100 Fun Facts About EXO

Which of these boy bands was launched by the same agency as EXO?

SHINee: three years after launching them, the agency's founder unveiled his next boy band, EXO, as one group in two halves built to release the same songs in two countries at once.

EXO's name is taken from which word?

Exoplanet: the debut video ran with the idea, showing each member wielding a celestial power such as frost, flight or healing.

How many members did EXO debut with in 2012?

12: the lineup was split into two six-member units, and three members' lawsuits against the agency later cut it to nine.

EXO's Chinese-market half promoted its songs mainly in which language?

Mandarin: the two halves put out each song in Korean and Mandarin on the same day until 2014, after which the group performed as one.

Which single, released in April 2012, marked EXO's official debut?

Mama: both halves of the group launched it on the same day, one on a Korean music show and the other at an awards ceremony in China.

Which EXO member was the first to join the agency as a trainee, back in 2006?

Suho was spotted on the street by a casting manager at 16 and spent six years as a trainee before debuting as the group's leader.

Which EXO member won a contract at the SM Youth Best Contest in 2007?

Kai entered at his father's urging and signed at thirteen; four years later he was the first member of the new group to be unveiled to the public.

Which Exo-M leader auditioned at a global SM audition in Canada?

Kris had moved to Vancouver as a boy and passed the agency's audition there; in 2014 he became the first member to sue it to end his contract.

Which EXO member, born in Qingdao, China, was scouted by SM in 2010?

Tao trained in wushu from childhood as a student athlete; injuries kept him out of the 2015 album promotions, and that August he sued to leave.

Who was the last member to join Exo-M, one half of EXO, in 2011?

Chen became a trainee in 2011 and within months was on national television, one of four members who gave the group's first public performance that December.

What was the title of EXO's first studio album, released in June 2013?

XOXO came as a Korean "Kiss" edition and a Chinese "Hug" edition, and for it the group's two halves promoted together for the first time after a year apart.

Which breakthrough single gave its name to the repackage of EXO's first album?

Growl: the hit pushed combined sales of the album past a million, and its video was staged in a dim warehouse to look like one unbroken take.

Before EXO's first album in 2013, which group's 2001 release had been Korea's last million-selling album?

g.o.d's Chapter 4 was the last, in 2001; EXO matched it only by counting every version of the album together, the Korean and Chinese editions and their repackage.

What was EXO's first reality series, which premiered in November 2013?

Exo's Showtime followed the members through unscripted outings, opening with a chicken-eating contest, and doubled as promotion for their first winter EP.

The release of EXO's EP Overdose was delayed because of which 2014 event?

The Sewol Ferry disaster struck five days before the planned release; the group cancelled its appearances and held the EP back until May 7, and it still ended 2014 as South Korea's best-selling release.

Tickets for EXO's first headlining concerts in 2014 reportedly sold out in how long?

1.47 seconds: demand for the two Seoul shows so outran the seats on sale that a third night was added straight away.

EXO's first number one on the Gaon Digital Chart, a 2014 winter single, came out on what record?

A live album: first given to fans through a mobile rhythm game as a Christmas gift, the song was then added as a bonus track to the concert recording Exology Chapter 1.

Which single was rushed out early in March 2015 after it leaked online?

It went on to win 18 music show trophies, a record that stood for four years.

Which 2015 EXO album was repackaged as Love Me Right?

Exodus was trailed by "Pathcode" teaser films and Twitter riddles whose answers unlocked a promo site; it was also the first album made after two members had left.

Which Seoul venue hosted EXO's Love Concert in October 2015?

Gocheok Sky Dome, South Korea's first baseball dome, had opened only weeks earlier, which is why this show could be billed as the country's first dome concert.

What did EXO call the 2015 single they released to promote Star Wars: The Force Awakens in South Korea?

Lightsaber: one of the members co-wrote the Korean lyrics for the tie-in between the agency and Disney, and its video is set among clubs marked "Jedi Only".

Part of the profits from EXO's winter EP Sing for You went to a music-education campaign run with which organisation?

