Mamamoo’s Vocal Analysis: Hwasa

0. MB Vocalists: Mid-range belters, Groups, Sopranos, Vocal Analyses, Vocal Ranges: 3 Octave Ranges, , , , , , , , , , ,

Vocal Range

C#3 – E6 (3 Octaves, 1 note and 1 semitone)

Supported Range

A3 – C5

Voice Type

Soprano

Strengths/Achievements

  • Able to sing down to C#3
  • Can support A3 consistently
  • Is able to achieve resonance up to C5
  • Good sense of dynamics
  • Often sings with a lifted soft palate

Points for Improvement

  • Pushes her larynx down below A3
  • Extremely chesty mix
  • Notes in her supported range become strained when fatigued
  • Sings with a rather pushed resonance
  • Sings with a disconnected falsetto rather

Registers

  • Lower register: Able to support A3. Notes below this are often done with a lowered larynx or a disconnected airy chest voice.
  • Mixed register: Extremely unbalanced and chesty with pushed resonance up to C5. Notes above this are often strained with a high larynx. Consistently able to keep an opened sound in her mix despite throatiness, no nasality is usually heard.
  • Upper register: An overly airy, disconnected falsetto, often used and controlled to an extent but lacking in development.

Agility

Often attempts runs, but lacks the proper precision, accuracy, and note separation. Most of the time the direction of pitch in Hwasa’s runs and the idea behind them is more or less accurate, but the execution tends to come out either too unclear, where each individual note is not hit in its center, but instead she slides around the notes, such as in “Wait A Minute” and “Flying Into The Night Sky“, or at times her runs will just sound like a sloppy mush of notes together, such as in “The Way To Sampo“. When she performs slower runs, she is able to separate the notes with more clarity and rhythmic flow is more easily heard, such as in “Passion Flower“. 

Overall analysis

As a lead vocalist for one of Korea’s most well balanced female vocal groups, Hwasa does not fall short when it comes to assets and range as part of Mamamoo. The reason why Mamamoo works is because for the most part, aside from the great harmonizing skills of all members, the group has each member take on a part of their range where they are most comfortable with and that’s why Hwasa is never heard belting too high and instead taking most of the falsetto parts in Mamamoo’s music.

Hwasa’s lower register is more or less average, being able to support A3. Notes above this are often not supported and mushy with a low larynx. The biggest issue that exists throughout Hwasa’s range is an raspy quality caused by either her vocal cords not coming together well enough, letting air come through mostly in her lower range and in her falsetto, or too much compression in her vocal cords where they come together too harshly, mostly present in her mixed voice. To overly compensate for the lack of development of her lower range, Hwasa often pushes her larynx down causing her tone to become muffled and unnaturally deep, such as the G3’s in “Delilah“, G#3’s in “Passion Flower” and “The Way To Sampo“, as opposed to the more neutral larynx and more opened free sound of her voice on A3 and above, such as the A3’s in “Ave Maria“, “Flying Into The Night Sky“, “If I Leave“, “Sting”, “My Heart” and “Love Talk”.

The compression of her vocal cords often causes Hwasa’s mix to sound very pushed, on top of being very unbalanced and extremely chest dominant. Despite this, she is able to achieve resonance on Bb4s in “My Heart Will Go On” and “Love Me”, B4s in “Passion Flower“, “The Way To Sampo” “This Song” and “Orange Colored Sky“,  and C5s in “My Everything“, “Flying Into The Night Sky“, “Wait A Minute“, “Sting”. However, due to the overly pushed amount of air pressure and vocal cord compression present in her singing, her mix can often cause her voice to become easily fatigued. When fatigued she even strains notes in her supported range because of how chest dominant her mix is, such as in “If I Leave“, the B4’s in “The Way To Sampo” and “Delilah“, and the C5 in Mr. Ambiguous. Notes above this however are often overly pushed and done with a high larynx, such as the D5 in “Flying Into The Night Sky” and the E5 in “Passion Flower“, notes which she often avoids sustaining.

Hwasa’s upper register is an very airy, disconnected falsetto that gets shrill around G#5/A5. She is incapable of producing true connection between her vocal cords and producing a full tone with her upper register, therefore not possessing a connected head voice. Not only that, her falsetto is usually thin and lacks in volume, almost always being pushed over its limit in terms of range with a closed throat and a high larynx, such as the A5, C6 and C#6‘s in “The Way To Sampo”. Her throat is more relaxed lower in range, but her falsetto still shows a lack of connection and an overly airy tone production such as in “Ave Maria“, “Passion Flower” and “Flying Into The Night Sky“.

