2013 was a high-concept, musically diverse year in K-pop. Hip-hop hadn’t yet taken over, and melody was still king. Instrumentals aimed for the rafters of stadiums, bringing in explosive guitar, sledgehammer beats and bombastic electro riffs. Songs played around with structure in artful, unexpected ways, often polarizing opinion before unveiling themselves as future classics.
Here are fifty of those classics, ranked all the way up to my favorite song of 2013!
HONORABLE MENTIONS
NUMBERS 50-41
NUMBERS 40-31
NUMBERS 30-21
NUMBERS 20-11
Curious what I thought about other years? Check out all of my year-end countdowns here!
10. Infinite – Destiny
Destiny was Infinite’s first work with producers Rphabet, and the injection of new energy is felt in every beat of its edgy, aggressively performed arrangement. From the abrasive synth distortion to the swoops of dramatic strings, this is a dance track with bite, and proof of the group’s incredible versatility. (full review)
9. Shinhwa – This Love
After reinvigorating their sound a year earlier, Shinhwa went one better with the immense This Love. The track’s anthemic club sound stands as their most powerful moment, pulsing with dance floor bliss. Nothing about the song is particularly complicated, but each segment ties brilliantly together, culminating in the sky-high, euphoric chorus.
8. SHINee – Dream Girl
It might not be the flashiest or most iconic of SHINee’s singles, but it’s hard to find a better distillation of pure pop hooks and instrumental force than Dream Girl. Its kaleidoscopic wave of melodic twists and turns brilliantly sets up its explosive chorus, which takes full advantage of the group’s powerful vocal blend.
7. Girls’ Generation (SNSD) – I Got A Boy
A Frankenstein tapestry of song fragments, I Got A Boy is one of the most complex, genre-smashing singles in their entire career. You’ll either love or hate its abrupt transitions in sound and melody. Either way, it stands as a fascinating K-pop experiment that unveils like a full-on stage musical.
6. Boyfriend – I Yah
I Yah is a hard-hitting sucker punch of dance pop, with rhythm guitar and synth accents to die for. That overpowering, layered hook is as aggressively awesome as Boyfriend ever sounded, and a perfect encapsulation of the Sweetune appeal. If that wasn’t enough, the song concludes with a mighty key change, sending you out of a high while demanding a quick use of the ‘repeat’ button.
5. ZE:A – The Ghost Of Wind
Melding perfectly-utilized classical elements to a light, funky dance track, The Ghost Of Wind stands apart from everything else in ZE:A’s discography. The operatic vocal sample is inspired, but the track would be outstanding even without it. A ridiculously gorgeous string section lends the track an ornate sense of drama, but Ghost‘s most enduring aspect is its simple, timeless pop melody.
4. EXO – Growl
EXO’s most iconic song, and one of the best known K-pop tracks of the last decade. On its own, the addictive beat would be enough to land solidly in the top five of this countdown, but paired with its charismatic vocal and thumping hook, Growl is almost unbeatable. The extended stage version is essential listening, proving the endless durability of this killer groove. (full review)
3. B1A4 – What’s Happening?
What’s Happening is a bombastic, impossibly catchy burst of power pop. Every bit of it is a sharply-constructed hook, from the sing-song rap segments to the punchy, anthemic chorus. Where other groups would have gone for a cutesier arrangement, B1A4 always found a way to make this youthful sound feel grounded and unexpectedly weighty. In this regard, What’s Happening is their masterclass.