UNICEF: the agency set up the Smile For U campaign with it in 2015 to fund music lessons for children in Asia, and several later albums gave a share of their proceeds too.

Which 2016 EXO album produced the singles "Lucky One" and "Monster"?

Ex'Act was promoted with both singles at once, each with its own visual concept matched to one of the album's two physical packagings.

Which three members make up the EXO sub-unit Exo-CBX?

Chen, Baekhyun and Xiumin: after the three appeared together in a comic tour video and sang a drama theme in 2016, fans guessed a sub-unit was coming, and the agency confirmed it that October.

Which two members form the EXO sub-unit Exo-SC?

Sehun and Chanyeol first paired up for a duet on tour, released it as a one-off single in 2018, and were made an official hip-hop duo the following summer.

Who was the first EXO member to release a solo EP, in October 2016?

Lay produced Lose Control himself, writing, composing and arranging all six of its songs, and released it three days before the group's first sub-unit made its debut.

Which 2017 EXO album, led by "Ko Ko Bop", drew a then-record number of pre-orders?

The War: three members co-wrote its reggae-tinged lead single, whose title, one of them said, means fun dancing.

The 2018 Guinness book credited EXO with the most Daesangs at which awards show?

Mnet Asian Music Awards: the entry rested on five grand prizes won there by 2017, but the record later passed to BTS, credited by Guinness with 17 by the end of 2021.

In January 2018 an EXO song became the first K-pop track played at which landmark?

The Dubai Fountain added "Power" to its playlist; seven members flew in for the first show, and a run due to end that month was extended to March and revived in the autumn.

What was EXO's first Japanese studio album, released in January 2018?

Countdown was announced for January 24 and slipped a week; it gathered the group's earlier Japanese singles with four new songs and went straight to the top of Oricon's weekly chart.

EXO performed at the 2018 closing ceremony of which global sporting event?

The Winter Olympics: in Pyeongchang they shared the K-pop segment with the soloist CL, weeks after one member had sung the national anthem to open the IOC's session there.

Which body issued official commemorative medals honoring EXO in April 2018?

The Korean Mint Corporation struck the medals to honour the group's part in spreading Korean culture abroad, with each member's face drawn by a leading currency designer.

Which EXO album debuted at number 23 on the US Billboard 200?

Don't Mess Up My Tempo was sold with a biker-gang storyline and an online puzzle game in which a motorcycle circled a track shaped like the band's name.

Which repackage of EXO's 2018 studio album arrived that December?

Love Shot: two of the members co-wrote the Korean lyrics of the title track, whose video ends in a shoot-out with unexpected enemies.

With their 2018 album, EXO became the first act to debut this century to pass what sales total in Korea?

10 million albums: the cumulative total was reached as their fifth Korean studio album became the fifth in a row to sell a million copies.

Which EP was EXO member Baekhyun's 2019 solo debut?

City Lights: he steeped his solo debut in R&B, working with producers such as Darkchild and The Stereotypes, and it became South Korea's best-selling solo album of the 2010s.

Two EXO members joined which seven-member group of SM stars in 2019?

SuperM pooled seven members from four of the agency's boy bands and was launched jointly with the American label Capitol Music Group.

What was the title of EXO's sixth studio album, released in November 2019?

Obsession came in rival EXO and X-EXO editions and was the first album the group promoted as six, with two members doing military service and a third absent.

Who was the first EXO member to enlist for mandatory military service?

Xiumin, the oldest member, enlisted in May 2019, starting a relay of enlistments that was not over until September 2025.

Who was the last EXO member to enlist, in December 2023?

Sehun, the youngest member, was the last to go; his discharge in September 2025 ended a run of enlistments that had begun more than six years earlier.

In March 2018 EXO became Asian brand ambassadors for which sports body?

Major League Baseball named the group its ambassadors for Asia, and days later three members opened the league's store in a Hong Kong mall called Times Square.

What was the 2021 "special album" that marked a China-based member's return to EXO?

Don't Fight the Feeling: two members who sang on it were away on military service when it came out, and it was the first release in more than two years to feature the bandmate working in China.

