Beast (비스트, stylized as BEAST or B2ST) is a boy band from South Korea that consists of six members, under Cube Entertainment. The members are Yoon Doo Joon, Jang Hyun Seung, Yong Jun Hyung, Yang Yo Seob, Lee Gi Kwang and Son Dong Woon. The group was originally known as B2ST, an acronym for Boys 2 Search the Top.[1] However, their name was changed to BEAST (Boys of East Standing Tall).[2] They released their first mini-album Beast Is The B2ST on October 14, 2009.[3]2009: Debut
In late 2009, news articles started to surface online about Cube Entertainment's new group, B2ST (pronounced as "Beast"),[4] which was later renamed as BEAST (Boys of East Standing Tall).[2] Their journey leading up to debut was showcased in their MTV documentary MTV B2ST.[1] On October 14, 2009, the group's first mini-album, Beast Is The B2ST, was released, selling over 20,000 copies in October 2009.[5] Cube Entertainment revealed that they had sold all the albums they printed in the first batch and was able to produce 5,000 more. It went on to sell for an overall 40,000 copies. This brought the music industry's attention to the group considering a success for rookie artists is usually defined when they reach 10,000 in sales.[3] On October 15, 2009, Beast held a debut showcase at the MTV GongGae Hall[2] and on the following day, October 16, the group made their live debut on KBS Music Bank with their debut track, "Bad Girl".[6] On December 2, 2009, Beast won their first award, Rookie of the Month for December, which was awarded by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.[7]
[edit]2010: Shock Of The New Era
Cube Entertainment announced on January 4, 2010 that Beast, along with labelmate 4minute, had concluded a mutual signing ceremony with world-wide album company Universal Music Group for their international promotions and album launches. [8] On January 23, 2010, Beast commenced their international promotions in Taiwan with 4minute.[9] The group was awarded with the Best Newcomer Award at the 19th Seoul Music Awards on February 3, 2010.[10]
The group's second mini-album, Shock Of The New Era, was scheduled for release on March 2, 2010 but was released a day earlier after being leaked on Youtube.[11] Despite the leak, the album climbed the Korean music charts[12] and quickly sold 20,000 copies.[13] Reviews of the title track "Shock" described it has having both powerful vocals and an overall strong sound,[14] with the live performances incorporating a complex VTach dance routine.[15] On March 25, 2010, Beast presented a different image by singing an orchestra version of the sad ballad 'Despite Holding On' by Korean group Noel, and were subsequently recognized as a boy group with outstanding singing ability.[16] On the same day, Beast received their first number-one win on Mnet’s ‘M! Countdown’ with 'Shock'.[17] On April 14th, 2010, the group released a self-made music video for their track 'Take Care of My Girlfriend (Say No)' as a gift to their fans.[18]
In the third episode of their MTV documentary B2ST Almighty, the group released a self-made parody video to their single 'Mystery' as a response to fan demand. Popular Korean girl groups Girls' Generation and Kara were featured in the video along with the Beast members.[19] A digital single version of their track ‘Easy’ was released on April 29, 2010 with the title ‘Easy (Sincere Ver.)’. The track used strings and piano as opposed to the hip-hop feel and electronic instruments of the original.[20]
After their first ever appearance in Singapore, the Shock of the New Era album was certified into the Gold Disk category.[21] On August 10, 2010, BEAST received the Golden Disk Award from Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand at the '2010 Summer CUBE Stars Party' at Seoul, Samseongdong in the Samyu Center Event Hall.[22] Beast and 4minute became the first Korean artists to be invited to perform on Singapore Youth Olympic pre-opening stage on August 13, 2010.[23] Beast was awarded with the Cool Star Award on 2010 Mnet 20's Choice Awards on August 26, 2010,[24] where American R&B musician Omarion made a surprise appearance as a guest onstage when Beast received their award. Omarion had also performed a special showcase with Beast after seeing their performances.[25]
No comments:
Post a Comment