The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with a US-centric point of view and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (July 2011)

Wax crayons

A crayon ( /ˈkreɪ.ɒn/, /ˈkreɪ.ən/, or US /ˈkræn/) is a stick of colored wax, charcoal, chalk, or other materials used for writing, coloring, drawing, and other methods of illustration. A crayon made of oiled chalk is called an oil pastel; when made of pigment with a dry binder, it is simply a pastel; both are popular media for color artwork. A grease pencil or china marker (UK chinagraph pencil) is made of colored hardened grease and is useful for marking on hard, glossy surfaces such as porcelain or glass. Some fine arts companies such as Swiss Caran d'Ache manufacture water-soluble crayons, whose colors are easily mixed once applied to media.

They are easy to work with, not messy (as paint and markers are), blunt (removing the risk of sharp points present when using a pencil or pen), non-toxic, very inexpensive, and available in a wide variety of colors.

A wide variety of crayon boxes have been produced over the years

History[link]

The history of the crayon is not entirely clear. The word "crayon" dates to 1644, coming from (chalk) and the Latin word creta (Earth).^[1]

The notion to combine a form of wax with pigment actually goes back thousands of years. The Egyptians perfected a technique using hot beeswax combined with colored pigment to bind color into stone in a process known as encaustic painting. A heat source was then used to "burn in" and fix the image in place.^[2] This method, also employed by the Romans, the Greeks and even indigenous people in the Philippines around 1600-1800, is still used today. However, the process wasn’t used to make crayons into a form intended to be held and colored with and was therefore ineffective to use in a classroom or as crafts for children.^[3]

Contemporary crayons are purported to have originated in Europe where some of the first cylinder shaped crayons were made with charcoal and oil.^[4] Pastels are an art medium having roots with the modern crayon and stem back to Leonardo da Vinci in 1495. Conté crayons, out of Paris, are a hybrid between a pastel and a conventional crayon; used since the late 1790s as a drawing crayon for artists.^[5] Later, various hues of powdered pigment eventually replaced the primary charcoal ingredient found in most early 19th century product. Joseph Lemercier (born Paris 1803—died 1884), considered by some of his contemporaries to be “the soul of lithography”, was also one of the founders of the modern crayon. Through his Paris business circa 1828 he produced a variety of crayon and color related products.^[6] But even as those in Europe were discovering that substituting wax for the oil strengthened the crayon, various efforts in the United States were also developing.

American crayon companies[link]

The initial era of wax crayons saw a number of companies and products competing for the lucrative education and artist markets. In addition to the giants like Binney & Smith/Crayola and American Crayon/Dixon Ticonderoga, other companies popped up in the industry at various times from the late 19th century to the early 1910s.

Binney & Smith (Crayola)[link]

Binney & Smith Company (later to be named Crayola LLC) developed their own famous line of wax crayons beginning on June 10, 1903.^[7] Edwin Binney & C. Harold Smith had been long established in the coloring marketplace through Binney’s Peekskill, NY chemical works factory making lampblack by burning whale and carbon black and later instrumental in the coloring of automobile tires.

In 1902 they developed and introduced the Staonal marking crayon. Edwin Binney, working with his wife, Alice Stead Binney, came up with their famous Crayola brand of crayons. Alice came up with the name Crayola by combining the French word for chalk, craie, with the first part of oleaginous, the oily paraffin wax used to make the crayon.^[8]

Binney & Smith were quick to capitalize on their creation by offering 19 different boxes with 30 different colors including the Crayola No 51 which featured their largest selection of colors with 28.^[9] The Rubens Crayola line started in 1903 as well (not in the 1920s as previously documented by many sources)^[10] was directly targeted toward artists and designed to compete with the Raphael brand of crayons out of Europe. Rubens were featured in everything from the small 6-color box to the No. 500 with 24 colors.^[11] In addition to their highly familiar Crayola line, they also made many other crayon lines including Anti-Roll, Arista, Art-Toy, Besco, Boston, Cerata, Cerola, Chic’ago, Doo Zee, Durel, Easy-Off, Gotham, Liquitex, Munsell Crayola, Perma, Pooh, Protfolio, Rubens, Spectra, Tiny Tots, Washable and Widstrok.^[12]

