oh oh oh)
But, should I just lose at this point? (oh oh oh oh oh)
네가 눈치챌 만큼 내가 슬쩍슬쩍
I sneak around enough for you to notice me.
다가가면 네가 훅 알아봐 줬으면
If I get closer, you would recognize me right away.
근데 넌 쉽지가 않아 boy
But it's not easy for you, boy.
자꾸 날 답답하게 만들어 baby
You keep making me frustrated, baby.
너의 높은 네트 위로
Over your high net,
나의 맘을 smash smash (smash)
I want to smash my heart (smash smash)
끝이 없는 랠리는 지루해
The endless rallies are boring.
공격 개시 개시 (dash)
Starting the attack (dash)
마침 때가 됐어 우린 game point
The timing is just right for us, it's game point.
너도 바라잖아 함께인 걸
You also wish to be together, right?
팽팽한 균형을 깨버리고 싶어
I want to break the tense balance.
근데 또 ping pong
But again, ping pong.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Gyun Soo Kim, Hun Joo Kim, Jin Su Yeo
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind