30. Still Alive by J.Y. Park
This song is about an aging pop star still trying to be cool and popular with young people. It earned extra points with me because I am a little older than the median KPOP fan. The first listen is a little awkward but that seems to add to the concept. He's not supposed to be totally smooth.
29. I Just Wanna Dance by Tiffany
This was the song that had my favourite choreography this year. The title was very apt. The only problem is that she sings "I just wanna dance the night away" and yet the music video shows them dancing in the middle of the day. Regardless, this KPOP song has a genuine retro feeling and makes me want to sing even more so than dance.
28. Whatta Man by I.O.I
Any fan who was familiar with the Salt N' Pepa version of this song would have been anticipating great things and great things is what they got, indeed. The I.O.I version of "Whatta Man" had everything the old school one did in terms of catchiness. I originally had it ranked much higher but after a few listens I began to notice little parts in the vocals that were just a little off. That detracted a bit from my ability to appreciate it as deeply as I would have wanted to.
27. Me Like Yuh by Jay Park X Prepix X Purplow (feat. Hoody)
"I'd even dye my hair blonde for ya, I can be your Justin Beiber" Jay totally ruined the English version of this song with that line and it took me a while before I was able to see the beauty of the Korean version. Jay isn't into subtlty when it comes to lyric writing so Korean lyrics usually a safer bet with Jay Park songs for those who don't understand Korean. This song is consistant with what Jay Park usually delivers. Great dancing and the "cha cha beat".
26. Fire by BTS
"Fire" was supposed to be the big follow up to "Dope", the high energy song that got everyone to take note of BTS last year. The music video even begins with a sample of "Dope". In my opinion this was a mistake. "Fire" is not on the same level as "Dope", so being reminded of how good "Dope" was lead to a bit of a let down when "Fire" started. However, this song started a bit of a trend in KPOP. It uses loud, industrial sounds which I believe influenced other KPOP songs like "Hard Carry" by GOT7, and "Fire Truck" by NCT 127. This song is no "Dope", but it does grow on you and can really get you pumped up!
25. I Just Wanna Sing by Esbee
This is a debut and not many people noticed it. Perhaps it just hit me at the right time but it really struck me as beautiful. From the R&B melody to the harmonies he infuses into it this song is fluid and sentimental.
24. Deepened by Brave Girls
Keeping with the subject of sentimental and fluid songs. The Brave Girls (now with new members) had a stunning comeback with "Deepened". Brilliantly composed, this song sets a chill yet sultry mood. The rap break is one of its strongest points. Often a rap break is put into a KPOP song despite not adding anything to it but this was so necessary and brought the song to a new level.
23. Fire by J.Y. Park (feat. Conan O'Brien & Steven Yeun & Jimin Park)
When KPOP makes its way into the American mainstream some people reject it. But this song is so much fun. Don't deny yourselves pleasure just to seem cool, you guys! I like that J.Y. Park has a thrown. I like that Conan has a face full of makeup. I like that they incorporated Conan's string dance into the plot of the video. I like Steven Yeun just for being Steven Yeun. Also, I recognized the costume TWICE wore as being very similar to what Ariana Grande wore at the 2014 Victoria Secret fashion show. Anyone else notice that?
22. Mistake by Drug Restaurant
I am not big into rock music of any nationality. I was surprised that I liked this song as much as I did. The composer has so much talent. The guitar kept me engaged the whole time and then the guitar solo in the middle of it really did me in.
21. Mama Don't Worry by Sam Kim
This is a song written by an 18 year old boy about what it is like to be away from your parents for the first time. It has something that is rare in KPOP and that is authenticity. Most songs are not written by the singers themselves. Often the songs are written about something that even the song writer him/herself has not experienced. But this song was written in real time, as the Sam Kim himself was experiencing it. The song takes the form of a letter written by the mother to her son, then the final verse is a the reply letter from the son to the mother. With the refrain "Mama don't worry" in between. I'm not exaggerating when I tell you I can't listen to it while reading the lyrics without tears building up in my eyes.
20. Love Me the Same by Jessica
Of all the Girls' Generation solos and subgroups this year Jessica's was the one that did the most for me. It is a slow song which are often challenging to make appealing but this song has emotion in the composition. The story in the music video is a cute and totally endearing metaphor.