By far the most recognizable brand was their Crayola “Gold Medal” line in the familiar yellow boxes. The Gold Medal referred to a Gold Medal the company earned with their An-du-Septic dustless chalk during the March 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Over 39,000 awards were given out using the medals designed by Adolph A. Weinman. Receiving a medal at an Exposition was and still is something of importance with many companies featuring their medal on their products. Two companies to use the 1904 medal were Jack Daniel's whiskey (which still use it on their bottles to this day) and Binney & Smith. They used the award to design an entirely new line of crayons featuring the medal on the front of their box.^[13] Initially, they developed and introduced the No. 8 box of eight assorted colors (this famous box is usually depicted on most historical material associated with Crayola; it was even featured on a postage stamp) in early 1905^[14] using the side of the medal depicting an Eagle but quickly changed to the other side showing the 1904 date their medal was won.^[15] From there they began to transition and phase out other Crayola crayon boxes used earlier until eventually their entire line of Crayola crayons featured the Gold Medal design. They would use this design to identify their brand for over 50 years, permanently infusing their crayons into the consciousness of consumers and catapulting the Crayola brand into the world's leading crayon brand. The Crayola brand is currently owned by Hallmark Cards of Kansas City, Missouri.

E. Steiger & Co.[link]

One of the first companies to offer up a line of wax crayons aimed for kindergarten use. Located out of New York, NY, it is unclear when this company started producing crayons but based on a known ad from 1881, they clearly offered wax crayons in boxes of 6, 12, and 18 colors.^[16]

Surviving boxes from Franklin Mfg Co.

Franklin Mfg Co.[link]

The Franklin Mfg. Co, founded in 1876 in Rochester, New York, was one of the first companies to make and sell wax crayons. While it is undetermined when the company began manufacturing wax crayons, they were indeed selling them as early as 1883, having appeared with a display of crayons at the World's Columbian Exposition that year.^[17] They regularly advertised their Rainbow, Radiant, Penguin and Educational brands of crayons in various art and educational catalogues and periodicals throughout the late 19th century and early 20th century. In 1906, they changed their name from the Franklin Mfg. Co to the Franklin Crayon Company and remained in operation until 1927.^[18][19]

Eberhard Faber[link]

The Eberhard Faber Pencil Company, originally the A. W. Faber Company, was founded by John Eberhard Faber (1822–1879) in 1861. The company is primarily credited with bringing German lead pencil-making techniques to the United States. The Faber family was known for lead pencil manufacturing in the village of Stein, Germany, near the city of Nuremberg as early as 1761 when the business was founded by Kasper Faber. His son Anton Faber took over in 1774 and the company came to be known as the A.W. Faber Company. Anton’s grandson, Johann Lothar, took charge of the business in 1839.

Johann Lothar’s youngest son, Eberhard Faber (1822–1879), came to the United States in 1848. He settled in New York City, and by 1850, had opened a store selling pencils and other stationery items in Manhattan. In 1861, Faber opened the American manufacturing branch of A.W. Faber, in a factory close to the East River, near 42nd Street (Manhattan), where the United Nations now stands. It was the first pencil factory opened in the United States.^[20]

Faber also developed his own line of wax crayons by as early as 1883. E. Faber’s wax crayons were available in packages of 6, 12, 18, 24 and 36 assorted colors.^[21] While their cedar wood encased crayons were a hybrid on the traditional all wax crayon, this nonetheless should be regarded as one of the earliest available wax crayon products. Later they would offer traditional all-wax crayons as well.^[22] After a fire destroyed the original factory, they moved their location to Brooklyn. The Faber Company grew to become one of the largest pencil manufacturers in the world, with additional factories located in Germany, Canada, and Argentina.

