When the clock struck midnight on Nov. 15, iKON released both of their singles "ANTHEM" and "APOLOGY," along with a music video for each song.
"APOLOGY" is a slow R&B track about a guy who regrets being unable to stay with his girlfriend due to his busy lifestyle and thoughtless attitude towards her. "APOLOGY" was co-written by members B.I. and Bobby. Less than 10 hours after the song was released, it skyrocketed to the top of the online music charts, reaching #1 on Melon, Mnet, Bugs, olleh, Soribada, Genie, Naver, and Monkey3. The melody of "APOLOGY" is reminiscent of labelmate Big Bang's acoustic piece "If You," the only song off MADE that had no music video.
Although the English title of the song is "APOLOGY," the song title in Korean is an abbreviation that means "Sorry I couldn't protect you".
"ANTHEM," on the other hand, is a catchy, energetic, upbeat hip-hop track that sharply contrasts with the slow acoustic melody of 'APOLOGY'.
The full album will contain a total of eight songs, six from their half album and the singles "ANTHEM" and "APOLOGY" and will be released on Dec. 16. Check out both music videos!
