The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, we’ll kick off with the big one: The Bias List’s top 50 songs of the year! Each day this week, I’ll be counting down ten of the year’s best, until number one is revealed on Friday.
To be eligible for this top 50 list, songs must have had a Korean release as a title track, follow-up or promotional video between Dec. 1st, 2023 and Nov. 30th, 2024.
Curious about past countdowns? Check out the masterpost here!
Honorable Mentions
Songs 50-41
40. NMIXX – Dash
There are a couple of big risers on this year’s list. Dash‘s prickly sound didn’t hit me immediately but those tight harmonies and funky percussion won me over big time in the long run. (full review)
39. Dragon Pony – Pop Up
I love an upstart rock band — especially one who composes such energetic, life-affirming anthems. Pop Up was one of the year’s biggest surprises and bodes well for the group’s future. (full review)
38. Waker – Atlantis
I’m not sure there are many who remember Waker. They debuted early in the year and barely promoted, yet Atlantis stands as one of 2024’s best boy group offerings. It’s bright and airy and has a great sense of lift. (full review)
37. Vahn – Feeling (ft. BLKZEN)
NINE.i ruled last year’s countdown, but without a group comeback in 2024 they’re unable to replicate that success. Thankfully, member (and chief songwriter) Vahn graced us with this powerful pop/rock anthem. (full review)
36. from20 x Hello Gloom – Your Love
There are plenty of cool things happening within K-pop’s indie scene, but none are quite as gratifying as from20 and Hello Gloom’s embrace of dance music. This duet encapsulates the upbeat, optimistic energy that fuels each of their exciting discographies. (full review)
35. Taemin – Horizon
Taemin has topped this list before and he continues to churn out reliably great pop music. Horizon pulls him into the synthwave genre with his usual flair and untouchable charisma. (full review)
34. xikers – Bittersweet
xikers are at their best when rock bombast matches the intensity of their swagger, and Bittersweet bolsters its spiky energy with a rollicking good glam rock beat and ultra-dramatic finale. (full review)
33. Kiss Of Life – Midas Touch
Many 2024 songs echoed sounds popularized in the early 2000’s, but few did this as well as Midas Touch. The production slaps and the girls buoy it with plenty of attitude. It’s fun, fresh and grows more addictive with each listen. (full review)
32. TWS – Oh Mymy: 7s
When this song first dropped at the very beginning of the year, I feared its chanted chorus would portend another rookie group allergic to melody. How wrong I was! And how wonderfully Oh Mymy: 7s aged with time! The frantic ascent during the bridge is a particular highlight. (full review)
31. ZEROBASEONE – Sweat
I’m a sucker for summer songs, even if they’re released in the middle of… April. ZEROBASEONE missed the boat on scheduling, but Sweat‘s upbeat charms remained strong throughout the season. (full review)
If Oh Mymy is in here, that probably means all TWS singles are going to make it!
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NMIXX’s Dash is definitely in my top 5. Loved that song since the day it dropped back in mid-Jan, when I wrote, “move over B1A4, this might be my favorite single of the month so far.” I think it’s easily NMIXX’s greatest single at this point.
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Me too! Overall I enjoyed the album too!
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All TWS songs in the top 50 confirmed lets go!!!
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Dash is pretty fun. The hook aged well for me (though wish the outro extended a bit), and the switch-up is still amazing and almost reminds me of a Winx Club OST (random ik :p)
Horizon is still fine. Haven’t checked it out in a while, but yeah, still liked it.
Man, Bittersweet! xikers definitely fit the rock/hip hop sound the best, and Bittersweet is no exception. The outro is still amazing. And the song would have made a great awards show intro (sucks they didn’t perform at an award show this year afaik)
Midas Touch is just as great! I love the early 00s sound and it suits the girls really well. Love it as well.
