EXO’s “The First Snow” Is No. 1 — Ten Years After It’s Release
Why is a Christmas B-side from 2013 the smash hit of the season? A TikTok dance challenge has something to do with it.
Bolstered by a viral TikTok dance challenge, EXO’s “The First Snow” has done something almost impossible and hit number one on Korea's Melon 100 this week, a decade after it was released. Yesterday, in the song’s biggest surge, the track reached #1 on the real-time (RAK) charts. Released in 2013 as a B-side of EXO’s Christmas EP “Miracles in December”, the song has grown in popularity each year, notably rising on the charts as snow first falls in Korea. But this year’s upward trajectory is thanks to a viral dance challenge created by Hwang Sehun on TikTok.
All K-Pop songs are pushed through company created TikTok dance challenges, but the popularity of “The First Snow” is unique because it was created by the fans. As the song gained momentum, members of EXO (all but D.O. and Kai) filmed their own version of the dance challenge. But as more idols joined in, from aespa to ATEEZ to SEVENTEEN’s Minghao, the song became an organic smash hit. It helped, too, that the song’s lyrics are about the nostalgic pull of first love.
This is a major win for EXO, whose last comeback was in July, after a tumultuous year at their company SM Entertainment. In May, three members took legal action against SM for what a law firm representing Baekhyun, Chen and Xiumin deemed as “slave contracts”. The members alleged a lack of transparency surrounding their pay and unfair contract extensions. The matter was resolved quickly, but the three members (who also recorded under the sub-unit EXO-CBX) left the company to pursue solo endeavors.
It’s noteworthy that EXO’s latest comeback single, “Cream Soda”, did not receive as much attention as “The First Snow”. Nor has EXO been a major player in K-Pop since the group began military enlistments. But there’s something murkier here, too, which is that for the past five years, EXO’s achievements have largely been overshadowed by BTS – a sticky source of fandom wars between ARMYs and EXO-Ls. The groups both debuted in 2013, but as BTS became a worldwide phenomena, EXO split apart into subunits and solo debuts.
But Baekhyun, who is extremely active on Twitter and engages often with fans, hinted that 2024 would be a huge year for the group. “I’m just going to tell you everything,” he wrote on an Instagram hashtag then proceeded to spoil a solo concert and an EXO fanmeeting.
The song’s success is important because of how unexpected it is – and because it has nothing to do with strategic company marketing. “The First Snow” has become a smash hit the old fashion way: because fans and the general public recognized what a great track it is. And while you may have counted EXO as a legacy group, I believe this proves the group has so much more they can achieve if are given the resources and support to do so.
This week, as “The First Snow” pushed to the top, Baekhyun, Chen and Xiumin filmed their own dance challenge of the song while snow coated Seoul. As they finished the choreography, the three members who stood up for themselves against SM and won, linked their arms together and ran off camera. Baekhyun laughed, perhaps at the unexpected way this year has ended for the group. Now more autonomous than ever, they’ve bagged a number one all-kill.
