Boombayah

"Boombayah"
Promotional graphic
Single by Blackpink
from the album Square One
Language
  • Korean
  • English
ReleasedAugust 8, 2016 (2016-08-08)
StudioThe Black Label (Seoul)
Genre
Length4:00
LabelYG
Songwriters
Producer
  • Teddy
Blackpink singles chronology
"Boombayah" / "Whistle"
(2016) 		"Playing with Fire" / "Stay"
(2016)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help
Music video
"Boombayah" on YouTube
"Boombayah (JP Ver.)" on YouTube

"Boombayah" (Korean: 붐바야; RR: Bumbaya) is a song by South Korean girl group Blackpink for their debut single album, Square One (2016). The song was released through YG Entertainment on August 8, 2016, simultaneously with Square One's other single "Whistle".

"Boombayah" peaked at number seven on the Gaon Digital Chart and topped the Billboard World Digital Song Sales chart, making Blackpink the fastest act to top the chart in history. It has since been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for both its Korean and Japanese versions as well as by Recorded Music NZ (RMNZ), and silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). The song's accompanying music video was directed by Seo Hyun-seung and was released alongside the single itself on Blackpink's YouTube channel. In October 2020, it became the first K-pop debut music video to surpass 1 billion views on YouTube.

Background and release

"Boombayah" was released on August 8, 2016, at 8 p.m. KST (UTC+09:00) as a digital single titled Square One, coupled with "Whistle", through various digital music portals in South Korea.[2][3] Blackpink promoted "Boombayah" at their debut stage on SBS' Inkigayo on August 14, 2016.[4][5] They subsequently promoted the song for the two following weeks on Inkigayo,[6][7] and also performed "Boombayah" at the 26th Seoul Music Awards on January 19, 2017.[8]

Critical reception

The song received generally positive reviews from music critics. Jeff Benjamin of Billboard K-Town said that Blackpink "embraces the hip-hop sensibilities and club-ready sounds with which their seniors gained an international following", referring to their labelmates Psy, Big Bang and 2NE1, with the song's "booming" and "exotic beats".[9]

Commercial performance

Commercially, "Boombayah" debuted at number seven on the Gaon Digital Chart in South Korea, selling 88,215 digital units and garnering 1,866,737 streams in its debut week.[10][11][12] In the United States, "Boombayah" debuted at number one on the Billboard World Digital Songs chart for the week of August 27, 2016, ahead of their other single "Whistle" at number two. Both songs moved an estimated 6,000 digital units each in their first week of release, with "Boombayah" selling slightly more. Blackpink became only the seventh K-pop act to reach number one on the chart, joining the company of Psy, BigBang, 2NE1, Exo, CL, BTS, G-Dragon, and Taeyang. Blackpink broke the record for the fastest act to hit number one on the chart in history, and became only the third act to hold the top two positions after Psy and BigBang.[13] Following the release of their second single album Square Two in November 2016, "Boombayah" moved from number 14 to 16 on the chart, surpassed by "Whistle".[14] The track reached 12.7 million streams in the United Kingdom as of April 2019, and 23.4 million streams as of September 2022, becoming the group's fifth most streamed song in the country.[15][16]

Music video

The music video for "Boombayah" was directed by Seo Hyun-seung, who had previously directed the music videos for "I Am the Best" by 2NE1 and "Fantastic Baby" by BigBang.[17] The video was released on Blackpink's official YouTube channel on August 8, 2016.[18] In June 2020, it surpassed 1 billion views in four years after its release,[19] becoming the first K-pop debut music video to reach the milestone.[20] This made Blackpink the first K-pop group to have three videos reach 1 billion views, after "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" (2018) and "Kill This Love" (2019).[21] It surpassed 1.7 billion views in June 2024, their third video to cross the mark after "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" and "Kill This Love".[22]

Usage in media

"Boombayah" was featured in the Netflix television series Wu Assassins during a fight scene in "Drunken Watermelon", the first episode of the first season.[23] It is also included in the dance rhythm game Just Dance 2022, which uses a modified version of the official choreography.[24] The song featured in the 2024 animated film Despicable Me 4, during a scene where lots of Minions are partying on a bus.[25]

"Boombayah" plays in the second season (2025) of the Netflix television series Wednesday, in the episode "Woe Thyself". In the scene, Enid, having swapped bodies with Wednesday, cheerfully roams around campus in uncharacteristically colorful clothing. According to co-supervisor Nicole Weisberg, producers had the song in mind for the sequence due to the "playful" nature of the song and its lyrics, which fit with the comedic dancing used in the scene.[26]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Melon.[27]

Chart performance

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for "Boombayah"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[35] Gold 15,000‡
South Korea — 605,048[36]
United Kingdom (BPI)[37] Silver 200,000‡
Streaming
Japan (RIAJ)[38] Gold 50,000,000†
Japan (RIAJ)[39]
Japanese version 		Gold 50,000,000†

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Boombayah"
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various August 8, 2016
  • YG Entertainment
 [27]

