GD & TOP (album)

GD&TOP is the debut album of South Korean hip-hop duo GD & TOP, members of Big Bang. Released on December 24, 2010, the album marks the first official collaboration between the two artists. The duo promoted the album extensively, including a worldwide premiere showcase and numerous performances. Three singles were released for promotion: "High High", "Oh Yeah", and "Knockout".[1] While "High High" went on to become a chart-topper,[2] the latter two singles peaked at number 2 and 3 respectively.[3][4]

GD&TOP
Album cover of the 2011 reissue
Studio album by
GD & TOP
ReleasedDecember 24, 2010
Recorded2010
Genre
Length38:46
LanguageKorean
Label
Producer
G-Dragon chronology
Shine a Light
(2010)		 GD&TOP
(2010)		 One of a Kind
(2012)
T.O.P chronology
GD&TOP
(2010)		 Doom Dada (Special Edition)
(2013)
Singles from GD&TOP
  1. "High High"
    Released: 15 December 2010
  2. "Oh Yeah"
    Released: 15 December 2010
  3. "Knock Out"
    Released: 3 January 2011
Original album cover
Cover featuring the "Playboy" bunny logo

The album is listed by Gaon Album Chart as the fifth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, with 130,000 copies sold.[5]

Background

While working on materials with their bandmates for their upcoming album, G-Dragon and T.O.P began to experiment with different styles.[6] According to G-Dragon, the members were trying new "combination[s]" with their music, in which the vocalists — Taeyang, Daesung, and Seungri — were to record their own music as a trio while G-Dragon and T.O.P were to branch off as a duo since they "hadn't been with [their] fans for the past two years."[6] Although the division of the group was initially for Big Bang's materials only, G-Dragon and T.O.P saw a positive response to their materials from the fans and went to Yang Hyun-suk, the executive of YG Entertainment, to allow the duo to release an album.[6] After receiving Yang's approval, news of their collaboration was announced in November 2010.[7]

G-Dragon and T.O.P co-wrote the majority of the lyrics to the album, noting that as "rappers [...] we'd like to tell more stories for our fans to listen."[6] In an attempt to create their own style separate from their band, the duo opted for a more hip-hop sound to contrast the group's current genre of electronic music, though G-Dragon acknowledged the influence of R&B, acoustic, and electronic music on the album. The two admitted to becoming "much more diverse [in their] attempts" to create their own style, as well as "how the music develops and the images that the melody and rap portray[s]." They later went on to say that "the reason we mixed such a variety of genres is because we wanted to bring out more of our character that we don't get to show when we're Big Bang."[6] When recordings were done, 11 tracks were recorded, including a collaboration with labelmate Park Bom.[7] The duo later mentioned that after recording the album, they became "attached" to all of their songs as they "worked on each and every one of the songs in...[the]...album by staying up many nights."[6] T.O.P's solo song "Turn It Up" was also included on the album as a bonus track.

Preceding the release of the album, the duo held a worldwide premiere showcase for their album at Times Square in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul,[8] which was broadcast live on YouTube.[6] While hosting it, the duo sampled parts of their tracks to their fans and explained its lyrical contents and background.[6] The duo also showcased a change in their physical appearances. Their constant use of the "peace sign" for their promotional activities (such as the cover design for their album) also gained attention, with the duo explaining that since the mark is similar to the Playboy logo, their attractive, sexy, and fun sides have come out while promoting the album.[6] The peace sign was later retracted after YG Entertainment was asked by Playboy to remove the image for its similarities to its own logo. It was replaced by a typographic image of a heart composed of GD&TOP. This also led to the action of removing all of the music videos on the official Bigbang YouTube channel except for "Baby Goodnight".

In support of their album, the duo released three singles: "High High", "Oh Yeah", and "Knock Out".[1] All three singles preceded the release of the album and were commercial successes: "High High" was a chartopper[2] while "Oh Yeah" and "Knock Out" peaked at number 2 and 3 respectively.[3][4] They also performed at a Christmas party hosted at a club in Gangnam, Seoul for SK Telecom's "Christmas T Social Party"[9] in addition to the SBS music show Inkigayo.[10] Pictures of the two on the set of their music videos were also released online ahead of the album release.[11] The album was released on Christmas Eve, and debuted at number one with pre-orders of 200,000 copies.[12][13]