Charles A. Bowley[link]

Another one of the earliest recorded evidence of the modern paraffin wax crayon comes from Charles A. Bowley, a resident outside of Danvers, MA who developed what he thought were the first wax coloring crayons in the late 1880s. Mr. Bowley had been selling various stationery items around the vicinity of Danvers and had developed clumps of colored wax designed for marking leather. With the need for more accuracy, he went back to his home and formed the wax crayons into more manageable cylinder shapes similar to that of a pencil. The crayons were approximately five and one-half inches long and sold out quickly. He packaged his crayons into decorative boxes and offered them through stationer clients he knew. The demand for his crayons soon exceeded his ability to keep up with production and he contacted the American Crayon Company in 1902 to partner and create a full blown catalog of crayon offerings.^[23]

Early Dixon crayon ad from Aug 1901

Joseph Dixon Crucible Co.[link]

The Joseph Dixon Crucible Co. was formed in March 1868 from the existing Joe Dixon and Company that Joseph Dixon ran.^[24] While the company primarily produced pencils, like many of their contemporaries (E. Faber and Eagle Pencil) they too expanded into a line of wax crayons for offer in 1887.^[25] The Dixon Solid Crayons were offered in as many as 15 colors by 1902.^[26] In addition to their initial Dixon brand they went on to produce the Educator, Gem and Prestite lines of crayons before the company merged with American Crayon to form the Dixon Ticonderoga Company in 1983. They continue to produce numerous brands of crayons to this day.

Prang Educational Company[link]

Louis Prang, one of the principal fathers of art education in schools throughout the United States, also developed his own line of watercolor crayons, very similar to the modern wax-based crayon. Through his business, the Prang Educational Company, he sold several crayon products during the timeframe from the late 1880s through the early 20th century. Several examples of these exist in private collections to this day. In 1915 Prang merged his company into the American Crayon company and he served on the board for several years afterward.^[27]

^[28][29]

Known crayon boxes from B.B. Crayons

B.B. Crayons[link]

Perhaps one of the most mysterious companies to offer a full set of brands was a company simply known as B.B. (they have a trademarked double bumblebee on their logo.) They offered several boxes similar in size and composition to that of the earliest of crayon boxes from the late 19th century with products such as Cadet (featuring a civil war tent camp backdrop), Favorite, Junior Artists, and The Winner brands.^[30]

Milton Bradley Co.[link]

Founded in 1860, the Milton Bradley Company is the oldest game manufacturer in the United States. They didn’t stop by offering just games however. They were also instrumental in the promotion of the early kindergarten movement rising up during the late 19th century. Bradley, inspired by a lecture from Elizabeth Peabody on the teachings of German scholar Friedrich Froebel concerning education through creative activities, spent much of his life developing and selling products around this pursuit.^[31] Through the Milton Bradley Company, he produced wax crayons for retail as early as 1895 under the Bradley name.^[32] In addition to the Bradley line of crayons, they also produced Brodlyne, Copley, Banner, Big Boy, Crayrite, Economo, Embeco, Manual Art, Tru-Tone and Springfield Solid and other brands. In addition, they produced a series of licensed character crayon products such as Popeye, Mother Goose, Howdy Doody, Little Lulu, Moon Mullins, Lone Ranger, Little Orphan Annie and Sergeant William Preston.^[33] The company was acquired by Hasbro in 1984.

Crayon ad showing two boxes of Standard Crayon products from 1901

Standard Crayon Company[link]

The Standard Crayon Company began their operations in the late 1890s. Though the exact date of their beginning is not clear, there is documentation on a receipt from the state of Maine from 1897.^[34] There is also information on size of the company from 1899 police report investigating child labor complaints (the company had 72 employees that year).^[35] It is also unclear exactly when they started producing wax crayon products but ads featuring their Centennial and Falcon brands of crayons began appearing as early as Jan 1900.^[36][37] They went on to produce Clover, Acme, Hummer, Gem, Crown, Crest Light, Bon-Ton, Crayel, Velazquez, Buster, Old Master, Viking, Bril-Tone, Murillo and other crayon lines^[38] before eventually being purchased by Binney & Smith Inc. in 1958.

American Crayon[link]

Known for their chalk crayons, the American Crayon Company in Sandusky, OH spread out to the wax crayon market in 1902. As the popularity of Bowley’s crayons spread to schools, his ability to keep up with production forced him to partner with the American Crayon Company who increased his manufacturing output by adopting his crayons and offering a full blown catalog of crayons in 1902.^[39] These boxes included The American Crescent Drawing Crayons in 7 and 14 color packages, the American Special School and Drawing Crayons in 7 and 14 colors, the American Electric drawing crayons in 7 and 12 colors, the American Brownie crayons in 7, 12 and 28 colors along with a wooden canister containing 14 colors, the American Perfection crayons in a wooden canister of 7 colors, the American Banner containing six colors and a pencil sharpener.^[40]

