Last time I wrote about Jamie, she was still working under her Korean name Park Jimin. Now, she’s back with a complete reinvention. The English-language Pity Party is unlike anything she’s recorded before, though it has solid roots in the disco trends popularized by global artists like Dua Lipa.
Jamie feels uniquely perched to tackle an international market given her long-standing position on the global-minded variety series After School Club. Still, she found her claim to fame in a much more domestically-focused place: the first season of K-pop Star. Here, she was pitched as a big-voiced balladeer. She can certainly belt out those kind of tracks, but I love when a singer transfers that power to material that’s more brisk and groovy. Pity Party’s best moments embrace the fullness of Jamie’s voice.
Other than that, this track feels pretty standard in a post-Future Nostalgia world. This is no bad thing. I’m quite partial to this sound, and Pity Party gets it right. The beat chugs incessantly along, assisted by sweeps of disco strings and playful rhythm guitar. The chorus is catchy if repetitive, only marred by its familiarity. The verses could do with a more engaging melody, though Jamie brings extra power to verse two. The pre-chorus and bridge give her a chance to let loose, and these segments offer the most potent blend of her past and present styles. Apart from that connective tissue, this might as well be a new artist entirely. It will be interesting to see if Jamie sticks with this sound or pushes herself in even more daring directions.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 8.25 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I saw the youtube pic and read the title, and I knew immediately what it would sound like.
The song is fine, if generic at this point.
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yeah, i feel like the future nostalgia sound is getting oversaturated in the kpop market at this point
though this song is pretty decent, might i say
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i can describe the sound as; nu-disco genre, a funky bassline, 4 by 4 house beat, an antidrop in the chorus, and of course, violins
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For me, it’s not the sound that’s getting old (after all, I love this sound) — it’s the fact that K-pop songs are doing the *same* thing with it each and every time.
It’s very formulaic at this point, but I could say the same for almost every trendy genre K-pop sets its eyes on.
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exactly what i was thinking, the problem with most of these trends in kpop is that these companies would keep stretching the sound in the same direction until it wears out and breaks, rather than pulling it in a different direction and do something new
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I like Jamie a lot as a person. Very funny, outspoken all those good things. But I’ve never connected with her music much. Luckily, I think this one is pretty solid.
That said I do agree with Myma and Eli that this “Future Nostalgia” sound is becoming a bit worn out. Both in the East and the West. This once ironically feels like it could’ve actually been on the album.
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Not related at all but I’ve just reminded myself how 15& was one of K-pop biggest examples of wasted talent. Their handling made zero sense to me.
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Also not really related but Baek Yerin’s Square 2017 is great. Just discovered that song recently.
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15& was totally wasted talent. One EP, another single or so, and that was it.
Darling daughter still plays their “Sugar” from time to time. I’ve always appreciated how off-kilter it is, and yet how the girls just nail every twist and turn, and sing the shit out of their lines.
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AHHH Sugar is so great. There’s a few more songs on that album I liked such as Rain & Cry and Silly Boy. What makes JYP literally ignoring them for 90% of their career even weirder is that they were pretty successful in the small time they WERE active. Just overall confusing management from JYP.
The amount of talent JYP has sort of forced out of the company has always been odd to me. Just seems like they have no interest in retaining artists or meeting their demands. It’s works for them tho so oh well.
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I always loved Can’t Hide It by 15&, especially live. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AH6qR-1TlrA
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*eiji
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My apologies for my shitty reading skills.
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its okay, a lot of people irl pronounce my name incorrectly anyway
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AY-djee?
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This is another of the times that the fact that I’ve listened to so little pop music over the last decade and change – I’m not sick of this sound yet! I’ve got a funky dance playlist where this kind of thing lives, and I’m thinking maybe four stars even, because I really like that bass line and Jamie’s voice sounds great. I think this is the first time I’ve heard any of her music (not counting various guest vocals), although I knew her from ASC and various Dive Studios stuff that’s kind of hard to look back at without cringing because of the Jae Situation.
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I enjoy Jamie’s personality so much, she is a fun singer with loads of style and quite fun. This song is fine, but largely a weaker version of Don’t Start Now.
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I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of this sound, in fact my most favorite songs last year are in this style. I read the review and the comments first before listening so I really expected a song that I would exactly hear in Future Nostalgia but for me the chorus is more like Doja Cat would sing rather than Dua? It does sound like pop more than kpop that’s for sure. I still like it because of my point in my first sentence.
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