[일간스포츠=이미현 기자] It was a concert that only BIGBANG could pull off. Fans from all around the world came to Sangam-dong to celebrate the 10^th anniversary of BIGBANG. The five members of BIGBANG on the stage and 65,000 fans in the audience all shone bright like stars.

At 7 PM on August 20, “BIGBANG10 THE CONCERT: 0.TO.10” took place at the World Cup Stadium in Sangam-dong to celebrate the 10^th anniversary of BIGBANG’s debut. BIGBANG debuted exactly ten years ago on August 19, and they decided to hold a large-scale concert to share the joy with their fans.

A whopping 65,000 fans from in and out of Korea flocked to Sangam-dong. Originally, the concert was to hold only 60,000 people, but because there were so many requests from those who couldn’t get tickets, extra tickets for the restricted-view seats were opened for sale later on. Not only Korean fans but also fans from all around the world came to see BIGBANG on the stage.

◆BIGBANG heated up the stage from the very beginning.

BIGBANG kicked off the concert with “HEAVEN”. The audience went wild as soon as the concert started. BIGBANG was covered in sweat even when they were singing their first song. After “HEAVEN”, BIGBANG sang “WE LIKE TO PARTY” and “HANDS UP”. They ran about the stage trying to make eye contact with those on the second and third floor and even those in restricted-view seats.

BIGBANG has been around for ten years now, and so, they had no trouble making witty introductions at the beginning of the concert. G-DRAGON introduced himself, “Hello, I’m G-DRAGON, and I’ve been leading BIGBANG for ten years now.” T.O.P said, “Your lights are making our hearts warm. Let’s rock the night away.” DAESUNG shouted out, “It’s already hot tonight. But let’s make it hotter!”

After BIGBANG sang “BAD BOY” and “LOSER”, SEUNGRI turned into a DJ and played a medley of their hit songs. “We have so many songs that we couldn’t sing them all at a concert”, SEUNGRI explained why he prepared his special DJing performance. The medley included a number of BIGBANG’s hit songs such as “FEAR”, “LOLLIPOP”, and “STILL ALIVE” and made the audience very happy.

◆BIGBANG is great together and apart.

What followed afterwards was a thing that only BIGBANG could do. SEUNGRI performed his solo singles “LET’S TALK ABOUT LOVE” and “STRONG BABY”. DAESUNG sang “WINGS” and “LOOK AT ME GWISOON”. Then the two sang G-DRAGON’s “CROOKED” to the surprise of the audience.

G-DRAGON performed “HEARTBREAKER” and “CRAYON” for his solo stage. Then he sang “HIGH HIGH” with T.O.P and “GOOD BOY” with TAEYANG. His charisma on the stage made the audience go wild and proved that he is indeed a star.

Then it was T.O.P’s turn. He sang “ACT LIKE NOTHING IS WRONG” and “DOOM DADA”. Next, TAEYANG performed “EYES, NOSE, LIPS”, “LOOK AT ME ONLY”, and “RINGA LINGA”. He sang all the songs live and they were all flawless. All these performances were only possible because BIGBANG members all released solo albums.

◆ A journey of the past 10 years of BIGBANG

As the concert went on, BIGBANG members and the audience began enjoying the concert as if they were one. BIGBANG sang their mega hit songs as well as their recent hit songs such as “IF YOU”, “HARU HARU”, “BANG BANG BANG”, “FANTASITC BABY” and “SOBER” and enthralled the audience.

For their closing remarks, members said, “We are trying to draw the big picture for the next ten years of BIGBANG. We hope you’ll keep on sending us your support. Once again, thank you for your support during the past ten years. We’ll keep on creating great music and putting on great performances. Thank you.”

The heat and the roar of in Sangam-dong were strong enough to be felt on the other side of the earth. For their encore stage, BIGBANG sang “LAST FAREWELL”, “SUNSET GLOW”, “LIES”, “ALWAYS”, and “BAE BAE”. During the two and a half hour concert, the five members of BIGBANG and 65,000 fans truly became one. History was written again on August 20, 2016.

2016. 8. 21.

