Current Events > K-Pop summer topic part 2

(+) Yeah! (+)

YamaChan posted...

I went to the first concert date in Houston and had a great time. And from my observations, most of the people who actually went to their concert had a similar experience.

There has been a lot of negativity spewed by people who haven't even gone to a single concert, fueled by cherry picked 5 second clips of the members not being 100% synced for some random choreo.

It's sad to see really. I'm the last person to defend BLACKPINK, given I've had my own clashes with Blinks historically, but the concert was high energy, fast paced and explosive.

I don't regret spending the money.

Good to know. Like I said, I would have gone if they were close but I couldn't justify traveling to see them.

Rob_Cesternino posted...

Oh hey, it's been a while.

Just wanted to say that 'Acid Angel from Asia' is amazing. Love the song, MV, and name.

What's incredible about the music video is that its a low budget production done right. It really feels authentic and captures the fleeting days of youth perfectly.

Seems like a cool idea. Looking them up, one of them is Bibi's younger sister.

Rob_Cesternino posted...

Oh hey, it's been a while.

Just wanted to say that 'Acid Angel from Asia' is amazing. Love the song, MV, and name.

What's incredible about the music video is that its a low budget production done right. It really feels authentic and captures the fleeting days of youth perfectly.

I was pleasantly surprised listening to that.

Choreo was forgettable but I think my only nitpick was the "la-la" hook. I'm not a fan of repeating hooks like that, but also rather unoriginal ones.

Rob_Cesternino posted...

Oh hey, it's been a while.

Just wanted to say that 'Acid Angel from Asia' is amazing. Love the song, MV, and name.

What's incredible about the music video is that its a low budget production done right. It really feels authentic and captures the fleeting days of youth perfectly.

I like it! Good stuff. And yeah well produced, and smartly produced, but still... I just get anxious when I see big, complex project groups like this, reminds me of Loona (and by the way their CEO worked for Blockberry). Of course that can also be a good thing. Interestingly the lineup is still being decided, and the fans actually get to vote the members in, and buy the votes, and via NFTs at that. It's called "fan participation" lol... which hey, it's a smart move right, when you got a bunch of talented trainees and you don't particularly care who goes where, why not let the fans decide right, and in the process cover some of your costs. Where have I seen this before...

Speaking of, BTS Jin came to RM (also going around promoting other places of course). Alright HYBE, that's a good start, keep sending them~

YamaChan posted...

I've had my own clashes with Blinks historically,

lmao this is painting a picture in my head.

is it still summer

Apparently Le Sserafim is planning a world tour soon. I'd be really interested in that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ccz123Jlflc

Was hoping for a little bit more than just a performance MV for what is essentially the theme song for their webtoon and maybe their best b-side but I'll take it, they're gonna promote it on music shows as well so thats cool

With that track it seemed they were very vested in showcasing their 360 degree choreography, which I'll say was really good. Apart from NCT, Lesserafim and New Jeans have put out the best choreography for the new generation imo.

Kazuha has been more intriguing member for me. I vaguely know the ballet background and stuff, but don't know where the vocal training history is. I thought she was a late pickup for the group and she's carrying a lot of the lyrical load. Even covered for Yunjin when they had to perform as 4 the other week.

Kazuha and Chaewon are my favs

wow, both LE SSERAFIM and IVE got the nod for Kouhaku this year.

That's some elite company, in terms of kpop groups that have ever gotten an invite, that they join (TVXQ, SNSD, Kara, and Twice)

Also, MAMA just announced a full 32 member collab stage between LE SSERAFIM, New Jeans, NMIXX, Kep1er, and IVE at their show this year.

I just hope its not an underwhelming cover of Into the New World again like that TWICE, GFRIEND, IOI, and Red Velvet collab

That's gonna be interesting to see. Sets the landscape of current gen groups.

Not gonna lie.

I'm a MooMoo (Mamamoo fan) for life and they will forever and always be my ultimate favs.

But both Newjeans and LE SSERAFIM have won me over. Have you watched their content? Newjeans are just adorable, and LE SSERAFIM is the first group since Mamamoo to make me laugh to the point of tears.

I love their title tracks and their performances, but it's the stuff that groups do between promos that solidifies a person as a true fan when it comes to Kpop. To me at least.

LE SSERAFIM might be the most balanced girl group in K-Pop. And Newjeans is right behind them.

Hybe Girl Groups really came through after all the speculation all these years.

