I Got a Boy

I Got a Boy (stylized in all caps) is the fourth Korean studio album (sixth overall) by South Korean girl group Girls' Generation. It was released for digital download on January 1, 2013, by S.M. Entertainment, and was made available for physical sales the following day by KT Music. Musically, the album is characterized as combining elements from a wide range of genres including R&B, new wave, and EDM. This is the last studio album and Korean studio album with their founding member Jessica before her dismissal of the group in 2014 and subsequent departure from SM Entertainment in 2015.
I Got a Boy received mixed reviews from music critics; it was praised for its eclectic musical styles, however several were favorable towards only a few songs on the album. Commercially, it was a success domestically, peaking atop the South Korean Gaon Album Chart and became the second best-selling album of 2013 in the country. The album additionally charted at number seven on the Japanese Oricon Albums Chart, number three on the Taiwanese G-Music chart, and number one on the Billboard World Albums.
To promote the album, Girls' Generation appeared and performed on several music programs including Music Bank and Show! Music Core in early 2013. The album's lead single was "Dancing Queen", a remake of Duffy's 2008 single "Mercy", released on December 21, 2012. The second single, "I Got a Boy", was released on January 1, 2013, and was subjected to major attention from Western media outlets following its winning Video of the Year at the inaugural YouTube Music Awards.
Promotion
Release
After the group's label S.M. Entertainment revealed the group intended to return in January 2013, MBC announced on December 11, 2012, that the group would be receiving a separate broadcast depicting the album process in preparation of the album's release in January 2013. The single track, "Dancing Queen", was released on December 21, 2012. The title track, "I Got a Boy", was released digitally on January 1, 2013. The full album was released on January 2, 2013. Prior to the release in October, member Seohyun said: "This album is really different from our usual ones. It’s like challenging a person's limits. I'm looking forward to what the fans will think, and because it’s still a secret amongst us, I just feel nervous."