They continued to expand their crayon line to include brands such as Blendwel, Crayograph, Crayarto, Colorit, Crayonart, Crayonex, Emerald, Excello, Giant, Imperial, Kantroll, Kindograph, Kroma, Lakeshore, Old King Cole, Paragon, Pastello, Payons, Perfection, Popeye, Prang, Sketcho, Playmates, Waxena, Wonder and Young Artist brands among others.^[41] In 1957 they merged with Joseph Dixon Crucible which eventually merged to form Dixon Ticonderoga Company in 1983; which continues to make and sell crayons to this day.

Eagle Pencil Company[link]

In 1902 another pencil company began to offer up crayons. The Eagle Pencil Company, New York, NY, featured a line of wax crayons offered up in 6 and 12 count boxes with a color line that included White, Pink, Violet, Terrasienna, Yellow, Blue, Brick Red, Brown, Orange, Red, Green and Black.^[42] Eagle Pencil began in 1856 and quickly became one of the four major pencil manufacturers in the United States (Joseph Dixon Crubicle, Eberhard Faber and American Lead Pencil were the others.) Though always considered a side item, they continued with their crayons through the mid 40s with the introduction of their Color-Glo Eagle crayons.^[43] They closed their NY factory in 1958 and under various mergers and acquisitions they still operate selling pencils to this day with Berol.^[44]

A March 1905 ad from Crayola

L. & C. Hardtmuth[link]

There isn’t a lot of clear data on L. & C. Hardtmuth, New York, NY except to know that they were pencil and crayon manufacturers starting with crayons at least as early as 1903; perhaps even earlier. What is interesting about this company at this time was their large selection of crayon colors for the time. A 1905 ad describes 48 different colors available for sale; the most variety of colors coming out of any crayon manufacturer at the time.

New England Crayon Company[link]

New England Crayon Company began their crayon operations in 1905 under Wadsworth, Howland & Co. out of Boston, MA. This company ran until 1912. They introduced a line of Pride crayons featuring the popular "The Brownies" characters. They were available in 28 colors. Their factory boasted having the only steam operated molding machine back in 1907; allowing them cost efficiencies passed on to the consumer.^[45][46]

Originally Munsell produced his own crayons and later sold the rights to Crayola

Albert H. Munsell[link]

Another significant contributor to crayon history is Albert Henry Munsell, the professor who did scientific experiments in color that led to his published 1905 “A Color Notation” work.^[47] He created the Munsell Color System in 1915 and started his own Munsell Color Company in 1917.^[48] Initially he produced high quality coloring crayons through Wadsworth, Howland & Co. as early as 1906 and then later through his own company^[49] Binney & Smith purchased the Munsell Color Company crayon product line in 1926 and inherited 22 new colors, 11 in the maximum and 11 in the middle hue ranges.^[50][51] They kept the Munsell name on products such as “Munsell-Crayola” and “Munsell-Perma” up until 1934 and then incorporated their colors into their own Crayola Gold Medal line of boxes.^[52]

In 1949 Binney & Smith Co. revamped their colors and names and only 8 of the original 22 Munsell colors survived. Maximum Blue became Turquoise Blue and one of only three surviving colors to this day. Maximum Blue-Green became Azure Blue and later Green Blue until officially retired in 1980. Maximum Purple became Medium Violet but got dropped from the line up with the introduction of the Crayola No 64 box in 1958. Maximum Purple Blue became Medium Blue and also got dropped in 1958. Maximum Yellow-Red became Medium Orange and then Burnt Orange in 1958 and is still a color used today. Middle Blue Green made it until 1958 but got dropped because they had already come out with their own Blue Green color in 1930 and it was this color that survived. Middle Purple became Lavender and also is still a color in the Crayola color palette.

Others[link]

Many other companies took to producing crayons as well. J. Pressman out of New York had a license for Disney's Snow White characters and produced Snow White crayons for a short time. Ullman Mfg Co., NY was another early crayon adopter featuring their Priscilla brand of crayons. Hundreds of companies entered the crayon market, but only a few exist today, with Crayola dominating the market in the United States.

In all, there were over 300 documented crayon manufacturers in the United States and many more in other countries.