Apart from her vocal runs, Hwasa is a vocalist who’s in control of her pitch and of her placement, often being able to produce resonance. The biggest issue with her technique lies in the overcompensation of correct breath support by overly pushing her voice out with her throat and compressed vocal cords which not only create vocal fatigue, but could easily damage her voice in the long run. For future improvements, more brightness and a better balance of her mix would be one of the first things she should address, as well as better connection of her vocal cords in her lower range and upper register.

Musicianship

As seen in Mamamoo’s Immortal Song 2 performances, Hwasa has a good ear for pitch and harmony. Often, Hwasa’s main purpose in each performance is to provide backing Ad-libs and to counterbalance Solar by being the “softer” vocalist. Her harmonies generally lie on her lower range and her falsetto, not really truly expanding very far into her mixed voice.

Label (Type of Vocalist)

MB Vocalists: Mid-Range Belters

Vocal Range Video(s)

Videos by: Hawaiipups and kpopvocalists

Best Vocal Performance(s)

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Analyzed by Haruko & Ahmin

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67 thoughts on “Mamamoo’s Vocal Analysis: Hwasa”

  1. Haha it’s Christmas day and I just got 9 updates from you guys! I was going to check it later but then my eyes caught out 3 sneaky Mamamoo titles.

    I thought Hwasa would be average! I’m glad to see she’s above that, haha. Hopefully since she’s still young she’ll improve.

    Merry Christmas KpopVocalAnalyses!

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  2. so who is the strongest vocalist in mamamoo? is it solar the main vocalist or when who have the healthiest technique? and merry christmas to all of you at KpopVocalAnalyses. enjoy your day as you truly made us happy with these updates! thank you team 🙂

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  3. After having read through all three analysis, I feel really glad that they are all so evenly balanced and are all rared “above average”, which is really great for a rookie group. Hopefully, they all will progresses equally fast.

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  4. hey guys, have you watch their perf in radio show? especially the song ah oops and love me. i think they did good with the song

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  5. Oh I’m glad her mix didn’t drag her down to average to above average…. her chesty mix sounds like Ailee’s mix except Ailee can support higher lol XD

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    1. Yeah, and Ailee more or less doesn’t push until Eb5. When I was reviewing Hwasa, I figured that she was consistent enough with resonance on C5 to be Above Average rather than lower

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      1. just my opinion, Jessica have better lower register and her mixed is some how more balance than Hwasa, why she could be AA whereas Jessica cant??

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      2. If you read the analysis again carefully, it s actually said in jessica’s analysis that she is inconsistent and very often, nasal. Like outside the analysis, in my opinion, she sounds nasal most of the time, thus hindering her from achieving true resonance frequently. Hwasa is pretty consistent up to C5, with resonance.

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      3. but Hwasa asset is only mixed, cuz her lower and upper register not impress where as Jess has lower and her upper is quite relax, just opinion haha

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      4. well, if you put it that way. lee haeri has average lower register, not a developed upper register, so-so agility but her consistency in her mixed is superb (up to F#5) and she is rated as good haha. Hwasa supported range is A3-C5 which makes her eligible to be rated as AA vocalist. Jessica is like G#3-B4/C5 but she is inconsistent and nasal even within her supported range. I think someone (ahmin i think) also replied the same thing about why seohyun is A to AA and not AA while Hwasa/wheein/solar is rated as AA. 🙂

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      6. haha but I am just comparing and reiterating the analyses that has been written by the contributors. lol, it’s still the best to ask the analysts of the respected vocalists if there is anything in detail you would like to know about, since they would definitely know more. 🙂

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  6. Have you seen her Ave Maria ? I think she did really good and I’m proud of her.

    I’m not a vocalist so I don’t know… if she has a chesty voice wouldn’t she be a mezzo-soprano?

    How do you tell the difference between a mezzo and a soprano ?

