| “ |
Hello, we are B.A.P! Yes sir! Nice to meet you! |
” |
| —B.A.P | ||
B.A.P was a boy group formed by TS Entertainment. They debuted on January 26, 2012 with their first single "Warrior". Their name is an acronym for "Best Absolute Perfect".
On February 17, 2019, the agency stated that the four remaining members of B.A.P, following the departures of Bang Yongguk in August 2018, and Zelo in December 2018, have all elected to not renew their contracts with agency.[1]
History[]
Pre-debut[]
Before this, leader Yongguk was already under TS Entertainment where he collaborated with Song Ji Eun of Secret for the song "Going Crazy". He also made a solo debut in 2011 with the single "I Remember" which featured BEAST's Yoseob. A couple of month's later he joined up with Zelo as the duo Bang & Zelo and they released "Never Give Up".
In January 2012 the reality show Ta-Dah, It's B.A.P, aired and followed the members journey to debut with their song Warrior. The concept for the group was that they were aliens from the Planet Mato and had been sent to Earth to save their dying planet. Each member had their own matoki which represented them and they were as follows:
| Member | Color | Matoki |
|---|---|---|
| Yongguk | Red | Shishimato |
| Himchan | Pink | Tatsmato |
| Daehyun | White | Kekemato |
| Youngjae | Yellow | Jokomato |
| Jongup | Green | Dadamato |
| Zelo | Blue | Totomato |
2012: Debut, "Power", No Mercy, & "Stop It"[]
When their debut song was released, many people appreciated B.A.P's differences from other K-Pop groups at that time. Unlike the pretty-boy image that dominated the Korean music scene, B.A.P brought a tough bad-boy image. This difference in style and image landed B.A.P on the Billboard's World Albums Chart at #10 and they managed to sell 10,000 copies of Warrior in two days. They followed up with "Secret Love" in March and "Power" in April.
On July 19, 2012, they released No Mercy which was a digital release with the physical release delayed till July 24 because of problems with the final product. In August they released their first repackaged mini album Crash and in October they released "Stop It".
2013: One Shot, Badman, Japanese debut[]
In February, they began releasing material from the second mini album, One Shot. On February 21, 2013, the mini album was ranked No.1 on Billboard’s ‘World Albums’ chart.
On July 28, 2013, TS announced that the group will be releasing their third mini album Badman on August 6, 2013. The agency had also stated before that there were going to be three promotional singles from the upcoming third mini album, namely "Coffee Shop", "Hurricane" and "Badman".
In May, King Records, the Japanese record label that once signed Rain, signed up the group. They released their first Japanese music video, "Warrior", on YouTube on September 13, 2013, and their album and single were officially released on October 9, 2013.
2014–2015: First Sensibility, "B.A.P Unplugged 2014", lawsuit[]
In January 2014, B.A.P's comeback was confirmed with the set release of their first full length album First Sensibility. On February 3, B.A.P made their comeback with "1004 (Angel)".
After successful promotions of "1004 (Angel)", B.A.P kicked off their B.A.P Live On Earth 2014 Continent Tour with a two day concert in Seoul. This was B.A.P's 2nd solo concert in Korea within only two years of debut. It is estimated that 20,000 global fans were able to enjoy the concert at real-time with B.A.P. B.A.P held a total of 23 concerts in cities throughout the United States, Asia, Australia, and Europe during this tour.
While on tour, B.A.P made a special release of a single as a gift to their fans "B.A.P Unplugged 2014". The single album feature instrumental songs for the first time and was meant to thank their fans for the continuous love and support. This single was not promoted but still managed to rank really well.
On August 11, B.A.P released their fourth Japanese single "Excuse Me". TS Entertainment announced on October 27 that they have cancelled the South American leg of the group's tour to give time off for the members to rest and recharge.
On November 26, 2014, all six members of B.A.P filed a lawsuit against TS Entertainment on the grounds that their contracts went against what was outlined by the Fair Trade Commission on the prevention of 'slave contracts'.[2] They stated that the contract was designed so that it was beneficial only to the agency and not the members. It was also said that the boys only received 18,000,000 KRW each over the length of 3 years, despite their various activities.[2] TS Entertainment issued a press release the following day refuting the claims made, stating that “there have been neither such maltreatment to the artists nor unfair clauses in the contract.”[2] However, TS Entertainment's claims were challenged when B.A.P released another statement claiming lack of accountability and the group is considering filing for defamation of character. The group held their first court trial on the March 16, 2015.[3]
On August 1, 2015, the group returned to TS Entertainment after both parties reached a settlement.
