Galaxy Supernova

"Galaxy Supernova"
Standard edition cover of "Galaxy Supernova", with all the members standing in a row wearing colored jeans
Digital and Regular edition cover.
Single by Girls' Generation
from the album Love & Peace
B-side"Do the Catwalk"
ReleasedSeptember 18, 2013 (2013-09-18)
Recorded2013
GenreElectropop
Length3:10
LabelNayutawave
Composer(s)
Lyricist(s)Kamikaoru
Girls' Generation singles chronology
"Love & Girls"
(2013)
"Galaxy Supernova"
(2013)
"Mr.Mr."
(2014)
Music video
"Galaxy Supernova" on YouTube

"Galaxy Supernova" is the eighth Japanese single by South Korean girl group Girls' Generation. It was included on the group's third Japanese studio album Love & Peace and was released as the second single from the album on September 18, 2013. The song was written by Frederik Tao Nordsø Schjoldan, Fridolin Nordsø Schjoldan, Kamikaoru, and Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, whilst production was handled by Nozomu Tsuchiya. Musically, "Galaxy Supernova" is an electropop song.

The song received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised its music styles and compared the song to the group's previous Japanese singles "Mr. Taxi" and "Paparazzi". The song peaked at number three on the Japanese Oricon Singles Chart and number four on the Japan Hot 100. A music video for the track was released on September 5, 2013. To promote the song, Girls' Generation performed live on music shows Secret Live and Live Monster in Japan.

The song was eventually certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan for 100,000 single track downloads.[1]

Background and release

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"Galaxy Supernova" was written by Frederik Tao Nordsø Schjoldan, Fridolin Nordsø Schjoldan, Kamikaoru, and Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, whilst production was handled by Nozomu Tsuchiya.[2] It is an electropop song that features "pulsing" synthesizers in its composition.[3] It was released as the second single from Girls' Generation's third Japanese album Love & Peace on September 18, 2013.[3] The album was subsequently released in December 2013.[4]

It was released as a CD single in Japan by Nayutawave Records, and includes the B-side track "Do the Catwalk".[5] Meanwhile, the digital single was released in several Asian countries including Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan by Universal Music Group.[6][7][8] A limited CD + DVD edition of the single, which included a bonus music video for "Galaxy Supernova", was released in Japan by Nayutawave Records.[9] "Galaxy Supernova" was used in an advertisement campaign for Samantha Thavasa Jeans, the first jeans line from Japanese fashion company Samantha Thavasa, in conjunction with the group's endorsement deal with the brand.[10][11]

Reception

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"Galaxy Supernova" received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Jeff Benjamin from Billboard praised the song's catchy "earworm hooks" and compared it to the group's previous Japanese singles "Mr. Taxi" and "Paparazzi" for the same electropop production.[3] Patrick St. Michael, writing for The Japan Times, picked "Galaxy Supernova" as one of the outstanding songs that "play to [the group]'s strengths" on its parent album Love & Peace and labelled it a successor to "Mr. Taxi".[12]

"Galaxy Supernova" was a commercial success in Japan. The single took the number four spot on its first day of release on Oricon Daily Singles Chart.[13] The following day, it rose to the number one spot on the Daily Chart, selling 14,565 physical copies.[14] It peaked at number three on the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart,[15] and became the eighth best-selling physical single of September in Japan, selling 62,371 copies.[16] As of December 2016, the single has sold 69,533 copies.[17]

"Galaxy Supernova" debuted at number 39 on the Japan Hot 100—a chart operated by Billboard magazine—on September 23, 2013.[18] The following week, it rose to number four on the chart, which later became its peak.[19] It dropped to number nine on the chart the following week.[20] On the Japan Adult Contemporary Airplay chart, the single debuted at number 75 on September 23, 2013,[21] and later peaked at number six on September 30, 2013.[22] "Galaxy Supernova" also peaked at number 22 on the Hot Top Airplay,[23] and number two on the Hot Singles Sales.[24] The song's music video was the sixth most-viewed K-pop music video on YouTube in 2013.[25]

Music video and promotion

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The accompanying music video for "Galaxy Supernova", directed by Toshiyuki Suzuki, was released on September 5, 2013.[26] The video features the members wearing multicolored jeans and outfits, dancing in a "flashy virtual reality world", as described by Benjamin.[3] A behind-the-scenes video was released on September 20, 2013, featuring scenes from the photo shoot for the Samantha Thavasa Jeans collection as well as the group practicing their choreography.[27]

To promote the song in Japan, the group gave a Secret Live performance of "Galaxy Supernova" and "Gee" to 200 fans in Tokyo on the release day of the single and held a "Premium Talk" event on September 19 in Osaka.[28] On November 4, 2013, the group held a live event in Tokyo for 500 people who bought the single.[29] The group performed the song and the Japanese version of "Genie" on the Japanese television music show Live Monster on January 12, 2014.[30]

