''1 Billion Views'' is the first
studio album by duo
Exo-SC
Exo-SC (; stylized as EXO-SC) is the second official sub-unit of South Korean–Chinese boy band Exo. Formed by SM Entertainment in 2019, the group is composed of two Exo members: Chanyeol and Sehun. Their debut extended play '' What a Life'' w ...
, the second official sub-unit of South Korean–Chinese boy group
Exo. It was released on July 13, 2020, 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 ...
, and features nine tracks.
The album debuted at number one on the
Gaon Album Chart
The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart
The Circle C ...
, and was the duo's first top-ten entry on the
Oricon Albums Chart
The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon ...
, peaking at number ten in its first week.
To promote the album, "Telephone" was released as a pre-release single on July 7, 2020, while the eponymous title track served as the second single on July 13, 2020. The latter earned the duo their first top-thirty entry on the
Gaon Digital Chart
The Circle Digital Chart, previously known as the Gaon Digital Chart, is the music industry standard record chart ranking the 200 most popular singles in South Korea. It provides rankings on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, which is based o ...
since their debut.
Background and release
On June 9, SM confirmed that EXO-SC were preparing to release a new album in July. On June 23, the album's release date and title were announced along with a teaser image of the digital cover.
On July 1, a teaser image of the album's track list and schedule was released. On July 2, five teaser images of
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- ...
were released, with another five images of
Sehun
Se-hun, also spelled Se-hoon or Sei-hoon, is a Korean masculine given name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 15 hanja with the reading "se" and 12 hanja with the reading "hun" on the South Korea ...
released the next day. On July 3, it was reported that the duo participated in writing the lyrics of every song on the album and helped compose the tracks "Telephone", "Fly Away" and "On Me". On July 4, five teaser images of both Sehun and Chanyeol were released. On July 6, teaser images of the duo both together and individually were released. On the same day, it was reported that the album features two solo tracks: "Nothin'", sung by Chanyeol and "On Me", sung by Sehun. On July 7, two teaser images of the duo were released.
On the same day, "Telephone" featuring
10cm was released digitally along with a music video. On July 8, teaser images of both members were released, along with the music video for "Nothin'", a solo track by Chanyeol. On July 9, the music video for Sehun's solo track "On Me" was released. On July 12, "1 Billion Views" music video teaser was released. On July 13, the album was officially released along with "1 Billion Views" music video.
Composition and production
The album opens with the titular "1 Billion Views", a trendy
hip hop song with a funky guitar sound and addictive disco rhythm. Featuring fellow singer Moon, the song finds the duo "wanting to see one's loved one" by playing their video repeatedly. The second track "Say It", featuring
Penomeco
Jeong Dong-uk (Korean: 정동욱; born October 7, 1992), better known by his stage name, Penomeco (Korean: 페노메코), is a South Korean rapper and singer-songwriter. He released his debut single "Right There" on October 16, 2014. He also relea ...
(who also co-wrote the lyrics), is described as a hip hop song that combines a heavy 808 base and bossa nova rhythm in order to "feel the summer vibe".
"Telephone", featuring
10cm, is described as hip hop song with a cheerful piano riff and a heavy bass beat.
"Fly away", featuring
Gaeko
Kim Yoon-sung (born January 14, 1981), known professionally as Gaeko (, literally ''dog's snout'') is a South Korean hip hop recording artist. He and Choiza
Choi Jae-ho (; born March 17, 1980), known professionally as Choiza (), is a South ...
who also participated in composing the song, is described as an r&b hip-hop song based on sentimental lyrical band sounds.
"Nothin'", Chanyeol's solo song, in which he participated in both writing and composing, is described as a hip hop
R&B song with a harmony between the dreamy vibe electric guitar sounds and the heavy beats. The lyrics are about one's determination to go on their own way silently and without paying attention to the surroundings.
"On Me", Sehun's solo, in which he participated in both writing and composing, is described as a trap hip hop song with a rhythmical bass & strong synthesizer. The lyrics contain a message of "I'll do my best in every present moment".
"Rodeo Station" is a hip hop song which combines simple guitar riffs and casual beats. In the lyrics, Sehun and Chanyeol look back on their past and present lives and recalling the scenery around Apgujeong Rodeo Station during their trainee days.
"Jet Lag" is a charming R&B hip hop song with a lyrical guitar performance with lyrics about the main character who's in a relationship where they can't meet their loved one easily, and both parts feel like their love is growing apart because of the time they spend away from each other.
Track listing
Charts
Accolades
Music program awards
Sales
Certifications
Release history
See also
*
List of Gaon Album Chart number ones of 2020
The Gaon Album Chart is a South Korean record chart that ranks the best-selling albums and extended play, EPs in South Korea. It is part of the Gaon Music Chart, which launched in February 2010. The data is compiled by the Ministry of Culture, Spor ...
References
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2020 debut albums
SM Entertainment albums
Korean-language albums
IRiver albums