2. Infinite – Man In Love
2013 was a year of contrasts for Infinite. A few months before tackling the darker, jagged electro pop of Destiny, the guys presented the most bubbly, bright pop confection of their career. No one does “bubbly and bright” better than Sweetune, and they anchored Man In Love with a propulsive, wall-of-sound appeal that led with a lethal synth riff before moving onto the squeal of guitars and one hell of a build as the track rockets toward its climax. (full review)
1. G-Dragon – Crooked
Crooked is all about attitude and mood. I can’t think of any K-pop song that better captures the idea of desperation and sadness hidden beneath puffed-up-chest bravado. It’s a raucous sounding track, but far from a party. Instead, the chugging guitar and haunting, siren synth give the impression of a character out of control, in a swirling mess of a situation with no exit. With his gnarled delivery, G-Dragon spits out the hip-hop verses with utter conviction, jeering and hissing towards an explosive stadium-ready chorus that wraps everything up in a potent pop sheen. (full review)
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
Pingback: The Top 50 K-Pop Songs of 2013 (Day Four: 20-11) | The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion
2013 was an awesome year for kpop. I don’t disagree with your list, and here is my list:
1 EXO “Growl”
2 ZEA “Ghost of the Wind”
3 Super Junior “Breakdown” (in Mandarin)
4 SHINee “Why So Serious”
5 SHINee “One Minute Back”
6 Block B “Be the Light”
7 Infinite “60 seconds” (original group version)
8 SHINee “Everybody”
9 “Bizzy Tiger Yoonmirae” by the same
10 Roy Kim “Love Love Love”
10.5 the obligatory ballad from Kyuhyun “사랑 먼지” (“Love Dust”)
I am fairly certain that the first kpop song I heard was “Ghost of the Wind”. After binge watching the “Moon Embracing the Sun” on Netflix, the ghosts of the ethernet led me to it.
LikeLike
Solid list. If I would’ve allowed b-sides, One Minute Back would’ve ranked very high. That’s a monster of a song.
LikeLike
I expected the “crooked” placement, i consider it the holy standard of idol solo. The lyrics feels personal, different enough from the group’s discography, and voice and song that feels like it can’t be replaced by any other person.
Also shinhwa stays being one of the few first gen idols whose discography holds up with time
LikeLike
This Love is actually my favorite Shinhwa song, which is crazy since they released it fifteen years into their career!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am so glad that Ghost of The Wind ranked so high — it’s a timeless bop for me personally (together with 9Muses’ Dolls), in the sense that I still listen to them on a regular basis.
Would’ve ranked IGAB as number one because I remember how shocked everyone was with the structure of the song (me included) and how it practically opened the year with a bang. Ended up loving the song tremendously, and I think it set the stage for more genre-bending (?) songs in the kpop scene.
LikeLike
I don’t think we’ve ever had a more striking start to a K-pop year, released right on January 1st (or December 31st, depending on the timezone) as a harbinger of what 2013 would bring.
LikeLike
My Top 10 would go something like:
1. Crooked – G-dragon
2. Love Options – Bestie
3. Expectation – Girls day
4. The Ghost of Wind – ZE:A
5. Man In Love – Infinite
6. What’s happening – B1A4
7. I-yah – Boyfriend
8. Trap – Henry
9. Growl – EXO
10. This Love – SHINHWA
Honourable mentions:
IGAB – SNSD
Just another girl – Jaejoong
Rum Pum Pum – F(x)
All 3 SHINee singles
Shadow – Beast
Hush – Miss A
Wild – 9muses
Destiny – Infinite
NoNoNo – APINK
Hyde – VIXX
It’s always great to see some appreciation for ZE:A and Boyfriend, two of the most overlooked groups ever. Also this countdown really gave me a retrospective at how great of a year 2013 was damn.
LikeLike
Looks like we agreed a lot… just not in the placements. Almost all those songs are on my top 50 too, with Apink’s a very close honorable mention.
LikeLike
Wow. I completely forgot Crooked was released over 6 years ago now. It’s crazy how time flies. I still remember the release so vividly, and it still remains on my go-to K-Pop playlist to this day. So many groups have tried their hand at something similar, but something about it is just inimitable. It’s the perfect combination of song, artist, and imagery.
LikeLike
You got that right! Crooked became a template for a certain kind of YG production, yet none quite lived up to the original. I kind of wish GD would release a new song with this same style, yet I fear even he would have a hard time topping himself.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Eureka, I have found it! There it is! The “Top 50 Singles of 2013” background pic is the illuminated roof in the SHINee “Dream Girl” video. Sure, Nick, you planned that all along.
Meanwhile, I am patiently waiting for Xeno to appear and remind us of all the girl groups we missed on our lists … … ….
LikeLike
You give me waaaay too much credit! Haha
And yeah… Xeno, where are you? We need a girl group counterpoint list wrapped in a novella structure.
LikeLike
Honestly a complete crime against the better songs u had lower down that Destiny and I Got A Boy are so high up lmao
Yes I’m a IGAB anti
LikeLike
That’s the great thing about taste in music. Everybody likes something different! Hopefully we matched on a few other songs.
LikeLike