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On May 1, 2015, the K-pop boy group Big Bang made its comeback by releasing a new album. This was after a three-year hiatus, before which the group had released the album “Still Alive” in June 2012. Since debuting in 2006, Big Bang had gained astronomical popularity with hit songs like “Lies,” “Last Farewell,” and “Haru Haru,” so the group’s comeback prompted the entire K-pop world to hold its breath, rapt with anticipation.

That year, Big Bang released the special project singles “M,” “A,” “D,” and “E,” every month from May to August. The songs in those singles all received critical as well as popular acclaim. “Loser,” featured on one of the albums, consoled the hearts of young Koreans living through difficult circumstances; “Bang Bang Bang” became a popular audition track on K-pop survival shows; and “If You” was lauded as a song with a particularly sorrowful sensibility that deviated from Big Bang’s typical swagger. Later on in the year, the group won top awards at Korean music awards, keeping up its golden age.

After, T.O.P enlisted in the auxiliary police in 2017, and G-Dragon, Taeyang, and Daesung followed suit the year after. In March 2018, Big Bang released the song “Flower Road” for fans waiting for its comeback while its members took a “military hiatus.” In the song, in which all Big Bang members participated, the group sang, “This is not our last / Please let’s meet again when flowers bloom.”

But no such flowers bloomed for the group. Rather, Big Bang faced its harshest winter. T.O.P was put on probation for smoking marijuana, and G-Dragon also faced allegations of smoking cannabis. Daesung was accused of housing a prostitution service in a building he owned. To make matters worse, in November 2018, news broke of Seungri’s involvement in what’s been called “Burning Sun-gate,” one of the worst sex scandals in K-pop history, prompting wildly negative public opinion. The scandal’s flames spread to YG Entertainment, Big Bang’s agency, leading to various accusations against those affiliated with YG. In the aftermath of the ordeal, Seungri announced his retirement from the entertainment industry, leaving Big Bang to become a four-member group.

A veteran second-generation K-pop group with 17 years under its belt, Big Bang will be making its comeback with a new single on April 5, titled “Spring Summer Fall Winter” in Korean. Having lived through the four seasons four times during its hiatus, the group encapsulated its four-year break in its new song. The English title for the single is “Still Life,” the term for paintings or drawings that portray still objects. The title suggests that time stopped for the group as it dealt with the wake of its members’ various travails. The poster for the song, which was revealed on March 24, is also evocative of a still life painting. Daisies — which symbolize hope — fill the poster, having bloomed in full in various colors — white, pink, yellow and red.

Big Bang recently finished shooting the music video for its new release. In other words, the group has practically finished preparing for its comeback. Many are watching its next move closely, curious whether the group will garner positive attention like it did in 2015 and hit the jackpot, or whether it will merely amount to a storm in a teacup and fall away from popular interest.

Other second-generation K-pop idols are making their comeback after military hiatuses as well. Second-generation idols refer to those idol singers who debuted in the mid- to late 2000s. After 10 years in the idol game, groups typically start to be considered old-timers, but rather than withering away, they dream of making another leap onto the stage. That’s how older idols in their 30s return to the world of K-pop.

Four-member group Highlight, whose members include Yoon Doo-joon, Yang Yo-seob, Lee Gi-kwang, and Son Dong-woon, made its comeback with the album “Daydream” on March 21. After debuting as Beast in 2009, the group relaunched itself as Highlight in March 2017 and finally released its first studio album five years later. The title song “Daydream” is a sentimental retro pop dance number notable for its lyrical vocals, in which the speaker confesses his love by saying that he doesn’t want to wake up from his daydream, as he doesn’t want to live in a world without his lover. Perhaps thanks to Highlight’s 14-year track record, the song rose to the No. 2 spot on real-time music charts on streaming platforms like Genie and Bugs. During a press conference that took place before their comeback, Highlight members said honestly, “Our goal is to stay active for a long, long time without being forgotten.”

Six-member group BtoB, composed of Seo Eun-kwang, Lee Min-hyuk, Lee Chang-sub, Im Hyun-sik, Peniel Shin, and Yook Sung-jae, also finished off its military hiatus and returned to fans with their third studio album “Be Together” on Feb. 21. “The Song,” which is the title song of the 13-track album, is an honest account of love that doesn’t change even with the passage of time. The 11-year-old group said during a press conference, “In our new album, we incorporated our hope to continue working as singers beyond the past 10 years.”

By Jung Hyuk-june, staff reporter

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