Today[link]

Crayola crayons.

Today , beyond Crayola, other brand name crayon manufacturers include Rose Art Industries and Dixon Ticonderoga. There are also numerous suppliers who create generic brand or store brand crayons. These are typically found in supermarkets.

In 2001 there was a concern about potential contamination of asbestos in many popular brands of crayons after the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported in May of that year that they had tests performed finding that three brands of crayons contained asbestos.^[53] In a follow up study released in June the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) found traces of asbestos fibers in three crayons and larger amounts of transitional fibers which can be misinterpreted as asbestos as a result of using talc as a binding agent in additional crayons. CPSC declared the risk to be low, but said that because of the concerns it had asked manufacturers to reformulate the concerned crayons and commended them for their swift agreement to do so.^[54] Further tests have shown the risk to be insignificant, especially since the largest risk of asbestos is produced when it becomes friable and is then inhaled. Because the fibers are trapped in wax this is unlikely. As part of their testing the CPSC simulated heavy use by a child and did not find significant amounts of fibers released.^[55][56]

Art[link]

Conté crayons of clay and graphite are used for sketching, particularly in the trois crayons style. Antoine Watteau and Jean-François Millet are noted for using conté in their work.^[57][58]

See also[link]

• Comprehensive List of Color Names used for Crayons
• List of Crayola crayon colors

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Crayons

Look up crayon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Crayon Collecting Research Site
• Crayon History Site
• PBS Kids movie about how crayons are made
• Timeline of Crayola crayon colors
• Inventors of crayons
• Timeline of the Crayola Company

A baby mama (also baby-mama and baby-mother) is generally defined as a mother who is not married to her child's father, although the term is often used with other meanings as well.

Definition[link]

Originally, the term was used by the fathers of children born out of wedlock to describe the mothers of their children, but the term is now in general use to describe any single mother. Since entering currency in U.S. tabloids, the terms baby mama and baby daddy have even begun to be applied to married and engaged celebrities.^[1]

The Oxford English Dictionary defines baby mama as "the mother of a man's child, who is not his wife or (in most cases) his current or exclusive partner".^[1]

Peter L. Patrick, a linguistics professor who studies Jamaican English, has said of the terms baby mother and baby father, "[they] definitely imply there is not a marriage—not even a common-law marriage, but rather that the child is an 'outside' child".^[1]

The term "baby-mother" in Jamaica is most often used to describe any pregnant woman or any woman with a young child. For example on a crowded bus you may be admonished to give the "baby-mother" a seat. However in this case no judgement is being made about her marital status and literally means "the mother of the child".

Usage[link]

In news[link]

The term originated in Jamaican Creole as "baby-mother" (pronounced [ˈbebi ˈmada]), with the first printed usage appearing in the Kingston newspaper, The Daily Gleaner in 1966.^[1][2] Another Daily Gleaner use dates from November 21, 1989.^[2]

On Wednesday, June 11, 2008, Fox News Channel used the phrase "Outraged liberals: Stop picking on Obama's baby mama" in an on screen graphic in a discussion as to whether U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama's wife, Michelle, was being unfairly criticized. A senior vice president of programming at Fox said in a statement that a producer "exercised poor judgment" during the segment.^[3]

In music[link]

Baby mother and baby mama had entered wide use in American hip-hop lyrics by the mid-1990s.^[1] The Outkast song "Ms. Jackson", released in 2000, was dedicated to "all the baby mamas' mamas". American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino released a song entitled "Baby Mama" in 2004. Planet Earth, an album by Prince released in 2007, features a song called "Future Baby Mama".

In film[link]

In 2008, Universal Pictures released a comedy entitled Baby Mama starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Poehler plays a woman Fey hires to be her surrogate.

See also[link]

References[link]

G-Dragon
G-Dragon in 2007
Background information
Birth name	권지용 Kwon Ji Yong
Also known as	G-Dragon, GD
Born	(1988-08-18) August 18, 1988 (age 23) Seoul, South Korea
Origin	Republic of Korea
Genres	Hip hop, K-pop
Occupations	Rapper, singer, composer, lyricist, record producer, model
Years active	2001–present
Labels	YG Entertainment
Associated acts	Big Bang, GD & TOP

This article contains Korean text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Hangul or Hanja.

