Is it bad that I think that Valentines Day is a load of crap? Maybe I'm just jaded because I have never had anyone that I wanted to spend Valentines Day with, but I just generally think it is annoying. It's just another reason to spend unnecessary amounts of money on someone that you should be showing your love to all the time.
On that happy note, let's talk about my biases in K-pop groups! I like quite a few groups, but that doesn't mean that there is someone in that group that I like more than anyone else. For the people that I picked here, they are the ones that I can say without any doubt in my mind that they are my favorite person in their respective groups.
Heechul of Super Junior
If you didn't see this coming, then there might be something wrong with you. Heechul is my ultimate male bias and he always will be. He's just so 4D and he's also very honest and that is something that is lacking in the entertainment industry. He can also keep a secret too because I'm pretty sure he has the dirt on every single famous person in Korea. With great power comes great responsibility?
Jaehyo of Block B
Oh, Jaehyo, so much ego, so little time, and so little respect given to you by your members. Maybe that is why I like him so much. He takes a lot of crap, but he can also give it back and a lot of the time he just seems to laugh it off.
I actually don't have a lot to say about Jaehyo, I just like him and that's the way it is.
Second place: PO and Taeil, they're a package deal, okay?
CNU of B1A4
CNU is another person that I don't have a specific reason for liking, I just like him. He sings, he raps, he writes music, he has magical hair, what's not to like? I also feel that he is the member that is the most done of all the members. All groups seem to have that one member who is laid back and just watches the insanity going on around him, and that member more often than not is CNU.
Second place: Baro
Changsub of BTOB
I started to get into BTOB after their song "Thriller". I wanted to know more about them and I found that they had done Diary which is a fantastic show and I wish that it was still happening. As I watched all the BTOB variety I could find I slowing began to fall for Changsub's quirkiness. He has a different look about him too with his perpetual I-just-woke-up face.
One of my favorite things about him is that he is very layered. You watch him on camera and he is such a weirdo, but then he sings and you just want to wrap yourself in his voice, but he also skateboards and plays the drums and has two tattoos.Who are you really, Changsub?
Second place: Peneil, PenJae is real.
Leo of VIXX
I think that anyone who says that they don't like Leo is a liar. Yes, he's quiet and he kind of puts off an I'm-going-to-kill-you vibe, but watching VIXX TV, and Diary you find........well......I guess he is kind of like that. Not all the time though!
Since he is always so quiet, it's a lovely treat when he does something unexpected like dancing, laughing (even though he always hides), or actually saying more than one word.
Second place: Hongbin, that kid is so awkward, I love it.
Himchan of BAP
As I was creating this post I realized that I often fall for the most embarrassing member of the group. Maybe it's because they are funny and they stand out for that reason, but I often experience second hand embarrassment from those that I like.
Take Himchan for example, he can be the most self centered little turd and then he goes and says "What is hurricane in English?", "the loof is on fire",declares his love for "cheeju burgers", and is constantly talking about how good looking he is. He is one of those people that should never be allowed to open his mouth, but at the same time, we're glad that he does.
Side note, there needs to be a BAP sub-rock-unit that features Bang Yong Guk and Himchan. That has the possibility of being the most amazing thing ever.
Tao of EXO
I have come to find that sometimes when picking a bias, one day you just know. It was never a conscious decision, you just know one day and it felt right so you went with it. This is how I came to like Tao and sometimes I wonder about that decision.
I have been watching EXO's reality show Showtime and more often than not, I am sometimes embarrassed to say that Tao is my favorite. When he isn't talking he looks really cool, but then he opens his mouth and it is all over. He's also really needy, but for some reason, I love it.
Second place: Xuimin
V of BTS
So it wasn't until after I fell in love with this kid's strangeness that I found out he's totally jail bate. I probably should have knows though, I mean look at that face. At least I didn't decide I liked Jung Gook, that boy is practically still covered in amniotic fluids. Babies, all of them.
On BTS's Youtube channel thy post funny videos of the boys and if you haven't watched them you should because they will make your day better. Something that I have noticed about V is that in the videos, he is about 50% crazy and 50% judging his members. There doesn't seem to be any in between and I love it.
Second place: J-hope, he's V's partner in silliness.
So there is my list of my favorites. I guess since I don't have a real valentine I'll just pretend that they are my valentines. No, that's weird, I'll just go eat a cookie and call it good. Sounds like a plan.
Break out the costumes and candy because today is Halloween! I have always loved Halloween, not to be scared, because I hate that, but for the costume element of it. I think that dressing up is so fun, but it isn't something that you can do on a regular basis without getting a few weird looks. I sometimes say that if I had enough pencil skirts that I could rule the world and I would wear them all the time if it weren't so impractical. Granted, that is different than full blow costumes, but I would also rock a bustle if they were readily available, so there you go.