Track listings and formats

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CD and digital download[5][31]
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Galaxy Supernova"Frederik Tao Nordsø Schjoldan, Fridolin Nordsø Schjoldan, Kamikaoru, Martin Hoberg HedegaardFrederik Tao Nordsø Schjoldan, Fridolin Nordsø Schjoldan, Kamikaoru, Martin Hoberg HedegaardJeff Miyahara3:10
2."Do the Catwalk"Junji IshiwatariKanata Okajima, Andreas Öberg, Maria MarcusMaria Marcus4:01
Total length:7:11
CD + DVD[32]
No.TitleLength
1."Galaxy Supernova"3:10
2."Do the Catwalk"4:01
3."Galaxy Supernova" (music video) 

Credits and personnel

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Credits are adapted from the single's liner notes.[2]

  • Nozomu Tsuchiya – producer
  • Miles Walker – mixing engineer
  • Tom Coynemastering engineer
  • Takaki Kumada – photographer
  • Shinya Nakayama – graphic designer
  • Toshiyuki Suzuki – art director, music video director
  • Toshikazu Abe – music video producer
  • Yu Hamashima – music video producer
  • Kevin Maher – choreographer
  • Rino Nakasone – choreographer
  • Shim Jae-won – choreographer

Charts

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Chart (2013) Peak
position
Japan (Oricon)[15] 3
Japan Hot 100 (Billboard)[19] 4
South Korean International Singles (Gaon)[33] 17

Sales and certifications

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Release history

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Region Date Format Distributor
Japan September 18, 2013 CD[5] Nayutawave Records
CD + DVD[32]
Digital download[31] Universal Music Japan

References

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  1. ^ 有料音楽配信認定等認定作品一覧 2017年8月 (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  2. ^ a b Galaxy Supernova (CD + DVD, limited edition liner notes). Girls' Generation. Japan: Universal Music Japan. UPCH-89161.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ a b c d Benjamin, Jeff (September 17, 2013). "Girls' Generation Releases 'Galaxy Supernova' in Japan". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
  4. ^ "Love & Peace (CD+DVD / Blu-ray)" (in Chinese). Universal Music Hong Kong. Archived from the original on March 31, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c "Galaxy Supernova by Girls' Generation" (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
  6. ^ "Galaxy Supernova – Single" (in Chinese). iTunes Store Hong Kong. January 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  7. ^ "Galaxy Supernova – Single". iTunes Store Singapore. January 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  8. ^ "Galaxy Supernova – Single" (in Chinese). iTunes Store Taiwan. January 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  9. ^ "Galaxy Supernova (初回限定盤)(DVD付)" (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  10. ^ Yun, Chloe (September 5, 2013). "Girls' Generation becomes model for Samantha Thavasa Jeans". BNT News. Archived from the original on September 19, 2016. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  11. ^ Huh Yoon-jin (September 12, 2013). "Girls' Generation's to become face of Samantha Tavasa". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on August 5, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  12. ^ St. Michael, Patrick (January 14, 2014). "Girls' Generation 'Love & Peace' | Review". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on August 15, 2014.
  13. ^ "Oricon Daily Single Chart: September 17, 2013". Oricon. September 17, 2013. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013.
  14. ^ "Oricon Daily Single Chart: September 18, 2013". Oricon. September 18, 2013. Archived from the original on September 24, 2013.
  15. ^ a b "Weekly CD Rankings: September 30, 2013" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  16. ^ "Monthly Charts: September 2013" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on October 11, 2013.
  17. ^ a b オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」 [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree'] (in Korean). Oricon. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  18. ^ "Japan Hot 100: September 23, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  19. ^ a b "Japan Hot 100: September 30, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). September 30, 2013.
  20. ^ "Japan Hot 100: October 7, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  21. ^ "Adult Contemporary Airplay: September 23, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  22. ^ "Adult Contemporary Airplay: September 30, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  23. ^ "Hot Top Airplay: September 9, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 30, 2013.
  24. ^ "Hot Singles Sales: September 30, 2013". Billboard (in Japanese). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  25. ^ Park Jin-hai (December 10, 2013). "'Gentleman' tops K-pop YouTube chart". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on August 5, 2016. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  26. ^ "Galaxy Supernova – Music Video Direction" (in Japanese). Takashi Office. Archived from the original on March 31, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  27. ^ "Girls' Generation Reveals Behind the Scenes Footage from Denim Brand Photo Shoot". KpopStarz. September 20, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  28. ^ "Release of Galaxy Supernova" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. September 14, 2013. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  29. ^ "少女時代 ライブハウスでのステージにご招待!!!" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. September 21, 2013. Retrieved September 22, 2013.
  30. ^ Girls' Generation (January 12, 2014). Live Monster (television music show) (in Japanese). Japan.
  31. ^ a b "Galaxy Supernova – Single" (in Japanese). iTunes Store Japan. January 2013. Archived from the original on February 23, 2014.
  32. ^ a b "Galaxy Supernova [CD + DVD]" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
  33. ^ "Gaon Digital Chart (International)" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013.
  34. ^ "Japanese digital single certifications – Girls' Generation – Galaxy Supernova" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved September 9, 2017. Select 2017年08月 on the drop-down menu
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