Modern entries to the winter holiday canon can be tricky since this type of song thrives on built-up nostalgia. Most listeners have a handful of tracks they go back to each year until they become ritual. It’s less common for fans to go out of their way to discover new holiday classics, but when BTS’s V is involved you know many ears will be tuned to the project.
Winter Ahead pairs him with balladeer Park Hyo Shin, forging a duo that’s musical catnip to Korean charts this time of year. And given V’s past solo work, the song unfolds much as you’d expect. It’s jazzy and subdued, warm like a cup of cocoa and gentle to a fault. The guys have gone down an incredibly traditional route, giving the track a timeless feel. To make a too-obvious comparison, the moody instrumental would feel right at home alongside Vince Guaraldi’s work on A Charlie Brown Christmas. In holiday terms, that’s like kissing the holy grail.
Honestly, December is really the only space I have for this style of music. It’s not usually my thing, but I make a big exception for cold winter nights spent decorating for the holidays. There’s no chance Winter Ahead vaults over the many classics on my playlist, but it’s a smart use of V’s warm vocal tone and obvious love for this genre. He and Hyo Shin make for a dynamic pairing. If anything holds the song back, it’s the lack of an equally dynamic structure. The opening verse unfolds as a captivating duet, but as Winter Ahead moves forward it doesn’t unveil any new ideas. It’s simply pleasant and light throughout. A brass-kissed finale injects some drama, but I kept waiting for the melody to take an unexpected or ear-catching turn.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 7.75 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
this is a definite homage to those 50s and 40s christmas crooner songs (bing crosby methinks)
my bias for bts ofc pulls this up for me
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Right? Taehyung’s path with his music is sort of like a full-circle moment for me. I used to joke that sometimes I would go from listening to Sinatra to BTS and back around, and now it feels like the crooner and idol worlds have melted together.
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All V does is these schmoozey slow songs and I love that he just keeps them lol. I appreciate that the man has no desire for drama
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its the sound he likes to do after all, and i can respect that even if im not a fan of slower songs (they’re perfect for reading though!)
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oh and the song is wonderful, perfectly Christmas-y
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We love a man that knows what he likes and sticks to it😂😂😂😂
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Amazing
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Isn’t it because it’s meant to be a Christmas song though? Most Christmas songs, especially from decades ago, have no unexpected turns.
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My teenage BTS stan (V biased) self would absolutely adore this. It’s been a while since I was an active fan of BTS, and so with my bias removed I think this is.. very nice actually. I am not always in the mood for slow songs, but when I am this is one of my favourite genres: warm and luxurious like a homemade hot chocolate.
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I am an ARMY and actually a fan of all the genres BTS does. I am OT7 but V-biased, so yes, I think this is another hit for him. I love any and everything his voice is attached to. 💜
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yeah this is definitely going in my christmas playlist!
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I don’t have any experience with v’s previous work, or much a bias towards bts. The vibe is great but I’m not getting a whole lot from this. Many it’ll be better with more listens? It is a longer song after all
the end of that music video was a complete no
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I like bts and V is my favourite one. I admire his boldness to show what he like not following the typical pattern of kpop music.not all the time you like to jump and dance some time you need some moments for yourselves to relax with glass of wine or nice book listing to music gives you that you are out of long working or studying days that what V gives us. I like his new song and all his songs.
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love it
soulful that is V for us… love his voice
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My bias for the artist and the genre and the season makes this work for me. Also, I know this isn’t the perfect place to talk about it, but the I loved the MV so much.
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Yeah, its a nice seasonal song. Park Hyo Shin adds good structure and discipline to the singing, as V by himself tends to be a casual crooner like a hazy opium den.
I don’t do xmas songs on my ipods, as there is just too much damn xmas music everywhere starting on about 1Nov. Whole radio channels switch to the genre for two months. Home Depot started putting up xmas the first week of October as Halloween stock was sold. We just came back from a week holiday in the UK (ramen for thanksgiving in Soho, yassss), and everywhere was goddamn black friday sales and holiday sales and charity ads. A incredible stack of mail on our return for giving Tuesday, and emails for same. This sounds bah humbug, but I prefer it to be smaller and humbler season and not so everything everywhere all at once. I have the usual stack of xmas cd’s which get unpacked with the decorations, to which we add one or so from the bargain bin every year.
Though the lights on the high streets in London are awesome. Regent Street is stunning. The posh streets in Marylebone. Even Oxford street looks nice at night with the holiday twinkly stars.
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