Hey Mama! is the debutextended play byExo-CBX, the first official sub-unit of the South Korean-Chinese boy groupExo. It was released on October 31, 2016, bySM Entertainment under distribution byKT Music. The EP features five tracks in total with a variety of genres.[1][2]
On October 24, 2016, SM Entertainment announced thatChen,Baekhyun andXiumin would debut as Exo's first official sub-unit Exo-CBX with an extended play titledHey Mama!.[3] On October 25, a teaser for the music video of the title track "Hey Mama!" was revealed.[4] On October 27, a highlight medley, featuring previews of the album's tracks, premiered onApple Music's Beats 1. The album and the title track's music video were released on October 31.On November 7, 2016, SM Entertainment released the music video for the second single "The One" in their official YouTube account.[5]
A promotional event forHey Mama! was held at 8PM (KST) on October 31 on a special stage located at the east side ofSamseong-dong COEX inSeoul. The event was live streamed on Exo's V App channel.[6] Exo-CBX made their debut performance onM Countdown on November 3, and subsequently performed the song onMusic Bank andShow! Music Core.
On November 5, 2016, Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!" atYou Hee-yeol's Sketchbook.[7] On November 18, 2016, the group performed "Hey Mama!", "The One", and "Cherish" at the OGN World Championship N-Pop Showcase.[8] On February 18, 2017, Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!", and "The One" at the K-Drama Fest inPyeongchang.[9] The group performed the Japanese version of "Hey Mama!" as well as "The One" and "Cherish" at the 2017 Girls Awards on May 3, 2017.[10] Exo-CBX performed "Hey Mama!" onMusic Bank on May 19, 2017, inJeonju in honor ofFIFA U-20 World Cup.[11] On August 26, 2017, Exo-CBX performed the Japanese version of "Hey Mama!", "Cherish", ona-nation concert in Japan.[12]
The album sold 275,000 copies in 2016.[15]Hey Mama! became the highest selling album by a sub-unit in 2016 inGaon Chart with 275,191 copies and in Hanteo with 202,281 copies sold.