I haven't been able to get into off-stage content too much. With NewJeans I steered clear just because they're so young. That's just me, won't judge who does when they're generally into watching such programs.

Both groups definitely are solid executions. LE SSERAFIM is a beneficiary of two IZ*ONE members (arguably of the most popular), but whole group came with instant familiarity and distinction. The voices blend well.

NewJeans impresses me more mainly because of how they didn't have that element of established members. And I think their approach seemed more naturally creative vs the targeted "fashion" image of LE SSERAFIM which I don't hate, but I do feel like NewJeans more purely let their work speak for themselves.

But Chaewon is my current crush in the industry. Both groups are solid. Live vocals on the debuts unfortunately is a bit of an exceptional remark in this industry.

On another note, STAYC's Japan debut
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkZvwVf7F9k
I'm again gonna be a stickler on hooks, but here I'm particularly critical of the absence the strong vocals they normally provide in that area. J was working a slightly higher pitch on the bridge. That was interesting.

YamaChan posted...

NewJeans charisma is INSANE. What the freaking hell?? HOW?? I got this theory that we live in a sub-universe and the author wrote NewJeans to make the perfect Five Man Band trope as a Kpop girl group.

With that said, the prize for most amazing story behind a group has to go to Le Sserafim. Wow. Epic. And it's like the next chapter of an awesome saga. Heo Yunjin gets called back from the States and joins Sakura and Chaewon to make a group?? Genius, whoever wrote this, best fanfic ever. And speaking of I've been rewatching their documentary just these days and what's up with Haruka? Huh!?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKoA4EgRCBs

Wtf... whoever came up with Danielle gets Best Character award!

paerarru posted...

what's up with Haruka?

The fact that they went out of their way to show her in the documentary probably means she'll be on I-land season 2

paerarru posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKoA4EgRCBs

Wtf... whoever came up with Danielle gets Best Character award!

i will forever stan my fellow mixed race babies

speaking of

Lily is so fucking cute guys lmao. i watched some of her vlives and just saw her go on and on about wombats it was hilarious

JYP YOU CRAZY FOR THIS ONE MANG

NewJeans impresses me because they really just dropped out of nowhere and completely took the K-Pop industry by storm. I won't fill this topic with boring accomplishments stats, but believe me when I say it's indisputably the most successful debut by a K-Pop group ever.

BlackPink had two songs in the top 10, but NewJeans had 3. 2 of them in the top 2. And even BlackPink had literal years of pre-debut hype.

Nobody was thinking about NewJeans until they caught our attention out of nowhere. :)

And Hype Boy is straight up the most popular song of the year in my opinion. It's rising on the charts again.

Yes, they're really young but they are also just magnetic. And I don't feel bad for being such a fan already, because I loved their music and couldn't get Attention and especially Hype Boy out of my head for months.

why exactly is new jeans so successful? I Iike their song hype boy, but they seem to be a pretty typical girl group.

accord posted...

why exactly is new jeans so successful? I Iike their song hype boy, but they seem to be a pretty typical girl group.

Yama pretty much nailed it.

I mean I had no idea who they were, if they were coming. Just clicked and they let the work speak for itself without any actual hype to build before it.

Image is also more original imo. Every new group comes in trying to sell or make something of a draw with video themes and such. This debut is like how "Rollin" blew up (late), in a way. It's naturally liked.

I hope none of these members get subjected to stuff like surgeries and stuff. They absolutely do not need to do that to maintain their success.

accord posted...

why exactly is new jeans so successful? I Iike their song hype boy, but they seem to be a pretty typical girl group.

Hmmmmm. I think a few factors.

1. Their title songs are just that good. You can't find a celebrity in South Korea not covering or dancing to Hype Boy. JYP himself just got some buzz for dancing to it just last night at a music show.
2. The members are all objectively very pretty and have personalities to match. Makes it really easy to stan them
3. They're very strong performers right out the gate, so they're not just a collection of pretty faces. For rookies, they are already performing at college festivals, KCON and going to awards shows
4. They have the power of Hybe Entertainment (formerly BigHit and responsible for a group you maybe heard of called BTS) and their CEO, Min Hee-jin, is SM's former creative director, responsible for branding Girls' Generation, f(x) and Red Velvet during her tenure

So their outstanding success right out the gates isn't too surprising when you look at these factors.

You may disagree, but a popular sentiment I've seen on forums and across social media is that they have a very natural girls-next-door vibe to them that distinguishes them from other active girl groups.

YamaChan posted...

