“BIG BANG’s No.1 = A rise in favorability?”… Korean media pointed out YG’s shamelessness in their comment on recent BIG BANG’s achievement

Korean media considered YG’s statement, “Public’s favorability over BIG BANG has increased”, a shameless self-evaluation.

On April 15th, YG Entertainment published an article that analyzed the secret of BIG BANG’s popularity under the title, “BIG BANG swallowed up music charts. What made them different?”.

Accordingly, BIG BANG’s digital single “Still Life” has topped Melon and other domestic music sites for such a long time. Regarding this, YG said, “An extraordinary thing has happened in the music industry. The number of people searching for and listening to our artists’ music has increased again and their popularity has gone beyond the fandom limit. It’s been a while since a song, which is considered a ‘No.1 song that is worth the No.1 spot’, was released and received huge love from both men and women of all ages”.

As a result of the music video streaming analysis on Youtube, BIG BANG’s “Still Life” listeners accounted for the largest proportion with about 39% of direct searches, not through algorithm recommendation. YG emphasized, “Compared to results of previous works, this song has helped BIG BANG increase their popularity and likeability”.

Of course, if we take a look at the figures that “Still Life” has achieved, we can’t help but admit BIG BANG’s increased popularity. Despite their 4-year hiatus, it would not be easy to beat all other famous singers at once to dominate the No.1 spot on all music charts. 

Maybe this was possible because they are BIG BANG. BIG BANG debuted in 2006 and made history in K-pop with numerous hit songs, such as “Lie”, “Last Farewell”, “HARU HARU”, “FANTASTIC BABY”, “BANG BANG BANG”, etc. In addition, BIG BANG members are also well-recognized individually and ranked in the top stars level. Therefore, BIG BANG’s No.1 domination had already been expected even before they released the song.

However, not many people agree with YG’s self-evaluation of “increased favorability”.  BIGBANG may have successful music careers, but the personal life of each member was a series of rumors and scandals.

Earlier, G-Dragon and T.O.P caused controversy when spotted smoking marijuana and Daesung was reported for alleged tax evasion and illegal adult entertainment establishments operating in a building owned by him. In particular, former member Seung-ri was a key figure in the “Burning Sun Case” scandal, which caused a big stir in society. Tae-yang was the only one who didn’t get involved in many controversies.

Nevertheless, BIGBANG made a comeback without a proper apology, and it seems that they are trying to wrap it up, saying that they have gained popularity and favorability with the top-ranked title and increased search volume.

Popularity and favorability are clearly separate. Previously, MC the Max vocalist Lee Soo, who released an album after his self-reflection on charges of soliciting an underage prostitute, also dominated the music charts. MC Mong, who was embroiled in controversies about avoidance of military service, is the same. If that’s the case, would you say that they have also increased their favorability?

Obviously, music alone cannot cover up a series of controversies. Before praising “BIG BANG is BIG BANG” and “Favorability has increased” just because they are getting good results, think about their future image and attitude they’ll show in the future.