[매일경제 스타투데이=한인구 기자] “This is a historic concert. I’ve never seen so many people at a concert in Korea. It was in 2006, and it was the day when I appeared on TV to promote “CELEBRITY” for the last time. YANG HYUN SUK and I were watching BIGBANG’s debut stage. He said to me that ‘Those guys will rock the world in the future’. BIGBANG is a group that grows every day while maintaining their unique identity. “

PSY talked about BIGBANG’s debut stage when he appeared as a guest at BIGBANG’s 10^th anniversary concert, which took place on August 20 at the World Cup Stadium. The global star praised BIGBANG for keeping their style of music for the past ten years. The concert was indeed a journey into the past ten years of BIGBANG.

65,000 people came to see BIGBANG despite the scorching heat, and the concert looked like a “little Asia.” Fans from Japan, China, and even Southeast Asian countries cheered when the screen showed BIGBANG’s hit-medley video before the concert.

When the concert finally began at 7 PM, music videos of “BAE BAE”, “LET’S NOT FALL IN LOVE”, and “SOBER” were played. Fans cheered loudly watching the faces of members on the screen. A video showing celebratory remarks and members was played afterwards.

Wearing silver costumes, BIGBANG members appeared on the main stage, which had a large three-storey pyramid lift. They shouted out, “10^th anniversary of BIGBANG! Let’s start the party!” and sang “WE LIKE 2 PARTY”. G-DRAGON, TAEYANG, SEUNGRI went up on a lift on one side and T.O.P and DAESUNG on another one so that they could move to the very end of the stage.

Unlike other singers who go on a lift when the concert is coming to an end, BIGBANG heated up the atmosphere by moving via lifts at the very beginning of their concert. For the “HANDS UP” performance, members changed lifts.

G-DRAGON said, “Hi, I’m G-DRAGON and I’ve been the leader of BIGBANG for ten years now. I hope you enjoy the concert.” DAESUNG thanked the audience for coming to their concert in such a hot weather by saying, “It’s already hot. But let’s heat things up and enjoy the party!”

BIGBANG then performed “BAD BOY” and “LOSER”. Because of the hot weather, the members looked tired at times, but they quickly regained strength and continued on. To prevent the audience from fainting, the members gave time for them to take short rests.

The concert was filmed to be released as a DVD, and this was why YG Entertainment put so much into the concert. The stage consisted mainly of large lifts, and four outdoor broadcasting vans, 30 cameras, and a wire-cam were used to record BIGBANG’s concert. The members didn’t forget to look at the camera during their performances.

Three large LED screens were installed, one on the main stage and two on the side, so that the audience don’t miss a moment. Delay speakers were placed at ten spots to provide high-quality sound to all the seats. Every time BIGBANG finished singing a song, fireworks went off. The sound and the set were fabulous, fit for the 10^th anniversary concert of BIGBANG.

When it was his time to say a word, DAESUNG said, “I wanted to do a concert in Korea because I love your passion. I would like to thank those who have come from other countries too.” G-DRAGON said, “I was worried that we wouldn’t be popular in Korea because we’ve been doing concerts outside of Korea for such a long time. Thank you all for coming.”

BIGBANG members also did solo performances. DAESUNG sang “WINGS” and “LOOK AT ME GWISOON” in a jacket that had embroidered arms. He sang G-DRAGON’s “CROOKED” with SEUNGRI after SEUNGRI finished his “STRONG BABY” performance.

G-DRAGON sang “HEARTBREAKER” and “CRAYON”, TAEYANG sang “EYES, NOSE, LIPS”, “LOOK AT ME ONLY”, and T.O.P performed “ACT LIKE NOTHING IS WRONG” and “DOOM DADA” for their solo performances. In between solo performances, members put on unit performances such as GD&T.O.P’s “HIGH HIGH” and GD&TAEYANG’s “GOOD BOY”.

BIGBANG debuted at YG Family’s 10^th anniversary concert, which was held at Olympic Gymnastics Stadium on August 19, 2006. For the past ten years, BIGBANG have done their style of music. BIGBANG’s melodies are pleasant to the ear, yet, their music has its roots in hip-hop, the main genre of YG Entertainment. The five “bad boys” of BIGBANG made a decade worth of YG’s know-how into their own and opened a whole new decade for YG.

