An interesting K-Pop quirk is the creation of fandoms for not artists, or labels, but the producers themselves. In some cases, the producers become well-known enough to become the driving force behind entire girl groups; Dal Shabet, and their debut song, is one of those cases.
Supa Dupa Diva was composed by E-Tribe, an incredibly popular and well-known producer duo who were the masterminds behind Gee, one of K-Pop’s defining tracks. (It was also the first track I ever picked for this column!) They also produced classics like Lee Hyori’s U-Go-Girl and miss A’s Hush, among dozens of others.
When reports surfaced that E-Tribe was planning to launch their own girl group in 2011, the general reaction was excitement; everyone wanted to see what they could do with a group they created from scratch, designed to perfectly complement their songs. Dal Shabet, and Supa Dupa Diva, was the result.
If you’ve been paying attention to this column, you’ll know that Dal Shabet didn’t exactly pan out like E-Tribe wanted them to. From what I’ve been able to dig up, it seems they slowly took their hands off the wheel as the group matured; while Dal Shabet’s early years feature songs produced primarily by E-Tribe, they pop up with decreasing frequency as the years go by. In fact, some of Dal Shabet’s later albums feature songs produced by their direct competitors, including Brave Brothers and Shinsadong Tiger. E-Tribe themselves would have a similar fall from grace, losing one producer (bringing the duo down to one) and seeing the flow of new commissions ebb to a trickle.