Message (Myname song)

On July 30, 2011, Fly to the Sky member Hwanhee announced his intention to debut a five-member boy group between September and October of that year. Referred to as "Hwanhee Boys", he acted as the quintet's vocal trainer and record producer.^[1] Hwanhee had the members train together for two years and three months with the intention of molding a "trendy group" capable of singing various styles and genres including balladry, dance, R&B, and hip hop.^[2]

"Message" was written, composed, and arranged by Han Sang-won and Ban Hyeong-mun.^[3] Described as a "dynamic" dance song, the lyrics deal with the anxiety the narrator feels after sending his love interest a message "full of emotions" and not receiving a response.^[2][4][5]

In 2012, Myname was signed to Japanese entertainment conglomerate Yoshimoto Kogyo. In doing so, the group became the first South Korean music act to sign under the company in its 100-year history.^[6] The group was placed under the newly formed record label YM3D, and it re-recorded "Message" in Japanese to serve as its introductory single in Japan.^[7]

Myname's debut came at the heels of the "idol flood". In order to draw attention to its debut, each member was revealed individually.^[8] Upon the announcement of the quintet's debut, Se-yong was simultaneously introduced as the first member.^[1] On September 2, In-soo was unveiled as the second member.^[9] "Myname" was confirmed as the group's name on September 21, along with JunQ as the third member.^[10] On October 5, Chae-jin and Gun-woo were reported at the final two members of the lineup.^[11]

On October 17, jacket photos for each member were released.^[12] A music video teaser for "Message" was uploaded on YouTube on October 27.^[13] Later that day, Myname made its debut live performance with "Message" on Mnet's music chart show M Countdown.^[14] The single and its music video were concurrently released on the following day.^[13] Myname continued promoting the song in subsequent performances on Korean Broadcasting System's (KBS) Music Bank,^[15] Seoul Broadcasting System's (SBS) Inkigayo,^[16] and Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation's (MBC) Show! Music Core.^[17]

The music video for the Japanese version of "Message" was uploaded on June 22, 2012.^[18] An additional video for the coupling track "Summer Party" was also uploaded on July 6.^[19] The single was released on July 25 in three editions: Limited Edition A with bonus DVD content that includes the music video and making film of "Message"; Limited Edition B with bonus DVD content that includes the music video and making film of "Summer Party"; and Chara-Ani Web Edition.^[20][21] The track was used as the ending theme song for Fuji TV's program Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ from August to September.^[22] "Message" was included in the group's debut Japanese studio album We Are Myname (2013).^[23]

On the chart dated October 23–29, 2011, "Message" debuted at number 203 on South Korea's national Gaon Digital Chart, selling 24,942 downloads in its first week.^[24][25] The following week, it rose to its peak at number 128, shifting an additional 57,107 units.^[24][26] By its third week, the single accumulated 98,348 downloads domestically.^[27]

On the issue dated August 6, 2012, the Japanese version of "Message" debuted at number 14 on Japan's national Oricon Singles Chart, selling 12,433 copies in its first week of release.^[28] According to Oricon, the single charted for five weeks and sold 17,630 copies in the country by the end of its run.^[29][30] The song also ranked at number 21 on the Billboard Japan Top Singles Sales chart.^[31]