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    1. Ave Maria is actually mentioned in the analysis. She did it nicely, she just used a lot more falsetto than head voice. Being chesty doesn’t make you a mezzo, a mezzo is a a girl with a lower voice than a soprano, so she needs to have a voice that’s placed lower in range and is thicker in tone naturally, not due to technique. So think of someone like Sara Bareilles, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga or Adele, they have thicker and lower voices than Hwasa in tone, in range and just in overall weight. Hwasa’s voice is naturally much lighter and brighter than theirs even though she sings with a chesty mix.

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      1. Oh I’m sorry lol! And thank you for the answer. I’m sorry I never read it until now I always just delete emails and forget that some might have something I actually want to read lol. I should really get out if that lol I just remembered I commented on this but couldn’t even remember what I said so thanks for answering. Also I LOVE Beyonce ik that has nothing to do with this but I just oh my gosh.. Beyoncé.

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    1. We can analyze this performance but as you know we’re kind of busy, so when you ask questions like this it’d be nice if you could be more specific as to why you’re asking. If you’ve read the vocal analyses for all members of Mamamoo, you would know what to expect of them in a performance so unless there’s anything new, analyzing the whole performance at this point would be somewhat pointless considering we already have full analyses for all 3 vocalists of Mamamoo. (This is just something to think about when asking us questions so that we don’t have to be sitting all day answering video questions and can actually write new vocal analyses.)

      0:19 whispering in her lower range, she’s going for that sexy sound but the support is there for Hwasa without a doubt, it’s just the style she’s going for. 0:44 nicely supported for Wheein, slightly nasal though. They sound pretty nice, the control and support is there. 0:59 that was nicely placed. 1:06 that was a nice C5, it was softer than usual and she wasn’t just pushing to sing that. 1:16 the run was somewhat sloppy, it just rhythmically sloppy. 1:29 nice overall for Wheein again, so far they’ve not really gone above C5 or much below D4. 1:47 quiet whispered unsupported G3 for Hwasa, nothing new since this is too low for her. Their outfits are really nice. ^ ^ 2:29 tight D5, but not as pushed as usual. 2:40 D5 that was the usual pushing she goes for, very much just pushed and yelled out with good placement and some degree of support. Not enough support to eliminate the tension. 3:25 phrased C5’s, nicely supported but a bit pushed. Wheein’s E5 3:30 and Solar’s, Wheein’s is much brighter and less pushed, Solar’s is almost all done by pushing from her throat. 3:34 strained E5 for Solar harmonized with Wheein. 3:50 resonant B4 for Hwasa, E5’s by Solar in the meantime she keeps tightening her throat for those and doing some sloppy runs on the way. 4:07 resonant but too pushed, she puts way too much pressure. 4:23 Tight high larynx E5 for Wheein but much less pushed than Solar’s.

      All these things were all mentioned within their analyses.

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      1. Maybe it’s because her voice is a bit low than the other Mamamoo girls or maybe it’s just my hearing lol

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  12. Hey there
    What is the note hit at 3:23 in Woohoo? I believe that it’s Hwasa but there’s a lot of confusion as to who it really is. Anyway, would it be the highest note she’s “hit”? Thanks

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      2. I’m assuming it’s Hwasa just because she has a habit of adding ‘whoo’s and other adlibs stylistically, lol.

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  13. After many listens, I’m pretty sure that the note was hit by Wheein. There is a quick adlib much lower and quieter just before the D#6 which is most definitely Wheeins voice so I think it only makes sense for it to be Wheein.

    Also, I have another question
    Do you think the MAMAMOO members could possibly have wider rangers than what they have shown? And if so, do you think they’ve be able to go lower or higher.

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    1. Yea they probably can go higher and possibly lower but I am not sure. Most of our analyzed vocalists can probably go lower or higher.

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    2. I am pretty sure that is Hwasa because it started with Solar then went to Wheein and logically Hwasa would be next, plus the way she end it with ‘woo’ is so Hwasa thing to do.

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    1. She did fine. It’s monotonous, dynamically it doesn’t change. She’s airy, soft and singing in a narrow range so I don’t hear any improvement.

