City Lights (EP)
City Lights is the debut extended play by South Korean singer Baekhyun. It was released on July 10, 2019 by SM Entertainment. The album features six tracks, including the lead single "UN Village".
Background and release
On June 10, 2019, it was announced that Baekhyun will debut as a solo artist in July. At midnight on June 20, 2019, S.M. Entertainment revelead the title of Baekhyun's first album and its release date. On July 2, two teaser images of the EP were released along with a concept film video. The first teaser of the music video was released on July 5. On July 8, a highlight medley of the tracks was released.The album and its title track's music video were released on July 10 at 6PM KST both digitally and physically. On July 12, live session video of "UN Village" was released. A third version of the album was released on July 19.
Composition and production
City Lights has six songs which feature R&B, hip hip hop and pop genres. The album's title track "UN Village" is a romantic R&B love song that combines groovy beats and string sound with sensational lyrics about a romantic moment a couple share under the moonlight of UN Village hill.Various world-renowned music producer Darkchild, The Stereotypes, Cha Cha Malone, LDN Noise have participated in the album. Korean rapper Beenzino was featured in the side track "Stay Up!", a dreamy R&B song with lyrics that draw attention by mentioning special nights with his loved one in sexy narrative.
"Betcha" is described as a hip hop R&B with urban beats song with lyrics that tells a story about a cute yet confident attitude of a man who is confident that the other person is destined for love. "Ice Queen" is an R&B song with a sophisticated beat and a catchy melody with lyrics about winning the girls' cold heart with his warm one. "Diamond" is an R&B ballad with impressive major and minor melodies with the lyrics that compare love for lovers to a solidly glowing diamond. "Psycho" is an electronic pop that expresses the inner selves of a man lost among confused emotions.
Promotion
SM Entertainment began releasing teasers for the upcoming debut on June 20 through EXO's official social media accounts. Additionally, Baekhyun posted a teaser for his debut through a vlog on his official YouTube channel.On July 10, Baekhyun held a private showcase in Seoul Arts Center where he performed "UN Village" for the first time for the media, before the EP's release. Two hours after the release, he held a showcase for the fans where he talked about the process of the album and performed "UN Village", "Betcha" and "Ice Queen". The showcase was also broadcast live through the Naver app V-Live.
On July 11, Baekhyun uploaded a vlog titled "UN Village behind clip" through his Youtube channel where he revealed parts of the filming process for his music video.
Baekhyun started performing "UN Village" on South Korean music show from July 12 on Music Bank. On the same day, he performed "UN Village" on You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook.
Reception
City Lights received generally positive reviews from critics. Tamar Hermann of Billboard opinied that Baekhyun's "expressive vocals relay a wide array of emotions". She added that by frequently layering different recordings atop of one another, "the wide range of Baekhyun's tone and artistic style" was revelead. Riddhi Chakraborty of Rolling Stone India stated that "Baekhyun's penchant for romantic ballads is forgotten as he makes a complete immersion into dark and heady R&B". She concluded that by releasing City Lights, Baekhyun "has proven that he understands exactly what kind of artist he is and what he's capable of, therefore he's unafraid to be seen in a brand new light".Commercial performance
On July 9, it was reported that the pre-order sales of City Lights reached 401,545 copies in eight days. The album debuted atop the Gaon Album Chart for the week ending on July 13, 2020. City Lights eventually sold over 576,029 copies, which made it the best-selling solo album in South Korea since Hestory by Kim Gun-mo, until it was surpassed by Baekhyun's second EP Delight the following year.Additionally, the EP peaked at number four on the Billboard World Albums Chart, becoming his first top-five entry on the chart. The EP sold 1,000 copies in the United States according to Nielsen Music, despite less than two full days of sales for the Billboard week's charts. In France, Delight peaked at number 20 on the French Digital Albums Chart. The EP also debuted at 8 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums Chart and number 31 on the Australian Digital Album Chart, making it their first album to chart in both countries. City Lights also topped over 67 countries' iTunes charts.
Track listing
Credits adapted through Spotify.Accolades
| Critic/Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
| Billboard | The 25 Best K-Pop Albums of 2019 | 12 | |
| Reddit K-Pop | Best Album Cover Art 2019 | 5 | |
| Idology Korea | 2019: Album Of The Year | 19 |