BtoB (band)
BtoB is a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 by Cube Entertainment. The group consists of Seo Eun-kwang, Lee Min-hyuk, Lee Chang-sub, Im Hyun-sik, Peniel Shin and Yook Sung-jae. Originally a septet, Jung Il-hoon departed from the group on December 31, 2020.
BtoB debuted on March 21, 2012, performing "Insane" and "Imagine" on M Countdown. The group's debut EP, Born to Beat was released on April 3, 2012. They released their first full-length album, Complete, in June 2015. In November 2014, they made their Japanese debut with "Wow" under the Japanese agency Kiss Entertainment.
Since the group's 2012 debut, they have received multiple awards, including the 30th Golden Disc Awards Best Vocal Group in 2016, 2017 Melon Music Awards Top 10 Bonsang and 25th Seoul Music Awards Ballad Award in 2018. Five of their albums topped the Gaon Album Chart, and nine of their singles peaked in top ten on the national Gaon Digital Chart.
History
Pre-debut
The group was formed by Cube Entertainment. It was stated from the start that Seo Eun-kwang, Lee Min-hyuk, Im Hyun-sik, Jung Il-hoon, and Lee Min-woo were on the list of original members who are waiting to be debuted under the name of "BtoB". They appeared on the JTBC sitcom "I Live in Cheongdam-dong" as an aspiring boy band working towards their debut. However, Lee Minwoo had dropped out of the list of confirmed members after their first appearance on the sitcom and the fact of him not debuting with BtoB had upset many fans. On March 23, 2012, Cube Entertainment had clarified that there were problems with Minwoo's health, resulting in him being unable to blend into the group. Adding on, he would still be a trainee under Cube. If he was to recover, he would still get a chance to debut. Minwoo was confirmed to debut as a C-Clown member under Yedang Entertainment.2012: Debut and mainstream success
On March 21, BtoB made their debut in a showcase held in Seoul, which was streamed from their official YouTube channel. They performed their title track "Insane", "Imagine", and various other songs. BtoB then released their self-titled debut EP, Born to Beat on April 3 with songs co-written by Jörgen Elofsson. The EP includes the two debut title tracks of the group "Insane" and "Imagine", while the members of the group participated on writing the lyrics and raps for the album.In April 2012, the group starred on their first reality program, Amazon, that was aired on Mnet.
On May 3, the group released the digital single, "Father" along with a music video, in conjunction with May being the "Month of Family". An Asia Special Edition of their first EP was released on May 23, containing the previously released track, "Father" and the track "Irresistible Lips" which was first revealed on "I Live in Cheongdam-dong".
The release of the Born to Beat album marked the official start of their Asia promotions. They kick-started their promotions with a press conference in Singapore along with a promotional event in Bugis Square which attracted a crowd of 800 people. The following day, they performed at Clarke Quay for "Music Matters Live 2012", a five-night festival that featured 40 bands from 18 countries. A month later, they resumed their Asia promotions in Indonesia, participating in an interview with OneTV Asia. In addition, they held their first Indonesian showcase at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Jakarta on June 21, performing for both fans and media officials. They made their debut in Japan with a performance at the "K-Dream Live" concert at Tokyo Dome on July 29 alongside 5 other groups. In addition, the group performed at Sapporo Dome on August 1 for the "K-Pop Nonstop Live 2012 In Sapporo" concert.
On September 12, the group released their second EP, Press Play along with its title track "Wow", which was composed by hit maker Kim Do-hoon. On October 18, the group started promoting the follow-up single "Lover Boy" on M Countdown. A music video for the song was released on October 22 which consisted of a montage of the promotional events the group undertook throughout the year.
Following the end of their promotions for "I Only Know Love", the group commenced their overseas activities once again. They started off in Singapore on December 1, performing as part of a line-up for "Sundown Festival 2012", an event that invited solo and group acts from South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan. On December 11, the group performed as the opening act for the "2012 Asia Super Showcase" in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at Kenanga Wholesale City. The group became the first Korean artist to perform at the Thai Supermodel Concert on December 13 at the Bangkok Convention Center, and later held a press conference with around 70 media outlets.
