I’m still a loyal viewer of K-Pop Star, but lament that nowadays it’s mostly solo female vocalists with nearly identical styles. To me, the show’s peak was in season two. It was the most diverse line-up, had the best winning act, and genuinely felt exciting. One of my favorite groups that year was Raccoon Boys. Horrible name, … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I’ll look back at my three favorite title tracks by k-pop artists. Unlike my end-of-year countdowns, jpop and Japanese releases by kpop artists are ineligible, though I will give the great ones a spotlight. For my top three tracks, I’ll take my own ratings into account, but there is a … Continue reading
Girl’s Day was one of the last major kpop groups I got into, and I’m sorry to say that their group name turned me off for much too long. It sounded to me like a tween lifestyle magazine, and conjured up images of slumber parties and secret diaries. But eventually, the strength of their music wore … Continue reading
Mamamoo can sing. They’ve shown us that over and over again. They can also perform the hell out of a song. In this way, they’re a very different idol group than most. In fact, they have more in common with the golden age of Motown than with the kpop world. And just like Motown, their … Continue reading
Vixx is known to many as Korea’s “concept idols.” For much of their career, they’ve explored the darker, more fantasy-influenced tropes of kpop. From vampires to cyborgs, they’ve offered us some of the most dynamic visuals and routines of the past few years. More than that, they’ve been incredibly reliable as albums artists, whose b-sides … Continue reading
R&B singer Dean (often stylized DΞΔN) is the new kid of the block who seems poised to gain a lot of traction this year. He’s written great tracks for EXO and Vixx, among others, and has been steadily collaborating with other artists over the past year or so. But, when it comes to his solo … Continue reading
Unpretty Rapstar has become the variety show that keeps on churning out hits over the past year or so. It’s rare to find a series so young, yet so able to create (or reconfigure) stars. To be honest, I never finished season two, though I have watched enough to know that Fiestar’s Yezi, with her breathless … Continue reading
After the massive solo success Super Junior’s Kyuhyun has received, it only made sense that another of the group’s vocal line should release a solo. As a vocalist, Ryeowook has a completely different style than Kyuhyun, which heightened interest in how The Little Prince would sound. Fortunately, the song gives Ryeowook’s light tenor plenty of … Continue reading
SUS4 debuted last year without much fanfare, and have since lost two members to become a three-piece. None of this is particularly encouraging news, but they’re back with their second digital single Pick Me Up. This time around, the girls have gone for a lighter version of the upbeat, girly pop that’s made groups like … Continue reading
IMFACT is a new boy group from the infamous Star Empire agency, also home to acts like ZE:A and Nine Muses. I’m a big fan of both of those groups, though I realize that their debut songs were less than amazing. IMFACT continues this pattern, making a bizarre debut with Lollipop. The song attempts to … Continue reading
Most of the time, a kpop group’s title track is the best song on their album. But, sometimes b-sides deserve recognition, too. In the singles-oriented world of kpop, I wanted to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. Airplane is a song from f(x)’s 2013 album Pink Tape. It’s … Continue reading
As stylish and charismatic a figure as Kim Jaejoong is within the Korean entertainment industry, I’ve always found his solo music to be melodically lightweight. Other than the heavy goth concept of Mine, none of his past singles felt particularly impactful. That’s not to say that they’re bad. It’s more an admission that, to me at … Continue reading
Road Boyz impressed me with their debut track Show Me Bang Bang last November, and now they’re back with follow-up single Be My Love. Despite being from a small agency without many resources for promotion, they’ve managed, at least, to secure the most important aspect: good songs. Be My Love won’t win any awards for … Continue reading
Zico has been incredibly prolific over the past few months, releasing single after single. As a big fan of his group Block B, I’m just a little bitter that his solo career seems to be taking precedence over a full group comeback, but you can’t blame the guy. Everything he releases climbs straight to the … Continue reading
There’s no denying the fact that girl group GFriend’s speedy rise to fame has been nothing short of astounding. They debuted around this time last year without any real fanfare. And with a name like “GFriend,” I didn’t exactly have my hopes up. But like the good kpop fan I am, I took a look at … Continue reading
Beast are a six-member boy group who made their debut in October of 2009 with Cube Entertainment. Since then, they’ve been at the forefront of the hallyu wave as one of the biggest Korean groups — male of female. As far as bias, the guys have some of my favorite personalities of all idol groups (and are … Continue reading
Most of the time, a kpop group’s title track is the best song on their album. But, sometimes b-side tracks deserve recognition, too. In the singles-oriented world of kpop, I wanted to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. Reason is a song from MyName’s 2015 2nd Mini … Continue reading
In honor of Teen Top’s new single and mini album (which sadly will not feature on this list) I thought it was a good time to look back at their singles run. To give you a bit of background, Teen Top is a group that I like quite a bit, but has never crossed into … Continue reading
I feel like it’s that age old dilemma. As the global popularity of kpop has grown over the years, more and more online vendors have sprung up to satiate our needs. It can sometimes be confusing picking which store to go for. What’s the cheapest option? Which gives you the quickest shipping? I won’t be … Continue reading
Amoeba Culture is really a label on the rise. Fueled by the incredible success of Zion.T, they’ve cultivated a stable of artists that are at the forefront of Korean r&b. While not having the same unique character to his vocals as Zion.T, Crush has already proven himself a hitmaker despite being a relatively fresh debut. … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 