Only Look at Me

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"Only Look at Me"
Single by Taeyang
from the EP Hot
LanguageKorean
ReleasedMay 22, 2008 (2008-05-22)
StudioYG (Seoul)
GenreR&B
Length4:01
LabelYG
Composers
LyricistTeddy
ProducerTeddy
Taeyang singles chronology
"Only Look at Me"
(2008)		 "Prayer"
(2008)
Music video
"Only Look at Me'" on YouTube

"Only Look at Me" (Korean: 나만 바라봐; RR: Naman barabwa) is the debut solo single by South Korean singer Taeyang for his debut EP, Hot. It was released alongside the other single "Prayer" and the EP on May 22, 2008, by YG Entertainment.

Considered as Taeyang's breakthrough hit, the song won a trophy at the 6th Korean Music Awards for Best R&B / Soul Song and nominated for the Best Ballad/R&B Performance at the 2008 Mnet KM Music Festival.

Background

Taeyang debuted as a member of the boy band BigBang in 2006, which rose through mainstream popularity through commercially successful releases Always and Hot Issue, in the following year.[1]

On May 16, 2008, YG announced that Taeyang will release his debut EP, Hot, backed by "Only Look at Me" as the single, co-written by Teddy and Kush.[2]

On June 30, bandmate G-Dragon released his own version of the song titled "Only Look at Me Pt. 2", marking the first time someone sung the music of an active singer in South Korea.[3]

Composition

Taeyang introduced "Only Look at Me" as a slow R&B song with a sophisticated arrangement co-written by Teddy and Kush.[4] The lyrics was described as "selfish" feelings of men who want their girlfriends to only love them only, despite they cannot do the same to them.[5]

G-Dragon's version featured a combination of rap and singing.[3]

During his appearance on Fantastic Duo in 2017, Taeyang revealed the song was originally not written for him. However, upon hearing the song, he fell in love with it afterwards and persuaded the songwriters to allow him to record.[6]

Music video

The music video was released on May 22. It was produced in a drama-style format and Taeyang's BigBang bandmates took a break from their busy schedule to appear as cameos in the music video.[7][8] Filipino-American choreographer, Shaun Evaristo designed the choreography for the song and remarked the experience as his favorite thing done so far.[9]

Live performances

Taeyang debuted the song live before studio audience at Show! Music Core on May 31.[10] It was featured in his first solo concert "Hot" and BigBang's second concert tour "Global Warning Tour" in the same year.[11][12] He performed the song as the opening act of Alicia Keys' As I Am Tour during its Seoul stop on August 7.[13]

In 2010, the song was performed as the encore of "Solar Concert."[14] Four years later, it was included in Taeyang's first world tour, Rise World Tour.[15] The song was included in his second world tour, White Night World Tour in 2017.[16] The following year, labelmate Blackpink included the song as part of Rosé's solo setlist in their In Your Area World Tour.[17]

Accolades

Music show awards
Program Date Rank Ref.
M Countdown (Mnet) June 19, 2008 1 [18]
Inkigayo (SBS) July 6, 2008 [19]
Awards and nominations for "Only Look at Me"
Award Year Category Result Ref.
Mnet KM Music Festival 2008 Best Ballad/R&B Performance Nominated [20]
Korean Music Awards 2009 Best R&B/Soul Song Won [21]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the EP's liner notes.[22]

Studio

Personnel

Release history

Release history for "Only Look at Me"
Region Date Version Format Label
Various May 22, 2008 "Only Look at Me"
June 30, 2008 "Only Look at Me Pt. 2"

