Maps of Music

Coup d'Etat (2013)

Where the lyrics of Coup d'Etat take you, and where it was really made.

The title means 'coup' in Korean, yet G-Dragon kept reworking this album for almost two years before releasing it.

Place unknown

Do you know where this album was recorded, or where its cover was shot? Tell us and we will add it to the map.

Coup d'Etat: second studio album by South Korean rapper G-Dragon
G-Dragon is a member and leader of the boy band Big Bang
The Korean title is 쿠데타, meaning coup
Initially released on iTunes, first as two digital parts
Part 1 (first five tracks) released 2 September 2013; Part 2 (seven tracks) released 5 September 2013
Eclectic mix of hip-hop, dubstep, rock, electro and pop
Promotional single "MichiGo" released 1 April 2013, exclusively through the Line app

G-Dragon said he no longer felt connected with his first solo album
He recorded demos for "Niliria" and "Runaway" in 2011
He spent almost two years recording the album
He released the One of a Kind (2012) mini-album first, while he reworked the remaining material
He mostly worked with YG's in-house producers Choice37, Teddy Park and Kush
Collaborators include Diplo, Baauer, Missy Elliott, Boys Noize, Sky Ferreira, Zion.T, Lydia Paek and label-mate Jennie Kim

Complex ranked the album's red cover at number 20 on its list of the 50 best pop album covers of the past five years

Kwon Ji-yong (born August 18, 1988, Seoul), known as G-Dragon, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter and entrepreneur.
Debuted at age six in the group Little Roo'ra; later trained under SM Entertainment for five years, specializing in dance.
Adopted the stage name G-Dragon after joining YG Entertainment, where he was the leader of BigBang.

Leader of the South Korean boy band BigBang, one of the best-selling boy bands in the world.
Sub-units include GD & TOP (with T.O.P) and GD X Taeyang.

Solo debut album Heartbreaker (2009) was a commercial success and won Album of the Year at the 2009 Mnet Asian Music Awards.
EP One of a Kind (2012) and album Coup d'Etat (2013) were major hits; Act III: M.O.T.T.E became the largest tour by a Korean solo artist.
Left YG Entertainment in 2023 and signed with Galaxy Corporation; third album Übermensch (2025) won Album of the Year at the 2025 Melon Music Awards.
Known as the "King of K-pop" and influential in fashion and youth culture.

Alexis Stephens of MTV wrote that G-Dragon "created a post-modern pastiche of worldwide pop idol sounds" that at times "feels like empty calories"
Billboard's Jeff Benjamin and Jessica Oak felt the album establishes that K-pop stars are no different from Western pop stars
AllMusic's David Jeffries noted that G-Dragon "set his sights on America" with this album
The New York Times's Jon Caramanica called K-pop "gloriously synthetic" and G-Dragon "a miraculous canvas to work with"
Pitchfork's Corban Goble concluded: "if you come to Coup d'Etat expecting some kind of revolution you'll be disappointed; it's an intriguing listen, if not an important one."
Critics gave the album primarily favorable reviews

Debuted at number one on the Gaon Album Chart
Number one again on the Gaon monthly chart for September 2013 after selling 198,489 copies
Pt. 1 debuted at number 182 on the Billboard 200, making G-Dragon the first K-pop act with multiple entries on that chart
Oricon Albums Chart in Japan: number 11, with an estimated 11,150 copies in its first week
Third best-selling digital album on Melon in 2013
Over 6.2 million digital downloads sold up to August 2016
Won Best World Album at the World Music Awards in 2014
Limited vinyl edition of 8,888 units

The title track was co-produced by American DJs Diplo and Baauer, and is a slow-tempo, trap-influenced song.
The track "Coup d'Etat" contains a vocal sample of Gil Scott-Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised".
"Niliria" contains elements of a traditional Korean folk song of the same name.
The limited vinyl edition came with a badge, a mask and a booklet with handwritten lyrics; only 8,888 units were sold, and pre-orders sold out on 2 October 2013.
Label-mate Jennie Kim, who appears on the album, later became a member of Blackpink three years after its release.
Tracks 13 and 14 are exclusive to the physical edition.