Singer-songwriter and rapper Tablo’s first solo album “Fever’s End Part 2” ranked first place on the iTunes hip hop/rap chart, as he returned to the music scene more than a year after he was embroiled in a controversy over his academic background at Stanford University.

Hip hop group Epik High, of which Tablo is a member, reached top of the same chart with the album “Epilogue” in March last year.

Tablo recently signed a four-year contract with YG Entertainment which boasts several K-pop idols including 2NE1 and Big Bang, and released the first part of his solo album “Fever’s End Part 1” on Oct. 21. Tablo composed and wrote lyrics for all of the songs on the album during the difficult period last year when controversy over his college diploma was played out in the public. The album, which features singers such as Naul and Lee So-ra, ranked 11 on the hip hop/rap chart.

The second part, “Fever’s End Part 2,” features Big Bang member Taeyang in the song “Tomorrow” and Epik High member DJ Tukutz in the song “Trace.”

By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)