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40. Moonbyul – Touchin & Movin
Exploring a vibrant energy and imbued with an irresistible funky instrumental appeal, Touchin&Movin reveals Moonbyul in a light and relaxed facet of her art.
39. Jeon Woong – Pixel
Diving into a rich texture of piano playing, Pixel exquisitely encapsulates the essence of fun.
38. Cravity – Now Or Never
I’m still not sure about this position. I know what you get here with a soaring rock melody song is a little irresistible.
37. Yoon Seobin – Rizz
Pulling guitar riffs elastically, Rizz delivers an effervescent hook.
36. Waker – Atlantis
A well-performed melodic rock.
35. Treasure – Last Night
Harnessing an essence of melodic EDM, Last Night puts Treasure on graceful radars.
34. NMIXX – Dash
Oh… Dash, the song that if you said you didn’t like, everyone would judge you, including Nick. I remember until I started to like her, which was around mid-September. When you see what makes Dash refined, there’s no turning back. It’s really a song that you have to propose without prejudice to like it, and well, that’s what I did, and I ended up liking it. Dash mixes many good typical instruments into a stylish piece.
33. Vanner – Jackpot
The track with fierce energy that doesn’t need to be bombastic to sound good or over the top, that’s what Jackpot is.
32. DXMON – Girls, Love Boys, Love Girls
Creating a crazy frequency of segment and hook, Girls, Love Boys, Love Girls is a very contemporary melodic piece.
31. EPEX – Youth&Youth
Another melodic rock sound, I honestly love the chorus.
Guys… I’m sorry if my analysis seems a little inconsistent. I’m not quite used to Nick’s writing pace. Besides the fact that I don’t start writing among my list at those times. Sometimes I have to try to summarize what I want to say 😔
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As a stranger here, you don’t have to say sorry for all the hard work you put in. It is so fun to see different people’s style and preference and I could witness different peoples’ top 50 list day by day as well hahahaha. I think I am also about to get myself a top 10 list for the grand finale here.
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DASH, Midas Touch, Oh Mymy : 7s & SWEAT were all in my top 10 of the first half of 2024! I’m so glad to see them make the list.
fingers crossed GOOD SO BAD makes it 🤞
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Some really good ones on here. Oh Mymy is my favorite TWS song this year although I have pretty much liked everything by them, just because it was the first introduction to them and the expectations were so high.
Sweat is my second favorite promoted track from ZB1 this year and I still wish they had chosen it as the title track rather than Feel the Pop (which is even worse than Crush).
I also really liked Give Up by Dragon Pony! I think it’s so cute that the band name is their zodiac signs.
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all the expected songs have ended up on here ig
anyway, when the global pop songs list comes out im gonna post my big, mind blowing theory about how it was KATY PERRY who made music quality decline in the second half of this year
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Don’t you have anything better to do?
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yes how bout u
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Gurl the dissssssss
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I REMEMBER WAKER.
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It’s looking like 9 days will be out of the list. I really enjoy that song, but I myself don’t know where I would rank it. I personally find it difficult to rank the songs I enjoy
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I don’t think it was ever gonna make it. it’s not eligible since it’s not a title, follow-up or promoted track, just b-sides with low-budget music videos
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I’m counting 9 Days as a b-side since it wasn’t really promoted beyond that montage video.
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Same goes to One Kiss, you’re not gonna include that?
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Yes, that will also be eligible for the “b-sides and album tracks” list later in the month.
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I love reading these lists (yours and everyone else’s in the comments). The fact that DragonPony, Vahn, the WayBetter duo, and Wakers made it this high makes my day.
Still salty about Cravity’s “Love or Die”, Day6 “Welcome to the Show” and RedVelvet’s “Cosmic” though😂
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Bittersweet W!! I just gave it a relisten and was surprised by how good it was from the first time I listened to it! Glad xikers made the top 50
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Not only do I remember Waker, Atlantis was my favorite song this year.
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chk chk boom by stray kids is the top song of 2024
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