Gee, Girls Generation Album

"Gee" is the lead single from the album Gee by K-pop girl group Girls' Generation. It was released on online music sites on January 5, 2009, with the physical release of the EP on January 7. It quickly went to #1 on various charts and eventually set a record for longest-running #1 on KBS's music chart show Music Bank, staying at that position for 9 consecutive weeks.

Background

Various media outlets reported that Girls' Generation would return in January 2009, after a 9-month hiatus. The song's release was preceded by various teaser posters around Seoul, released on December 26, and a 25-second teaser video. After its digital release, interest in the song rose greatly, topping Cyworld's hourly music chart on the day of release and topping 6 different digital music charts within two days.

Japanese version

On October 20, 2010 a Japanese version of "Gee" was released in three versions on CD and DVD. At the end of September, the Japanese "Gee" version was released to be played on radio stations.

Composition

"Gee" is a fast-tempo song about a girl who has fallen in love for the first time. The title is supposed to be an exclamation of surprise, similar to "어머나!" (Eomeona!, similar in meaning to "Oh, my goodness!", or, more similarly, "Gee!" in English).

Chart performance

South Korea

A week after its release, "Gee" went #1 on Music Bank; however, questions were raised when the group did not appear on the program, with rumors spreading regarding a possible rift between SM Entertainment and KBS. "Gee" also went to #1 on SBS's 인기가요 (Inkigayo) a week after their return.

"Gee" first tied with "Nobody" by the Wonder Girls for the longest-running #1 on music portal M.Net (6 weeks). The song then broke the record by staying on top a seventh week, and remained in the position for an eighth week. It also tied then broke the record for longest-running #1 on KBS's Music Bank, beating the 7-week record previously set by Jewelry in 2008 with "One More Time". "Gee" achieved its ninth #1 on the show on March 13, 2009.

SM Entertainment stated that over 100,000 copies of the mini-album were shipped to stores, while sales analyst company Hanteo reported sales in excess of 30,000 copies within the first 10 days of its release.

Japan

Girls' Generation also had success in Japan with their second Japanese single "Gee". They took second place and were crowned the first ever overseas girl group to claim this position. On October 26, 2010 it was announced that their Japanese 2nd single "Gee" reached #1 on the Oricon Daily chart, making them the first non-Japanese Asian girl group to reach number 1 on the chart. The song was ranked fifty-seventh on the Japan Hot 100 2010 year-end chart. On April 20, 2011, the girls added another accomplishment to their belt as the RIAJ (Recording Industry Association of Japan) website updated their charts showing that SNSD's Chaku Uta Full (ringtones) downloads for "Gee" went Double Platinum. The RIAJ certifies Platinum as moving 250,000 units, so Double Platinum would mean that the girls had over 500,000 downloads for "Gee".

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Track listing

1.   "Gee" 

2.   "Way to Go!

3.   "Dear Mom" 

4.   "Destiny"

5.   "Let's Talk About Love