Music review - Kpop's EXO
by Nini Kang
English version
EXO, the most famous male group in South Korea, is produced by SM Entertainment and debuted in 2012. Since debuting, all of their albums have sold millions, and their music videos have over 100 million views on Youtube. This Music Review will introduce their most famous 4 songs of EXO.
The first song called "Growl,” released in 2013. "Growl" is the title song of the album "XOXO.” This song is a dance pop song with the influence of contemporary R&B and funk. The lyrics describe the warnings issued to people who snooped his woman, and the music video present in an unedited way. At the time it was released, it remodeled the definition of "Kpop", and it became the most popular pop song in South Korea during 2013. If you want to know about Kpop, “Growl” will be an important song.
The second song called "Call Me Baby” was released in 2015. "Call Me Baby" is the title song of the album "EXODUS.” It is pop dance music. The lyrics describe the moment when you see a woman you like. The album had over 1.6 million sales worldwide and was ranked No.5 in the iTunes album chart in the US, and No.1 in 11 Asian countries and regions including Japan, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The third song called "Monster" was released in 2016. "Monster" is the main song of the album "EX'ACT.” It is dark and intense with medium-speed tempo. The lyrics tell of a man who is over-controlling of his lover. The song was ranked in the top of the Gaon Digital Chart and Billboard World Digital Songs charts, and was named the second and third best K-pop song of 2016 by Dazed and Billboard, respectively. The music video is also very interesting, and is the most viewed K-pop video on YouTube in 2016 with over 237 million views.
The last song is called "Tempo,” which was just released last month. "Tempo" is the main song of the album "Don't Mess Up My Tempo.” The style of this song is unique, especially the acapella part at the end of the song. The lyrics describe the youngsters who fall in love. As of October 30, 2018, the album's pre-sale volume reached 1.1 million, breaking EXO's own album pre-sales record. EXO is the only group whose sales in South Korea exceeded 10 million, highlighting the uniqueness of this achievement.
Of those songs mentioned above, I like “Monster's” dark genre the most. Of course, in addition to EXO, South Korea has many famous idol groups and singers. Kpop culture is really interesting, if you are interested, you can search for more Kpop songs on Youtube.
Chinese version
EXO是由SM经纪公司打造，于2012年出道的男子组合。出道至今发行了无数张专辑，每张专辑都拥有破百万的销量，并且每只MV在Youtube上拥有破亿的观看次数，可以说是韩国最出名的男子组合。而这篇Music Review将介绍他们最出名的4首歌。
第一首是发行于2013年的《Growl》.《Growl》是专辑《XOXO》的主打歌曲，此曲被描述为具有当代R＆B和funk影响的舞蹈流行歌曲，歌词描述心爱女子被他人窥探时所发出的警告，MV采用一镜到底的拍摄方式，非常有特色。发行时刷新了大众对“韩流”的印象，成为当时在韩国最火红的一首流行歌。如果你想了解Kpop，《Growl》会是不可或缺的一部分。
第二首是发行于2015年的《Call me baby》. Call me baby》为专辑《EXODUS》的主打歌曲，是一首POP流行舞曲，歌词描述遇见心仪女子是的紧张。这张专辑的全球销量高达160万张，发行后在美国iTunes专辑榜获得第5位，而在日本、泰国、新加坡、香港、台湾等11个亚洲国家和地區的综合专辑榜夺得第1位。
第三首是发行于2016年的《Monster》.《Monster》为专辑《EX'ACT》的主打歌曲，《Monster》是一首黑暗而激烈的中速舞曲，歌词讲述的是一个男人过分掌控他的爱人。此曲在Gaon Digital Chart和Billboard World Digital Songs排行榜上名列前茅，并分别被Dazed和Billboard评为2016年第二和第三名K-pop歌曲。MV也很有意思，暗黑风格突出，是2016年YouTube上观看次数最多的K-pop MV。
第四首是发行于今年11月的《Tempo》.《Tempo》为专辑《Don't mess up my tempo》的主打歌曲，曲风独特，尤其结尾的阿卡贝拉part更是让人印象深刻，歌词讲述陷入热恋的少年，不顾及一切的样子。截至2018年10月30日，专辑预售量达到110万张，刷新EXO自身专辑预售量记录，这让EXO连续5张正规专辑都成功登上百万宝座。EXO是2000年后出道的歌手中，唯一在韩国国内专辑销量突破1千万的歌手，凸显了此成绩的独特性。
上述介绍的10首歌曲中，我最喜欢Monster的暗黑曲风。当然，除了EXO之外南韩还有许多有名的偶像团体及歌手。Kpop文化真的很有意思，非常值得深入了解！如果感兴趣的话，可以多在Youtube上搜索Kpop歌曲哦～