Track listing
GD&TOP – Standard edition[14]
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Intro"
Kush2:08
2."High High"
TeddyTeddy3:08
3."Oh Yeah (feat. Park Bom)"
  • G-Dragon
  • T.O.P
  • Teddy
  • Teddy
  • Sunwoo Jungah
  • Teddy
  • Sunwoo Jungah
3:17
4."Don't Go Home" (집에 가지마; Jibe Gajima)G-Dragon
  • G-Dragon
  • Teddy
  • Kush
  • Teddy
  • Kush
3:18
5."Baby Good Night"
  • G-Dragon
  • T.O.P
  • G-Dragon
  • T.O.P
  • Kush
  • 1 ON
Kush3:32
6."Knock Out" (뻑이가요; Ppeogigayo)
  • G-Dragon
  • T.O.P
Diplo3:27
7."Oh Mom" (T.O.P solo)T.O.P
  • T.O.P
  • Kush
  • 1 ON
Kush4:32
8."Obsession" (악몽; Akmong; G-Dragon solo)G-Dragon
  • G-Dragon
  • Kush
Kush5:17
9."Of All Days" (오늘따라; Oneul Ttara; T.O.P solo)T.O.P
Choice 373:25
10."What Do You Want?" (어쩌란 말이냐?; Eojjeoran Marinya?; G-Dragon solo)G-Dragon
  • G-Dragon
  • Kush
  • Sunwoo Jungah
  • 1 ON
3:25
11."Turn It Up" (T.O.P solo; bonus track)T.O.P
  • T.O.P
  • Teddy
Teddy3:32
Total length:38:46
Japanese CD+DVD Edition – DVD bonus tracks[15]
No.TitleLength
1."High High" (Music video) 
2."Knock Out" (Music video) 
3."Turn It Up (T.O.P)" (Music video) 
Taiwanese CD+DVD Edition – DVD bonus tracks[16]
No.TitleLength
1."Knock Out" (Music video) 
2."Baby Good Night" (Music video) 
3."High High" (Music video) 
4."Turn It Up (T.O.P)" (Music video) 
Sampling credits
  • "Intro" contains elements from "It's Yours to Have" as written by Reginald Dozier and McKinley Jackson, and performed by Freda Payne.
  • "Don't Go Home" contains elements from "Make It with You" as written by David Gates and performed by Whispers.
  • "What Do You Want?" contains elements from "Shazam!" as written by Duane Eddy and Lee Hazlewood, and performed by Duane Eddy.
  • "Knock Out" contains uncredited elements from "Percolator" as written and performed by Cajmere.

Charts and sales

Sales
Chart Amount
Gaon physical sales[21] 202,229

Accolades
G-Dragon and TOP during music video shoot of "High High"

Awards
Year Award Category Result
2011 Melon Music Awards Rap/Hip Hop Won

Music program awards
Song Program Date
"Oh Yeah" (featuring Park Bom) M! Countdown (Mnet) December 30, 2010
"High High" January 6, 2011
Inkigayo (SBS) January 9, 2011

Release history
Region Date Format Distributing Label Ref
South Korea December 24, 2010 (2010-12-24)
  • CD
  • digital download
[14]
July 12, 2011 (Reissue) CD
[22]
Japan February 23, 2011
Universal Music Japan [23]
Philippines March 5, 2011 CD Universal Records [24]
Taiwan September 28, 2012 (2012-09-28) CD+DVD (limited edition) Warner Music Taiwan [25]

References
  1. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-24). "Big Bang unit G-Dragon and T.O.P release third title track". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2011-01-05. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  2. "Big Bang duo on TV today". Korea JoongAng Daily. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  3. Kim, Heidi. "IU "Good Day" stays atop Gaon chart for 4th week". 10asia. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  4. Kim, Heidi. "IU's "Good Day" takes charge of Mnet chart for 4th week". 10asia. Archived from the original on November 29, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  5. "2010년 가온차트 부문별 Top 100위" [Gaon Chart 2010 Top 100 Charts]. Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. 8 February 2011. Retrieved 2011-02-09.
  6. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-15). "G-Dragon and T.O.P hold world premiere showcase for duo unit". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  7. "G-Dragon and Top to Release Duet Album in December". KBS Global. 2010-11-30. Archived from the original on 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  8. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-15). "Big Bang T.O.P, G-Dragon pose at album showcase". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  9. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-07). "G-Dragon, T.O.P and LeeSSang to perform at Xmas party". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2011-09-16. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  10. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-12). "Big Bang G-Dragon & T.O.P unit to give comeback performance Dec 19". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  11. Kim, Jessica (2010-12-21). "G-Dragon and T.O.P take pictures on set of music video". 10asia. Archived from the original on 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  12. "Gaon Albums Chart: Week 1, 2011" (in Korean). Gaon Album Chart. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  13. "'발매 D-2' GD·탑 유닛 첫앨범, 선주문만 '20만장' (GD&TOP's album receives 200,000 pre-orders)". Daum (in Korean). Retrieved 2011-01-23.
  14. "GD&TOP: 정규앨범 1집" (in Korean). Melon. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  15. "GD&TOP (CD+DVD)". HMV. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  16. "Amazon.jp: GD&TOP (CD+DVD)". Amazon. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  17. "Japan Top Albums Sales". Billboard Japan. March 7, 2011. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  18. "アルバムランキング". Oricon. March 7, 2011. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  19. "Gaon Monthly Albums Chart: December 2010" (in Korean). Gaon Album Chart. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015.
  20. "2010년 가온차트 부문별 Top 100위". Gaon Chart. Archived from the original on May 20, 2011. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  21. Cumulative Sales for "GD&TOP"
  22. "GD* & TOP* – GD & TOP The First Album". Discogs. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  23. "GD&TOP - The First Album" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  24. "GD&TOP Philippine version album cover revealed!". Universal Records Blog. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  25. "Warner Music Taiwan - G-Dragon". Warner Music Taiwan. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
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