Which EP was EXO member D.O.'s 2021 solo debut?

Empathy leans on acoustic pop rather than dance tracks; he co-wrote its lead song "Rose" and added an English version of it plus a Spanish version of another track.

Which 2023 EXO album went on to sell over two million copies?

Exist ranked eighth among the world's best-selling albums of 2023 on the record industry's global chart, though only seven members were free to promote it.

Which company, set up by EXO's Baekhyun, took on two bandmates in 2024?

INB100 took over the solo work of all three members of one sub-unit while the old agency kept their group activities, an arrangement that later soured into a legal dispute and kept them off the 2026 album.

What was the title of EXO's eighth full album, released in January 2026?

Reverxe ended a gap of two and a half years and was made by six members: three others were shut out by a contract dispute with the agency.

EXO's first music show win, in June 2013, was for which single?

Wolf: it was the one track on the first album that the group's two halves recorded together, and the win came on Music Bank.

Which cosmetics brand did EXO endorse from 2013 until 2020?

Nature Republic: what began as a two-year deal kept being renewed, growing into mass autograph sessions and the brand's own fan festivals before it dropped the group in January 2020.

What is the official name of EXO's global fan club, chosen by the group's agency?

EXO-L: the L stands for love and also sits between K and M in the alphabet, placing the fans between the group's two original halves; until then they had called themselves EXOtics.

A raised stage on EXO's third tour was shaped like which figure from the band's logo?

A hexagon: during one segment the members danced on the raised six-sided platform while water rained down on them from above.

Which 2013 EXO B-side hit number one in Korea ten years later thanks to a viral dance challenge?

The First Snow had already become a seasonal favourite, played across South Korea after each winter's first snowfall. EXO's own members later joined the challenge.

EXO became only the second Korean act to enter the Canadian Hot 100 in 2015, after which solo star?

Psy was the only Korean artist to have charted in Canada before EXO arrived at number 98. The entry also made EXO the first K-pop group on the list.

Which comedian teamed up with EXO for the 2016 samba-flavoured charity single 'Dancing King'?

Yoo Jae-suk performed it with EXO on stage in Bangkok as a mission for the variety show Infinite Challenge. All profits from the single were donated.

Which EXO song won a FIFA fan poll to be played in the stadium at the 2018 World Cup final?

Power narrowly won a day of voting on the tournament's Twitter account, so it was chosen for Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on the day of the final.

In the fan club name EXO-L, the letter chosen because it sits between K and M stands for which word?

Love is the official meaning, and the fans count as a third unit linking Exo-K and Exo-M, the two halves the group debuted as.

Which US missile system's planned deployment in South Korea got EXO concerts in China cancelled?

THAAD led Chinese authorities to restrict South Korean artists heavily, so every mainland date of the Exo'rdium tour except Hangzhou was called off.

Which Russian figure skater, a two-time world champion, drew attention in 2018 as an EXO fan?

Evgenia Medvedeva had defended her world title in 2017, the first woman to do so since Michelle Kwan. Her enthusiasm for the group drew media attention of its own.

Former EXO singer Luhan set a 2014 Guinness record for the most comments on a post on which site?

Weibo is where Luhan's record-setting post sits, and he beat his own mark there in September 2015.

Which reggae-tinged 2017 EXO single reportedly crashed Melon's servers as fans rushed to stream it?

Ko Ko Bop means 'fun dancing', by Chanyeol's account, and three of the members co-wrote its lyrics. It topped the Gaon Digital Chart for four weeks.

A film cut of the EXO web series 'Exo Next Door' was sold to buyers at which festival's market?

Cannes hosted the sale after the series drew 50 million views online, making it one of the most popular web dramas in Korea.

For which 2016 period drama did the EXO trio later called Exo-CBX record the song 'For You'?

Scarlet Heart Ryeo, in full Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, aired on SBS that August. The song set off talk of a first sub-unit, which was confirmed that October.

Which music mogul, the founder of EXO's agency, is credited as producer of the 2012 debut EP?

