"Genie" () is a song recorded 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 ...

for their second extended play (EP) of the same name (2009). It was released on June 22, 2009, as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from the EP. Written by

Yoo Young-jin Yoo Young-jin is a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer and vocal trainer under SM Entertainment. He has produced and written songs for H.O.T., S.E.S, BoA, Shinhwa, TVXQ, CSJH The Grace, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, Shinee, ...

, and produced by

Dsign Music Dsign Music is a songwriting and production team. Dsign Music was founded in 2005 by Robin Jenssen, Anne Judith Stokke Wik, Nermin Harambašić and Ronny Vidar Svendsen in Trondheim, Norway. Since the start they have scored more than 60 Billboard ...

, Fridolin Nordso and

, the song is the group's first collaboration with Western composers and producers, which was later encouraged towards their future music. Musically, "Genie" carried on the group's phase of

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 ...

music from their debut. Lyrically, the song discusses the elements of

love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

and relationships, alongside granting the wishes of their partner. It 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 ...

, many of whom highlighted the track as one of the highlights on the EP. The single was well received domestically, achieving the top spots on music programs ''

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 ...

'' and ''

Music Bank Music Bank may refer to: * ''Music Bank'' (TV program), a South Korean music program by KBS **''Music Bank World Tour The ''Music Bank'' World Tour is a worldwide live concert tour of South Korean music show '' Music Bank'' by the Korean Broa ...

''. A Japanese-language version of the song was recorded for the group's eponymous Japanese debut album and was released as their debut single in Japan on September 8, 2010. It was a commercial success in the country, peaking at number four on the

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 ...

and number eight on the

RIAJ Digital Track Chart The was a record chart that ranks the best selling digital singles in Japan, with data provided by the Recording Industry Association of Japan from April 2009. The chart measures cellphone downloads (着うたフル ''Chaku-Uta Full'') (not downlo ...

. The single received

certifications Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

by the

Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pr ...

on three platforms–physical sales (gold), digital sales (platinum), and ''

chaku-uta J-pop ( ja, ジェイポップ, ''jeipoppu''; often stylized as J-POP; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively also known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1 ...

'' (platinum). The song was included on the setlists of Girls' Generation's several concert tours, including Into the New World (2010), The First Japan Arena Tour (2011), and

Girls' Generation Tour ''Girls' Generation Tour'' is the second Concert, concert tour by Koreans, South Korean girl group Girls' Generation. The concert tour kicked off in Seoul and continued in Taipei and Singapore. Girls' Generation performed their first ever concer ...

(2011).

Background and composition

There are two versions of "Genie"; a Korean version, and a Japanese version. Both versions were composed by Norwegian production team

members; Anne Judith Wik, Robin Jenssen, Ronny Svendsen, and Nermin Harambašić, alongside additional composing by Fridolin Nordsø and

. The Korean and Japanese version was written by Yoo Young-jin, whilst the latter having co-written by Kanata Nakamura. Young-jin had originally composed a demo melody for an undisclosed artist outside of the group's label

S.M. 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 ...

. However, S.M. Entertainment purchased the rights for the song and decided to recommend it to Girls' Generation; as a result, Young-jin re-composed the demo whilst Korean composer Yoo Han Jin re-arranged it. The song was originally composed in English as "I Just Wanna Dance", but Young-Jin decided to scrap the idea after both sets of lyrics were written. Both versions were the groups' first singles to be composed and produced by Western producers, and had continued with future musical releases. Musically, both versions carried on the groups phase of

music since their debut in 2007. According to Chucky Eddy from ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'', he found that the composition was inspired by "super-light-footed

Italo disco Italo disco (variously capitalized, and sometimes hyphenated as Italo-disco) is a music genre which originated in Italy in the late 1970s and was mainly produced in the early 1980s. Italo disco evolved from the then-current underground dance, p ...

..." A staff reviewer from ''CD Journal'' noticed musical elements of

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

and said the lyrics incorporates metaphorical uses of a lamp, genie, and Aladdin as themes of

and

lust Lust is a psychological force producing intense desire for something, or circumstance while already having a significant amount of the desired object. Lust can take any form such as the lust for sexuality (see libido), money, or power. It can ...

