Review

Song Review: ILLIT – It’s Me

Posted on by 16 Comments

ILLIT’s music has always been good at capturing the K-pop zeitgeist of the moment, resulting in a very trendy — but often uneven — discography. My favorite ILLIT tracks have gone against the grain to carve out a niche that feels more unique to them. With new single It’s Me, the group has tried on the “let’s all talk over a techno beat” trend sweeping the industry this year. As expected, the result is fun but way too hollow.

At its best, It’s Me has a madcap energy reminiscent of some of K-pop’s more gimmicky acts of the early-2010s. It’s nice to see humor make its way back to the forefront alongside the pulsing dance beats that drive songs like this. It’s Me is incredibly referential to K-pop fandom, framing its hook around repeated “Who’s you’re bias?” taunts. However, the song has about three ideas and they get old pretty fast. This isn’t a long piece of music (2:19, to be exact), but even this brief runtime feels padded with constant repetitions of the hook and central beat drop. It’s Me would be more successful if it added competing elements to its structure, giving us room between all the shouting and yapping so that those moments held more weight when they come around.

As it stands, It’s Me is meme music, similar to what fellow HYBE girl groups Katseye and LE SSERAFIM have been doling out lately. This works for quick engagement in shortform content, but tends to result in a thin discography that struggles to stand the test of time. It’s Me may be a party, but it’s yet another indication that K-pop is moving away from songs in favor of exercises in branding and shameless bids for SNS domination.

Hooks 6
 Production 8
 Longevity 7
 Bias 8
 RATING 7.25

Grade: C

16 thoughts on “Song Review: ILLIT – It’s Me”

  1. Well the sung part of the prechorus is kind of pretty ig

    The producer Hitchhiker and his teenage daughter Zin Choi started a new talk show/podcast called Music In My Business. Yunah and Minju from ILLIT were their first guests. During the episode, Hitchhiker brings up how songs are getting shorter and shorter these days because of streaming and short-form content. Minju said she loves bridges, many of ILLIT’s songs don’t have them, and she hopes they come back. Yunah mentioned that ILLIT’s shortest song is in the 1 minute range, and their songs rarely exceed 3 minutes. She said “for me, I think songs these days are too short…like Minju said, I wish they’d include more bridge sections, and for songs with great intros and outros, I wish they’d include those too.” So even the ILLIT girls themselves indirectly said that they wish their own songs were longer and had bridges. 😭 I kind of feel bad for those who chose to become idols because of their love for music and desire to be a performing artist and then they end up with a company that gives them incomplete TikTok songs like this. But anyway, the episode is very enjoyable, and it’s fascinating to hear Hitchhiker’s perspective on industry trends as a producer. I recommend watching the whole thing when/if y’all have time. Here’s the interview. They start talking about short songs around the 11:45 minute mark: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fBuG805T3co&pp=ygUgTXVzaWMgaW4gbXkgYnVzaW5lc3MgeXVuYWggbWluanU%3D&ra=m

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • I wouldn’t get why there’s some artistary freedom for Kpop groups, I get that it’s a group and not every wish of every member should be accepted, but at least let their opinion be heard and have them take some part in the creative process.

      IMO BTS and in return Big Hit found success because the guys took part in producing, writing and having visions for their music.

      I know pop is a business, I’m not naive, but I want the art of it to also be respected

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    • It’s good to know that even the girls themselves are tired of bridges being eradicated. Out of all the musical trends that’ve terrorized us, this one has hurt the most. I’ll take empty choruses and “noisy music” over this

      Also Hitchhiker is one of my favorite producers! I had no idea they even had a podcast. Thanks for sharing this 🙏🏾

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  4. I really like it. The hard trance sound is very welcome. The whole thing reminds me a bit of what BP tried to do recently, but with an attractive attitude. I find kpop slang/meta stuff cringe usually, but to me this chorus just sounds fun and silly, especially with the repetition and effects making it all sound kinda incoherent. Lots of Korean here. It meshes with their old concept very well. It’s short and sweet. I doubted myself with KNIFE in being too short and repetitive but, I’m going all in here: 8.5

    The whole EP is excellent too. Oh and the choreo is so fun. I love the big athletic movements they make. Jellyous stood out for this too.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  5. This song is so annoying. Why couldn’t Mamihlapinatapai have been the title track, especially since the mini album is named after it?

    Like

    Reply

  6. Do ALL the HYBE girl groups have to release rave music around the same time? I know groups doing similar genres/styles under the same company isnt unusual but when they’re all mid-tier songs (Pinky Up, CELEBRATION, It’s Me) it gets kind of tiring

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.