In K-pop there is a lot of dressing up whether it be for music videos or public appearances, but it always fun to see how far these people can push that envelop. Sometimes it can be pushed a little too far, but that is what fans love, seeing their idols dressed in ridiculous clothing or having crazy concepts.
I often wonder what these groups (mostly boys) think when they are told about the newest concept for their group, whether it be for an actual album or just for a side project, because side projects can result in dressing like girls or vegetables.
So in honor of Halloween, I give you some of the best costumes that I could think of. I probably am missing some because there are so many groups out there, but these are the ones that I liked.
Super Junior's Eunhyuk, Heechul, Shindong, and Leeteuk
Lady Hee Hee and the Single Ladies
Super Junior
First row: Huo Yuanjia, Loki, Iron Man, Capt. America, Hulk Thor, Goku Second row: Spiderman Wolverine
And Yesung
Nick Fury
SHINee
SHINee (minus Minho)
Freddy, Dracula, Piccolo, Naruto
BTOB's Peniel, Sungjae, and Ilhoon. Hyunsik's in there too, but he's not important right now.
Penelope, Sungsook, Ilsoon
BTS's Rap Monster, Suga, V, Jin, and Jung Gook
Sailor Moon, Maid, Ladybug, Japanese(?) woman, and traditional Korean woman
VIXX (minus Leo) as the Wonder Girls
Block B
Block B's Jaehyo
Yes, he's hanging from the ceiling, just go with it
Epik High
Joker, Two-Face, Bane
For more Halloween fun, go watch Epik High's song "Don't Hate Me".
BIGBANG
Instead of finding a picture of BIGBANG, and there are plenty, I'm just going to make a couple links to their drama parody videos because if you haven't seen them, you should, and if you already have, you should watch them again.
BTS caught my attention with their debut song "No More Dream" and then they continued to be awesome in their second song "Bulletproof pt. 2". Now with the release of this song, I think that it is safe to say that they are my favorite rookies of the year. I think they are a lot like BAP because they haven't really taken a break since they debuted and now they are filming a variety show which is hilarious.
I have mixed feelings about the message of the song. I know that in schools in Korea, you are suppose to do school and that is it. It is hard, but if you don't do well, your whole life is ruined because one grade directly leads to the next and one bad grade will end you. In this sense I can see what BTS is saying with the whole school isn't everything, I do what I want mentality, but school isn't a bad thing. I think I am just biased because the American school system is so different from the Korean one. On the flip side though, I like that they are saying to live your own dream and not someone else's.
This year there seems to be a lot of songs that promote individuality and dreams from the guys - Jae Joong's "Mine", GD's "Coup D'Etat" and BTS's "No More Dream" and now this one; while the girls have given us songs about not needing men and being okay with who you are - Sunny Hill's "Darling of all Hearts" Miss A's "I Don't Need a Man" and Glam's "I Like That". Even though I don't understand what is being said in these lyrics without subs, it is nice to know that there is a good message behind it because even if I can't understand it, I can remember the theme that they are putting across.
The music of the song had a heavy string accompaniment which was awesome! In the beginning the music was haunting sounding as the boys stared blankly off into space but was also used to show power during the rest of the song. I also liked that while the strings were a big part of the song, they had a simple part to play that consisted of two scales, I think, don't let me down music skills!
Something that I have wondered about since BTS's debut is what other types of music they will put out in the future. This is a talented group of boys so seeing them branch out could be fun. With branching out though, there is always the possibility that they will do a cutey boy song which is one of those things that can either be really funny, or really awkward.
How's the video?
I am such a huge fan of anything dystopian and I'm not sure where that love came from. I loved reading 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 in high school and I am always down for something post-apocalyptic. Don't ask me why, I just think that it is fascinating. I think that another reason for this love is because I like stories about the underdog beating the system or just surviving where no one else does. I also like/don't like seeing the comparisons that can be drawn from our own society and seeing how far or close we are to falling in on ourselves.
In this video, school is portrayed as that dystopian tightly reigned society and I can see that comparison made to school, especially Korean school as I have already said. All the boys look absolutely dead in a sterile room in boring outfits with scary red math equations that I could never hope to solve.
As they are all sitting there, Jung Gook begins to move around and begins the rebellion that we see next. I am probably reading too much into this, but as an English major it happens sometimes, but I really like that Jung Gook is the one that moves first. He is the youngest (16 years old, what the heck) and maybe he has been in the system the shortest amount of time so he was still able to retain that piece of himself that made him him.
