I Love You (2NE1 song)
"I Love You" is a song by South Korean girl group 2NE1 released on July 5, 2012. In Japan, it was released on September 19, 2012, as their third Japanese single. It was written and produced by long-time collaborator and fellow YG Entertainment labelmate Teddy Park, with additional writing by Lydia Paek.
"I Love You" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Korean version cover. On Japanese versions' artwork, colors of the picture and text are slightly altered. | ||||
Single by 2NE1 | ||||
from the album Crush | ||||
Released | July 5, 2012[1] September 19, 2012 (Japan) | |||
Recorded | 2012 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:57 | |||
Label | YG Entertainment | |||
Songwriter(s) |
| |||
Producer(s) | Teddy Park | |||
2NE1 singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"I Love You" on YouTube |
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Rolling Stone Japan |
The single debuted at number one on the Billboard Korea K-Pop Hot 100, marking the group's first number-one single on the Korean Billboard charts. It also topped South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart.
Background and promotion
"I Love You" was written by Teddy Park, who had written and produced much of 2NE1's previous material, including "I Am the Best", "Fire" and "Go Away". In a press release, YG Entertainment stated that, "Since their debut, they have always done hip-hop, electronic, reggae and R&B. It was time for them to challenge themselves and try something new."
On June 30, 2012, a 20-second teaser video of the group was released on SBS' Inkigayo. On the same day, member Dara posted a message to her Me2day, where she told fans, "To commemorate 2NE1′s release of the new track 'I Love You' on July 5th! Quiz on what genre it’ll be!!! I’ll give you a couple of hints so try guessing~ The correct answer will be revealed tomorrow night!!! ^^ Fighting! This song… is one that all ages will like! Hm… it doesn’t seem like a song 2NE1 would sing…!" The song combined electronic and trot music to create an entirely different sound and a new genre of music.[4]
"I Love You" received its first promotional performance on SBS' The Music Trend on July 8, 2012 and again on July 15. The group was supposed to perform the song on M-Countdown but it was later cancelled after the death of member Minzy's grandmother. They made their appearance on the show the following week instead.
It was confirmed in July 2012 that "I Love You" would serve as the group's third official Japanese-language single. It will also serve as the accompanying song to 2NE1's Maybelline Japan endorsement campaign.[5]
The single was released in two versions; limited edition which comes with DVD, and a regular edition which is a CD only.
Critical reception
The song received positive reviews from critics. Christopher Weingarten of Spin stated that the song was a "perfect summation of pop's present and future", and compared the production similar to that of David Guetta, especially the use of synths and "ghostly" background vocals, while also comparing the rap-style vocals to that of American singer Kesha.[6]
Commercial performance
The song debuted at number 2 on the Gaon Digital Chart behind "Loving U" by Sistar. In its second week, "I Love You" reached the number 1 position and had sold over 950,000 downloads in 11 days, making 2NE1 the fourth fastest-selling Korean female artist of 2012, after miss A, T-ara and Wonder Girls. In only three weeks the song was downloaded 1,346,000 times. In its third charting week, "I Love You" dropped to number 3 on the chart, selling another 403,000 downloads. It became the best-selling song of July 2012. By 2013, "I Love You" was downloaded over 2.9 million times. The song ranked 6th on Gaon's Year-End Digital Chart for 2012.
"I Love You" also attained international success, charting at number 3 on Billboard's World Digital Song Sales chart and selling 5,000 copies in the United States. The song was played on the UK radio station BBC Radio 1.,[7] the first Korean song to do so.
Track listing
Korean version
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "I Love You" (아이 러브 유; Ai Leobeu Yoo) | Teddy | Teddy, Lydia Paek | 3:57 |
Total length: | 3:57 |
Japanese version
- Digital download
- I LOVE YOU (Japanese Version)
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "I LOVE YOU (Japanese Version)" | Teddy, Keisuke, Sunny Boy, Izumi Soratani | Teddy, Lydia Paek | 3:57 |
2. | "I Love You (Instrumental)" | Teddy, Lydia Paek | 3:57 | |
Total length: | 7:54 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "I LOVE YOU (Japanese Version) PV" (Video Clip) | |
2. | "I LOVE YOU (Japanese Version) PV" (Making Clip) | |
3. | "THE VACATION in PHILIPPINES" (Off Shot footage recorded in the Philippines) |
Charts
|
Oricon chart
|
Awards
Year | Award-giving body | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2013 | Golden Disk Awards | Digital Bonsang | Won |
2013 | Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards | Song of the Month (July) | Won |
Release history
Region | Date | Format | Version | Distributor |
---|---|---|---|---|
Worldwide[11] | July 5, 2012 | Digital download | Korean version | YG Entertainment |
Japan[12][13] | August 29, 2012 | Digital download | Japanese version | Avex Group |
September 19, 2012 | CD single |
References
- Jeon, Su Mi. 2NE1 Takes Over with an All-Kill for ‘I Love You’. omg!. July 5, 2012. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- Stern, Bradley (July 7, 2013). "2NE1, "Falling In Love": K-Pop Queens Hit Jackpot Again With New Summer Single". MuuMuse. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
- "Rolling Stone Japan Edition review". Archived from the original on 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
- Kim, Erika. "2NE1 Takes Over with an All-Kill for 'I Love You'". Mwave. Archived from the original on February 16, 2016. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- "2NE1 announces new single in Japan to be released in September + "I Love You" PV Japanese version". allkpop. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
- Christopher R. Weingarten (July 5, 2012). "K-Pop Heroes 2NE1 Return With Monster New Single I Love You". spin.com. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- http://www.allkpop.com/2012/07/2ne1s-i-love-you-receives-airplay-on-british-national-radio-station-bbc-radio-1
- "2NE1′s "I Love You" Japanese single ranked at #3 on Oricon daily charts (September 19, 2012)". clbaddestfemale.wordpress.com. Oricon. Retrieved 19 September 2012.
- Jonathan M. Hicap (July 13, 2012). "Super Junior, 2NE1 Land On Billboard Charts". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
- "2012年09月17日~2012年09月23日のCDシングル週間ランキング". Oricon. Oricon Style. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- "I Love You – Single by 2NE1". iTunes Store (US). Apple Inc. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
- "I Love You – Single" (in Japanese). iTunes Store (JP). Apple Inc. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
- "Discography | 2NE1 Official Japan Website" (in Japanese). 2NE1's Japanese website. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012.