Lee Soo-man had unveiled his plan in 2011: one boy band split into two sub-groups, promoting the same songs at once in South Korea and China.

Which title track led EXO's seventh studio album in July 2023, after two pre-release singles?

Cream Soda compares the soft yet thrilling moment of falling in love to the fizzy drink. It earned EXO a first place on Music Bank eleven days after release.

Which business magazine ranked EXO as Korea's most powerful celebrities in both 2015 and 2016?

Forbes also had EXO in the top five of its annual Korean celebrity list in 2014, 2017 and 2018, and in the top ten in 2019.

Which American footwear brand's D'Lites 2 line became known as 'EXO's sneakers' in 2016?

Skechers signed EXO as ambassadors for its Sweet Monster collection. Two years earlier a Korean outdoor label had named a sneaker Move-Xo after the group.

What name did EXO give the members' alter egos, unveiled in the 2019 'Exodeux' concept trailer?

X-Exo also named one of the three physical editions of the sixth studio album, sold alongside a version titled simply EXO.

Under which alternative title did EXO perform 'Lotto' on channels that ruled the song unfit to air?

Louder was sung with modified lyrics on KBS, MBC and one cable channel. The original's casino-themed video opens with the sound of a slot machine.

Which track on EXO's second studio album has lyrics written by Jonghyun of labelmates Shinee?

Playboy had both its lyrics and its music written by Jonghyun. It sits on a ten-song album that spans dance, R&B and ballads.

Which boy band's future members, then trainees, joined EXO on the 2014 retro show 'Exo 90:2014'?

NCT did not debut until 2016. On the show, EXO members remade 1990s K-pop hits and their videos alongside the original stars.

Which lead single of EXO's eighth studio album mixes Atlanta trap drums with heavy metal guitar?

Crown uses its title object as a metaphor for something precious to protect. It was named as the title track two weeks before the album came out.

At which venue, the largest of its kind in South Korea, did EXO close the Exo'rdium tour in 2017?

Seoul Olympic Stadium hosted the encore shows on 27 and 28 May 2017, which took EXO's career total past 100 concerts.

What was the subtitle of EXO's first headlining tour, which opened in Seoul in May 2014?

The Lost Planet also lent its name to EXO's first live album, a two-disc set of 36 songs released at the end of that year.

What name did EXO give 2015 teaser videos set in places whose initials spelled out a song title?

Pathcode clips came with riddles tweeted from a dedicated account, and each solved answer unlocked teaser photos on a promotional website.

Which prologue single did EXO release in January 2012, over two months before the official debut?

What Is Love was sung by only two vocalists in each language version, and its videos were stitched together from earlier teaser clips.

Which 2015 EXO track, the first with lyrics credited to members, was written as a gift to fans?

Promise carries the subtitle 'EXO 2014', and its lyrics thank fans for their support. Three of the members wrote it together.

Which 2020 EP by EXO's Baekhyun was the first million-selling album by a Korean soloist in 19 years?

Delight ended a drought stretching back to Kim Gun-mo's 2001 album Another Days. Its lead single was 'Candy'.

EXO's Chen and Punch recorded the duet 'Everytime' for which 2016 drama about a soldier and a surgeon?

Descendants of the Sun aired on KBS. Two years earlier Chen had sung his first solo soundtrack number for a drama starring bandmate D.O.

EXO was the first foreign band to top which Japanese chart with both its debut single and debut album?

Oricon had the debut single at number one on its first day with 147,000 copies sold, a record for a Korean act's first Japanese single.

Which K-pop band was singled out with EXO in 2018 for hugely over-performing on social media?

BTS and EXO were the two acts worldwide found to out-reach stars such as Beyoncé and Taylor Swift. EXO alone drew 24 million Twitter mentions.

Which genre defines Exo-SC, the duo launched in 2019 as the second sub-unit of EXO?

Hip hop runs through the pair's debut EP, six tracks they helped write and produce with a message aimed at youth.

What kind of gang do EXO's members play in a 2018 concept film teasing the fifth studio album?

