"Catch Me If You Can" is a song recorded in two languages (Japanese and Korean) by South Korean girl group

Girls' Generation Girls' Generation (), also known as SNSD, is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group is composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. Originally a nine-piece ensembl ...

. The Korean version was released by

SM Entertainment SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency. It is one of South Korea's largest entertainment companies where it was established in 1995 by record executive and record producer Lee Soo-man. The company ha ...

and KT Music on April 10, 2015, while the Japanese version was released on April 22 by

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

and

Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in the country regarding music distribution. The company is resp ...

. The song was composed by Erik Lidbom and Jin Choi, with the Korean lyrics written by Mafly and Choe A-Leum, and the Japanese lyrics written by

Junji Ishiwatari is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is also famous for being a guitarist of the Japanese band Supercar. Biography Ishiwatari found an ad looking for band members that had been posted by Miki Furukawa at a musical instru ...

and

Jeff Miyahara Jeff Miyahara (born February 4, 1977) is a Japanese-Korean record producer and songwriter based in Tokyo, Japan. Beginning his career in the music industry in 1999, he has worked with many Japanese artists such as JUJU, Kana Nishino, Namie Amu ...

. Musically, it was described by critics as an

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

track. The song marked the first release of Girls' Generation as an eight-member group following the dismissal of member

Jessica Jung Jessica Jung (born Jessica Sooyoun Jung; April 18, 1989), also known by the mononym Jessica, is a South Korean-American singer, songwriter, actress, author, fashion designer and businesswoman known for her work as a former member of South Kor ...

in September 2014. The single received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who not only praised its musical styles, but also compared the song to works by American musicians such as

Zedd Anton Zaslavski (russian: Антон Заславский; born 2 September 1989), known professionally as Zedd (), is a Russian-born German disc jockey, DJ, record producer, and songwriter. Zedd grew up and began his musical journey in Kaise ...

and

Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead sing ...

. Commercially, the single peaked at number 19 on the South Korean

Gaon Digital Chart The Circle Digital Chart, previously known as the Gaon Digital Chart, is the music industry standard record chart ranking the 200 most popular singles in South Korea. It provides rankings on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, which is based o ...

and number 8 on the Japanese

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...

. Two music videos were created for the single, one for the Korean version and one for the Japanese version, which were released simultaneously on April 10, 2015. The music videos were hailed for their "mind-blowing" choreography, as described by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine.

Background

South Korean girl group

had achieved success on the Asian music scene with hit singles such as " Gee" and "

I Got a Boy ''I Got a Boy'' (stylized in all caps) is the fourth Korean studio album (sixth overall) by South Korean girl group Girls' Generation. It was released for digital download on January 1, 2013, by S.M. Entertainment, and was made available for p ...

" since their 2007 debut as a nine-piece girl group, consisting of members

Taeyeon Kim Tae-yeon (; born March 9, 1989), known mononymously as Taeyeon, is a South Korean singer. She debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-selling artists in South Korea and one ...

, Jessica, Sunny, Tiffany,

Hyoyeon Kim Hyo-yeon (born September 22, 1989), referred to as Hyoyeon or DJ Hyo, is a South Korean singer, dancer, DJ, and television personality. She debuted as a member of the girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one o ...

Yuri Yuri may refer to: People and fictional characters Given name *Yuri (Slavic name), the Slavic masculine form of the given name George, including a list of people with the given name Yuri, Yury, etc. *Yuri (Japanese name), also Yūri, feminine Jap ...

Sooyoung Choi Soo-young (; born February 10, 1990), professionally known as Sooyoung, is a South Korean singer, actress and songwriter. She was a member of the short-lived Korean-Japanese singing duo Route 0 during 2002 in Japan. After returning to Sou ...

Yoona Im Yoon-ah (; born May 30, 1990), known mononymously as Yoona, is a South Korean singer and actress. After training for five years, she debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation (and later its subgroup Girls' Generation-Oh!GG) in Augu ...

and

Seohyun Seo Ju-hyun (; born June 28, 1991), known professionally as Seohyun, is a South Korean singer, actress and songwriter. She debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation (and later its subgroup Girls' Generation-TTS) in August 2007, which ...

. In September 2014, Jessica announced that she had been dismissed as a member of Girls' Generation by their parent company

, due to her schedule conflict between the group's mutual music activities and her own fashion business

Blanc & Eclare Blanc Group Ltd., trading as Blanc & Eclare, is a fashion brand producing eyewear, denim, clothing, skincare, and accessories. Korean-American singer and actress Jessica Jung launched the label in August 2014, initially naming it Blanc, meaning " ...

; the release of "Catch Me If You Can" marked Girls' Generation's first release as an eight-member group. On February 18, 2015, it was announced that Girls' Generation was preparing for their comeback in Japan by releasing their ninth Japanese single named "Catch Me If You Can", which was scheduled to be released in Japan on April 22, 2015. On March 23, further information regarding the single was announced: the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

version of "Catch Me If You Can" would be distributed under three formats:

CD single A CD single (sometimes abbreviated to CDS) is a music single in the form of a compact disc. The standard in the Red Book for the term ''CD single'' is an 8 cm (3-inch) CD (or Mini CD). It now refers to any single recorded onto a CD of any si ...

, digital download, and

12-inch single The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12″) is a type of vinyl ( polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a 'single' or a few related sound tracks on each surfac ...

. The

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

version was released digitally worldwide by SM Entertainment on April 10, 2015. Due to its popularity on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

, the song also received airplay on

SiriusXM Hits 1 ''Sirius XM Hits 1'' is a Top 40 radio station on Sirius XM Radio channel 2 and Dish Network channels 6002 and 099-02 (099-02 is only for Hopper users). Like most Sirius XM stations, it plays no commercials. The channel was formerly known as US-1 ...

radio during the week of April 20, 2015. Both versions of the single contain a B-side track titled "Girls".

