Exo
Exo (Korean: 엑소; RR: Ekso; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean boy band based in Seoul formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. The group consists of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai and Sehun. They are noted for releasing music and performing extensively in Korean, Mandarin and Japanese.
"EXO" redirects here. For other uses, see EXO (disambiguation).
The group debuted with twelve members separated into Exo-K (Suho, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai and Sehun) and Exo-M (Xiumin, Lay, Chen, Kris, Luhan and Tao). Members Kris, Luhan, and Tao departed the group individually amid legal battles with SM Entertainment in 2014 and 2015. Exo-K and Exo-M performed music in Korean and Mandarin, respectively, until the release of their third EP Overdose in 2014. Since then, Exo have exclusively performed as one group, although their music continues to feature multiple languages. Members Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin debuted in the sub-unit Exo-CBX in 2016, and members Sehun and Chanyeol began promoting as the sub-unit Exo-SC in 2019. Each member also maintains solo careers in music, film and television.
Exo's first studio album XOXO (2013), released alongside breakthrough single "Growl", was received positively by critics and sold over one million copies with its repackage, making Exo the first Korean act to do so in twelve years. The group's later works expanded on their early commercial success, with their subsequent Korean studio albums combined with their repackages each selling over one million copies. Exo's sixth studio album, Don't Mess Up My Tempo (2018), became their highest-charting album on the US Billboard 200, debuting at number 23. Their eighth studio album, Exist (2023), is their best selling album in South Korea, where it sold over 2 million copies.
Exo have won numerous awards, including five consecutive Album of the Year awards at the MAMA Awards and two consecutive Artist of the Year awards at the Melon Music Awards, and have performed over 100 concerts across four headlining tours and multiple joint tours. The group ranked as one of the top five most influential celebrities on the Forbes Korea Power Celebrity 40 list from 2014 to 2018. They have been labeled "Nation's Pick" by the Korea Tourism Organization and by some as the "Kings of K-pop". Outside of music, the group members have endorsed brands such as Nature Republic and Samsung and participate in philanthropic efforts such as Smile For U, an ongoing project by SM Entertainment and UNICEF that began in 2015.
History
2006–2012: Formation and early years
Exo-K's leader, Suho, was the first member to join SM Entertainment in 2006.[8] The following year, Kai, with encouragement from his father, auditioned at the SM Youth Best Contest; he won and received a contract.[8][9] In 2008, Chanyeol, who had been studying at an acting academy, and Sehun, who was first scouted by SM Entertainment at the age of thirteen and then went through four auditions in two years, were the next members to become trainees.[10][11] In 2010, D.O. sang for his audition and was offered a contract.[10] The last member of Exo-K to become a trainee was Baekhyun, who joined in 2011 through SM Entertainment's casting system and trained for approximately one year before debut.[12] Exo-M leader Kris auditioned in 2008 at a global SM Entertainment audition in Canada, later moving to South Korea for training.[13] That same year, Lay was discovered through a global audition and subsequently moved to South Korea, while Xiumin attended an audition with his friend and placed second.[14][15] In 2010, Luhan was scouted by an SM Entertainment representative in Seoul and passed his audition, while Tao was cast through the SM auditions in China at Qingdao.[16] The last member to join Exo-M was Chen in 2011.[16] The band's first televised performance was at the annual SBS Gayo Daejeon event on December 29, 2011.[17]
Artistry
Musical style
Exo are considered by many to be a vocal powerhouse group in the K-pop industry. In particular, the group's three main vocalists D.O., Chen, and Baekhyun have received praise from industry figures and the media.[150][151][152][153] The special winter-themed EPs that Exo have released nearly every December since 2013 feature classic, emotional ballads that diverge from the upbeat singles usually featured on the band's studio albums and better showcase the members' vocal abilities.[154][155][156] Billboard applauded the band's single "Universe" from the 2017 EP of the same name, stating, "With soaring, emotive vocals courtesy of the Exo members, 'Universe' is a power ballad that showcases the group's strengths."[157]
Most of Exo's songs blend pop, hip-hop, and R&B with electronic dance music genres such as house and trap and are produced with onstage performance in mind.[158][159] The group has frequently worked with veteran Korean and international producers, including Kenzie, Dean, LDN Noise, The Underdogs, and MARZ Music.[160][161] Producer Harvey Mason Jr. commented: "We listen to their material ... and try and go one step further. We try and do things that are fresh and original but yet still sound like Exo ...They can sing, they can dance, they have the energy ... It's like a painter having every color to paint with."[159]
Early in their career, Exo were described by Billboard as sounding "wholly inspired by the late '90s/early '00s sound ... with bigger beats, loads more hooks and adding rap and dance breakdowns."[162][163] The group explored a more "mature" and "dark" sound in 2016 with the release of their third studio album, Ex'Act, which was marked by an increased use of synth-pop and electronic dance music styles such as house.[164][165][166][167] Their fourth studio album, The War, deepened the group's sonic experimentation, featuring elements of trap music prominently for the first time.[159] With the album's lead single "Ko Ko Bop", Exo received praise for unconventionally hybridizing laid-back reggae sounds with heavy electronic breaks.[168]
Songwriting