After singing “HARU HARU”, “IF YOU” and “BANG BANG BANG”, BIGBANG said, “YG brought BIGBANG together. There are many people here today, and it is because of you we have become who we are today. 10^th anniversary means a lot to us, and we’re happy to be celebrating this special occasion. We’re trying to draw the big picture for the next ten years of BIGBANG”.

2016. 8. 21.

[MBN스타=남우정 기자] Boys whose sole goal was debut have now grown into musicians who lead K-pop.

On August 19, BIGBANG celebrates the 10^th anniversary of their debut. Ten years ago, YG Entertainment (“YG”) selected the members of new idol group BIGBANG through survival audition show Mnet “Real-docu BIGBANG”. Such format of TV shows is common these days, but back then, there was no TV show that revealed the whole process of production of an idol group. BIGBANG drew big attention as the first idol boy group of YG and the TV show recorded more than million views.

“Real-docu BIGBANG” left a big impression to the public as the first-ever survival audition show and it also became an unforgettable memory for BIGBANG members. In a press meeting of “A to Z” exhibition held in celebration of the 10^th anniversary of BIGBANG’s debut, G-DRAGON said, “The best thing I’ve ever done in my life was my refusal to go home when Mr. YANG told me to go home. Another was when SEUNGRI explained the reason why he had to join BIGBANG”, making viewers burst into laughter.

BIGBANG who had a sole purpose of debut back then has now become the role model for Korean idol groups, and they have established themselves as the center of K-pop, being recognized globally. In Korea’s music scene, BIGBANG has always at the center of interest.

First, BIGBANG suggested a new direction for idol groups that had been planned in a strict framework of music labels. Starting from G-DRAGON, BIGBANG members wrote their own songs for albums from the very debut, setting a good model for idol producers. The reason why many idol singers now are boasting their capabilities as producers such as in the case of Block-B’s ZICO, Jinyoung of B1A4, Jung Yong-hwa of CNBLUE, BTS, and Woozi of Seventeen is all attributable to BIGBANG’s trial.

BIGBANG also showed the fact that even for a team, each member’s capabilities are important. Exceptionally for an idol group, all the members of BIGBANG released solo albums and those solo albums showed new music totally different from team BIGBANG’s music. TAEYANG presented R&B that best-suits his voice, and T.O.P presented more powerful and intense rap as a solo artist. DAESUNG tried trot, the genre of adult pop with a little color of Korean traditional music, which was a very rare case for an idol singer. G-DRAGON presented more experimental music in his solo albums.

BIGBANG also proved the fact that an idol group can be split into different unit teams, not just into individual solo artists. GD&T.O.P unit team of rappers and the unit team of GD&TAEYANG who are also closest friends, have created bigger sensation.

BIGBANG went beyond the music scene and has become the icon of fashion, leading trends. BIGBANG members are not typical handsome guys, but they have unique style and sense of fashion and they have always tried new styles. The items that BIGBANG wore for “LIES” released in 2007 including high-top sneakers, bandanas, and caps created sensation as “it” fashion items. Ever since then, BIGBANG has always presented experimental styles. Notably, G-DRAGON emerged as a fashionista, being recognized as a celebrity not only in Korea but also globally. World-famous luxury brand Louis Vuitton invested in YG, which well-demonstrates BIGBANG’s enormous potential in the fashion world.

BIGBANG is now the icon that represents Korea. BIGBANG has recently been appointed as the PR ambassador for Korea’s new national brand “CREATIVE KOREA”. BIGBANG will work as the PR ambassador from the 2016 Rio Olympics until the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games.

Most of all, it is hard to find any other idol groups than SHINHWA and BIGBANG who have maintained the team for more than 10 years. Plus, BIGBANG has worked with the same company for those 10 years. There have been some scandals for the 10 years including suspicion that G-DRAGON smoked weed and car accidents of DAESUNG and SEUNGRI, but still, BIGBANG maintained the team and stayed in the top place. That shows how exceptionally meaningful BIGBANG is in Korea’s music scene.

