The Boys (Girls' Generation song)
Girls' Generation's lead single from their third Korean album.
"The Boys" is a song by South Korean girl group Girls' Generation, released as the lead single from their third Korean studio album of the same name. The Korean version was issued on October 18, 2011, by SM Entertainment, and an English version followed on December 20, 2011, through Interscope Records and Universal Music Group to broaden the group's reach outside South Korea. The song peaked atop the Gaon Digital Chart in South Korea and sold over three million digital copies in 2011.
Quick Facts
- Artist
- Girls' Generation
- Album
- The Boys
- Released
- 18 October 2011
- Recorded
- 2011
- Studio
- SM Booming System (Seoul)
- Genre
- Dance-pop
- electropop
- R&B
- Label
- SM; Interscope
- Lyricist
- Yoo Young-jin (Korean)
- Teddy Riley (English)
- Hidenori Tanaka, Nozomi Maezawa (Japanese)
Facts from the source article.
Background and composition
"The Boys" was composed and arranged by Teddy Riley, Taesung Kim, DOM, and Richard Garcia. The Korean lyrics were written by Yoo Young-jin, while Riley wrote the English version. The song was released as a digital single worldwide on October 18, 2011, by SM Entertainment. A digital extended play containing the English version and remixes came out on December 20, 2011, under exclusive license to Universal Music Group, and a maxi single followed on December 21, 2011. A remix produced by Clinton Sparks and The Disco Fries featuring Snoop Dogg appeared on the US edition. A Japanese version, written by Hidenori Tanaka and Nozomi Maezawa, was included on the reissue of the group's debut Japanese album, retitled The Boys and released on December 28, 2011. To promote the group in Western countries, SM Entertainment signed Girls' Generation with Interscope Records. In an interview, member Tiffany stated that recording both versions took one week. Musically, the song is dance-pop, electropop, and R&B with hip hop elements, featuring military-style drum breakdowns and vocal harmonies. The lyrics, as described in a book on the Korean Wave, portray confident, sexually daring girls who enjoy male attention.
Promotion
From October to December 2011, Girls' Generation promoted "The Boys" on South Korean music shows like Music Bank, Show! Music Core, Inkigayo, and M Countdown. To connect with American listeners, they performed the song at Madison Square Garden in New York on October 23, 2011, during an SM Town concert with other SM Entertainment artists. In February 2012, the group made their US television debut, performing the English version on Late Show with David Letterman and Live! with Kelly and Michael on February 1. American media had mixed reactions: some praised the performances, while others criticized the members for lip syncing or expressed dislike. The music video, directed by Hong Won-ki with choreography by Rino Nakasone, came out on October 19, 2011. It gained 13 million YouTube views in its first week and later exceeded 100 million, making Girls' Generation the first girl group to have three music videos reach that milestone as of September 2014.
Reception
In South Korea, "The Boys" was a hit, topping the charts on Music Bank, Inkigayo, and M Countdown, with a six-week run at number one on Music Bank. It also reached number one on the Gaon Digital Chart and sold over 3.032 million digital downloads in 2011, making it the 10th best-selling single and the 43rd best-performing single on the Gaon Chart. The song additionally peaked at number one on the Billboard Korea K-Pop Hot 100. In the United States, it hit number 5 on the Hot Dance Singles Sales and number 15 on Hot Singles Sales, selling 21,000 copies in its first week. In Japan, it charted at number 12 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100. Critics mostly gave it positive reviews. Katherine St Asaph of Popdust rated it three and a half out of five stars, liking the production but finding the chorus unmemorable. Jen Erenza described it as a foot-stomping, girl-powered track. AllMusic's Tim Sendra called it the best song on the album, while Chris True highlighted both the original and its remix as standout tracks. Jaeki Cho of Vibe compared the group to the Spice Girls meeting the Pussycat Dolls and recommended the song. Several reviewers, including an editor from Us Weekly and a writer for McClure's Asia Music News, predicted the group would succeed in the Western market.
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