- Source: Square Up
Square Up is the first Korean extended play (second overall) by South Korean girl group Blackpink. It was released on June 15, 2018 by YG Entertainment. The EP is available in two physical versions and contains four tracks, with "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" released as the lead single. The song peaked at number one in South Korea for three weeks and became the highest-charting song by a female K-pop act in the United States and United Kingdom at the time. The track "Forever Young" was later promoted on Korean music programs and peaked at number two in South Korea.
Upon its release, Square Up debuted atop the Gaon Album Chart and went on to sell almost 179,000 copies in its first fifteen days of availability in South Korea. The EP also debuted at number 40 on the US Billboard 200, becoming Blackpink's highest selling album in a Western market as well as the highest-charting album by a female K-pop group. It was certified platinum by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA) in March 2019 for selling 250,000 units, and was later certified double platinum in March 2023 for selling 500,000 units.
Background and release
On April 24, 2018, YG Entertainment founder Yang Hyun-suk stated that by the end of 2018, Blackpink would release new music. On May 17, he confirmed that the group would make a comeback in June. An official news report revealed that the mini album would be released on June 15.
On June 1, the album's moving poster was unveiled, followed by the full track list on June 5 and an individual moving poster of the members, teasing the audio of "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" and "Forever Young". Subsequently, from June 12 to 14, the album's teaser posters were released.
On June 14, a teaser of the music video for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" was released on both Blackpink's official YouTube channel and the group's official V Live channel. On June 15, the mini album was released, alongside the music video for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du".
Composition
= Songs
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The opening track "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" is a "fierce" hip-hop and pop rap song with bubblegum pop sound and trap beat. It combines instrumentations of oriental percussion rhythms and whistling on top of the bassline. Lyrically, the song is an anthem about the group's success and self-confidence, based around the hook of "Hit you with that ddu-du ddu-du du". The second track "Forever Young" is a mid-tempo "beachy", moombahton-based dance track with "lasering" house beats and reggaeton swing. The lyrics talk about how they celebrate making the most of your youth, while saying "Blackpink is the revolution". The third track "Really" is a "chill" hip-pop and R&B song about pleading with a lover to show him how much they care. The closing track "See U Later" is a "cutting breakup" dance-pop song that mixes pop and hip-hop with a "trap-laden" chorus, "reminiscent" guitar sound and the distortion 808 bass.
Promotion
On the afternoon of June 15, Blackpink held a press conference for the release of "Square Up" at M-CUBE, Sinsa-dong, Seoul. On the same day, one hour prior to the mini album's release a countdown special live was broadcast on Naver's V LIVE broadcasting site featuring Blackpink discussing the new music. It garnered over 850,000 viewers. On June 16, "Blackpink Area", a Square Up concept pop-up store was made public to the fans, at the same location where Blackpink House was filmed, for 9 days. On June 23, the group appeared as guests on JTBC's Idol Room to promote the EP, making their debut on the show.
Blackpink held their comeback stage on MBC's Show! Music Core on June 16 and on SBS's Inkigayo on June 17 featuring performances of both the lead single "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" and the second single "Forever Young", and further continued promoting on various music programs in Korea. On July 14, the group finished promotions for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" and started promoting "Forever Young" as the second single from the EP and wrapped up their seven week long promotion on August 5 after performing on Inkigayo.
On August 17, it was announced that similar to "Blackpink Area", another pop-up store at BOK Gallery, Takeshita Street in Harajuku, Japan will be made public from August 22–26.
Critical reception
Square Up received generally favorable reviews from critics. Chase McMullen, writing for The 405, praised the album's "readymade hooks and airtight, bursting sonics" and its ability to go "from confrontational to blissfully ecstatic at the drop of a hat", proving Blackpink's mettle in the global K-pop boom. Billboard listed Square Up at number 20 in their list of the best K-pop albums of 2018, describing it as "a testament to their dedication to rambunctious, hip-hop infused dance music" that "[exuded] confidence, sass and an overpowering sense of chic." Refinery29 placed Square Up at number 8 at their best K-pop albums of 2018, saying that it "shimmers with signature Blackpink cheekiness and effortless swagger, momentarily satiating the fans who are waiting for more."
Awards and nominations
Commercial performance
In South Korea, the mini album debuted at number one on Gaon Albums Chart, while “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du” debuted at number 3 on the Gaon Digital Chart and at number one on the Gaon Download Chart on the chart issue dated June 10–16, 2018 with 31,072,049 digital points. In its second week, "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" peaked at number one on Digital, Download, Streaming, and Mobile Charts on Gaon with 85,411,467 digital points.
The mini album debuted on the top spot of Japan's Oricon Weekly Digital Albums chart with 3,915 downloads. The lead single "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" debuted as the highest-charting Hot 100 hit ever by an all-female K-pop act, opening at number 55 with 12.4 million US streams and 7,000 downloads sold in the tracking week ending June 21, 2018, according to Nielsen Music, also entering on the US Streaming Songs tally at number 39, where Blackpink became the first K-pop girl group to chart a title. The single also sat atop Billboard World Digital Songs, making it the group's fourth number one song on the chart. Square Up also brought the group their first entry on the US Billboard 200, debuting at number 40 with 14,000 album-equivalent units. The mini album also topped the Billboard World Albums chart.
Track listing
Charts
Certifications and sales
Release history
See also
List of certified albums in South Korea
List of Gaon Album Chart number ones of 2018
List of K-pop albums on the Billboard charts
References
- Source: Square up
Square up may refer to:
Square Up, a 2018 album by South Korean girl group Blackpink
Square-up, a title card at the start of an exploitation film
Square up (baseball), to hit a ball near its center
squareup.com, the website of financial services platform Square
- Source: Square-up
A square-up was a common feature of exploitation films in the 1940s and 1950s. With the exception of most burlesque features during the 1950s, the films would begin with a written message about what social or moral issue the film was planning to address. For instance, She Shoulda Said No! contained a square-up concerning youth drug abuse, and Child Bride the issue of child marriage.
The first square-up has been traced to Eureka Productions' 1912 film The Evil Art (or) Gambling Exposed. The general reasoning for the square-up was an expression of regret for presenting the subject of the film followed by a statement with the desire that the film will help in efforts to combat the subject. Often, these justifications were created with the intent to work around the production code, giving the films a veneer of educational or social value as opposed to being simply exploitation features, but also served the purpose of warming up the audience for the upcoming film contents.
Square-ups gained another meaning with some exploitation films. David F. Friedman has explained that, in some cities, the police would not allow a full screening of a film with nudity or other objectionable content. Following the announcement to the now-upset crowd, the edited film was shown, and, after the film was over, a second reel with the excised material was shown. Coming from the carnival term "squaring a beef," these "square-up reels" became typical. In some cases, such as The Girls of Loma-Loma, the entire film became a short square-up reel.
References
Eric Schaefer, Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!: A History of Exploitation Films, 1919-1959 (Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1999; ISBN 0-8223-2374-5). Pages 69-73.
Felicia Feaster and Bret Wood, Forbidden Fruit: The Golden Age of the Exploitation Film (Baltimore, Maryland: Midnight Marquee Press, 1999; ISBN 1-887664-24-6).
Sex and Buttered Popcorn (2001, Kit Parker Video)
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