See also

References

  1. ^ "A Beginner's Guide To K-Pop Queens Blackpink". Idolator. August 3, 2017. Archived from the original on July 31, 2023. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  2. ^ 앨범 정보>멜론. Melon (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  3. ^ "Square One – Single by Blackpink on Apple Music". iTunes. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  4. ^ "Blackpink – '휘파람'(WHISTLE) 0814 SBS Inkigayo". YouTube. August 14, 2016. Archived from the original on February 25, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  5. ^ "Blackpink – '붐바야(Boombayah)' 0814 SBS Inkigayo". YouTube. August 14, 2016. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  6. ^ "BLACKPINK - '붐바야(Boombayah)' 0821 SBS Inkigayo : '휘파람(WHISTLE)' NO.1 OF THE WEEK". YouTube. August 21, 2016. Archived from the original on September 2, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  7. ^ "Blackpink - '붐바야(Boombayah)' 0828 SBS Inkigayo". YouTube. August 28, 2016. Archived from the original on November 3, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  8. ^ "Blackpink - '불장난 (Playing With Fire)' + '붐바야 (Boombayah)' in 2017 Seoul Music Awards". YouTube. January 19, 2017. Archived from the original on November 3, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  9. ^ Benjamin, Jeff (August 16, 2016). "Blackpink's Major Debut: New K-Pop Girl Group Lands No. 1 & 2 on World Digital Songs Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
  10. ^ a b 국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!. Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 17, 2020. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  11. ^ 국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!. Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 9, 2016. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  12. ^ 국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!. Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 13, 2016. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  13. ^ "Blackpink's Major Debut: New K-Pop Girl Group Lands No. 1 & 2 on World Digital Songs Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  14. ^ Benjamin, Jeff (November 9, 2016). "Blackpink Earn Second No. 1 on World Digital Songs, Debut on Social 50". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 10, 2019. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  15. ^ Copsey, Rob (April 9, 2019). "Blackpink's most streamed songs on the Official Chart". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  16. ^ Smith, Carl (September 22, 2022). "Blackpink's Official 20 Most Streamed Songs in the UK revealed: PINK VENOM, Kill This Love and more". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on September 22, 2022. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  17. ^ Chu, Yanchingsally (August 5, 2016). "Blackpink Discloses the Teaser Image of its First Song 'Boombayah'". BNT News. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  18. ^ "Blackpink – '붐바야'(BOOMBAYAH) M/V". YouTube. August 8, 2016. Archived from the original on June 29, 2017. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  19. ^ Hicap, Jonathan (October 13, 2020). "BLACKPINK's 'Boombayah' reaches 1 billion views on YouTube, group's third MV to achieve feat". The Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  20. ^ Singh, L (February 5, 2021). "BLACKPINK's 'BOOMBAYAH' crosses 1 billion views; breaks major record". The Brag. Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  21. ^ Kim, Na-young (October 13, 2020). "BLACKPINK's 'Boombayah' tops 1 bln YouTube views". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  22. ^ Kim, Seung-hye (June 1, 2024). 블랙핑크, 데뷔곡 ‘붐바야’ 뮤직비디오 17억뷰 돌파...8년째 식지 않는 ‘글로벌 인기’ [BLACKPINK's debut song "Boombayah" music video surpasses 1.7 billion views, demonstrating their unwavering global popularity for eight years.]. Maeil Business Newspaper. Archived from the original on November 17, 2025. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  23. ^ "Music from Wu Assassins". Tunefind. Archived from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  24. ^ López, Stefan Miguel (November 3, 2021). "Just Dance 2022 Song List". Gamerant. Archived from the original on November 4, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  25. ^ "BLACKPINK's BOOMBAYAH gets a surprising feature in Despicable Me 4". Pinkvilla. June 28, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  26. ^ Dailey, Hannah (September 3, 2025). "'Wednesday' Music Team on the 'Darkness' of Lady Gaga, Why Enid Would Love 'KPop Demon Hunters' & More". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  27. ^ a b 붐바야 – Blackpink [Boombayah – Blackpink]. Melon (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 20, 2016. Retrieved September 20, 2016.
  28. ^ "Blackpink: Boombayah" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
  29. ^ "Blackpink – Boombayah" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  30. ^ "Top 30 Singles Chart Hong Kong". Hong Kong Recording Industry Alliance. August 22, 2016. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  31. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot 100 2017/08/28". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  32. ^ "Blackpink Chart History (World Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  33. ^ 2016년 08월 Digital Chart [August 2016 Digital Chart] (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on September 16, 2016.
  34. ^ "World Digital Song Sales - Year-End 2016". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  35. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Blackpink – Boombayah". Radioscope. Retrieved December 15, 2024. Type Boombayah in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  36. ^ Cumulative downloads for "Boombayah":
  37. ^ "British single certifications – Blackpink – Boombayah". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 1, 2025.
  38. ^ "Japanese single streaming certifications – Blackpink – Boombayah -KR Ver.-" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved July 25, 2023. Select 2023年6月 on the drop-down menu
  39. ^ "Japanese single streaming certifications – Blackpink – Boombayah" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved June 26, 2022. Select 2022年5月 on the drop-down menu
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