2013: ''Thriller''
In February 2013, the group participated in the "2013 United Cube Concert" alongside other Cube Entertainment artists, 4minute, Beast, G.NA and Roh Ji-hoon. The concert took place in Seoul's Jamsil Indoor Stadium, and attracted over 7,000 fans, local and international, with additional concert dates in China and Japan.On April 6, BtoB held their first fan-meet in Taiwan, "BTOB Press Play in Taiwan", for 1,000 fans. They later held two additional fan-meets in Thailand and Cambodia, meeting with around 2,000 fans in total. BtoB released their first digital single, "2nd Confession" on April 10. The group started to promote the single with a stage performance on April 12, on M Countdown.
On August 29, BtoB released a music video for the track "When I Was Your Man", ahead of their official comeback in September. On September 4, the group performed their new tracks, "When I Was Your Man" and "Thriller" on MBC Music's Show Champion, prior to the release of their third EP Thriller, which was subsequently released on September 9.
2014: Career breakthrough with ''Beep Beep'', ''Move'', Japanese debut and ''The Winter's Tale''
On February 17, BtoB released the group's fourth EP Beep Beep. It includes the title track of the same title, which was produced by hit composers Brave Brothers. The group also held their album showcase at the Club Wave in Apjugeong, Seoul on the same day. The EP ranked first on the Gaon Album Chart for the ninth week of 2014, making it their first album to peak at the top spot. The group then began their album promotion with a performance on M Countdown on February 20.In July, the group launched their first solo live concert, "Happy Summer Vacation with BTOB", in Japan with two concerts taking place on July 19 at Osaka and two concerts on July 21 at Tokyo, for a total of four shows. Each show gathered over 2,000 fans, for a total of 8,000 fans.
On September 29, BtoB released their fifth EP, Move, along with the lead single "You're So Fly". They also introduced the group's new logo image. The logo image has heart shaped symbols that represent two capital B's for BtoB, expressing BtoB's love for the fans and its desire to present heart touching music.
BtoB held their first-ever solo concert in Korea, Hello Melody, from October 31 – November 4 at Olympic Park's Olympic Hall.
In October, BtoB signed a contract with a Japanese talent agency, Kiss Entertainment, for the group's activities in Japan. On November 12, the group released their first Japanese single, "WOW " and began active promotions in Japan.
On December 22, the group released their winter EP The Winter's Tale. The EP contains five tracks including the pre-released track "You Can Cry" and the lead single "The Winter's Tale". "The Winter's Tale" is the group's first title track composed and produced by members Hyun-sik and Il-hoon.
2015: ''It's Okay'' and ''Way Back Home''
On February 14 and 22, BtoB held their first official fan-meeting titled "Be My Valentine" in Osaka and Tokyo, Japan. All shows were sold-out, gathering a total of 5,000 fans. BtoB then released their first original Japanese single album, titled "Future" on March 25. The single recorded sales of about 70,000 and ranked second on Japan's Oricon Singles Chart. On the same day, their single charted first on the weekly overall chart for Tower Records, Japan's largest record store. They continued promoting throughout Japan through concerts and various events until March 30.On April 4, the group took its first exclusive concert "Hello Melody" in Busan, South Korea. It was held at the Busan KBS Hall. On April 29, the group held their first major solo concert tour in Japan, "The Secret Diary", six months after their Japanese debut, and reportedly gathered 10,000 fans.
On June 28, BtoB released their first full-length album Complete. The album comprises thirteen tracks including the lead single "It's Okay", "Shake It!" which was a bonus track from their fifth EP Move, and an acoustic version of their debut single "Insane". "It's Okay" is an R&B ballad track, and is also the group's first ever ballad single. The title track ranked at the top of multiple major music charts in South Korea upon its release, and is the first time the group topped charts since their debut in 2012.
Their third Japanese single, "Summer Color My Girl", was released on August 19, after the conclusion of their Korean promotions.
On October 12, BtoB released their seventh EP, I Mean, along with the music video for their title song, "Way Back Home". On October 21, BtoB received their first music show win, after 3 years and 7 months, on Show Champion, with the song "Way Back Home".
BtoB held their second solo concert, Born to Beat Time, on December 19 and 20 at Jangchung Arena. The tickets for the concert were sold-out in 5 minutes. They performed their hit songs in front of a total of 8,000 fans, and the show included special stages such as performances from their unit lines.
The group's transition to releasing ballad music achieved the group success, earning multiple nominations on year-end awards and winning the "Best Vocal Group Award" on the 30th Golden Disc Awards and the "Ballad Award" for "It's Okay" on the 25th Seoul Music Awards.