. Critic Lee Mun-won says that the song employs inspirations from

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

and writes that the song itself is "more sophisticated than authentic

europop Europop (also spelled Euro pop) is a style of pop music that originated in Europe during the mid-to-late 1960s and developed to today's form throughout the late 1970s. Europop topped the charts throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with revivals and ...

Release

"Genie" was released digitally on June 22, 2009, in South Korea. In Japan, the song was released on September 8, 2010, as the group's debut Japanese single. The Japanese Maxi CD and DVD format of the single contains the Japanese version, the Korean version, and the karaoke version of the former. A limited edition CD and DVD format was released in both Japan and Taiwan; it featured a 14-paged booklet of photos, lyrics, and credits to the single, the original Japanese Maxi CD and DVD tracks, all housed in a

digipak Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage. Jewel case A ...

. The cover sleeve for both formats features Girls' Generation in different black and gold dresses, all standing in front of a white backdrop.

Reception

"Genie" received generally positive reviews from

. Chucky Eddy from ''

'' highlighted "Genie" as one of the best tracks from their self-titled album. A staff reviewer from ''CD Journal'' reviewed the group's debut greatest hits album ''

The Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

''. The reviewer commended the track by labelling it an "impressive 'lets dance'" track with "high quality" vocal performances by each member. Another reviewer from the same publication reviewed the single's release, and labelled it "sophisticated". Chris True from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

reviewed the groups biography, and selected "Genie" as one of the best tracks throughout their career. Billboard chose the song as the best song in their career. Commercially, the song reached #5 on

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 ...

Charts on the releasing day. The song reached #2 on September 11, 2010. The single sold 115,575 physical units in Japan in 2010. It was selected by iTunes Japan as the ''#1 Breakthrough Album of 2010'' on ''2010: Music, 2010 BEST'' chart.

Music video

Rino Nakasone Razalan is a Japanese dancer, choreographer, artistic director and actor. Nakasone and her dance crew, Beat Freaks, participated in the third season of '' America's Best Dance Crew'', where they finished in second place. Nakasone has worked as a chor ...

choreographed the dance in all the videos.

Original video

The teaser video was released at 9:20 p.m. ( KST) on June 19, 2009. Later, the original video was released on June 26, 2009. In the music video,

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 ...

appears first sitting in a large lamp, the other members sitting around her. The music video cuts back and forth between the group performing the choreography and scenes from three separate rooms occupied by three different members each. Yoona,

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 ...

and Jessica are in a large pink bedroom, Tiffany,

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 ...

and Sunny are in a disco bar, while

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 ...

and

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 ...

are in a room with a large cake from which

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 ...

then pops out. The girls wear white uniforms and perform on a long runway-like stage with a large heart in the background, while on the other they are in khaki uniforms with the words "GIRLS' GENIE" in the background. The music video frequently shows the girls interacting with the camera and with arms that sometimes extend from either side of the screen to give the impression that the girls are interacting with the viewer personally whereas stage sequences have heavy, flashy lights and moving spotlights to give strong and bright effects. The music video was uploaded on SMTOWN's YouTube channel on February 26, 2010.

3D version

On October 24, 2010, a 3D music video of the Korean version, was released for

Samsung The Samsung Group (or simply Samsung) ( ko, 삼성 ) is a South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous affiliated businesses, most of them united under the ...

PAVV LED TV. The video begins with all nine girls sitting down, looking into crystal balls, then cutting into the beginning of the song with "Girls Generation" written in pink, sparkly lettering. The video features three dance sequences, one of which features a floor with cosmic-like sparkles coming out of it. During the video, it cuts to solo scenes of the girls playing with the crystal balls, inside are a man and a woman standing awkwardly beside each other at a bus stop, beside them is a poster with "I Wish" printed on it, and a red

Mini The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...

Convertible is below it. The girls are then seen changing the couples clothes, and making the Mini appear out of the poster, signifying the girls are 'genies' and granting their wishes. The video ends with the girls waving goodbye to the couple, who then drive off in the car, with the number '37' printed on the side. The outfits worn by the girls follow the typical 'military' style like in the original version, with two costumes being used. While the all white costume with navy-esque hat reappear, the black coat, tie, short-shorts, and white undershirt replaces the khaki uniforms.