Bikers who love speed enter a red cube of frozen time in the storyline. Fans had to stop a motorcycle in an online puzzle game to unlock each teaser.

In 2015 an EXO album outcharted every K-pop group release in the US except 'Crush' by which act?

2NE1 kept the record, while EXO's second studio album entered the Billboard 200 at number 95 and topped the World Albums chart.

Which Latin American capital joined EXO's Exo'rdium tour in April 2017, making it a world tour?

Mexico City hosted the show at its Arena on 27 April 2017, and the same extension added dates in Newark and Los Angeles.

On which weekly music show did Exo-K give its debut television performance in April 2012?

Inkigayo carried the Seoul-based half's debut on the same day that Exo-M performed at an awards show in Shenzhen.

Which 2022 EP made Xiumin the seventh member of EXO to launch a solo career?

Brand New is a retro K-pop record steeped in 1990s nostalgia, released alongside a lead single of the same name.

In which Chinese city did EXO hold a second debut showcase, a day after the first in Seoul?

Beijing saw both halves of the group perform together on 1 April 2012, a week before they split up to promote separately in two countries.

Which streaming app saw its viewing record broken by EXO's 2015 showcase for the EP 'Sing for You'?

V Live carried the showcase from Lotte World in Seoul, where 1,500 fans watched in person as it became the app's most-watched stream to that point.

Which production duo worked on EXO songs including 'Monster', 'Lotto' and 'Lightsaber'?

LDN Noise are the British pair Greg Bonnick and Hayden Chapman, who returned in 2018 to work on the album track 'Gravity'.

Which American production team did EXO's label recruit for the group's 2014 single 'Overdose'?

The Underdogs built the track on hard rhythms, R&B hooks and electronic beats, and it sold more than a million copies within a year.

Which American R&B group's 1996 hit 'You're the One' is sampled on the EXO album track 'Ya Ya Ya'?

SWV's original is reworked into a dance track with heavy 808 bass, whose lyrics hold that love begins in a single moment.

Which Korean musician, one half of Dynamic Duo, produced Exo-SC's debut EP and guested on 'Just Us 2'?

Gaeko shared production with the team Devine Channel and returned as a guest on the pair's first full album a year later.

What was the name of the first Japanese arena tour by Exo-CBX, which visited four cities in 2018?

Magical Circus played eight shows across Yokohama, Fukuoka, Nagoya and Osaka, and returned for special edition concerts in 2019.

Which Japanese label released both EXO's first Japanese single and first Japanese studio album?

Avex Trax also handled the Japanese releases of the trio Exo-CBX, including a debut EP called Girls.

Which 2016 release was EXO's second Japanese single, certified platinum by Japan's recording industry body?

Coming Over reached number two on the national weekly singles chart, and EXO added it to the set list for tour dates in Tokyo and Osaka.

Which state honour did EXO receive at the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards in November 2017?

Prime Minister's Commendation went to the group for excellence in its field. Accepting it, Suho promised they would promote Korea as well as K-pop.

For which online game did Exo-CBX record a remake of the soundtrack song 'Crush U' in November 2016?

Blade & Soul hired the trio weeks after their debut, and they performed the song at the N-Pop Showcase during the game's world championship.

Which actress played the shy fan with EXO members as neighbours in the web series 'Exo Next Door'?

Moon Ka-young played Ji Yeon-hee, a 23-year-old hired to clean the stars' house who ends up in a love triangle with two of them.

Which organisation's Korean youth wing made the members of Exo-K goodwill ambassadors in late 2012?

Red Cross Youth appointed the six singers eight months after their debut, an early entry in the group's long record of charity work.

Which streaming service premiered a new 'Exo's Ladder' season for EXO's tenth anniversary in 2022?

Wavve released the season on the anniversary itself, a day before a fan event that was EXO's first show with a live audience since the pandemic began.

Which in-house songwriter at EXO's label wrote Korean lyrics for both 'Overdose' and 'Monster'?

Kenzie also co-composed and arranged the 2016 single, and her credits with the group go back to its first studio album.