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1.
Who is BIBI?
BIBI’s stage name came from her SoundCloud name “Nakedbibi,” and she has said that the name now mirrors how she wants to show her true self honestly. As for her musical inspirations, BIBI has mentioned being influenced by how Nicki Minaj uses pop and rap in her music. Like many songwriters, BIBI leans on her own personal experiences and emotions for her lyrics. The Grammys wrote, “BIBI’s catalog — two extended plays and one full-length — is peppered with existential tales of love and afflictions, and she doesn’t shy away from speaking her mind. It’s a formula that has resonated with local and global listeners, who fall for the charm of her authenticity.”
As for her look, BIBI is most known for the two red dots under her eyes. According to BIBI, the dots are a tribute to her grandfather and his roseola, a result of his fevers before he passed away. BIBI explained in Jessi’s Showterview that the dots also serve as a message to herself to stay focused and composed during performances!
As mentioned, BIBI signed with the record label Feel Ghood Music, in 2017—a few months later, BIBI actually came in second on the SBS competition show “The Fan.” In 2019, BIBI made her official music debut with the song “Binu,” which introduced new fans to her sound. 2021 was a big year for BIBI. Not only did she release her second EP, “Life is a Bi…”, which performed exceptionally well, drawing a lot of new fans to her R&B/Hip-Hop style, but BIBI also released a collaboration track, titled “The Weekend,” with 88rising—and, by the end of the year, BIBI signed a deal with 88rising, which would allow the company to manage her global promotions, opening up even more opportunities for BIBI and allowing her music to reach a wider audience across the globe.
In February of this year, BIBI hit another career peak, releasing her first studio album “Lowlife Princess: Noir” and the single “Bam Yang Gang,” which not only topped several charts, including Melon and Genie, but even sparked a revival of the dessert that the song is named after with sales rising across Korea. Cafe Euljiro Jeokdang’s CEO, Kim Tae-hyung, told The Korea Times, “I could not believe this at first, but the sales of bamyanggaeng more than doubled after the namesake song became a smash hit. (…) Yanggaeng was mostly known as a dessert for the older generation, but today, people of all age groups are coming to our place to try it”. With its catchy beat and relatable lyrics, the single struck a chord with listeners of all ages, leading to a cultural phenomenon as more and more people flocked to cafes like Cafe Euljiro Jeokdang to try the dessert that inspired the hit song.