BlackPink had two songs in the top 10, but NewJeans had 3.

Its a weird comparison because BP only released 2, if they had released more songs with more MV's they would've also charted them

YamaChan posted...

Nobody was thinking about NewJeans until they caught our attention out of nowhere. :)

Huh? From the moment Min Heejin went over to HYBE in 2019 kpop fans/the kpop world have been hotly anticipating and hyping up her upcoming girl group. The group had a huge following of hardcore stans for years before anyone knew even a single detail about them because of her involvement. The woman was responsible for some of the most beloved concepts/comebacks in girl group history

YamaChan posted...

And Hype Boy is straight up the most popular song of the year in my opinion.

Idle, IVE, and Lim Young Woong have all released songs were objectively more popular

Ruddager posted...

Its a weird comparison because BP only released 2, if they had released more songs with more MV's they would've also charted them

Huh? From the moment Min Heejin went over to HYBE in 2019 kpop fans/the kpop world have been hotly anticipating and hyping up her upcoming girl group. The group had a huge fandom for years before anyone knew even a single detail about them because of her involvement. The woman was responsible for some of the most beloved concepts/comebacks in girl group history

Idle, IVE, and Lim Young Woong have all released songs were objectively more popular

I'm not here to argue, so you can disagree if you like. My opinion isn't going to change, but a few things.

How is comparing them to BlackPink weird? If we're talking about all-time girl group debuts, BlackPink will obviously be in the conversation.

It's no fault of NewJeans that BlackPink didn't release more music. That's not exactly unusual for them.

Plus it wasn't just the number of songs. Literally no girl group has debuted and performed on the charts like NewJeans did with Attention, Hype Boy and Cookie all at the same time.

Ruddager posted...

Huh? From the moment Min Heejin went over to HYBE in 2019 kpop fans/the kpop world have been hotly anticipating and hyping up her upcoming girl group. The group had a huge fandom for years before anyone knew even a single detail about them because of her involvement. The woman was responsible for some of the most beloved concepts/comebacks in girl group history

This is hyperbolic. Yes, people anticipated the group she would debut, but to say a nonexistent group has a huge fandom is a bit much.

Plus let's not act like there was anything typical about their debut. There was literally zero promo or hype. They just dropped their album and became superstars over night.

Their album drop was so sudden that people (idiots) thought they were just being used to draw attention away from the whole Kim Garam (former Le Sserafim member) scandal.

Ruddager posted...

Idle, IVE, and Lim Young Woong have all released songs were objectively more popular

That is extremely debatable, and it's not one I feel like having tonight.

I think Hype Boy will have more longevity than any of those songs.

It peaked at #2 (just behind Attention) and is now experiencing a second life, rising above Attention on the charts, and is currently a top 4 song again, even surging past After Like by IVE.

Besides, you can't just look at charts for Hype Boy. Its impact and popularity in Korea is absolutely massive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhzIFsNu0pA

You can't escape its popularity even in the Korean military

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN-DcynE4bw

I don't think there is a point in downplaying what this baby group has accomplished in less than half a year. Nitpick the specifics all you want, but the accomplishment itself is unprecedented.

MixedRaceBaby posted...

i will forever stan my fellow mixed race babies

Nod, good man.

Ruddager posted...

The fact that they went out of their way to show her in the documentary probably means she'll be on I-land season 2

Ohhh, I see... yeah it's gotta be at least something like that, because the amount of time they gave her isn't some fluke or just to illustrate a point, there's some intention behind it. Hmm.

NewJeans really came out of nowhere, that itself was a gamble move but it just added to their mystique. At least now we have some dates lol, we got a single coming next month, with the album scheduled for January! :D

Rudd, you were right here giving us a play by play as HYBE debuted LeSserafim.

That didn't happen for NewJeans!

My brother in christ, I'm living in Korea, I see all this stuff first hand.

I get that youre clearly a huge fan. They are very successful already, what theyve actually done speaks for itself, you dont need to over/under exaggerate aspects to try and inflate that

I get you like the song and it was popular, again, thats undeniable, but Im telling you with no uncertainty as someone who lives in Korea, those artists I listed all released more popular songs here, Im not "just looking at charts". One of those 3 will win every Daesang this year, and those are based largely on impact.

And there is no hyperbole about the size of their pre-debut fandom, again, if you were on Korean sites in the last 3 years at all you'd know that. They werent just some group that came out of nowhere and amassed a fandom that buys 500k+ albums in the week, those fans were already around and waiting, they had 440k pre-orders. The fanwars between "Min Heejin GG" and "Sakura's GG" before anyone knew anything about either of the groups were huge.

