OnlyOneOf’s Underground Idol series is basically one big BL drama, pairing the guys off with one another. Begin and Be Free united Yoojung and KB, and now it’s time for Junji and Rie to spark a romance. Junji’s Be Mine slows the funk undertones of past songs to deliver something more akin to an evocative tone poem. Underground Idol remains a compelling series, but this feels more like a breather than a highlight on its own.
If we were to think of this series as a typical K-pop album, Be Mine would be a b-side. Track four or five, maybe. There’s nothing wrong with that, and it would be foolish to expect every release to have the punch of a Be Free. From structure to energy, Be Mine feels more contemplative and less constrained by pop music mores. OnlyOneOf have many songs like this in their arsenal and they tend to grow more addictive the more you hear them.
Junji imbues Be Mine with a nimble, expressive vocal that suits the track’s r&b leanings. The instrumental rushes forward in fits and starts, seemingly unsure of just what it wants to be. I suppose this emulates the butterflies of the “love at first sight” feeling the video highlights. As a piece of music, it’s fascinating but not always easily scrutable. I’ll take it as a bridge between bigger melodic moments in the series, though I wouldn’t be surprised if Rie’s upcoming solo single harnesses a similar vibe. Either way, these Underground Idol songs are going to play so well one after another.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 7.75 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
junji’s voice at the start is absolutely heavenly. i think you’re definitely right about this song flitting about a bit but i can’t lie… i love everything that onlyoneof puts out so i can’t help but absolutely adore this
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Oh…
Musically, this one isn’t even close to the masterpieces of Begin and Be Free by Yoojung and KB. I appreciate its r&b leanings, however, that trap percussion in the first verse is just super grating and makes the track sound cheap and a lil bit lousy. Still, as it is an LGBTQ-themed song, it means a lot to me and that’s why I love the song, even though it has got some severe flaws, as I’d said earlier.
I’d rate it this way:
Hooks: 7
Production: 7
Longevity: 8
Bias: 9
Total: 7.75
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I appreciate the sentiments in the song and video.
But the song is just meh.
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For me, ‘Be Free’ and ‘Begin’ have risen up yet again from high 9s to 10/10. I’m really enjoying this series but this song could have been much better. Although it’s not bad, it doesn’t compare
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I loved Begin, I am smitten with Be Free, and this is not as great but very nice nevertheless.
I would love to get into OOO beyond this series, anyone have any recs?
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i would personally recommend all of instinct pt 1 (libido, instinct, byredo, tear of god), designer, dora maar, and boss to start out with! might be a lot of songs haha but they have a great discography IMO!
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All of their title tracks are interesting and worth a listen. I also really like Angel.
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Sage and Dora Maar got me into them but it’s really a bounty of riches.
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honestly im just so happy that ooo are giving a spotlight to queer stories throughout their work……like ive seen ppl on twitter be like “omg theyre queerbaiting!1!1!1” bitch first of all theyve made it explicitly clear that those videos are portraying queer relationships and that they want their lgbt fans to feel seen by them and SECOND if they actually were queerbaiting then they wouldnt have been barred from so many opportunities like skorea is a notably homophobic country so theyre taking a huge risk going with their vision……but yeah it genuinely makes me so happy to see a kpop group so passionate abt wanting to tell queer stories and wanting to follow their own unique vision
aaaaa this was super rambley
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Be Free > Be Mine > Begin for me right this minute. Be Free is SOTY potential.
The video is my favourite tho out of the 3.
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Unfortunately, any K-Pop song called “Be Mine” has a LOT to live up to. This one gets a bit better as it proceeds, but doesn’t come close to measuring up.
내 거 하자 내가 널 사랑해 어?
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I love the jazzy piano at the beginning and wish I had heard more of that. Still, this is shaping up to be a nice collection of songs and mvs. There’s nothing else like them in S. Korea, as far as I can tell. I’m not getting over that popsicle scene anytime soon though.
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Begin has risen to become one of my favorite songs of the year. I love the roll-out for this album, when all is said and done, it’s probably going to be my favorite album of the year, at least up there with the NewJeans EP. (Of course, if RoaD-B put their 2 singles on one album and added a couple of more to it, that’d be my favorite for sure. Same goes with IVE’s After Like/My Satisfaction; a great two-sided single; if only they’d combined it with Love Dive/Royal.)
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