Kwon Ji Yong (Korean: 권지용, born August 18, 1988), better known by his stage name G-Dragon (Korean: 지드래곤), is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, producer and model.

After 6 years as a trainee under the record label YG Entertainment, G-Dragon officially debuted as the leader and one of two rappers for the Korean group Big Bang. G-Dragon has been involved with writing, composing and producing many of Big Bang's tracks, including "Lies", "Last Farewell", and "Haru Haru".

He released his debut solo album, Heartbreaker (2009), which yielded the number-one single of the same name. The album went on to become one of the most successful albums of the year, garnering sales of over 200,000 copies and winning the Mnet Asian Music Awards for Album of the Year. Heartbreaker also sparked major controversies for the artist, including accusations of plagiarism. After almost a year of hiatus, G-Dragon and bandmate, T.O.P collaborated to record and release the album GD & TOP (2010). The album saw the release of three singles: "High High," "Oh Yeah," and "Knock Out," all of which have charted within the top three positions of the Gaon chart, with "High High" becoming a chart-topper.

G-Dragon's influence extends beyond the music industry, having shaped major trends in South Korea. His tight control over his image and artistry have won him praises for his contribution to fashion, and his lyrical contents and composition have garnered him awards.

Career[link]

1992–2009: Early life and debut with Big Bang[link]

Born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, Kwon began his career at the age of eight as part of the group Little Roora.^[1] After releasing a Christmas album, the group's contract was terminated by their record company, to which Kwon described as "shock[ing]." Although he vowed to his mother that he "wouldn't do it [becoming a singer] again," Kwon was scouted by SM Entertainment while on a ski trip with his family.^[2] He was a trainee under the record label for five years, specializing in dance before he left as he was unclear about what he wanted to do.^[1]

In third grade, Kwon was introduced to the American rap group Wu-Tang Clan by a friend. Inspired by their music, he expressed his interest in rapping and began taking classes at the age of 12.^[1] Under their tutelage, he participated in the release of the Korean hip-hop Flex album in 2001. Although he wrote his own lyrics for the song, he admitted that his English was weak and the story behind the lyrics actually meant ‘I’m young, but I’m the best’."^[1] Kwon first caught the interest of Sean of the hip-hop duo Jinusean from YG Entertainment when he was 14, who later recommended him to CEO Yang Hyun Suk. After signing a contract with the record label, Kwon spent the first year cleaning the studio after the other artists in the record label and fetching them water bottles during dance practice.^[1] He later met Dong Young-bae, another trainee at YG Entertainment. Together, the two were coined as GDYB, with Kwon choosing the stage name of G-Dragon.^[2] After six years of training, Kwon made several featured appearances on other artists' albums and even released several singes with Dong Young-bae under the name "GDYB". G-Dragon made his official debut as the leader of the group Big Bang in 2006 with Dong Youngbae(who chose the stage-name Taeyang) and three other members.

The formation of the group was documented on television,^[3] and though there were initially six members, one was dropped before the official debut.^[2] The group's debut was fairly successful, with their first single netting in sales of over 40,000 copies.^[4] It spawned several airplay singles, including "La La La", "We Belong Together" and "Forever with You" which featured label-mate Park Bom. The album also included G-Dragon's first solo song, a cover of the American alternative rock group Maroon 5's single "This Love".^[3] Following the release of the group's mini-album Always in 2007, G-Dragon began to involve himself more with the production of their albums.^[5] Always featured several songs composed by him, including the lead-single "Lies" (Korean: 거짓말; Revised Romanization: Geojitmal), which became the group's first number-one hit. Their following mini-albums followed its predecessor's footsteps: Hot Issue yielded "Last Farewell" (Korean: 마지막 인사; Revised Romanization: Majimak Insa) while Stand Up spawned "Day by Day" (Korean: 하루하루; Revised Romanization: Haru Haru); both singles were chart-toppers.^[6][7]

2009–present: Solo and career development[link]

