In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in … Continue reading
Seventeen’s Hoshi may be away from the industry serving his mandatory military enlistment, but that doesn’t stop music from being released. New single Baby, Honey (아기자기) surprise drops on a Saturday, which is quite unusual for K-pop. Maybe more plugged-in Hoshi fans than I can explain if there’s specific significance to the date March 14th. … Continue reading
When it comes to HYBE groups, aoen have had a curiously subdued rollout. You never hear much about them and they’ve pretty much stuck to their homebase of Japan rather than attempt to intermix with the K-pop industry. So far, they’ve released a few decent songs but haven’t established anything close to their own sound. … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. But each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And even more than that, I’ll attempt to rank them from my least-to-most-liked. I invite you to share … Continue reading
In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in … Continue reading
K-pop’s title tracks might gain most of listeners’ attention, but many album tracks are worth equal spotlight. I call these “buried treasures.” Beyond this, K-pop’s albums deliver thousands of additional tracks that settle for a more limited audience. It’s these songs that will become a part of my “battle of the b-sides” feature. In this … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. But each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And even more than that, I’ll attempt to rank them from my least-to-most-liked. I invite you to share … Continue reading
It’s been several months since ILLIT returned with Not Cute Anymore, and since then the song has become a popular TikTok challenge. That’s not too surprising, given how the song’s whole identity was designed to become a viral challenge. Even its ultra-brief running time was well-matched to SNS. Today, the girls have surprised fans with … Continue reading
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: … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. But each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And even more than that, I’ll attempt to rank them from my least-to-most-liked. I invite you to share … Continue reading
In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in … Continue reading
Musical trends come and go in K-pop and usually mirror sounds popularized elsewhere on the globe. Most of these trends start out well enough before the industry eventually drives them into the ground, but a certain trend of the moment has my hackles up already. An increasing amount of boy groups are latching onto a … Continue reading
ILLIT have a knack for releasing viral songs — or at least dance challenges that make their songs go viral. The ultra-subdued Not Cute Anymore is currently enjoying a run on the charts that has prompted the group to get back on music shows for additional promotions. In the midst of this, they’ve released the … Continue reading
Just like last year, I wanted to share my top twenty most-viewed posts for 2025. I find this list an interesting gauge of which acts are popular or buzzy at the moment (at least among netizens who read reviews). There aren’t many surprises, here. The list is dominated by a couple of the most popular … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I look back at my three favorite title tracks by K-pop artists. I take my own ratings into account, but there’s a bit of wiggle room as certain songs tend to grow or fade. December 2025 Overall Thoughts Well… I hate to say it but there are no “top three … Continue reading
It’s the last year-end festival of 2025! MBC’s Gayo Daejejeon is synonymous with the new year, as it also acts as a new year’s eve celebration (except for last year when it was postponed). As I always say, this adds a welcome sense of ceremony to the proceedings and makes it a special I look … Continue reading
I don’t write as many full J-pop reviews as I used to, mostly because I haven’t been as enamored with the industry as I was before, but I continue to spotlight new releases each and every Sunday. This countdown is a culmination of that feature, rounding up my fifty favorite singles (or promoted b-sides) of … Continue reading
I don’t write as many full J-pop reviews as I used to, mostly because I haven’t been as enamored with the industry as I was before, but I continue to spotlight new releases each and every Sunday. This countdown is a culmination of that feature, rounding up my fifty favorite singles (or promoted b-sides) of … Continue reading
I don’t write as many full J-pop reviews as I used to, mostly because I haven’t been as enamored with the industry as I was before, but I continue to spotlight new releases each and every Sunday. This countdown is a culmination of that feature, rounding up my fifty favorite singles (or promoted b-sides) of … Continue reading
Last year, Music Bank’s Global Festival was interwoven into KBS’s year-end festival. This year, they’ve chosen to broadcast it separately but I thought I’d cover it anyway because (like last year) parts of it were stronger than many of the proper year-end stages. This year’s theme was “The Golden Path” and the show was held … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 