As with too many of their new-gen peers’ discographies, it’s hard to predict how a new RIIZE single might sound. In the past, there have been K-pop groups I knew I could count on to deliver the goods each and every time, and this was usually because they worked with a tight team of producers and developed a signature sound. In contrast, RIIZE’s releases have seesawed in quality. When they’re great, they’re outstanding. But more often than not lately, their best work has been relegated to b-sides.
This will remain true with Do Your Dance, as the previews for the b-sides all sound great. When describing this song, the members called it “trendy,” which in modern K-pop parlance I’ve taken to mean “gimmicky” or even “disposable”. Indeed, Do Your Dance is a TikTok idea in need of a song to back it up. The guys spend most of the running time rattling off body parts that can be used for dancing. Very original, right? This hook was teased incessantly before the song’s release and every time I heard it I prayed there was more to Do Your Dance than tired repetition. On first listen, a dynamic opening verse gave me hope. At least the energy is high and some of the group’s trademark vocals poke through.
Sadly, Do Your Dance‘s charm lasts about eighty-five seconds before the track devolves into boring talk over a beat that never seems to know what it wants to be. At one point, they sing “We be surfing this melody” and I’m like… “what melody?” Repeating “head, hips, shoulders, toes” in the most monotonous speech imaginable is not a song. You can actually hear the moment the producers ran out of ideas. I don’t wish to devolve into reviewing songs with memes, but Do Your Dance‘s swan-dive-off-a-cliff nature is the aural epitome of this popular meme:
Sigh. Why couldn’t they have just developed the killer sounds of Get A Guitar or Impossible so we could hear some musical growth and continuity?
| Hooks | 5 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 6.75 |
Grade: D+
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
When I first heard the teaser for the chorus, I was a bit worried that it would comprise the entire hook, and unfortunately, that turned out to be the case. Having the lyrics repeat “touch your head, shoulders, knees, toes” felt a little lackluster for a main chorus, especially given RIIZE’s vocal capabilities.
Additionally, the overall production felt a bit dry and sparse, which unfortunately made the track feel a little unoriginal to me. The instrumental during the dance break also felt a bit clunky and didn’t flow as smoothly as I had hoped. I was really crossing my fingers for a refined, vibrant track similar to 2024’s “Impossible” to add to my summer playlist, so this release fell a bit short of my expectations.
That being said, June’s release schedule is still looking pretty decent so far, and I’m excited to see what else the month has in store!
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Man, I JUST got back into Riize after a year and a half break to THIS?? I should have sensed something was wrong when Sungchan said that the song is like Siren and Talk Saxy (the latter is alright, but not their best tbh). Like, this song could have been salvageable if it developed into something stronger and maybe for the outro, we got that fantastic pre-chorus again (like Glow did). Riize, ily, but never again 💔
Rating’s the same
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I don’t love it but I don’t hate it like you do. At least it’s better than Sugar High.
7.25(7,8,7,7) for now
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Also Nick, what are your thoughts on the new ONF title track?
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I’m not super thrilled with the direction the teaser seems to be going in, but we’ll see. Some of the b-sides sound better to me.
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May I ask why?
Cause even I am not too thrilled with the upcoming track but can’t seem to pinpoint why because it has exactly what I like (Squealing guitars, theatrical elements and a chorus.) Maybe, it’s because I don’t want a “Bye My Monster” Part 2?
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The angsty, mid-tempo rock sound just isn’t one of my favorite genres, especially for ONF who I associate with much more daring sounds.
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My thoughts listening to this:
0:19 I like the energy
0:46 This sounds promising
1:14 What in the Head Shoulders Knees Toes-
1:57 Is this a song about the Macarena again?
2:24 Oh nooooo
2:45 Big finish!
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LOL @ 1:57
I felt the opposite with the bridge and the finish 🤷🏼♂️
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As the resident Briize here (stole that line from Mymagoogle) I must say this is a disappointment to me, although I’ve kind of been preparing myself for it ever since I heard the preview. I was holding out a bit of hope that the full song would be better, but alas, it is not. I guess every group has to miss sometimes. ;_; Not sure why SM thinks this is what we want. As for the b-sides, Soar is kind of a masterpiece imo and is a perfect representation of their sound.
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OMG I thought so. The first time I listened to it, my mind was blown away in a way I can’t fully describe and put it into words. It almost felt euphoric in a way. Again… an indescribable feeling. The last time I felt truly felt that way was with CODE by SHINee back in 2021.
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Nice username, “Queen of New York” is my favourite SHINee b-side.
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Omg hello fellow Briize, I also had fears about this song when teasers first came out and the fear double-downed when the chorus came out during the fanmeeting. I already knew it wouldn’t be my type of song. Granted, it’s actually a lot better than I expected. The first half had something amazing going on. The prechorus is the best part but they cut it for the 2nd verse like why?? The only vocal part the dance break instrumental is so random too..
Idk what made them think we wanted dyd either, but I guess the streams on Fly Up, Bag Bad Back, Fame weren’t as good?? Idk..
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Hah, that meme is pretty accurate. I don’t like the hook, but it’s not terrible. It’s an improvement on head, shouldes, knees and toes at least. My ears really perked up at that tense bridge, but the finale was just disappointing, basic repetition. It’s just mid for me, a straight 7.