	"Heartbreaker" (2009) noicon His first official solo single, "Heartbreaker" drew controversy over similarities to the song "Right Round" by Flo Rida
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Aside from Big Bang, G-Dragon also made several solo appearances. After helping produce Taeyang's debut album, he recorded his own version of the album's lead single "Only Look At Me" (Korean: 나만바라봐; Revised Romanization: Naman Barabwa), titled as the "Only Look At Me Part 2" to the song. The single was released digitally. Along with Taeyang and T.O.P, G-Dragon was featured on singer Lexy's song "Super Fly" for her album Rush. In May 2009, he collaborated with the Japanese boy band W-inds. for their single, "Rain Is Fallin'/Hybrid Dream."^[8][9]

After Taeyang released his solo effort, G-Dragon released his debut solo album Heartbreaker, featuring collaborations with several artists, including Teddy of 1TYM, Taeyang, Kush, CL of 2NE1, and Sandara Park of 2NE1. Initially scheduled to be released in April, the album was pushed back to August^[10] to coincide with his 20th (Korean years: 21st) birthday.^[11] The album marked a change in G-Dragon's appearances as he dyed his hair blonde to match its concept. Propelled by its lead-single of the same name, an electronic pop song, the album sold over 200,000 copies^[12][13] and went on to win Album of the Year from the 2009 Mnet Asian Music Awards.^[14] The second single, "Breathe", manage to chart within the Top Twenty^[15] while his other songs — "The Leaders", "A Boy", "Hello", and "She's Gone" — went on to top various charts upon their release.^[16] Shortly after Heartbreaker's release, G-Dragon was accused of plagiarism by Sony Music when his tracks "Heartbreaker" and "Butterfly" were alleged to be similar to Flo Rida's "Right Round" and Oasis's "She's Electric", respectively.^[17][18] However, EMI, the record label that distributed "Right Round" said that they saw no similarities between these two songs.^[19] On March 6, 2010, YG Entertainment announced that they personally contacted Flo Rida's representatives requesting that he feature in G-Dragon's live album, Shine a Light, to which Flo Rida accepted.^[20]

In support of his album, G-Dragon staged his first solo concert at the Olympic Park in December 2009. Entitled Shine a Light, the name of the concert was derived from the lyrics to his song "A Boy".^[21] The concert subsequently sparked controversy following complaints of obscenity^[22] and suggestive content.^[23] The Korean Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs later asked the government prosecutors to investigate if G-Dragon or YG Entertainment violated laws on obscene performances in his concert.^[24][25] He was found innocent and was cleared of all charges on March 15, 2010.^[26]

In November 2010, YG Entertainment announced the collaboration album from G-Dragon and bandmate T.O.P.^[27] Preceding the release of the album, the duo held a world-wide premiere showcase for their album at Times Square in Yeongdeungpo of Seoul, South Korea,^[28] which was also broadcasted live on YouTube.^[29] To promote their album, the duo released three singles: "High High," "Oh Yeah," and "Knock Out."^[30] All three singles preceded the release of the album. The singles attained commercial successes: "High High" was a chartopper^[31] while "Oh Yeah" and "Knock Out" both peaked at number two and number three respectively.^[32][33] The album was released on Christmas Eve, and debuted at number one on the Gaon Chart^[34] with pre-orders of 200,000 copies.^[35], eventually topping 130,000 copies sold.

With a collaboration with Park Myung Soo, they created a duo called GG for the Infinite Challenge Seohae Ahn Highway Song Festival 2011. They released their song 'I Cheated/Having an Affair' featuring Park Bom from 2NE1 on June 2, 2011, which became an 'All Kill' on various Korean music charts.

It was announced sometime in March 2012 that G-Dragon's solo comeback would be scheduled somewhere in the later half of the year, probably in August and sometime near his birthday. Insiders revealed that G-Dragon is currently working hard on his second studio album and that the album would feature popular rap artiste Ludacris.^[36] G-Dragon will also feature in English artist Pixie Lott‘s upcoming Japanese album, along with fellow member T.O.P.^[37]

Image and Artistry[link]

The right kind of music is not made once the artist feels that music is work. When one is working on music, performing or just having fun, [...] it directly influences the music [...] The more I work, the more I feel like I'm learning and maturing at the same time. —G-Dragon^[38][39]

Public Image[link]

