By 2025 standards, The Boyz’ excellent VVV did everything it could to buck the year’s most regrettable trends, turning its energy way up, adding a great series of catchy melodies and stretching the track to nearly four (!) minutes to accommodate multiple musical goodies (a bridge! a dance break!). No wonder it’s one of the … Continue reading
As is often the case with J-pop singles, ENHYPEN’s Shine On Me has been available for a few weeks now, but today it’s finally paired with its half-animated, half-live action music video. As a straight-down-the-middle ballad, the song offers a different texture for the group. This style of lovelorn summer ballad rears its head every … Continue reading
When talking about girl group vocals I love, Woollim Entertainment’s Lovelyz often comes up. The group is home to some of my favorite vocal tones in K-pop, and Ryu Sujeong is certainly one of them. Since Lovelyz went on hiatus she’s developed an indie-pop solo career, most of which I haven’t written about here. However, … Continue reading
iKON’s Jay made his solo debut back in 2023 with a smooth R&B sound that was high on style but low on the kind of addictive melodies that usually make my ears perk up. He’s set to release a new album next week, and prior to that he’s dropped pre-release track We Can’t Explain. This … Continue reading
ASC2NT debuted last year and caught my attention with their strong vocals. Neither of their songs so far have fully taken advantage of this asset, but I can tell the group could do great things with the right material. New single Don’t Move gets closer to fulfilling that potential, offering an addictive electro thump. We’ve … Continue reading
Starship Entertainment is having a busy year, first debuting new girl group KiiiKiii and now new boy group IDID. IDID won’t have their official debut until September, but like so many other rookies they’re testing the waters with a pre-debut track. It’s a horrible feeling to be very excited about something only to have that … Continue reading
There have been many pre-release tracks this week, a strategy that K-pop seems to be very fond of lately. Yves has an album scheduled for next month and gives us an early taste with White Cat today. Her previous work has delved into hyperpop influences, no doubt inspired by the huge success of Charli XCX’s … Continue reading
ZEROBASEONE’s post-2025 future remains undecided, but they’re finally set to give us a full album on September 1st. Weeks before that, they’re back with pre-release Slam Dunk — an uncharacteristically hip-hop dance track. In K-pop, there’s often this urge to throw many different concepts and styles at a group rather than let them settle into … Continue reading
Apart from the K-pop ecosystem we all know and love, there’s a thriving trot industry in Korea that most foreign listeners may never be exposed to. I don’t often write about trot music, as it’s its own genre with unique quirks and vast history. However, sometimes a song crosses over in a way that embraces … Continue reading
Prior to this group comeback, One Pact released an EP of solo tracks. I wrote about my favorite one here. Those songs are included on the new album alongside a few new group tracks. Yes, No, Maybe acts as the title and offers a new concept for the guys. Though I wasn’t initially won over, … Continue reading
Apart from his activities with BTOB and undeniable presence at events like Waterbomb, Lee Minhyuk has developed a solo career under the moniker “Huta.” I can’t say that much of his solo music has appealed to me, but I appreciate how it sounds so different from that of his group. New title track Bora is … Continue reading
EPEX are ready to drop their third (!) full album next week, but before that they’ve returned with pre-release Picasso (피카소). EPEX aside, July has been a pretty strong month for K-pop so far. Sure, there haven’t been a ton of awesome 9+ rated tracks, but there haven’t been many outright clunkers either. I mention … Continue reading
Earlier this year, STAYC found their dancefloor groove with the addictive Bebe. Though that song didn’t totally click with me initially, it gradually grew into one of my most-played tracks of the year. With new summer single I Want It, they group keeps the energy high with an early-2010’s EDM twist. As soon as I … Continue reading
TXT’s music has changed so much since their debut in 2019. Artistic growth should be expected and applauded, but sometimes I cast my mind back to their Crown days and remember how incredibly excited I was about the group and their quirky synthpop style. Since then, they’ve explored almost every genre you can imagine and … Continue reading
A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. Of all possible K-pop artists, I … Continue reading
In my review of 1VERSE’s pre-release Multiverse, I described how I became a fast and fervent fan of the group thanks to their YouTube content. Hopefully some of you followed that path as well, and if you did today is a big day because it marks the group’s official debut. While Multiverse offered a sweet, … Continue reading
SM Entertainment has been on a roll lately with their boy group albums, though they’ve also struggled to pick the best songs to promote as title tracks. I’m hoping that might be the case with WayV as well, especially since their albums tend to hold many buried treasures. New title Big Bands is bolstered by … Continue reading
A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. Earlier this week, I was lukewarm … Continue reading
A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. SM Entertainment has been on a … Continue reading
A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. At this point, it seems as … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 