References

  1. Kim, Hyung-woo (January 21, 2008). 빅뱅 쥬크온차트 8주 연속 1위 기염, JOO도 2주만에 7위 진입 [Big Bang's Jukeon Chart ranked first for 8 consecutive weeks, JOO also entered 7th place in 2 weeks]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 1, 2012. Retrieved February 1, 2008.
  2. Gil, Hye-yung (May 16, 2008). 빅뱅 최초 솔로 태양, 첫 앨범 제목은 'HOT' [Big Bang's first solo Taeyang, the title of his first album is 'HOT']. Star News Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
  3. Song, Yoon-se (July 1, 2008). 빅뱅 지드래곤(G-Dragon) '나만 바라봐 Part2' 싱글발표 [Big Bang G-Dragon (G-Dragon) 'Just Look at Me Part 2' Single Release]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  4. Kim, Hyung-woo (May 19, 2008). 빅뱅 태양 나홀로 가수 해볼래! 22일 솔로 데뷔앨범 발표 [Big Bang Taeyang Want to be a solo singer! Announced his solo debut album on the 22nd]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
  5. Kim, Myun-shin (May 26, 2008). '빅뱅' 태양 “여자친구 사귀고 싶어요” ['Big Bang' Taeyang "I want to have a girlfriend"]. The Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  6. Son, Jae-hun (August 31, 2017). 판듀2 태양 "나만바라봐, 다른 가수위해 쓰인 곡" 비하인드 공개 [Pandu2 Taeyang "Just look at me, a song written for another singer" behind-the-scenes reveal]. SBS (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 11, 2025. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  7. Hong, Jae-hyun (May 29, 2008). 빅뱅 태양, 뮤비 2편 조회수 10만 기록 [Big Bang Taeyang, 2nd music video with 100,000 views]. The Dong-A Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  8. Gil, Hye-sung (May 22, 2008). 태양 "포스트 세븐? 형에게 인정받은 기분"(인터뷰) [Taeyang "Post Seven? I feel recognized by my brother" (interview)]. Star News Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  9. Kim, Ji-yeon (May 29, 2008). 오마리온 안무가 "태양, 매우 재능있는 댄서" 극찬 [Omarion choreographer praises "Taeyang, a very talented dancer"]. Star News Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  10. Kim, Si-eun (May 31, 2008). 빅뱅 태양 '쇼음악중심' 솔로 데뷔무대, 팬들 '열광' [Big Bang Taeyang's solo debut stage on 'Show Music Core', fans are 'enthusiastic']. The Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  11. Hong, Jae-hyun (July 21, 2008). 태양, 단독콘서트 폭우 뚫고 4000명 운집 [Taeyang gathers 4,000 people through heavy rain for solo concert]. The Dong-A Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  12. Kim, Won-gyeom (June 23, 2008). 빅뱅, 한국 · 일본 · 태국 3개국 투어 10만명 동원 [Big Bang, Korea · Japan · Mobilizing 100,000 people on a tour of 3 countries in Thailand]. The Dong-A Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  13. Lee, Hyun-woo (August 7, 2008). 태양 “나도 앨리샤 키스 팬!” 내한공연 오프닝 장식 [Taeyang "I'm also an Alicia Keys fan!"]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  14. Lee, Jae-hoon (September 26, 2010). 태양 속의 태양 [The sun in the sun]. Newsis (in Korean). Seoul. Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026 – via Naver.
  15. Song, Cho-rong (October 13, 2014). 태양 단독콘서트 '라이즈', 그룹 넘어 성공적인 홀로서기의 예 [Taeyang's solo concert 'Rise', an example of a successful solo beyond a group]. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  16. Cho, Hye-won (August 28, 2017). 태양의 뜨겁고 지지않는 밤 'WHITE NIGHT in SEOUL' [종합] ['WHITE NIGHT in SEOUL' [Comprehensive]]. MBC (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 5, 2018. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  17. Ko, Myung-jin (August 30, 2019). 블랙핑크 첫 단독 콘서트 라이브 음원 독점 공개 [BLACKPINK's first solo concert live music exclusive release]. K-Pop Herald (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 29, 2026. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  18. 태양 '나만 바라봐'로 첫 1위 영광 [Taeyang won first place with 'Only Look at Me']. The Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). June 20, 2008. Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  19. Kim, Hyun-woo (July 6, 2008). 빅뱅 태양 솔로데뷔 후 첫 지상파 1위 ‘인기가요’ 뮤티즌송 수상 [Big Bang Taeyang's first terrestrial No. 1 'Inkigayo' Crowd Song award after his solo debut]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  20. "2017 Mnet Asian Music Awards Winners | 2017 MAMA". Mwave. Archived from the original on October 4, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  21. 태양, '한국대중음악시상식'서 2관왕 [Taeyang wins 2 awards at the 'Korean Popular Music Awards Ceremony']. The Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). March 12, 2009. Archived from the original on December 10, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2026 – via Naver.
  22. Dong, Young-bae (2008). Hot (photobook). South Korea: YG Entertainment. Credits.