BIGBANG sweeps music charts in comeback

A poster for BIGBANG’s new singles “Loser” and “Bae Bae” / Courtesy of YG Entertainment

By Kim Jae-heun

Korean hip hop boy band BIGBANG topped 10 major domestic music charts Saturday with new singles “Loser” and “Bae Bae.”

The five-member boy band released the long-awaited new songs on

, Friday after a three-year hiatus, and the two immediately skyrocketed to the top of the charts.

"Loser" is an example of the band's signature music, combining R&B and hip-hop, while “Bae Bae” is trendier with witty lyrics describing a couple hoping to continue their relationship.

Fans overseas have also been longing for the group’s comeback for years, as proven by the tracks topping the iTunes charts in 10 countries, including Hong Kong, Indonesia and Thailand.

The United States music industry also showed interest in the quintet’s new music. American music magazine Billboard said, “BIGBANG is back in a big way with the boy band’s comeback looking more than five times as nice.”

The videos for the singles had hit more than 3 million views just eight hours after they were released online. The members of BIGBANG acted like young lonely thugs suffering from love in the music video for “Loser,” while the “Bae Bae” video featured the story of someone falling deeply in love.

According to the band’s agency, YG Entertainment, BIGBANG plans to release new tracks on the first day of every month until August, when it will put all the songs together to make a studio album “Made” on Sept. 1.

The boy band also kicked off a world concert tour at Seoul’s Gymnastics Stadium in Olympic Park on April 25 and 26. The group will continue to perform some 70 concerts in 15 countries into next year.