2016. 8. 19.

[일간스포츠=황미현 기자] BIGBANG debuted with “WE BELONG TOGETHER” and “LALALA” in 2006, and the group became a star instantly. All the songs that the group released ever since became big hits.

When BIGBANG debuted, the members were just boys. But ten years have passed, and now they have become fashion icons and artists. Let’s take a look at the past ten years of BIGBANG, from when they released their self-titled debut album to their most recent album “MADE”.

▶August 2006

This was when they released their debut album “BIGBANG”. The members are still teenagers, but their unique poses and expressions are impressive. BIGBANG’s self-titled single album sold more than 40,000 copies.

▶September 2006

This was when BIGBANG released their official debut song “LA LA LA”. BIGBANG had their debut stage singing “LA LA LA” on MBC’s Show! Music Core. They look fierce with henna tattoos on their faces. The album “BIGBANG IS V.I.P”, which contains “LA LA LA”, was released in September and sold 32,000 copies.

▶December 2006

This was when BIGBANG released their first regular album “BIGBANG VOL.1”. G-DRAGON himself wrote the lyrics of the album’s title track “DIRTY CASH”. The members look trendy and hip wearing their jeans down and tops with patterns. The album sold 48,000 copies.

▶August 2007

BIGBANG debuted exactly ten years ago from today, and their biggest hit song “LIES” is climbing back up on the charts. This is because “LIES” is like the signature song of BIGBANG. BIGBANG made a grand comeback with “LIES” performing the song in white costumes. “LIES” is also written and composed by G-DRAGON.

▶November 2007

This was when BIGBANG released their second EP album “HOT ISSUE”. The members show off their gentle but masculine side standing at the bank of Han River during sunset with 63 Building as background. At that time, G-DRAGON brought scarves back into fashion. The title track of the album “LAST FAREWELL” was on the top of the charts for eight weeks.

▶August 2008

This was when BIGBANG released their third EP album “STAND UP”. The title track of the album “HARU HARU” is co-composed by G-DRAGON and Daishi Dance, a Japanese DJ/composer. The album sold 166,000 copies.

▶November 2008

BIGBANG’s “SUNSET GLOW” was and still is loved by many. The overall concept of the song was bright and lively, and BIGBANG members sang the song with big smiles on their faces, which made many people fall in love with them all over again. More than 20,000 copies of “REMEMBER”, the album that contained “SUNSET GLOW”, were sold on preorders alone. BIGBANG’s “SUNSET GLOW” is a remake of Lee Moon-se’s “SUNSET GLOW”, which was released in 1988. Usually singers sample the chorus part of the original version, but BIGBANG put their feel into the song, making it sound like a totally different song.

▶February 2011

They released their fourth EP album “TONIGHT” after a two-year break. By this time, BIGBANG members no longer looked like boys but like men and became the heartthrob of many girls. The album topped the charts in just seven days after its release, and the title track of the album “TONIGHT” swept the charts upon release.

▶February 2012

BIGBANG released their fifth mini-album after a one-year hiatus. All the songs of the album were title tracks, which sent shockwaves across the music industry. G-DRAGON received much media attention thanks to his long side hair in the music video of “FANTASTIC BABY”. The album sold 260,000 copies on preorders alone and more than 200,000 copies in just a month. With this song, BIGBANG became no.150 on Billboard’s top 200 albums chart. It was the first time that a Korean artist made it so high on Billboard’s charts with a song sung in Korean.

▶June 2012

BIGBANG released a special album titled “STILL ALIVE” for their fans who were longing for their comeback. “STILL ALIVE” contains the tracks in BIGBANG’s “ALIVE” album plus four new tracks, including “MONSTER”. The album sold 100,000 copies in just a month after its release.

▶May 2015

In 2015, BIGBANG released single albums every month from May to August under a project named “MADE”. Every time a new single was released, it topped the charts. As a result, BIGBANG dominated the chart for four months straight. The group has indeed written history by coming up with different styles of music and fashion every month.

2016. 8. 19.