This week in the hot and adorable idol group department, we are looking at B1A4.
The five member group consists of leader Jinyoung, vocals CNU and Sandeul, rapper Baro and youngest member Gongchan.
They debuted in April 2011 with a cute and whimsical “young boys” concept for OK, a fresh and fun pop song which brought the young group under WM Entertainment a horde of screaming fans which has only grown since.
In June the group took a step back with Only Learned The Bad Things, a pop ballad which has later come to represent the preferred musical style of the group, and beautifully showcases their strong vocals. But despite the ballad song and a more mature concept, the group still shone in colourful environments, not letting go of their boyish appeal.
2011 was a busy year for the group, as they made their mark on the music industry in September with hit song Beautiful Target. Perhaps mostly known for the nonsensical chorus line in English, the pop song became one of their most iconic songs, with the members looking like they truly enjoy themselves on live performances and simply having fun among themselves and with their audience, continuously pointing out their “Beautiful Targets” from the crowd.
At the end of 2011, B1A4’s efforts were awarded with the Golden Disc Award for Best Newcomers as well as the Seoul Music Awards.
Over the years the boyish group has found their sound through popular releases like Tried to walk, Baby goodnight and in the last year Lonely and Solo Day. The 5 guys have visibly matured and grown with their comebacks and are now considered a strong group vocally and with musicality and choreography. In 2013 they received their first win on music shows with What’s Going On, after focusing on japanese activities in 2012.
In 2014 B1A4 saw great success with their world tour Road Trip, taking them all over the world from Malaysia to Australia and the US. Unfortunately no concerts were announced in Europe, but European BANA’s can keep their fingers crossed for a more fruitful year in 2015.
B1A4 has been given the nickname “countryside idols” by the media, attributing that to the fact that all members are from the countryside. The group has taken advantage of the concept, adding it to their boyish image and giving them a fresh almost hipster-like style. They are also known for their philanthropy, supporting a variety of causes like schools, orphans and regularly donate parts of their proceedings to Art schools and in 2013 asked for donations of school supplies instead of the traditional rice wreaths from their fans.
Recommended MVs:
Solo Day
Lonely:
What’s going on (Dance Practice)
Beautiful Target:
Lonely & Solo Day (Gayo Daejeon)
