A is the fifth single album by South Korean band

Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

, and the second from their ''Made Series''.

Background and release

The first poster titled "Bang Bang Bang" was released on May 27,

YG Entertainment YG Entertainment Inc. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency established in 1996 by Yang Hyun-suk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and concert production compa ...

producer

Yang Hyun-suk Yang Hyun-suk (born January 9, 1970) is a South Korean music executive, rapper, dancer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of Seo Taiji and Boys during the 1990s. After the group disbanded, he founded and became the Ex ...

commented that the song was "the most powerful music you have ever heard before." The second poster was released for "We Like 2 Party" a day later. The music video was shot on Jeju Island on May 19. The single could be pre-ordered from May 27 to June 1, consisting of 4 tracks (two new songs and two previous ones) and two instrumental tracks. It was released worldwide through

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

, and other online music portals on June 1. There are two different versions of the album, one contains only a CD and a booklet (24p) while the other one contains a CD, a booklet (24p) and a special kit (a random puzzle ticket, 5 photo cards and a limited photo card) with a poster.

Commercial performance

''A'' entered the

Gaon Album Chart The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their Record sales, pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart, pr ...

at number three, and peaked at number two the third week of release. The album peaked at number three on the monthly chart in June, selling 93,504 copies. In Taiwan, it charted at number 6. According to

QQ Music QQ Music () is one of the three Chinese freemium music streaming services owned by Tencent Music, a joint venture between Tencent and Spotify. As of 2018, the service is set to reach over 700 million users with an estimated 120 million subscribe ...

, the pre-orders for the album in China reached 1 million, in the first 12 hours the single sold 200,000 copies. After two weeks the album sold over 400,000 digital copies, breaking the record for foreign album sold on QQ Music, they also dominated the chart by having four songs on the top 6. As of March 2017, the album has sold over 800,000 copies on

, making it one of the best-selling digital albums in Chinese history.

Reception

The singles received positive reviews from the fans, public and critics. In less than two months, the music videos gained over 60 million views on YouTube.

Promotion

After previewing both songs during their Made Tour in Guangzhou, China, BigBang participated in Yoo Hee-yeol's Sketchbook on May 30, 2015. The members held a live podcast for the album, an hour before its release via Naver Starcast online, the live chat gathered more than 400,000 viewers. BigBang had their first official comeback on June 4 installment of

Mnet M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

M Countdown ''M Countdown'' () is a South Korean music program broadcast by Mnet. The show features appearances by popular music artists who also perform live on stage. It is broadcast from CJ E&M Center Studio in Sangam-dong, Mapo District, Seoul. Bro ...

. On June 1, "Bang Bang Bang" was delayed on being registered in the voting system for 41 hours on SBS's

Inkigayo ''Inkigayo'' ( ko, 인기가요; English title: ''The Music Trend'', previously ''Popular Song'') is a South Korean music program broadcast by SBS. It airs live every Sunday. The show features some of the latest and most popular artists who p ...

, which led to SHINee's "View" winning, despite "Bang Bang Bang" being on the top of the charts, which led to a storm of complaints from the fans. The problem with SBS continued, On June 14, it was announced that BigBang is banned from appearing on Inkigayo, according to SBS the reason was that G-Dragon and T.O.P didn't appear on the show when BigBang won the first place on May 24, only three members were able to show. YG representative said the members didn't show up due to the shooting of a music video. The winners of the show on June 14 was not announced on the same day, the results came the next day, the winner was BigBang. BigBang stopped promoting the single afterwards and also didn't promote the next single album '' D''.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Sales

Release history

References

External links

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Big Bang Official Website
{{Authority control BigBang (South Korean band) albums 2015 albums YG Entertainment albums Avex Group albums Korean-language albums Single albums Albums produced by Teddy Park Albums produced by G-Dragon