Japanese version

The music video teaser was released August 16, 2010, and the full music video was released August 25, 2010, it was also their first video to be filmed in Japan. It begins with a young boy (

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 ...

Chanyeol Park Chan-yeol (; born November 27, 1992), better known mononymously as Chanyeol, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, actor and model. He is a member of the South Korean-Chinese boy group Exo, its sub-group Exo-K and sub-u ...

) who found an old lamp and a scale model of a circus tent in an old attic. After rubbing the lamp, the camera zooms inside the tent where the Girls' Generation can be seen coming to life as the song begins to play. The girls then alternately switch to different costumes as the boy rubs the lamp once again, where in they are seen on an old television screen with a huge candy cane and colorful balloons. The music video ends with the boy rubbing the lamp again before magically disappearing into another scene where he is walking out of a limousine with Girls' Generation members meeting him on the red carpet at a premiere event. It is implied that his wish had been granted by lamp. There are also individual close-up scenes of members dressed in old fashioned pink shirts. Most of the choreography remains the same as the Korean version, with a slight tweak to some of the steps. The difference is that in the Japanese version there are some parts where member Taeyeon moves to the front position to sing her solo verse before going back and rejoining the other girls to form a line. While in the Korean version, Taeyeon does not do this. Also, all the girls pose with a

hand salute A salute is usually a formal hand gesture or other action used to display respect in military situations. Salutes are primarily associated with the military and law enforcement, but many civilian organizations, such as Girl Guides, Boy Sco ...

at the end. In the Korean version, only member Seohyun does it as her "end pose". A dance version was also released which features the girls wearing their brown soldier uniforms which were one of the costumes that they wore in the music video.

Live performances

On stage, the girls were given a "

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

" concept for their performance of "Genie", dressing mostly in tight military

jacket A jacket is a garment for the upper body, usually extending below the hips. A jacket typically has sleeves, and fastens in the front or slightly on the side. A jacket is generally lighter, tighter-fitting, and less insulating than a coat, which ...

miniskirt A miniskirt (sometimes hyphenated as mini-skirt, separated as mini skirt, or sometimes shortened to simply mini) is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than below the buttocks; and a ...

s, and/or

hot pants Hotpants or hot pants are extremely short shorts. The term was first used by ''Women's Wear Daily'' in 1970 to describe shorts made in luxury fabrics such as velvet and satin for fashionable wear, rather than their more practical equivalents th ...

. The colours were mostly white navy shirts,

khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage relative to sandy ...

brown, and red,연예 – 기사내용 – "지금이 소녀시대일까?…아직, 우리시대는 멀었다" (인터뷰)
. Sportsseoul.com (June 13, 2010). Retrieved on 2011-10-30. although various uniforms were shown. The group wished to show a mature image, in comparison to the innocence portrayed during "Gee". The choreography of the song, done by

, was focused on synchronization and seductive images. Parts of the choreography became popular in Korea, including the "Jegi-kicking dance" () and the "Leg-beauty dance" (). Girls' Generation 2012

The song has been performed on two

SM Town SM Town (stylized as SMTOWN) is a musical collective for the recording artists under South Korean entertainment company SM Entertainment. SM Town artists have performed at the annual SM Town Live world tours since the SM Town Live '08 Asia tour ...

tours, In

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, using the "Rock Tronic" remix, which was also used on their first tour, and then again in 2011 for the continuation of the 2010 SMTown tour. The remix contains a rock inspired dance-break, where the girls perform in-sync routines, the echo of the line "Sowoneul Marhaebwa" (''"Tell me your wish"'') can be heard, also. The group's first performance for the mini-album was on June 26 on KBS ''