Composition and reception

The music for "Catch Me If You Can" was composed by Erik Lidbom and Jin Choi. The Korean lyrics were written by Mafly and Choe A-Leum, while the Japanese lyrics were written by

and

. Musically, the song was described as an electronic dance music (EDM) track. Jeff Benjamin, writing for

Fuse Fuse or FUSE may refer to: Devices * Fuse (electrical), a device used in electrical systems to protect against excessive current ** Fuse (automotive), a class of fuses for vehicles * Fuse (hydraulic), a device used in hydraulic systems to protect ...

, noted it as a departure from the group's signature

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States i ...

styles and named it "high-turbo" EDM. The song is

instrumented Instrumentation a collective term for measuring instruments that are used for indicating, measuring and recording physical quantities. The term has its origins in the art and science of scientific instrument-making. Instrumentation can refer to ...

by "surging"

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

s, tribal house

beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

s, and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

drop Drop, DROP, drops or DROPS may refer to: * Drop (liquid) or droplet, a small volume of liquid ** Eye drops, saline (sometimes mydriatic) drops used as medication for the eyes * Drop (unit), a unit of measure of volume * Falling (physics), allowi ...

s. Upon its release, "Catch Me If You Can" received generally positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

. Benjamin further compared the track's breakdowns to the musical styles of Russian–German DJ

and wrote that the song "rise above any mediocre label". He also wrote an article for ''

'' where he compared its musical styles to those of Zedd and American DJ

, labelling it a "smart move".

Chart performance

The Korean version of "Catch Me If You Can" peaked at number 19 on the

and has sold 135,068 digital downloads. It also peaked at number 2 on the US

World Digital Songs The World Digital Song Sales chart (formerly World Digital Songs) is a weekly record chart compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by '' Billboard'' magazine. Established in 2010—with the issue dated January 23—as one of 21 genre-specific ...

chart by ''Billboard'' magazine, becoming the group's highest-charting single on the chart. The Japanese version debuted at number 8 on the Japanese

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

Singles Chart, selling 20,835 physical copies in its first week of release. It becoming the 31st highest-selling CD single of April in Japan, selling 23,167 physical units. It has since sold 28,208 copies in Japan as of January 2017. It additionally charted at number 9 on the

Japan Hot 100 The ''Billboard Japan'' Hot 100 is a record chart in Japan for songs. It has been compiled by ''Billboard Japan'' and '' Hanshin Contents Link'' since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at Billboard-japan.com ( JST) and every Thur ...

by ''Billboard'' Japan. In Taiwan, the single charted atop the

G-Music G-Music Limited is a company built in 2002 by Rose Records and Tachung Records, both are the largest local music retails and wholesale chains in Taiwan. The physical retail arms have been kept separate, for different customer bases and brand ident ...

J-pop chart in the first week of May 2015.

Music videos and promotion

On April 10, 2015,

released the Korean music video on

and other online web-sharing websites, while the Japanese music video was disclosed on the group's Japanese official website. The audio was revealed simultaneously on several South Korean online distributors. Prior to the release, the members of Girls' Generation had promoted the new song on their social network profiles, including

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

and

Sina Weibo Sina Weibo (新浪微博) is a Chinese microblogging ( weibo) website. Launched by Sina Corporation on 14 August 2009, it is one of the biggest social media platforms in China, with over 582 million monthly active users (252 million daily acti ...

. SM Entertainment also started a selfie contest with the hashtag "#catchGG" on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

, accompanying the group's comeback. Following the release of the song, the group did not do any official promotion in South Korea. However, Girls' Generation later performed the song on South Korean music program ''

Show! Music Core ''Show! Music Core'' (), or simply ''Music Core'' is a South Korean music television program broadcast by MBC. It airs live every Saturday at 15:30 (KST). The show features some of the latest and most popular artists who perform live on stage. ...

'', in conjunction with the release of the group's subsequent single "

Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

", in July 2015. They also performed the song on

NTV NTV may refer to: Television * NTV (Bangladesh), a Bengali-language satellite television channel in Bangladesh * NTV (India), Telugu regional channel * NTV (Kenya) * NTV (Mongolia), a television channel based in Mongolia * NTV (Newport Television) ...

's ''Live Monster'' concert in Japan during the same month. The music video for "Catch Me If You Can" was directed by Toshiyuki Suzuki and features the members dancing in white tank tops and orange uniforms at a construction zone. Jeff Benjamin from American music magazine ''

'' described the choreography as "powerful and sexy" and "mind-blowing". He further commented that the members sure "can dance their asses off" and compared the video to

Ciara Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, model and entrepreneur. She released her debut studio album, '' Goodies'' in 2004, which spawned four singles: " Goodies" (featuring Petey Pa ...

's 2009 music video for "

Work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an animal tr ...

" for the same construction zone background and the white tank top look. Similarly, Filipino channel

Myx Myx (, stylized as MYX or myx) is a Philippine pay TV channel based in Quezon City, owned by Creative Programs Inc., a subsidiary of ABS-CBN Corporation. The channel is targeted to youth audiences and primarily airs music videos. It was intr ...

praised the music video's visual, commenting that the group were "keeping it hot with their steamy moves and outfits". In June 2015, an earlier version of the music video featuring ex-member Jessica was unofficially released onto the Internet. It was presumably filmed before she was dismissed from the group in September 2014.

Track listings and formats

Chart

Korean version

Japanese version

Release history

References

External links

* * * {{authority control 2015 singles 2015 songs Girls' Generation songs Korean-language songs Japanese-language songs Songs written by Erik Lidbom Electronic dance music songs SM Entertainment singles Universal Music Japan singles