XX (Mino album)

XX
Studio album by Mino
Released	November 26, 2018 (2018-11-26)
Genre	K-pop hip-hop
Length	40:27
Language	Korean
Label	YG
Producer	Mino[1]
Mino chronology
The MOBB (2016) XX (2018) Take (2020)
Singles from XX
"Fiancé" Released: November 26, 2018

XX is the debut studio album by South Korean rapper Mino. It was released on November 26, 2018, by YG Entertainment.^[2] Written and produced entirely by Mino,^[1] the album consists of twelve tracks including the hit lead single, "Fiancé".^[3]

Background and release

On September 13, 2018, YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun Suk revealed that he was in the process of filming a music video for Mino's upcoming first solo album, working through the night with Mino to do so.^[4][5] On October 26, a teaser poster for the album was released, which announced the album name as XX and indicated that the album would drop some time in November.^{[5][6][7][8][9]} In late-October, a third teaser poster established the album would be released on November 26.^[10] On November 16, the title of the lead single, "Fiancé", was revealed, and on November 20, the full track list and its corresponding writing credits were announced.^[11]

On November 21, Mino released a teaser for the music video of "Fiancé".^[12][13] Over the course of the next three days, Mino released a total of three direct message teasers, where he talked about how we was constantly working on the album in the studio and how he felt like he "grated [his] soul into [the] album."^[14] The album is also said to be representative of Mino himself and his style.^[14] A teaser poster was released on November 25, one day before the album was set to release.^[1]

"Fiancé" is a track that has a hip-hop sound combined with trot, creating "a genre that may be familiar or unfamiliar".^[3][14][15] It includes samples of "소양강 처녀" ("Soyanggang Maiden"), a Korean trot song from 1969.^[3][14][15] Mino also particularly emphasized the depth and importance of the lyrics.^[3][14] According to Mino, there is no specific meaning behind the title of XX; rather, fans are encouraged to interpret the album on their own.^[3][14] Mino also played a role in designing the album packaging, the concept for the "Fiancé" music video, and the promotional material.^[14]

Reception

The album was released on November 26, 2018, in conjunction with the music video for "Fiancé". The Korea Herald commented that "Fiancé" uses "brilliantly entwined retro Korean beats."^[16] Meanwhile, Billboard praised the music video for its "mesmerizing aesthetics inspired by traditional Korean culture."^[15] The video depicts Mino searching for a woman while he is in either a field, or in a throne room dressed as a Korean king and surrounded by concubines.^[15][16] Mino's role as a king was inspired by the 2012 Korean film Masquerade.^[17]

Two songs on the album, "Trigger" and "Hope", were rated as "X", meaning that they are unsuitable for anyone under nineteen years of age.^[16]

The music video for "Fiancé" reached ten million views on November 30, four days after its release.^[18]

Track listing

The following tracklist was adapted from the official released track list image.^[11]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Arrangement	Length
1.	"Trigger" (시발점; sibaljeom)	Mino	Mino Kang Uk Jin	Kang Uk Jin	2:57
2.	"Fiancé" (아낙네; anagne)	Mino	Mino Future Bounce Texu	Future Bounce Texu	3:27
3.	"Hope" (소원이지; sowoniji) (feat. Yoo Byung-jae)	Mino 1105	Mino 1105	1105	4:18
4.	"O2" (ㅇ2)	Mino Millennium	Mino Millennium	Millennium	2:45
5.	"Rocket" (로켓; roket)	Mino	Mino Choice37	Choice37	3:11
6.	"Um..." (흠; heum) (feat. Blue.D)	Mino	Mino Kang Uk Jin Diggy	Kang Uk Jin Diggy	3:58
7.	"Lonely" (위로 해줄래; wiro haejullae)	Mino	Mino AiRPLAY	AiRPLAY	3:10
8.	"Aurora" (오로라; orora)	Mino Millennium	Mino Millennium	Millennium	2:37
9.	"Her" (어울려요; eoullyeoyo)	Mino	Mino Kang Uk Jin Diggy	Kang Uk Jin Diggy	4:04
10.	"Agree" (암; am)	Mino	Mino Future Bounce	Future Bounce	3:31
11.	"Bow-Wow" (불구경; bulgugyeong) (feat. YDG)	Mino YDG	Mino Kang Uk Jin	Kang Uk Jin	3:12
12.	"Alarm" (알람; allam)	Mino	Mino Choice37 Hae	Choice37 Hae	3:17
Total length:					40:27