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I just know that it’ll grow on you. Maybe if you listen to it in the car?
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Their worst title track. I’ll give it a 6.
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Explosive energy! Not so explosive melodies though…
This just a glorified nursery rhyme that will sadly not be making its way anywhere near my playlist…
6/10💔
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I regret listening this song past 1 minute mark. I always had low expectation for SM boygroups songs (except SHINee) but my mood just went downhill after listening this track. Its like they just mixed whatever dance beat with ‘head shoulders knees toes’ verse and call it a day. Its not even worthy to be a TikTok song when nothing about the song is catchy or unique. Maybe it should just be used as dance cover track instead.
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I thought this is a pre-release at first, but this is THE title track? SM must be out of their mind lately. After butchering aespa discography last year, now they are doing the same with riize. Every single tracks in the EP other than ‘Do your dance’ is better than this sorry excuse of a song, SOAR is practically there screaming ‘I am the title track’
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well… the day has come. easily their worst single. they made a big deal out of the 16-year-old as the sole lyricist only for the song to turn out like this. the most offensive part for me is the lack of singing by Sohee, he always elevates their songs 99% of the time, but he really hasn’t been given anything to do here.
at least the album is good. SOAR should’ve been the title track & D-D-Done is a great dance track.
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It was going so well until the chorus, then it all just went downhill; also this feels like a rehashed and unrealized NCT 127 track. I don’t think I’ll be coming back to listen it again. A 6.5 from me. The rest of the album was solid, and some songs such as Like a Bomb, Soar, and D-D-Dance gave strong EXO vibes, especially their One Direction inspired tracks.
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Uh… why is this the title track?? This does nothing to represent RIIZE’s unique sound amongst industry peers. Being a dancer, I feel obligated to learn the dance since I feel like that’s the point of this song, so it will probably grow on me, but they could have done SO much more with this. Head shoulders hips toes is repeated so many freaking times. Still, I do think RIIZE pulls this off better than a lot of other groups would
now SOAR? A nearly perfect representation of RIIZE’s unique sound. Seems like the obvious choice for the title track. DYD would have worked better as a prerelease or follow up maybe
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alright it already grew on my so much
I still think the chorus could be much stronger, but I don’t think this song was made for musical people to listen to musical music on their own. This is 100% a with your friends, party, “everybody do the same easy moves” song so that the whole crew can get down to a beat together, and I think it pulls that off quite well. The production is also quite appealing. I’m gonna go learn the dance now ✌️
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Dancing is such a fun part of K-pop. I recently got into this more myself and attended my first random K-pop dance. But it’s also made me realize that it’s a big reason why we get questionable songs like these. Are there any songs you still dislike after you learn the dance, or do they all inevitably win since you become so connected with them?
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Contrary to expectations this song was boring af.
Are you planning on reviewing midnight ticket by Jun.K, Nick?
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This unfortunately sounded like a nursery rhyme and really should not have been the title track…
The bsides are actually quite nice I like most of them!
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They really picked the weakest track of the album as the TT smh. I enjoyed the rest of the album, especially Soar.
Something tells me we’re getting a buried treasure soon…
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I really like it! The hook’s melody is nonexistent but the instrumental does a great job of complimenting it. The bouncy bass has a great energy. It, alongside adlibs, gives the hook enough propulsion to not feel like a drag.
After multiple listens the “head, shoulders, knees, toes” refrain isn’t getting old at all and I can see myself playing this on loop
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Idk if it’s the rhythm or the structure, but this track reminds me more of NCT. RIIZE has built more of an identity around laid-back rhythms and monopolized melodies, while this feels more like a passing fad
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yea, SM shouldn’t to push the “nct sound” (by that I mean sticker and cherry bomb type-hooks) to all their groups (or maybe the more trend accurate “cortis sound”) 😭 nct wish did not need sticky and riize does not need bbb and do your dance
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wait I wish I could delete my comment using cherry bomb as an example since it had actual melodic parts and was iconic to nct (it had personality) (and there was a typo in my original comment). its so frustrating how we can’t delete our own comments 🫤
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Genuinely awful “song” with an annoying truckload of English and terrible lyrics overall.
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i thought it was obnoxious at first but ngl it’s already growing on me 😭 we’ll see how it ages
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This, head shoulders knees toes and bag bad back all just mush together.
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“Repeating ‘head, hips, shoulders, toes’ in the most monotonous way imaginable is not a song.” Ahem… TWS would like a word.
Jokes aside, even though TWS’s “Head Shoulders etc. etc.” is the better overall song (not by a huge margin, in my opinion, but still), I find RIIZE’s chorus less annoying. Maybe it’s the beat or something, but even though TWS’s song has some good moments, I find it really hard to get past the chorus.
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The main reason I find this less annoying is because it’s not as direct an interpolation of the nursery rhyme. The TWS chorus is objectively better actually, because this is almost completely deadpan. But in addition to the simplistic/laziness factor, as Nick points out in his review, it’s the association that makes the difference.
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i mean idkbu but i kinda love this 😭 is the hook/everything after it weak Absolutely but honestly the beat completely elevates it like that first verse is CRAZYYY
betting like $500 that this grows on nick n it ends up a 7.75
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literally every other song on the ep is better than this clout chasing decision… idk sm… 😭
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