The members of Exo faced criticism early in their careers because of their lack of involvement in the writing and producing of their songs.[169] However, in 2015, Exo released their first song to credit lyrics to one of the group's members on the repackaged version of their second album, Love Me Right. "Promise (Exo 2014)" was written by Chanyeol, Chen, and Lay and was a "special gift" to the fans, with lyrics thanking them for their support.[170][171] Since then, Exo have released multiple songs featuring lyrical contributions from the band's members, including "Heaven" and "She's Dreaming" from their third album, the special promotional single "Lightsaber", and most notably, the hit single "Ko Ko Bop" among others from their 2017 album The War.[172]
In a 2017 interview with Billboard, Chanyeol spoke about his contributions to the lyrics for "Chill", stating that because he "worked on the lyrics with an empty track without demo lyrics", the process came more "naturally" to him.[159] Chen explained the process of writing their single "Ko Ko Bop": "[we] wrote the lyrics separately and worked on putting [them] together for the song afterwards. I don't think I have any regrets [about the song] since it's the best result produced through all the effort that our members and other writers have put into the process."[159] Chen was also credited with writing the Korean lyrics for the track "Lights Out" from Exo's fourth special winter EP, Universe.[75] Member Lay is also a songwriter and producer, having written and composed all tracks on his solo albums, as well for other artists.[173][174] Chanyeol participated in writing lyrics for "Gravity" and 'With You", both on Exo's sixth studio album Don't Mess Up My Tempo.[175]
Stage
Exo have been praised for their synchronized choreography and elaborate stage designs. The band was choreographed early in their career by American hip hop choreographers Tony Testa and Nicholas Bass for songs like "Wolf" and "Growl", respectively.[176] More recently, Exo collaborated with choreographer Kim Tae Woo.[177] Dazed admired the band's "seamless...knife-point choreography", saying it has put them "at the forefront of pop domination".[178] A recurring stage element on the group's world tours has been the use of water in the form of rain and shallow pools. Cleo noted that Exo's "winning formula" was the incorporation of water into their choreography, describing the water "cascading from above during 'White Noise' and 'Lightsaber'" that "saw some of the members getting drenched."[179] Yahoo wrote that "during one segment, the boys stood on an elevated hexagon-shaped stage (modeled after the band's logo), and danced sensually while water rained down on them from above."[180]
On their stage design, Music Mind noted Exo's use of "not only ... the stage-lights and the lightsticks, but also [a] multitude of special effects like water, flames, and fireworks, not to mention huge screens positioned both on the substage and across the whole perimeter of the venue".[181] Rappler journalist Keb Cuevas described Exo's "multi-LED screen stage fitted with holographic Exo embellishments and choreographed laser lighting", saying "the stage was literally on fire as pyrotechnic effects were ignited with the electronic beat."[182] Covering a 2018 concert in Singapore, Bandwagon remarked that after their "fourth headlining tour [in] four years ... you might [assume] their setlist and stages would be repetitive and stale. But [that] was not the case at all."[183]
Impact
With the release of their debut studio album in 2013, Exo became the first South Korean artist in 12 years to sell over one million copies of an album;[25] the previous artist to reach this milestone was g.o.d, in 2001.[184]
Following the release of their fifth studio album, Don't Mess Up My Tempo, Exo became the first South Korean artist who debuted in the 21st century to sell 10 million albums cumulatively.[89] In 2023, Exo became "septuple million sellers", meaning the band has sold over one million copies apiece for seven different albums.[185]
Exo have also contributed significantly to the financial success of their management agency, SM Entertainment. In the fourth quarter of 2018, SM Entertainment recorded the largest-ever quarterly profit for any South Korean entertainment company at $13.4 million.[186] Exo generated the highest revenue of all SM artists, at 31% of the total $188 million fourth quarter revenue.[186]
Exo have been described by Dazed as "the biggest boy band in the world",[178] and have been referred to as the "Nation's Pick" by the Korea Tourism Organization.[187][188] They have also been referred to as the "Kings of K-pop" by international outlets Vogue, PageOne and South Korean outlets such as OBS.[189] Exo have gained immense popularity in South Korea and were named by Forbes on the Korea Power Celebrity 40 list as the most powerful celebrities in South Korea for 2015 and 2016; within the top five for 2014, 2017, and 2018; and within the top 10 for 2019.[190][191] They are considered a prominent force in the Hallyu Wave, which refers to the rise and spread of Korean pop culture around the world.[192][193][194] When discussing the significance of Exo in a global context, Bustle described them as "the ultimate K-pop sensation": "there's really nothing quite like Exo."[192] Vulture described Exo as "leaders of a K-pop generation" when describing the band's ability to consistently release music in the Korean and Chinese markets while continuing to impress in the United States with Billboard chartings and arena tours.[195] Similarly, Dazed considered Exo's success to be that of "a continent-straddling pop juggernaut".[178] In 2016, AsiaOne said "Exo are turning into an omnipresent, unstoppable global force," citing their worldwide popularity, critical acclaim, and large fandom size.[196]
In April 2018, Forbes described Exo as one of the two artists worldwide (alongside fellow K-pop band BTS) that dramatically over-perform on social media,[197] even exceeding the reach of American artists such as Beyonce, Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift.[197] Twitter statistics from Next Big Sound showed that Exo recorded 14,000 times more mentions than expected, with 24 million in total.[197] In addition, Exo ranked second on the Billboard Social 50 Year-End Chart from 2018 through 2020.[198] Exo's work has influenced numerous artists, including MVP,[199] Kim Dong-han,[200] NCT 127,[201] Wanna One,[202] Ong Seong-wu and Kang Daniel.[203]
Selected filmography
