Maybe – Lee Seung-hwan, Sunwoo Jung-a

The first time I saw Sunwoo Jung-a was on a show called ‘The Birth of a Song’ on TvN. The show was all about two producers rearranging melodies given by hidden original composers, creating a complete piece of music through collaboration with top-tier sessions of the time. I was shocked by how they chose collaborators among the session players lined up, like picking ingredients at Subway. 🥪

Sunwoo Jung-a appeared as a producer during the regular programming, listed alongside impressive producers like Kim Hyung-seok, Yoon Sang, and Don Spike. Her music always came with a refreshing twist, free of clichés. While everything was great, ‘I’ll be free,’ the final battle song of the show, stands out in my memory. She added her own chorus with An Shin-ae in a gospel style, and it was simply stunning. Yet, back then, I didn’t realize she was a singer. 🎤

I discovered she was a singer through a clip of an IU interview. When asked what songs she listens to when stressed, IU responded:

The song I listen to… hmm… well? (scrolls through her phone to play a song) It just makes me feel like a really cool person… so I listen to it often. 🎧

That song was Sunwoo Jung-a’s ‘Spring Girl,’ and from that moment, I added her to my playlist and my list of favorite artists. 🌸

Lee Seung-hwan’s new song after 8 years, ‘Maybe,’ is a duet with Sunwoo Jung-a. It’s a duet alright, but you could also say it’s a song backed by stunning choruses from start to finish, and you’d nod in agreement. Lee Seung-hwan is a smooth operator, but Sunwoo Jung-a’s vocals wrap around his in a way that mere words like amazing don’t quite capture. 🎶

When the song starts, with the piano and their voices coming in before you can even take a breath, it presses down on the air around you. Even without focusing on the lyrics, the atmosphere alone tugs at your heart. It’s the kind of song you want to keep hidden away in your heart, only to bring out when everyone else is asleep so you can savor it alone. 🌙

A song with two voices but one heartbeat, Lee Seung-hwan and Sunwoo Jung-a’s ‘Maybe’