Rather than contain my “Risers and Fallers” feature to a single post in June, I’m going to share a bite-sized version at the end of each month. This will let me account for more songs and make a nice lead-in to the monthly round-up post.

I anticipate most of these ratings adjustments will be negligible: a 0.5 shift here, a 0.25 shift there. But, it’s a fun way to keep track of how my feelings on songs have changed over time – as well as which tracks currently have momentum on my playlist.

And remember, just because a song is marked as a “faller” doesn’t mean I hate it! Falling from a “9” to an “8.75” is no shame. 9+ rated songs occupy a totally different playlist in my music library, so I’m pretty particular about what qualifies. It’s a high bar.

This month’s feature covers the period from September 22nd to October 19th.

RISERS

ALLDAY PROJECT – Crash
Rating: 7.5 → 8

A2O Lite – Neon
Rating: 8.75 → 9

A2O Soul – Superstar
Rating: 8.75 → 9

BOYNEXTDOOR – Animal
Rating: 7.5 → 8.25 *Biggest Riser*

CRAVITY – Louder
Rating: 9 → 9.25

Flare U – Bloom
Rating: 7.75 → 8

KickFlip – Kick Off The Wall (ft. iann dior)
Rating: 8.75 → 9

KickFlip – Puzzle Piece
Rating: 8.25 → 8.5

MODYSSEY – Ridin’ (Can You Hear That)
Rating: 8.5 → 8.75

Nam Woohyun – Devil
Rating: 7.25 → 7.5

PLAVE – Star Trace
Rating: 8.25 → 8.5

Teen Top – Don’t Stop
Rating: 8 → 8.5

Xdinary Heroes – Obsessed With Youth
Rating: 8.5 → 9

FALLERS

Close Your Eyes – Drop That!
Rating: 7.25 → 7 *Biggest Faller*

ONEUS – Say Yes!
Rating: 9 → 8.75

Sung Hanbin – Undead
Rating: 9.25 → 9

6 thoughts on “K-Pop Risers & Fallers: October 2026”

And another 9-rated song from Xdinary Heroes this year! These guys are on a roll this year, I won’t be surprised if they ranked up high on the top artists list, they really deserve that lol.

Sucks that Undead fell even if it’s still a 9 (knowing how rarely songs that are initially rated 9.25 and above fell), I still prefer it over both A2O songs even if Neon is growing on me lately.

Also, funny how I was just playing Louder when I saw your notif for this post. It’s now a 9.5 for me and easily their best song of their career. Like Xdinary Heroes, it’s impressive seeing how Cravity are on a roll to.

And yeah, seeing CYE fall sucks, god Drop That! is such a disappointment. CYE, ily but never again

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Happy to see Ridin’ by MODYSSEY being a riser! The album is really solid, they’re a JYP grp after all. The Chinese ver. also sounds good and the lyrics are written by member Zihao to make it sound natural. Who would have thought a group from a 4 episode derivative survival show would release solid material like this?

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Honestly so happy because a lot of songs have been rising for me lately.

Max Changmin – All of my life: 8.5 → 9

Itzy – Motto: 8.5 → 9

Cravity – Louder: 8.25 → 8.5

A20 Lite – Neon: 8.75 —> 9

Open Your Eyes – Close Your Eyes: 8.5 → 8.75

Hanbin – Undead: 9.25 → 9.5(my 2nd favorite song of the year now)

Curious to see if anymore songs rise or fall in November 😁

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ANIMAL😂…the performance elevates the song immensely, it’s a also a riser but it’s still hard for me to listen to it casually.

A few risers for me this month:

Tiot – 5 Hours in Pieces

CYE – Open Your Eyes

Hanbin – Undead

DailyDirection – Which Way

XHeroes a Obsessed with Youth

VO1D – My Youth

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I think my intuition that 2026 is following the same trend 2020 is is looking correct so far. Sure we don’t have a Criminal or a Goblin(Favorite Boys) or a La Di Da. But the fact that we’re getting most of the highlights in the fall definitely raises some eyebrows.

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