The song was first released in South Korea on September 22, 2008 by JYP Entertainment, and was re-released in English on June 26, 2009, where it was included in their next EP 2 Different Tears (2010).

"Nobody" was a commercial success; it was a top search term in South Korea upon its release and ranked number one on various digital music sites.

In the United States, the English version of the track set a milestone in K-pop—it was the first song by a Korean artist to appear on the US Billboard Hot 100, entering at number 76 on the chart issue dated October 31, 2009.

The song first appeared on their first mini-album The Wonder Years: Trilogy (2008), including a remix and instrumental versions.

[7] An editor from PopCrush attributed the chart entry in part to the group opening for The Jonas Brothers' summer U.S. tour "when the Disney boy band was at the height of [their] popularity.

[14] The music video begins with Park Jin-young performing a Motown-style concert with the Wonder Girls as his backup singers.

The executives then motion the Wonder Girls to bring their microphone stands forward and take center stage.

The screen pans from left to right, showing the members in neon dresses: Sunye in green, Hyelim in blue, Yoobin in orange, Yeeun in yellow, and Sohee in pink.

The Wonder Girls had their official comeback on the weekend of September 26–28, 2008, performing on KBS's Music Bank, MBC's Show!

[21] Their first live performance of the Japanese version of Nobody was at the Girls Award 2012 Spring/Summer by Crooz fashion event in Tokyo.

[27] In 2017, Billboard ranked it as the 43rd greatest girl group song of all-time, deeming it as a breakthrough moment in K-pop history where it marked one of the first indicators that Korean acts had appeal in the United States.

[28] Tamar Herman of the same publication wrote that "It revived the industry with a modern update to old school sounds that drew on Motown and the disco era for inspiration, which resulted in the single becoming one of the most popular Korean songs ever.

"[29] PopCrush said that what perhaps made entering Billboard "especially momentous was the fact that they remained true to their signature style, and didn't change it to appeal to accommodate American audiences.

Music critic Han Dong-yoon said that the song's simple choreography and structure propelled it to becoming a hit.

However, he pointed out that although it was not a huge commercial success in the United States, it holds important value in K-pop history as it became an example of how Korean singers could enter foreign markets.