''Hey Mama!'' is the debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

Exo-CBX Exo-CBX ( ''Exo-Chen-Baek-Xi''; stylized as EXO-CBX) is the first official sub-unit of South Korean–Chinese boy band Exo. Formed by SM Entertainment in 2016, the group is composed of three Exo members: Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin. Their debut e ...

, the first official sub-unit of the South Korean-Chinese boy group

Exo Exo ( ko, 엑소; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean-Chinese boy band based in Seoul formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. The group consists of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai ...

. It was released on October 31, 2016, 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 ...

under distribution by KT Music. The EP features five tracks in total with a variety of genres.

Background and release

On October 24, 2016, SM Entertainment announced that Chen,

Baekhyun Byun Baek-hyun (; born May 6, 1992), better known mononymously as Baekhyun, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actor. Baekhyun began training under SM Entertainment in 2011. A few months later, he made his debut in 2012 as a member of the ...

and

Xiumin Kim Min-seok (; born March 26, 1990), better known by his stage name Xiumin (; ), is a South Korean singer and actor. He is best known as a member of the South Korean-Chinese boy band Exo, its sub-group Exo-M and its sub-unit Exo-CBX. He debute ...

would debut as Exo's first official sub-unit Exo-CBX with an extended play titled ''Hey Mama!''. On October 25, a teaser for the music video of the title track "Hey Mama!" was revealed. On October 27, a highlight medley, featuring previews of the album's tracks, premiered on

Apple Music Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Apple M ...

's Beats 1. The album and the title track's music video were released on October 31. On November 7, 2016, SM Entertainment released the music video for the second single "The One" in their official YouTube account.

Promotion

A promotional event for ''Hey Mama!'' was held at 8PM ( KST) on October 31 on a special stage located at the east side of Samseong-dong COEX in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. The event was live streamed on Exo's V App channel. Exo-CBX made their debut performance on ''

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 November 3, and subsequently performed the song on '' Music Bank'' and ''

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. ...

''. On November 5, 2016, Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!" at ''

You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook ''You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook'' () is a South Korean talk show and live music television program airing from April 24 2009 until July 22nd 2022. It was hosted by You Hee-yeol, also known as his one-man band, Toy. The program has aired since April ...

''. On November 18, 2016, the group performed "Hey Mama!", "The One", and "Cherish" at the OGN World Championship N-Pop Showcase. On February 18, 2017, Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!", and "The One" at the K-Drama Fest in

Pyeongchang Pyeongchang (; in full, ''Pyeongchang-gun'' ; ) is a county in the province of Gangwon-do, South Korea, located in the Taebaek Mountains region. It is home to several Buddhist temples, including Woljeongsa. It is about east southeast of Seou ...

. The group performed the Japanese version of "Hey Mama!" as well as "The One" and "Cherish" at the 2017 Girls Awards on May 3, 2017. Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!" on ''Music Bank'' on May 19, 2017, in Jeonju in honor of ''FIFA U-20 World Cup''. On August 26, 2017, Exo-CBX performed the Japanese version of "Hey Mama!", "Cherish", on a''-nation'' concert in Japan.

Critical reception

''Hey Mama!'' debuted atop the ''

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 ...

'' World Albums Chart and the South Korean Gaon weekly album chart.

Commercial performance

The album sold 275,000 copies in 2016. ''Hey Mama!'' became the highest selling album by a sub-unit in 2016 in

Gaon Chart Gaon may refer to * Gaon (Hebrew), a non-formal title given to certain Jewish Rabbis ** Geonim, presidents of the two great Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita ** Vilna Gaon, known as ''the'' Gaon of Vilnius. * Gaon Music Chart, record chart ...

with 275,191 copies and in Hanteo with 202,281 copies sold.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Year-end charts

Sales

Accolades

Music program awards

Release history

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2016 debut EPs SM Entertainment EPs Korean-language EPs Dance-pop EPs Electronic EPs Genie Music EPs Exo-CBX EPs