''.소녀시대, 25일 두 번째 싱글 '소원을 말해봐' 공개
(''Girls' Generation'', Second Single "Genie" Released on 22nd). ''CNB News''. June 22, 2009. Retrieved June 23, 2009. Within a few days, the song topped on 10 different digital music charts. The song was also rewarded as the most popular album and ringtone downloads. "Genie" was featured as the opening number for the Girls' first Japan tour, and on the 2nd Asia tour. The performance begins with the girls appearing from an odd-shaped cocoon-like prop, where they are assembled in the shape of a pyramid; Taeyeon on top, followed by Jessica and Tiffany, then the remaining girls, Seohyun, Hyoyeon, Sunny, Yoona, Yuri and Sooyoung, on the third level. The song starts with Taeyeon singing the first line of Genie, and then is repeated by Jessica, Tiffany and Yoona, and then again by the remaining girls, then, the girls begin to sing the song. The remix features a rap interlude performed by Tiffany; "Welcome to my show, it's a revolution, this is my Girls' Generation / Everyone rock with me, take it in all right / Get hype! Jump! Let's party all night / I know we the ones to make you super crazy / Wanna be your genie more than one night / Watchin' me, feelin' me, callin' my name / I just want you and me to feel the same / Come on and move it, put your hands up in the air / Everybody lose control, and hands up in the air." After the rap, Tiffany replaces the word "DJ" in the line "DJ, put it back on," with the specific city, or venue, they are performing at. When they performed at Japan, for example, Tiffany would say, "Japan, put it back on!". During their performance of the song at the 62nd NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen in 2011, Tiffany says "Akagumi, put it back on!" as they were part of the all-female ''Akagumi'' (red team). On January 14, 2013, they performed the song on the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

' Dream K-Pop Fantasy Concert, Tiffany said, "Philippines, put it back on!".

Other versions and plagiarism issues

Issues of

plagiarism Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...

were caused by Uzbek singer Dineyra's song "Raqsga Tushgin." It was revealed that although the release of her song preceded the release of Girls' Generation's second mini-album, the Uzbekistan singer's song was recorded without obtaining proper permission from

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...

, thus plagiarizing "Genie". On May 19, 2010,

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

singer Nathalie Makoma released her second single named "I Just Wanna Dance." However, Nathalie sings the original English lyrics that were written for the song. On June 3, 2011, British singer C.J. Lewis released an English version of "Genie". In November 2012, Korean artist Goomrrat (Pasha) produced a fan-made skin for ''

League of Legends ''League of Legends'' (''LoL''), commonly referred to as ''League'', is a 2009 multiplayer online battle arena video game developed and published by Riot Games. Inspired by ''Defense of the Ancients'', a Mod (video games), custom map for War ...

'' champion Ahri, whose Classic version's dance emote is the dance from ''Run Devil Run'', which was named Generation Ahri and featured Ahri in the ''Genie'' naval uniform outfit from the music video. By popular demand, developer

Riot Games Riot Games, Inc. is an American video game developer, publisher and esports tournament organizer based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in September 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill to develop ''League of Legends'' and went on t ...

created an official equivalent based on it, Popstar Ahri, which was released worldwide on November 25, 2013, and has the dance from ''Genie'' as the dance emote.Popstar Ahri's Spirit Rush Tour starts today! (Release Announcement by Riot Wenceslaus)
''

''.com

Awards

Track listing

;CD single – # "Genie" (Japanese version) – 3:44 # "Genie" (Korean version) – 3:49 # "Genie" ( Without main vocal) – 3:44 ;DVD – # "Genie" (Music video) # "Genie" (Music video – Dance version) (First Press only)

Credits

Credits are adapted from Japanese CD single liner notes. * Girls' Generation –

vocal The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production i ...

background vocal Background may refer to: Performing arts and stagecraft * Background actor * Background artist * Background light * Background music * Background story * Background vocals * ''Background'' (play), a 1950 play by Warren Chetham-Strode Record ...

* Yoo Young-jin – producer, songwriter, translator (Korean),

audio mixing Audio mixing is the process by which multiple sounds are combined into one or more channels. In the process, a source's volume level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated or enhanced. This practical, aesthetic, ...

, recording, background vocals * Kanata Nakamura – songwriter, translator (Japanese) * Yoo Han-jin – arrangement * Fujino Shigeki – mastering * Nermin Harambašić - songwriter * Fridolin Nordso – songwriter * Anne Judith Wik – songwriter * Robin Jenssen – songwriter * Ronny Svendsen – songwriter

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Genie (Song) 2009 singles 2010 singles Girls' Generation songs Jinn in popular culture Korean-language songs Japanese-language songs SM Entertainment singles 2009 songs Bubblegum pop songs Songs written by Yoo Young-jin