Sweet, sexy and on their own

Bare midriffs. Ample cleavage. Swivelling hips.

Be prepared for a nosebleed-inducing visual onslaught as K-pop's sexiest, most gorgeous girl group members launch their highly-anticipated solo debuts.

Five years into the job as reliable team players, T-ara's babes Jiyeon and Hyomin, and Secret's curvaceous bombshell Hyosung are finally ready to make splashes in showbiz on their own terms.

Unlike predecessors CL (2NE1), Hyorin (Sistar) and Taeyeon (Girls' Generation) who have carved out individual careers on the strength of their vocal prowess, the trio here are more likely to win us over with perfectly-sculpted bods, snazzy dance moves and edgy fashion styles.

M checks out the girls' X-factor and predicts how well each will perform.

JIYEON - THE UNPREDICTABLE CUTIE

WHO'S SHE?

As T-ara's maknae (Korean colloquial term for youngest member), 20-year-old pixie-faced, doe-eyed Jiyeon has always been the group's centre of attention.

In almost all of T-ara's music videos, she snags the lion's share of screen time.

Strikingly pretty, Jiyeon has the charm to win over both male and female fans - this lass can look sweet and strong, fierce and vulnerable, pensive and aggressive all at once.

HOW'S HER SOLO EFFORT?

Jiyeon released her debut EP Never Ever two weeks ago. The music video for the groovy R&B 1 Minute 1 Second has garnered more than 1.3 million views in less than a week.

It's interesting to note that there is no overt sexuality in the video, aside from her baring her toned midriff and thighs.

In an interview with Korean magazine Arena Homme, Jiyeon said it was a deliberate decision and credited South Korean veteran singer Kahi for inspiring her new "gender-neutral" image.

"Sexy can be achieved without showing off skin," she said. "Senior Kahi showed off her six-pack abs in one of the promotional pictures for her album, but she was wearing masculine clothes in the photo. I think that was cool and sexy."

OUR VERDICT:

Jiyeon looks fantastic in practically anything. Some of her best moments in 1 Minute 1 Second are of her wearing a plain white T-shirt. With her versatile, multi-faceted looks, she should be able to go far, not just as a singer but also an actress.

SUCCESS RATE: 9/10

HYOSUNG - THE VOLUPTUOUS SEX BOMB

WHO'S SHE?

She is the 24-year-old member of K-pop quartet Secret and she boasts a C-cup chest, making her a goddess for many male fans and leaving a trail of women sighing in envy. After she was appointed the spokesmodel for Korean lingerie brand Yes last January, sales reportedly rose 40 to 50 per cent compared to the same month the year before.

HOW'S HER SOLO EFFORT?

Hyosung released her debut EP, Top Secret, on May 12. In three weeks, her titillating music video for electrodance track Good-night Kiss has accumulated more than 1.6 million views.

In a smart, well-conceived move, she doesn't deviate too far from her sexed-up image in Secret. Good-night Kiss has plenty of booty-shaking, seductive gyrating and chest-thrusting scenes.

However, as reported in an interview with Korean website Newsen in February, Hyosung does not seem to be embracing her sexy image wholeheartedly.

"There are circumstances where you need sexy clothing or sexy choreography. However, if the sexy concept becomes (top priority), I don't think that's good," she said.

OUR VERDICT:

Hyosung needs to start accepting that she is a sex kitten. In her recent live performances on Korean TV programmes Show Champion and Music Core, she chose to cover up her assets, which was rather disappointing. She should be more like 4Minute's busty member HyunA, who uses every opportunity to flaunt her sexuality.

SUCCESS RATE: 8/10

HYOMIN - THE STYLISH CHAMELEON

WHO'S SHE?

Hyomin is T-ara's style icon - she owns clothing store Hyomin shop on online site G-Market and designed her own stage attire during T-ara's promotional tour for their hit single Roly-Poly.

The 25-year-old is also hands down the boldest and most adventurous among the T-ara girls when it comes to experimenting with hair colours. In T-ara's dramatic music video for Day by Day (2012), she famously dyed her hair flashy red to play a sword-wielding, motorcyle-riding heroine.

HOW'S HER SOLO EFFORT?

She is the only one here who is untested. Hyomin will drop her yet-to-be-titled solo album only in June. But things are looking promising from the teaser image released last week. Her hair colour has changed (again!) - this time to platinum blonde.

In an interview with Korean magazine The Celebrity last month, Hyomin shared that she isn't ambitious about her solo success.

"Although it's my first work under my name, I'm not feeling greedy... Rather than wishing to do better than T-ara, I just want to show people that 'this kid is a T-ara member but she can perform on stage by herself'."

OUR VERDICT:

Vocally, she beats the other two. She would probably need the least amount of auto-tune on her songs.

SUCCESS RATE: 8/10

keeyunt@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on June 04, 2014.
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