It has been over 10 years since Davichi made their debut as a duo. And now finally, the last of the two have finally made her solo debut. Kang Min Kyung embarks on her solo career with Because I Love You, the lead title track off her first mini-album, Kang Min Kyung Vol. 1. The other member of Davichi, Lee Hae Ri, made her solo debut 2 years back with Pattern and Hate That I Miss You. In other related news, Davichi’s last comeback was last year with Days Without You, which also celebrated the duo’s 10 year anniversary.

Because I Love You is a ballad, which was expected as Davichi is widely known for their ballads in the industry. But to me, the ballad felt very similar to what Davichi usually releases. I lowkey was waiting for Lee Hae Ri to come into the song and start singing. While that may not be a bad thing, I don’t see Kang Min Kyung’s individuality within the song, which was slightly disappointing. The ballad features a typical ensemble including orchestra and acoustic guitars. However, we got to hear more of Kang Min Kyung in the song and her slightly raspy vocals really made this track beautiful. She also did a good job of making the song heartfelt. I did like the melody and thought there was a decent buildup towards the end to really bring the track together. Overall, it was a nice ballad to listen to, especially on a cold day.

The music video shows Kang Min Kyung alone on this certain day. Many things she does within her day (a stroll through the forest, swimming in a hot spring etc.) leads to flashbacks to her previous relationship.  All was good up until the guy calls it quits and leaves her. But before he goes, he leaves Min Kyung with his watch (I think) and she still wears to this day, showing to us that she hasn’t moved on. The scene at the end where she pulls herself underwater and when she stopped the time on her clock confirms this (I think). That is my interpretation of the video. Unfortunately, I don’t have English translations to the lyrics to back this up and the ending seems to be a lot more than her stopping time, along with the fact that we see the guy a lot gazing out of the window and sitting alone. Regardless, I thought the video was beautifully shot for the ballad.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8/10