Wonderland (AleXa song)

"Wonderland" is a song by Korean-American singer AleXa. It was released on March 21, 2022, by Atlantic Records[1] and was written by Andreas Carlsson, Bekuh Boom, Ellen Berg, and Cazzi Opeia, as well as Albin Nordqvist who produced the song.[2] The single became available to pre-save on March 19, 2022.[3]

"Wonderland"
Original digital cover
Single by AleXa
ReleasedMarch 21, 2022 (2022-03-21)
Recorded2022
GenrePop
Length2:44
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Albin Nordqvist
AleXa singles chronology
"Tattoo"
(2022)
"Wonderland"
(2022)
"Back in Vogue"
(2022)
Performance video
"Wonderland" on YouTube

The single represented the state Oklahoma in the inaugural competition of American Song Contest 2022, where it won first place. After the complete line-up of songs was announced, "Wonderland" was the bookmakers' favorite to win the competition because of the anticipation of a K-pop artist participating in an American contest, and remained so until the end of the contest.[4] As part of AleXa's reward for winning, she was slated to perform at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards on May 15, 2022, becoming the second K-pop artist to do so, after BTS. AleXa, however, only presented at the award ceremony. iHeartRadio also pledged to play her winning song all summer.[5]

Background edit

American Song Contest, which premiered March 21, 2022, was hosted by Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg. Contestants representing the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and five US territories performed original songs in the qualifying rounds, and a combination of jury ranking and audience voting determined the artists which would advance to the semi-finals and the finals.[6] It is a counterpart of Eurovision Song Contest, which is also organized by EBU. The grand finale took place on May 10, 2022, and AleXa became the first winner of American Song Contest. She earned 656 points in the televote and secured the top spot with 710 points in total.[7]

Composition edit

"Wonderland" is a dance-pop song that contains a message about "perfect love that exists only in imagination and not in reality".[8] The song was written by Albin Nordqvist, Andreas Carlsson, Bekuh Boom, Ellen Berg, and Cazzi Opeia. "Wonderland" was composed in the key of F minor, with a tempo of 100 beats per minute.[9] Choreography was provided by Ryan Ramirez and House of Sam (HOS). The song’s lyrics contain Alice in Wonderland allusions and the stage performance took place on a checkered floor with "trippy" imagery and choreography.[10]

Throughout the competition, AleXa performed "Wonderland" in a series of elaborate outfits (with the finale performance being the Red Queen's theme), with colorful stage productions and intricate choreography. In all three performances, AleXa fell from the top of a staircase.[11][12]

Promotions edit

AleXa appeared on Simply K-Pop on April 4, 2022.[13] A performance video was released on her official channel,[14] and she also appeared on Mnet Digital Studio (M2) & Studio Choom.[15]

Track listing edit

  • Digital download / streaming – Original[16]
  1. "Wonderland" – 2:44
  • Digital download / streaming – (Korean version)[17][18]
  1. "Wonderland" – 2:44
  • Digital download / streaming – Remixes[19][20]
  1. "Wonderland" (Stripped remix) – 2:33
  2. "Wonderland" (Nevada remix) – 3:02

Credits and personnel edit

Credits adopted from Genius.[21]

  • Albin Nordqvist – production, writing
  • Bekuh Boom – writing
  • Andreas Carlsson – writing
  • Ellen Berg – writing
  • Cazzi Opeia – writing
  • Sonnet – recording
  • Jeremie Inhaber – mixing
  • Daniel Rowland – mastering
  • Ryan Ramirez – choreography
  • House of Sam (HOS) – choreography

Charts edit

Chart performance for "Wonderland"
Chart (2022) Peak
position
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[22] 38

Release history edit

Release history for "Wonderland"
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various March 21, 2022 Atlantic [23]

References edit

  1. ^ Wonderland (From "American Song Contest") by AleXa, 2022-03-21, retrieved 2022-05-10
  2. ^ "American Song Contest Winner AleXa on Representing Oklahoma and K-pop". TV Guide. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  3. ^ "Wonderland - PRE SAVE". Twitter.
  4. ^ "Singer AleXa discovers her Korean-American K-pop dream". Gulf News. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  5. ^ Bronson, Fred (2022-05-10). "AleXa Wins Inaugural American Song Contest". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  6. ^ "K-pop idol AleXa wins the first-ever American Song Contest with her hit 'Wonderland'". K-pop idol AleXa wins the first-ever American Song Contest with her hit 'Wonderland' | Bandwagon | Music media championing and spotlighting music in Asia. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  7. ^ "Congratulations AleXa, winner of the American Song Contest!". Eurovision.tv. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  8. ^ Jian, Lee. "Singer AleXa performs on NBC's 'American Song Contest'". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  9. ^ "Key and BPM for Wonderland by AleXa".
  10. ^ "Finding fame ... and family? AleXa's Korean-American K-pop dream". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  11. ^ "K-pop star AleXa wins inaugural 'American Song Contest'". NME. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  12. ^ "K-pop star AleXa wins American Song Contest". BBC News. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  13. ^ [Simply K-Pop CON-TOUR] AleXa (알렉사) - Wonderland (원더랜드) _ Ep.514, retrieved 2022-05-10
  14. ^ AleXa (알렉사) - 'Wonderland' Official Performance Video, retrieved 2022-05-10
  15. ^ [BE ORIGINAL] AleXa(알렉사) 'Wonderland' (4K), retrieved 2022-05-10
  16. ^ "AleXa - Wonderland (From "American Song Contest") (Song Information)" (in Korean). MelOn. ZB Label. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  17. ^ "AleXa、7月8日に「Wonderland」の韓国語バージョンをリリース…「アメリカン・ソング・コンテスト」の競演曲(Kstyle)" [AleXa Releases Korean Version of "Wonderland" on July 8th ... "American Song Contest" Competition]. Yahoo!ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  18. ^ "AleXa - Wonderland (Korean Version) (Song Information)" (in Korean). MelOn. Warner Records, Atlantic Records. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  19. ^ "AleXa - Wonderland (Stripped) (Song Information)" (in Korean). MelOn. Warner Records, Atlantic Records. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  20. ^ "AleXa - Wonderland (Nevada Remix) (Song Information)" (in Korean). MelOn. Warner Records, Atlantic Records. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  21. ^ AleXa – Wonderland, Genius, retrieved 2022-07-24
  22. ^ "Pop Airplay: Week of May 28, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
  23. ^ "AleXa's 'Wonderland'". koreajoongangdaily.joins.com. 3 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-24.