Yes, their debut promotions were irregular but that ended up working more in their favour than it did against them as it was something people hadn't seen before and that piqued interest, maybe even moreso than if they had done it the traditional way. Min Heejin took an educated gamble with the marketing and it paid off. But the HYBE and Min Heejin factor are what allowed that to even work at the end of the day, an actual "out of nowhere" gg would never get any attention doing that

Ruddager posted...

My brother in christ, I'm living in Korea, I see all this stuff first hand.

I get that youre clearly a huge fan. They are very successful already, what theyve actually done speaks for itself, you dont need to over/under exaggerate aspects to try and inflate that

I get you like the song and it was popular, again, thats undeniable, but Im telling you with no uncertainty as someone who lives in Korea, those artists I listed all released more popular songs here, Im not "just looking at charts". One of those 3 will win every Daesang this year, and those are based largely on impact.

And there is no hyperbole about the size of their pre-debut fandom, again, if you were on Korean sites in the last 3 years at all you'd know that. They werent just some group that came out of nowhere and amassed a fandom that buys 500k+ albums in the week, those fans were already around and waiting, they had 440k pre-orders. The fanwars between "Min Heejin GG" and "Sakura's GG" before anyone knew anything about either of the groups were huge.

Yes, their debut promotions were irregular but that ended up working more in their favour than it did against them as it was something people hadn't seen before and that piqued interest, maybe even moreso than if they had done it the traditional way. Min Heejin took an educated gamble with the marketing and it paid off. But the HYBE and Min Heejin factor are what allowed that to even work at the end of the day, an actual "out of nowhere" gg would never get any attention doing that

My fellow K-Pop stan, were this a discussion about the nuances of Korean culture, your having a residence there would be a wonderful qualification, but we are talking about K-Pop and the overall popularity of a group, and there are plenty of ways to analyze and determine that from the comfort of one's home, even if it isn't in Korea.

So let's not pull the "I live in Korea" card; it's unnecessary. It's also completely disingenuous to lead off your response with"youre clearly a huge fan", as if I can only hold the opinions that I do if I'm being a deluded fanboy.

You can disagree with my opinion, but don't insult my intelligence.

You're also conflating a conversation about fandom with a conversation about overall popularity and charting.

I'm sure there were plenty of hardcore fans anticipating whatever group was going to debut from Min Heejin's company, but people outside of the fandom were not checking for them, and if you think a large fandom equates to instant success on the charts, you are very mistaken.

Most people thought "Who are NewJeans?" and then listened to their music.

NewJeans didn't just gather a lot of fans and sell a bunch of albums; they dominated the charts for nearly two months. Attention, Hype Boy and Cookie occupying the #1, #2, and #3 spots on the chart respectively would be literally impossible from fandom alone. That means people like me, who weren't invested in silly fanwars, heard the songs for the first time and instantly loved them.

Charting is largely the result of public interest in a song and group, not fandom. Melon, what has historically been the biggest chart in Korea, has even taken actions to further neutralize the impact on fandoms on streaming numbers. If you want to take issue with that, then you better be prepared to argue NewJeans and IVE have bigger fandoms than BlackPink and Twice.

Another misrepresentation of my opinion is this notion that I'm calling NewJeans the most successful group this year. I didn't.

"Most successful group of the year" and "most successful debut I've seen" are two entirely different statements. NewJeans hasn't even made their first comeback, and their songs dropped in the second half of 2022. Of course Love Dive or Tomboy or Still Life are going to have the best numbers overall, and of course groups that made multiple comebacks with all hit songs will have objectively better overall performance.

But I digress, if you don't think NewJeans had the most successful girl group debut ever, that's fine. My thinking otherwise shouldn't ruin your day, and I've already made it clear you're not going to change my opinion.

But leave it at disagreement. Cut off the extra fat of dismissing me as a huge fan or accusing me of exaggeration.

I don't even know what your main point of contention is anymore, because I literally listed several factors for why they have been so successful, with the last one being the strength of their company and creative team. I clearly don't think they're mega popular for no reason at all.

You almost seem offended I said they had the biggest debut by a girl group ever. Don't worry. I literally like Le Sserafim just as much as NewJeans, and I like Mamamoo considerably more than any musical act. I think they're all very accomplished groups.