Charts

Album Weekly charts Chart (2018) Peak position French Digital Albums (SNEP)[19] 115 Japan Digital Albums (Oricon)[20] 18 South Korean Albums (Gaon)[21] 5 US World Albums (Billboard)[22] 13

Single "Fiancé" Weekly charts Chart Peak position South Korea (Gaon Digital Chart)[23] 1 South Korea (Kpop Hot 100)[24] 1 "Fiancé" Monthly charts Chart Peak position South Korea (Gaon Digital Chart)[25] 1

Sales

Country	Sales
South Korea	72,659[26]

Release history

Country	Date	Label	Format	Ref
Various	November 26, 2018	YG Entertainment	Digital download, streaming	[10]
South Korea	November 27, 2018		CD

References

1. 김수경 (2018-11-25). "송민호, 첫 솔로 앨범 'XX' 티저 포스터 공개텐아시아". TenAsia (텐아시아) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
2. 박보람 (2018-11-26). "WINNER's Mino employs retro beats to enliven his hip-hop solo album". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
3. "송민호, 신곡 '아낙네' 포스터 추가 공개 '패션 리더'". News1 (뉴스1) (in Korean). 2018-11-19. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
4. 이정호 (2018-10-26). "송민호, 11월 출격 확정..첫 솔로 정규앨범 'XX' 발매". StarNews (스타뉴스) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
5. 우빈 (2018-10-26). ""11월 솔로 컴백"…위너 송민호, 첫 번째 솔로 정규앨범 'XX' 발표". TenAsia (텐아시아) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
6. 박보람 (2018-10-26). "Mino from WINNER to drop first solo album next month". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
7. 황미현 (2018-10-26). "[공식입장] 송민호, 11월 첫 솔로 정규 앨범 발매 'XX'". News1 (뉴스1) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
8. Lee, Min-young (2018-10-26). "WINNER's MINO to release first solo album". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
9. "Winner's Song Mino to make solo debut in November". Kpop Herald. 2018-10-26. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
10. 김지원 (2018-10-30). "| 송민호, 첫 솔로 정규 11월 26일 발매…앨범명 'XX'의 의미는?텐아시아". TenAsia (텐아시아) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
11. "송민호, 첫 정규앨범 트랙리스트 공개..유병재·양동근 등 참여". Star News (in Korean). 2018-11-20. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
12. "[V Report] Urban Zakapa previews new album". Kpop Herald. 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
13. 영상연출 (2018-11-22). "[e영상]위너(WINNER) 래퍼 송민호(MINO), 첫 솔로 정규 'XX' 타이틀곡 '아낙네' 티저 공개". E News 24 (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-11-25.
14. 황혜진 (2018-11-22). ""영혼 갈아넣어" 위너 송민호, 4년만 솔로데뷔 기대되는 이유[뮤직와치]". Newsen. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
15. "WINNER's Mino Leans Into the Past on 'Fiance': Watch the Traditionally Inspired Music Video". Billboard. 2018-11-26. Retrieved 2018-11-27.
16. Park, Boram (2018-11-26). "WINNER's Mino employs retro beats to enliven his hip-hop solo album". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2018-11-27.
17. 우빈 (2018-11-26). "송민호 "'아낙네' MV 속 그리움에 미친 연기, '광해' 이병헌 참고"(인터뷰)". TenAsia (텐아시아) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-12-02.
18. 김하진 (2018-11-30). "송민호, '아낙네' 5일째 음원차트 정상…M/V 조회수 1000만 육박". TenAsia (텐아시아) (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-12-02.
19. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Albums Téléchargés (Week 48, 2018)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 2018-12-06.
20. "週間 デジタルアルバムランキング 2018年11月26日～2018年12月02日". Oricon. Archived from the original on 2018-12-05. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
21. "Gaon Album Chart – Week 49, 2018". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Retrieved December 13, 2018.
22. "Mino Chart History (World Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
23. "Digital Chart – Week 48 of 2018" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
24. "Mino Chart History – Kpop Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-12-16.
25. "2018년 12월 Digital Chart" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
26. Sales for XX:
    • "2018년 12월 Album Chart" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
    • "2019년 1월 Album Chart" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved April 7, 2019.