2015–2016: Return with Matrix, Carnival, "Put'Em Up", & Noir[]
B.A.P released their fourth mini album Matrix on November 16, 2015, nearly a year since they filed lawsuit against their agency.
On February 22, 2016, the group released their fifth mini album Carnival.
On March 30, they released their first Japanese studio album Best. Absolute. Perfect.[4]
On July 13, they came back with their fifth Japanese single "Feel So Good".[5]
On August 8, B.A.P released their fifth single album "Put'Em Up".
On November 7, they released their second studio album Noir.
On December 7, the group released their sixth Japanese single "Fly High".[6]
2017–2019: "Rose", "Blue", "Ego", Japanese releases, and disbandment[]
On March 7, 2017, B.A.P released their sixth single album "Rose".
On April 26, they returned with their sixth Japanese single "Wake Me Up".[7]
On September 5, they released their seventh single album "Blue".
On September 20, the group released their eighth Japanese single "Honeymoon".[8]
On December 13, the group released their eighth single album "Ego".
On January 3, 2018, they released their ninth Japanese single "Hands Up".[9]
On March 28, B.A.P released their third Japanese studio album Massive.[10]
On August 23, TS released a statement revealing that Bang Yongguk's contract with them had ended on August 19. Following his departure from the group, B.A.P will continue as a five-member group.[11]
On November 2, it was revealed that B.A.P would be releasing a special album which consists of the solo tracks performed at their contracts called B.A.P Concert Special Solo 'The Recollection'.[12] The album was then released on November 4.
On November 28, B.A.P. released their first Japanese best album titled B.A.P The Best -Japanese Version-.[13]
On December 24, Zelo was confirmed to have left the group as his contract with their agency ended on December 2.[14]
On February 17, 2019, TS Entertainment stated that the four remaining members of B.A.P have all elected to not renew their contracts with the agency, making B.A.P a disbanded group.[1] However, members Daehyun and Jongup confirmed the possibility of reunion in the future.[15]
Members[]
| Name | Position(s) | Years active |
|---|---|---|
| Bang Yongguk (방용국) | Leader, Main Rapper | 2012–Aug. 2018 |
| Him Chan (힘찬) | Vocalist, Rapper, Visual | 2012–2019 |
| Dae Hyun (대현) | Main Vocalist, Face of the Group | 2012–2019 |
| Young Jae (영재) | Lead Vocalist | 2012–2019 |
| Jong Up (종업) | Main Dancer, Vocalist | 2012–2019 |
| Zelo (젤로) | Lead Rapper, Lead Dancer, Maknae | 2012–Dec. 2018 |
Sub-units[]
Discography[]
Korean[]Studio albums[]
Mini albums[]
Special albums[]
Single albums[]
Digital singles[]
|
Japanese[]Studio albums[]
Best albums[]
Singles[]
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Concerts[]
World tours[]
- B.A.P Live On Earth 2016 World Tour (2016)
- B.A.P 2017 World Tour 'Party Baby' (2017)
Japan tours[]
- B.A.P 1st Japan Tour Warrior Begins (2013)
- B.A.P 2nd Japan Tour: Be. Act. Play (2017)
Awards and nominations[]
2012[]
| Awarding Body | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Disk Awards | New Rising Star (Digital) | Won |
| Popularity Award | Nominated | |
| Single Album Award | Nominated | |
| Melon Music Awards | Rookie of the Year (Male Category) | Won |
| Mnet Asian Music Awards | Mnet PD's Choice Award | Won |
| Best New Male Artist | Nominated | |
| Artist of the Year | Nominated | |
| Seoul Music Awards | Best New Artist | Won |
2013[]
| Awarding Body | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards | Best Male Rookie | Won |
| Golden Disk Awards | Song Award (Badman) | Nominated |
| Popularity Award | Nominated | |
| Seoul Music Awards | Bonsang Award (One Shot) | Won |
| Popularity Award | Nominated |
2014[]
| Awarding Body | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards | World Rookie | Won |
Trivia[]
- Their fandom name B.A.B.Y is an acronym for "Baby Always Behind You".
Gallery[]
.png "B.A.P Unplugged 2014 group promo photo (1).png (1.03 MB)")
.png "B.A.P Unplugged 2014 group promo photo (2).png (1.48 MB)")
.png "B.A.P Blue group teaser photo (1).png (1.1 MB)")
.png "B.A.P Blue group teaser photo (2).png (1.54 MB)")
References[]
Official links[]
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