Brother, I never even called into question the fact that they are popular and had a hugely successful debut, that much is obvious to anyone with eyes.

All I really called out were the statements:

"no one was thinking about them" which is just not the case as they had a both ton of pre-debut fans and a ton of anticipation from the public for years for being both from HYBE (for a long time people thought they would be the first "real" HYBE gg) and produced by Min Heejin (who is hugely popular with the public herself for her previous work), more anticipation than any rookie I can think of in recent memory. When the public saw they actually finally dropped they rushed to check them out, driven by that anticipation that already existed, and obviously liked what they heard, which again I've never debated.

"Hybe Boy is the most popular song of the year" which again I just pointed out that it isn't actually the case, not only just by numbers, but in actual impact. It was and is a very popular and well liked song, just not THE most popular this year

I like the group, they're #2 among the recent rookies for me, you seem to think I'm debating their success and I'm not, I was just pointing out some things in your original post that, to me, don't hold up based on what I see, its not some slight towards the group. Anyway, like you said, best leave it at that and move on

Anyway, you all seeing/following this stuff about Kakao?

Yes, let's just end the back and forth here. It's not worth the time or effort.

Just don't characterize me as an overzealous fanboy for any group besides Mamamoo, and even then, it needs to come with actual receipts that call my opinions into question :)

Speaking of, let me state my opinions cleanly without walls of text.

• NewJeans had the most successful girl group debut we've ever seen.
• IVE had the most successful rookie year by a girl group we've ever seen.
• G-Idle or IVE had the most successful year among girl groups. We'll see who gets the awards. Probably G-Idle because IVE is a rookie group.

I'll amend the original statement you took issue with:

• I think Hype Boy will be the most popular song of the year when it's all said and done, even if it doesn't have the total numbers just yet. It will be literal months before we'll know for sure. Chart longevity is a marathon not a sprint.

And I briefly read a couple headlines/forum threads about the Kakao stuff, and I see girl group stans using it to undermine Starship/IVE. I don't know the specifics though.

Vaguely understanding the Kakao stuff myself, but I can't get too vested as I already have been lukewarm about IVE...

...so it's like I wouldn't be surprised if something is up because I personally (in my own personal tastes) don't think any of their releases or performances were that good apart from the short term impressions.

You didn't like Love Dive?

I think their popularity is legitimate, but it doesn't mean the rumors are illegitimate.

Didn't a formal investigation just start too? Regardless of the outcome, it's the group members that suffer most from shady company shenanigans.

I'm more of an outsider, so not commenting on anything other than stating personal opinion. I think NewJeans is fine and have potential, but I kinda forgot about them after their debut. I like them enough, but not to put on repeat. I still hate their name, but probably irrelevant. I didn't even realize they were HYBE, and I'm 100% on the Le Sserafim train this year.

What's going on with IVE? From my perspective (again, outsider) they've quietly dropped 3 incredible songs in the past year, but I don't know much about them.

KainWind posted...

I'm more of an outsider, so not commenting on anything other than stating personal opinion. I think NewJeans is fine and have potential, but I kinda forgot about them after their debut. I like them enough, but not to put on repeat. I still hate their name, but probably irrelevant. I didn't even realize they were HYBE, and I'm 100% on the Le Sserafim train this year.

What's going on with IVE? From my perspective (again, outsider) they've quietly dropped 3 incredible songs in the past year, but I don't know much about them.

Its not necessarily anything going on with IVE themselves but Kakao which is the parent company of their label that also happens to be one of if not the biggest conglomerates in Korea.

It was recently found that they were secretly behind an extremely popular entertainment news Facebook page (which has now been shut down) that was essentially being used to slander and spread very negative news and rumours about groups that are considered "rivals" of the groups under their company and make those trend/go viral. They specifically were targeting groups like LE SSERAFIM, New Jeans, Aespa, Idle, etc... in order to prop up IVE. The page was also violating copyright on photos it was using in their articles. They are currently being investigated by the Fair Trade Commision but considering their status as a company I dont expect they will actually face any real consequences exept in the court of public opinion. And there is also a lot of suspicion, and has been for years, about the rankings/performance of their groups on Melon (the biggest streaming platform in the country), which Kakao also owns

Thanks, that's wild. I'm not gonna speculate but hopefully they didn't do anything too damaging, and hoping IVE is fine.

YamaChan posted...

You didn't like Love Dive?

I do like it, but definitely not as much as everything NJ and LS dropped after.