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  15. hwasa and solar sang 4 songs for their VJ live stream 3 months ago but i didn’t see anyone mention it, i also have time stamps
    i’d like to know if there are any changes in technique, if they got better maybe? they aren’t dancing so the conditions are quite nice 🙂 they both said they were too excited during the first song bc they were being hyper right before so maybe they did worse in that one, just wanted to mention that 🙂
    have a nice day and thank you in advance, i hope this is not too much!

    http://www.vlive.tv/video/18651/
    5:35 – 9:08 “Memory”
    16:50 – 20:15 “Santa Baby”
    42:30 – 46:10 “Only Longing Grows”
    57:45 – 1:01:01 “Save Me From Myself”

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  16. In Mamamoo’s new album, Moonbyul has a solo in which she sings. I know that you won’t analyze her since she’s a rapper first, but I was kind of curious about how she does in this song, since Mamamoo’s CEO has said that she trained as a vocal originally.

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    1. Her singing technique isn’t very developed. She has a nice voice, she sounds like a mezzo-soprano but she sings like she is kind of half rapping. Like even when she sings, there’s a bit of a rhythmic rapping feeling to her singing. I don’t hear a very well developed sense of support.

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      1. Could you analysis this? I’m specially interest in her voice type.
        I guess you can’t determine which type of mezzo she is by one song, but I’ll appreciate your first thought 🙂

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      2. I think Moonbyul is actually a mezzo soprano, but she doesn’t support properly. She kind of half-sings half-raps, her legato isn’t smooth, she emphasizes every syllable a bit too much and her sound comes out more from her throat.

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  18. Hi Ahmin i would like to ask about Hwasa’s G5 in MMM’s new song Yes I Am. It seems to me that they sound a bit more leaning towards head voice. Here’re the recent live performances:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEX4b6Pg2HY 3:04
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmRy3u6n4JM 3:09 (upper register after the time stamp are all falsetto though)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laFTu9caA3w 3:04
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKsJ6KkJT5E 3:05
    They sound much more purer than her falsetto she demonstrated before. Of course it can be an effect of studio editing that made them more head-voice like. Hence the multiple links haha I’m trying to find different version with different playback volume. What do you think? Is she finally developing a head voice?

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    1. It sounds falsetto-y to me with good placement since the woo vowel helps the sound focus more, so I don’t necessarily hear a full strong head voice connection, it is more towards head voice than her usual because of the vowel. But the connection, development and support aren’t there yet, they’re on the way and the vowel is helping, but it’s not quite there.

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  20. For some reason, chest dominant mix or a shouty, weightier and heavier voice is becoming more and more popular in both Korea and
    China. Also, using head voice is being seen as “inferior” in East Asian pop music. People mostly associate head voice as very easy to do. So, I guess it would be not very possible for mamamoo to lighten up their mix voice and develope their head. That’s how I feel….

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  21. Hwasa often pushes her larynx down causing her tone to become muffled and unnaturally deep, such as the F3 in “Flying Into The Night Sky“, I have heard this for a few times and it does not sound like a F3 to me, it sound like a octave higher ie F4

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    1. I feel like it was a wrong time stamp but I can’t find an F3 in that song. I don’t know what happened. You are completely right!

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  24. Hello, I’m just really glad that you guys already have all the analysis for MMM’s vocalists since I’ve just got interested in this matter after supporting them. So first, thank you 😀
    Second, have you been following MMM’s recent releases and their recent live performance? I’m not a technical person or something but it feels like they are pushing more and more towards the “loud” singing style and sometimes during their lives I worried if their throat can handle the notes. Do you see any improvement in their technique? And if not, is their current technique and musical approach going to backfire and harm their voice in the future?

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  25. I particularly think that Hwasa has improved a lot since 2015. Even more by releasing new singles and the like.

    Do you think there has been a significant improvement since 2015?

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      1. more confidence in their music and voice, more control, idk how to explain, what you think about? she improved?

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    2. Not admin but trying to help with my observation. More confidence is an improvement but that’s necessary an improvement on vocal technique which this blog is about.

      In terms of vocal technique she stays pretty stagnant. Her 3 registers, supported range and over-chestiness stays pretty the same. Actually she might have developed some stylistic choices (which make her more nasal, throaty and tight in the jaw and tongue) into vocal habits and those habits sometimes creep in her supported range, most notably C5s and B4s.

      Still I won’t say she regresses cos judging from their most recent 2 live performances (Shopee and KPOP-UAE festival) she sounded pretty fine when singing MMM’s old songs. But if she becomes too used to those stylistic choices, the risk is there.

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      2. to me Hwasa always has tight jaw and some example for her B4/C5 in the analysis could be better since she had potential throaty at Bb4/B4 before

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