G-Dragon's fashion is a trend setter in South Korea

Described as the "most fashionable" one in his group,^[40] G-Dragon's role in influencing fashion trends in South Korea have garnered him awards such as the "Style Icon of 2008"^[40] and the award for "Most Influential Men of 2008" sponsored by Arena magazine.^[41] Fashion icon Kang Dong Wan has also acknowledged G-Dragon's influences, calling him a "fashionista."^[42]

While promoting Heartbreaker, his change in hairstyle from dying it to blonde gained popularity among his fans and became one of the top hairstyles of the year.^[43] Additionally, his constant sporting of triangular scarves became a trend among teenagers and were later nicknamed the "Big Bang scarves."^[44]

Despite his influences, G-Dragon has admitted to being self-conscious of his role as a musician, noting how he had "changed many things including the tone of my voice because I was conscious about my job when I was in front of others."^[38] Aware that his public image is important when promoting his materials, G-Dragon notes that "what the public perceives of [my physical appearance] is my doing so it's my fault if I give off the wrong intention."^[38] He also strongly opposes the idea of singers as "products" of the entertainment industry.^[45]

Marijuana Usage[link]

On October 5, 2011 it was reported that G-Dragon had tested positive for smoking marijuana. His urine test came back negative but a weak positive for marijuana was detected from testing the content of his hair. The tests were done in early June and the results came back in July. Since the results indicated a miniscule amount and it was a first offense, it resulted in a indictment and he was not charged.^[46][47] He allegedly inhaled the drug from a cigarette offered to him by a fan in Japan during a party back in May.^[48] He was the only one at the party who was later tipped off to Korean authorities. He confessed that he smoked the cigarette that was offered to him, but after realizing it was not a normal cigarette, he flushed it away.

The scandal caused a halt to his promotions, and YG Entertainment issued a statement that he was being given time to reflect on his mistake.^[49] Because he was not charged, he did not lose any endorsers and later made his first public appearance after the scandal at the 2011 MTV EMAs with his group Big Bang.

Musical style, lyrics and composition[link]

	"Haru Haru" (2008) noicon Haru Haru, one of the most famous songs of Big Bang[50] was composed by G-Dragon
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Inspired by music by the Wu-Tang Clan, G-Dragon participated in the annual hip hop Flex album in 2001 at the age of 12, establishing his career as an artist.^[1] During the early days of Big Bang's career, the band was marketed predominately as a hip-hop group, though they went on to experiment with electronic music and setting it as the new music trend in Korea.^[51] From previous exposure to a range of genres with Big Bang, G-Dragon incorporated a mix of dance, hip-hop, and R&B songs into Heartbreaker.^[52] During the production for the collaboration album GD & TOP, G-dragon opted for a more hip-hop sound, though he does acknowledge that R&B, acoustic, and electronic music heavily influenced it.^[29]

Since becoming a solo artist, G-Dragon has maintained tight control over his music, stating that "each feeling [in creating the music] is different,"^[39] using his emotions to direct the lyrical content and the composition of his songs.^[38] In attempts to distinguish himself from other artists and composer, G-Dragon admits to "giving twist and turn at every corner and evoking [a] different story" with each part of his music, acknowledging that although the chorus is the catchiest part of the song, he wants all the parts to his song to be remembered.^[39] Prior to his establishment as a solo artist, he was also involved with the production of Big Bang's albums, writing and composing majority of their songs.^[18]

G-Dragon's contributions to his own music have garnered him praises and criticism alike. Preferring to pen lyrics that "sound like an actual story", the Korea Times have praised him as a "genius singer-songwriter",^[18] though the rapper has expressed being uncomfortable with the label.^[53] His effort to create melodies won him praises as one of the best composers of 2008,^[18] with many pop culture critics and industry representatives choosing him as the "musician whose future they anticipate the most."^[53] His rap lyrics have also placed him fourth during a vote for "Most God-like" rapper in Japan.^[54] The rapper also topped Forbes listing of "Most Hardworking Idol".^[55] Regardless, G-Dragon has undergone accusations of plagiarism, most notably for the song "With U", which he composed for Big Bang, and "Heartbreaker" and "Butterfly", which he performed independently.^[18]

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• Heartbreaker (2009)
• TBA (2012)

Collaboration albums

• GD & TOP with T.O.P (2010)

Live albums

• Shine a Light (2010)

Filmography[link]

Awards[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Big Bang (Korean band)

• Official website