My gripes with IVE are the lacking brightness with their vocals and high notes. Most of the members can surely sing, but the songs themselves are kinda "flat" imo. Patterns get repetitive, bridges are eh, songs short, and the lack of a mini album also takes away imo. I just don't take them as a full/complete production.

Don't get me wrong. The member talent is there, though.

guys

Lily

_BlueMonk posted...

guys

Lily

XD

Anybody watch Produce China, or know Lana in some other capacity?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QcqJin8PpE

This is my latest show obsession. I'm catching up on the first season. It's so terribad lmao... don't judge me!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfIY1r0_tRI

GOOD LORD ALL MIGHTY

I LOVE THIS WOMAN

paerarru posted...

Anybody watch Produce China, or know Lana in some other capacity?

Unfortunately I've got nothing in this department

_BlueMonk posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfIY1r0_tRI

GOOD LORD ALL MIGHTY

I LOVE THIS WOMAN

I like that she's continuing to put out. Kinda curious to how that's translating to the Korean public.

And JYP still out here, being out there. I mean I get he's promoting at the moment, but it's like watching everyone's uncle.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1GwOy9mvB4w

KaZooo posted...

And JYP still out here, being out there. I mean I get he's promoting at the moment, but it's like watching everyone's uncle.

XD hopefully he can use this somehow as inspiration to give Itzy a good comeback

Attention and Hype Boy just simultaneously became the longest charting debut songs by a girl group in history on the Melon top 10.

Here's the full list:

#1. Attention - 15 Weeks*
#1. Hype Boy - 15 Weeks*
#2. ELEVEN - 14 Weeks
#3. Whistle - 8 Weeks
#4. Dalla Dalla - 7 weeks
#4. OOH-AHH - 7 Weeks
#4. Step Back - 7 Weeks
#4. Don't Touch Me - 7 Weeks
#5. Cookie - 6 weeks
#5. Fearless - 6 weeks

These 4th gen girl groups are putting up some crazy numbers in their first year

Also I am falling hard for Impurities by LSF. The choreo is phenomenal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-_q7W7nFVs

This is one of the few times I'll compliment the camerawork on a music show. It's on point for Impurities

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS5u-6LnyUU

I'm a little fascinated by what BoA comes with for herself as she works with Aespa and stuff.

I like this more than her previous comebacks. Credit to how well she's stayed in the game and stays young.

its amazing how much Le Sserafim has taken over my playlists. i can't get enough.

the part of me that was mad about Gfriend is gone. Kazuha's abs have filled that hole.

look at this fucking QUEEN

https://youtu.be/6p5kAiQVVec?t=435

her and mina should do a special stage and just kill us all

KaZooo posted...

Credit to how well she's stayed in the game and stays young.

lol its still forever crazy to me how long she's been in the biz.

shes only like 2 years older than Taeyeon but they feel generations apart. Hell, Sandara and Bom from 2ne1 are older than her lmao.

Been following BoA since 2001, she remains unrivaled as far as I'm concerned and stands alone at the top by a large margin in K-Pop.. I've yet to see anyone encapsulate what she can do. She is just the whole package and her artistry and evolution over the last 10 years has been such a ride. It's a shame she is paid complete dust these days. Taeyeon is incredible too.

The bridge is absolutely insane, the scene with her swaying in the black dress with the hand movements + vocals is mesmerizing. Charisma out of this world. 1:56-2:20

Despite all the works she's had done, she really looked reminiscent of her old days in some of the stylings/shots (1:40ish).

Really wish she'd give another shot at the English market or have a resurgence somewhere, even in J-pop.

Happy Thanksgiving!

YamaChan posted...

Attention and Hype Boy just simultaneously became the longest charting debut songs by a girl group in history on the Melon top 10.

Wah... this is really impressive. And yeah that list also goes to show what an amazing year we've had for girl groups.

I think it also relates to one accomplishment of nwjns that's harder to track: buzz. I don't live in Korea so I don't have any direct evidence but although it may not be to the level of cultural phenomenon of a Gee or Bboom Bboom or what have you I noticed their songs made quite an impression on the public. I know within the entertainment industry itself at least some random reference or something playing in the background more often than not it's them, seriously random it's not just bias confirmation, and yes of course I know this is common for any popular group/song but the level of it has been significantly higher than your usual hit. People noticed nwjns more than your usual group debut. It's calmed down a bit now (although yeah still going pretty strong) but just a while back it was all about them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fguHrWQpNI