At this point all of the boys fight against their oppressors and are able to escape their classroom and they end up in a lit up stair case flanked by violin and cello playing women. All we need is Frankie Avalon singing "Beauty School Dropout" and some Pink Ladies and this scene will be complete.
Overall, of the three videos that BTS has put out, I think that this one is my favorite. I felt that in their debut song they were trying really hard to be "cool" and "gangster" and yes that is their concept, but this video felt more natural. I hope that these boys can keep making good songs and videos and they don't go away for a while because I will definitely be here to listen to what they are putting out.
How's the styling?
Oh my gosh, Rap Monster has eyes! He looks a lot younger and nonthreatening without his glasses too. I think that everyone who is a part of ARMY (their fanclub) thought that those things had been surgically attached to his face.
The concept color for this video was white and I liked all the different textures that were used in the outfits because all white costumes on an all white background could be terribly boring if not done in an interesting way. Everyone had this very cool gangster feel with their white clothes and gold accents, but there was one persons styling that caught my attention and that is Suga the gangster ahjumma.
Seriously, what is up with your hair? And that vest makes me think that you are going to go find some rich handsome chaebol's son and try to ruin his relationship with his poor girlfriend.
Is the dance super amazing?
BTS has stayed pretty consistent with their strong dance routines. All the moves are powerful looking and the members are all pretty coordinated while doing it. I'm not sure if they have a really good main dancer in their group, but as a whole, they all seem pretty talented and they don't do simple moves all the time. They also seem to like to throw each other up into the air and have Jimin do spinning kicks. That might get old after a while though, so we'll see what else they bring to the table in the future.
The dance was also able to add another element of the rebellion theme that had been played with throughout the whole video. With this last dance segment, the story that was being told at the beginning is given a part two where the boys have to once again fight for their freedom. The riot team members from the beginning of the video came back for their revenge and BTS had to fight them off.
Unfortunately all the members with the exception of Jimin are taken down and the whole riot team then turn their attention on him.
Fortunately for BTS, the riot team wasn't that smart and used imaginary handcuffs on the boys and then turned their back them, dummies. This gave the other members of BTS the chance to once again rally for freedom.
With the help of his friends, Jimin was able to summon all his energy and through the power of sheer awesome, he was able to send all the riot members flying through the supersonic waves created by his spinning kick.
Which member owned it?
Something that I like about BTS is that even though they are predominately a hip hop/rap group, their singers are not left out. The members that sing are all very talented and they have pretty equal parts. They also mesh the singing and the rapping well so it isn't jarring or make you wonder why there is a random rap breakdown or vocal run somewhere.
The parts in the songs are all fairly even and I didn't feel like I was getting bombarded with one member the whole video. I hope that they keep this up because while it is fun to see someone that you like getting a lot of camera time, there are other people in the group who deserve face time as well.
Did the English make your ears bleed?
The English in the song was pronounced well and it was also used well. I think that Rap Monster may produce and/or write the songs that BTS performs and he speaks fluent English so it is nice to see that he is using that language talent.
The only thing that I can say is that the word "roll" has been ruined for me thanks to EXO. Because of Korean pronunciation the word "roll" and "roar" sound similar so while I knew that they were saying roll, it made me think of buffaloes. That being said, do you think that BTS roll like buffaloes?
What else is happening?
KK "Be Boys..." Wow this guy can rap fast. That is really the only good things about this cheap video though, and anytime I hear anything about Wassup, I die a little inside.
Demion "Ask Her Out" - debut song, This song is kind of generic sounding and probably I won't even remember it after the video finishes. Hopefully these boys can comeback with something stronger.
Kye Bum Zu "Something Special" - This song was upbeat and fun which was matched by the video. To make this even better, the male lead was PO of Block B and he's adorable. He was totally just being himself here and I loved it.
Piggy Dolls "Butterflies" It's too bad that the original trio are no longer because they had a very unique sound and these girls just sound like any other girl group.
Crayon Pop "Dancing Queen 2.0" - I'm going to be honest, Crayon Pop doesn't do it for me, but Autumn loves them and I can see why. They are quirky and fun and that is good to see in a K-pop work dominated by sexy female idols. Keep doing what you're doing Crayon Pop.
Song Ji Eun "Hope Torture"
Young Jun "Driving Road"
Jung Joo Young "Spotless Mind" - debut song, This song sounds like it was pulled straight from some rock opera and it was kind of cool. It wasn't totally my cup of tea, but it is always nice to get a new sound coming from K-pop
FLASHE "Oh Ye Yo" - There's nothing really special about this song. The video is cute, but the song is a little flat sounding and not memorable.
