BamBam has released his second mini-album [B] on January 18, a few weeks after releasing the pre-single ‘Who Are You’ featuring Red Velvet’s Seulgi. If [B] is compared to BamBam’s first mini-album riBBon, the endearing GOT7 member shows an entirely different sound and his versatility as a solo artist who likes to play with different sounds and styles to evolve and find his sound.
[B] is an EP with a total of six tracks and two leading singles, ‘Who Are You’ and ‘Slow Mo’.
The pre-release single ‘Who Are You’ featuring Seulgi of Red Velvet is a soft mid-tempo pop song that perfectly matches BamBam and Seulgi’s whispering voices. It’s paired with a music video in which the pair dance in sync and mirror each other’s movements in dark, charismatic, and enigmatic settings.
The second title track is ‘Slow Mo’. For this song – written about 2 years and a half ago, as BamBam revealed in a VLIVE – the singer worked with American singer and songwriter Pink Sweat$. The song has a sweet and melodic vibe, a slightly uplifting beat, and BamBam’s soft and dreamy vocals. The song is somewhat melancholic if compared to ‘riBBon’.
In the music video, we see BamBam in incredibly eye-pleasing settings, with pastel colours that match the sweet and melodic melody of the track.
The music video has now reached over 42 million views, while the single peaked No.1 on the iTunes Top Songs Chart in 18 countries including Argentina, Brazil, Thailand, Fiji, and the Philippines. It ranked No.6 on the Worldwide iTunes Song Chart and No.13 on the European iTunes Song Chart.
‘Intro (Satellites)’ is what starts off this EP; trance hip-hop and hypnotic track that serves as the perfect melody for BamBam’s rap in the second verse.
‘Subliminal‘ – written and composed by Korean indie R&B artist Jimmy Brown, collapsedone, and Ariowa Irosogie – is a trap R&B song paired with BamBam’s emotional and seductive singing; the outcome is reminiscent of a release from an indie K-R&B artist.
We find Jimmy Brown again as a co-writer on ‘Let Me Love You‘. This love song has a smooth melody that gives a dreamy vibe paired with BamBam’s falsetto; his voice takes centre stage in this sweet song.
The EP closes with fireworks on ‘Ride or Die’, a bouncing track that blends hip-hop, pop, and rock elements. The catchy melody will make everyone move their heads to its rhythm—definitely a song to add to your ‘mood booster’ or ‘workout’ playlists.
[B] was another global success for BamBam. The Ep charted No.1 on the iTunes Top Albums Chart in 34 countries and peaked No.8 on the US iTunes Top Albums Chart; it also topped the Worldwide iTunes Song Chart and European iTunes Song Chart at No.1.
With [B], a striking contrast to riBBon, BamBam has created for himself (and his fans) another world in which he feels comfortable expressing what he likes musically and his persona. Just like riBBon, [B] is another expression and extension of BamBam’s art and personality. With his continuous work in experimenting with sounds and styles, BamBam is solidifying his place as one of the most versatile artists in the Korean music industry.