19. High Heels by Brave Girls
This song is so brainless, but I can't help loving it. The more I listen to it, the more I can't live without it. This is the Brave Girls second entry on this years chart. I don't want to jinx anything, but I think the Brave Girls are becoming my new Girls' Generation. Emphasis on my. They do not have enough cache to be a true replacement for Girls' Generation who seem to be turning a corner in their careers.
18. Lucky One by EXO
You can always expect a high level of production from EXO songs. The song is so layered and intricate and you have to appreciate that. One beef I have is that "lover" does not rhyme with "clover". Take that line out!
17. What Is Love by Yu Yeong Jin X D.O.
This song is sung with so much passion. If you did not know who Yu Yeong Jin is then I recommend that you look him up. He is a song writer, and his writing credits are so vast you are likely to find that he wrote many of your all-time favourite songs. From the sounds of things he is quite the vocalist as well. This song was released on SM Station and, although I did not include many of those songs on my list, they really did show us a lot of interesting collaborations and solos that really enriched the KPOP world this year.
16. Ah-Ha by SS301
This song was released in the summer at the same time as many big name comebacks so it was kind of buried. But it still stood out for me. In my opinion it really is more about the music than the group. This song was really engaging, and more fun to listen to, and more dynamic than a lot of the other songs of that time of year.
15. Crush by I.O.I
This was the first song released by I.O.I and, as someone who had not been interested in the competition show Produce 101, it took a while before I really took note of it. But "Crush" shows off some really strong vocal skills and it is a concept I think we need more of: the teenager concept. I hope it s obvious what I mean by teenager concept. I'm talking about songs about things relevent to teenage life like having a crush on a boy. It makes some people uncomfortable to see young women acting too sexy and it makes some people uncomfortable to see young women acting like small children, so the teenager concept is a fair comprimise, it would seem.
14. Feel So Good by B.A.P.
The first song I've really, really liked from BAP. BAP has used a variety of concepts this song is very happy, fun, and boy-next-door. The music video uses the brightly coloured sets and wardrobe that one would hope for from a KPOP video. The chorus is uplifting. The rap breaks did not add anything but hey, you gotta have a rap break! (that was not sarcasm)
13. Boombayah by BLACKPINK
I had two immediate reactions after hearing this song:
1. I love Lisa! Lisa opens the song with an English rap and exudes attitude all over the video. She also has the number 1 best line in KPOP this year "BRRR Rambo!"and 2. This sounds a lot like "Fire" by 2NE1 just not quite as good. It does have the same song writer as many 2NE1 songs, including "Fire". It might be unfair to compare a new song to one of my all time favourites but when the sound is so similar it is hard not to. If I can block out the memory of "Fire" by 2NE1 I do appreciate "Boombayah" a lot more. "Boombayah" is like a thrilling amusement park ride.
12. Very Nice by Seventeen
Is it cheating to have so many members? It makes the choreography look so good, makes the sound so much more energetic and dynamic because there are so many different voice types. They definately used their numbers as an advantage in this song. I love the break down near the end. This song deserves all the love it gets.
11. Dancing King by EXO
Most would not rate this song so high relative to their other comeback "Lucky One". We've all heard songs like this before. It is a very common Latin beat. This is nothing ground breakingly innovative. But, I have a tendency to rate songs higher depending on how much they make me wanna dance and I could dance the this song all night. I was confused into thinking I didn't like this song at first because the music video had some pretty trippy editting. It's hard to make cute pink puppets and EXO boys dancing look bad and yet somehow they managed to edit it in a way that did exactly that. Only later when listening to the song without watching the video did I realize how happy it made me.
WATCH THE TOP 10 HERE! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHiUfH0z--g&feature=youtu.be
10. Excalibur by N-Sonic
The first song I've ever heard from N-Sonic and, apparently, their last song together before military conscription. What timing. The choreography fits the song and looks like something that might have come from my own imagination. I like that there is enough freedom in the choreography to see their personalities. Also, one of my least favourite things about KPOP dance is that the person who is singing breaks out of formation and steps forward. This dance, very cleverly, avoids that by creating formations that are centered around the member who is singing so that is doesn't ruin the symmetry.
9. I'm Fine by Grace
This is the debut song from Grace. Even though this video did not have a huge budget they still went all out. In fact, they went ALL out and then kept on going. Just like what you'd want from KPOP. It has the loud wardrobe and so much random. Ultimately, it is Grace and her attitude that sell it so well. She has that je ne sais quoi! You'd never suspect this was her debut. I originally thought the English part of the lyrics were the result of someone who had completed only one English lesson. Like the writer was all "Hey we need to put some English words in this song, but I don't know any." Then he took one English lesson and put the phrase he learned in the song. But, that is clearly not the case because Grace speaks fluent English and is American.