Tiny-G "Miss You" - This song is too repetitive sounding for me, but I do like that the girls of Tiny-G are a little fuller looking than some other female idols. Maybe it's because they are more compact.
Block B "Very Good" - *sobbing* I'm just so happy!
I have noticed that with the creation of this blog I know a lot more about rookie groups. I am paying more attention to everything that is happening in K-pop and I am so glad for that! There are all of these great rookie groups that I would have never known about otherwise had I not searched for them.
There is so much going on in the K-pop world that it is hard to become big when there are so many other established groups out there. There is so much talent coming from small companies that get crushed by other companies like SM, YG, and Cube, it is easy to over look some of them. Don't do it though! Go love the little people who sing these songs!
I
am kind of obsessed with this song right now. The first time that I
heard it I wasn't sure how I felt about it because she has a very cute
voice, it's almost at a J-pop level just to give you an idea. The video
is also very cute and collectively all those things are totally not me.
But now, for some unknown reason, I absolutely love this song. There is a
comment on Youtube at the moment that says "Her voice is the sound of
honeybees, candy, baby animals, and rainbows all having an orgy" and I
completely agree with that statement. It just makes me really happy and I
think that it is a really good song to be listening to right now that
summer has come upon us.
~ Alora
GI (Global Icon) "Beatles"
This debut was picked by Becca and I have to say that I agree. I was excited to see them debut because they seemed to have quite a different concept from most girl groups; especially girl groups this year because it is all about "sex sells" right now and this video showcased their vocals and dancing without wearing next to nothing. Sure it was a little heavy on the auto tune, but listening to their debut stage shows that they aren't just a bunch of cute faces. I hope that they stick with this concept and it isn't just a gimmick to get them popularity in the beginning.
~ Alora
Most awesome bad a** female debut - Becca
Boys
Never Mind "Shooting Star"
I am super obsessed with this group right now. They are just so wonderful and my life is better for discovering them. They have a really interesting sound for K-pop because they don't sound like a K-pop band; they sound like something that I would hear over the American radio, aside from the fact that they are singing in Korean, of course. To make them even cooler, they write, compose, and arrange all their own music! Please excuse me while I commence drooling over them. Bands are very unrepresented in the K-pop scene and I hope that these guys do really well because I will probably buy everything that they put out. These guys have
one other video called "Hoi Hoi" go check it out!
~ Alora
PURE "I Still Love You"
I love a good piano track and this music video delivers just that. The only problem with this group, and it is a problem, is that they do sound just like any other group and that makes me sad because they do have strong vocals. Hopefully in the future they can create a more solid sound because I would like to hear more from them.
~ Alora
BTS "No More Dream"
The fact that I love this song so much baffles me because it is totally not my style. I don't mind some rapping, but I need a melody line to keep me happy. This doesn't really have one, but the first time I heard it I just wanted more. I am excited to see what else that they put out in the future. Something that I wonder about is if they will ever do a cutey boy concept because I have seen some pictures of them being really cute. Rap Monster being cute.......cue the goosebumps.
~ Alora
LC9 "MaMa Beat"
Oh man this song, or should I say this video? After I watched the video I was in a state of shock and I realized that I had no idea what the song sounded like because I was so caught up in what was happening before my eyes. Once I listened to it again, without watching the video, I realized that they did sound pretty good. I am also kind of in love with King and his ridiculous hair, also, that boy can sing! They recently did a cover of Nelly's "Just a Dream" that I am still drooling over and it totally focuses on their vocals so you can get a better feel for all of their sounds.
~ Alora
Most disturbing music video award - Becca
History "Dreamer"
This song doesn't really do it for me, so I'll just let Becca be happy about it, don't tell her
This song is so freaking good, please give me more award - Becca
Airplane "So Pretty"
This song came out on January 6 and these boys have been MIA since and it makes me really sad. I like that they are a smaller groups since lately the trend has been to produce these monster groups. It is easier to hear all of their vocals this way, and man do they have vocals. They voices are all very clear and they do seem to seem to have a sound down that is their own, unlike another group that I have mentioned. The video was also pretty funny, but who puts on half a face of make up and then leaves the house?
I like this song, but it seems like maybe you fell of the face of the earth... that's too bad award - Becca
Mix
MFBTY "Sweet Dream"
I put this here slightly tentatively since all of the people in this group have already made names for themselves. This group is a new thing though and that is how I justify putting it in the debut section. One of my favorite things about these people is that they are so diverse and they are making a large impact on the music industry by doing something different. I also think that it is really cool that Yoon Mi Rae and Tiger JK are married and have a kid and you can see how much that they love each other when they are together.