8. Save Me by BTS
This song is just ultra beautiful. I was contemplating putting it in the number one spot, but I didn't. Why not? It was just too beautiful, too easy to love. The instrumental is so moving, the dance is so emotional, the lyrics are so meaningful. Where is the part that challenges me? Where is that weird bit that I don't like at first and then grow to love. Perfection isn't always a good thing. and I do not write this tongue-in-cheek I mean it sincerely. A song that is so perfect doesn't seem human and that makes it dull. But hey! It is at the number 8 spot, so perfection will get you pretty far!
7. HookGa by HIGH4 20 (feat. Hwasa of MAMAMOO)
This is my first encounter with the group HIGH4. I could listen to this beat everyday for the rest of my life and the dance fits it so perfectly. The choreographer is Canadian! Rep-re-sent! Hwasa speaks French in her feature I heard "Maxi beaucoup" rather than "Merci beaucoup" but good effort yeodongsaeng. I have to say I do not appreciate the play on words for this sub-group or the song. I find drugs to be such a turn-off. I suppose that makes me not cool and I don't care. But the name does not take away from how much I dig this song.
6. Still 24K by 24K
The instant I played this song for the first time I knew it was great. It takes me back a few years to when Super Junior was making the best songs I'd ever heard in my life. Those were the type of songs that made me fall in love with KPOP. Still 24K has a great balance between melodic and hip hop. I found the plot of the music video really compelling and it was cool that it left on a cliff-hanger. Visually, this video did not use colours but used only black, white, grey and metallic which was so effective. The fashion in the dance scenes was uniform and monochromatic (either all black or all white) and so intricately accerssorized. I especially appreciated the rings they wore on the upper part of every finger. That is something I had never seen before.
5. Press Your Number by Taemin
This song changes and flows so well. I usually appreciate repetitiveness in my music, but this one evolves so organically that I can't even tell that it is changing. Each verse sounds different and blends into the song seamlessly. This isn't one of those "Franken-songs". And the plot of the music video is challenging and full of symbolism. What does it really mean? Are we even supposed to know?
4. Shut Up & Groove by Heize (feat. DEAN)
Words fail me here. I think I should just do as the song says and shut up and groove. and enjoy looking at DEAN's flawless face.
3. Whistle by BLACKPINK
This song had me in its clutches even before I listened to it. BLACKPINK was so highly anticipated and I was sure it was going to be phenominal. It was epic. I hate admitting to biases, but I don't actually believe that my anticipation coloured my judgement in any way. Of the four BLACKPINK songs this year this is the only one that truely blew me away. These girls' voices were so on point with one small exception: Jennie's verse in the middle of the song (1:54) "just whistle to my heart". Jennie is a rapper so her singing voice was not likely not a priority in her training. But it did pull me out of my state of bliss for a moment when I was having that transcendant first listen and that is how I can say with confidence that the high rating of this song was NOT a result of a bias! LOL.
2. Love You More by Kim Jae Joong
I like TVXQ a lot but I have a terrible memory for Korean names. I didn't know Kim Jae Joong was from that group when I heard this song. It caught me off guard and made me want to run, turn, leap and fly. Apparently, this song was released while Jae Joong was still in military service. Amazing that he managed that. Even more amazing that it was part of a full album. Every song on that album is worthwhile, by the way. No bad songs on that album, not even one.
1. Blood Sweat & Tears by BTS
I was nervous that there wasn't going to be a huge boy group smash this year. But BTS did it! You can always tell when you've heard a good song because when it's over you feel like you've just been smacked across the face. This is one of those songs. The instrumental makes me think of India or the middle east. I wouldn't anticipate this kind of sound from KPOP. It's the thing that was missing from "Save Me" something to confuse me at first and then learn to love. In the vocals I especially liked the breathy, descending "ga~" and how it mimicked the wail of someone on verge of emotional and physical exhaustion. In the video . . . well wow. Every second is saturated with metaphor, symbolism and references to art, literature and philosophy. It's even got me reading the book that was quoted in the spoken part in the break of the song just so I can understand and appreciate the music video better (Demian by Hermann Hesse is the book if you were wondering). So much brain and heart was put into the comeback. KPOP SONG OF THE YEAR!
Watch the list here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHiUfH0z--g&feature=youtu.be
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