frankxiv

@optix12: likey is such a perfect twice song, it's like everything you'd want from them, they all have lines and they're all something in their range. dna is also the first time bts really "hit" for me. i'd always think like damn this group is so huge and i don't really know why?? but then blood sweat & tears hit and i was like ok this is pretty good, and dna just cemented that like oh, this is a release from the biggest boy group in the world, this is why.

speaking of bts being huge, here's the steve aoki remix of mic drop

speaking of remixes, here's blackpink's remix of wonder girls' so hot

speaking of so hot, fresh off a million memes and cf deals, momoland is back with a new song that sounds like a t-ara b-side and hits twice as hard, bboom bboom

i regret putting my list out before loona's chuu debuted...

@wemibelle: great list! i think i'm the only person who prefers palette to last night's story. it's such a strong song not even gd's awkward feature can bring it down lol. the writing was kind of on the wall for 2ne1 after years of near inactivity and delays, especially with yg's history of being awful at managing groups (like what's happening with blackpink, winner, ikon, and him wanting to debut another new group already...), at least minzy is keeping that 2ne1 style going in her solo work so far.

predictably i was much more shocked and saddened to lose jonghyun this year. i was lucky enough to get to see shinee in concert twice, and they were absolutely incredible both times. it's a huge loss, he was such an amazing performer that brought a unique intensity to his music. it's hard not to get extremely emotional listening to shinee now, their songs are all so good already, but that intensity just hits in a different way now

so, what are your song of the year lists looking like this year?

mine is probably:

1.) subin - circle's dream
2.) red velvet - peek a boo
3.) seventeen - clap
4.) twice - likey
5.) odd eye circle - girl front
6.) sonamoo - i (knew it)
7.) jeon soyeon - jelly
8.) blackpink - as if it's your last
9.) hitchhiker x taeyong - around
10.) dreamcatcher - chase me

@optix12: jelly has grown on me as well, really hard... at first I was like, what am I listening to? but the way it picks up after the chorus is really great. there's a lot of subtlety to it's production.

and yeah! seventeen was awesome, it was at the verizon theater, which are pretty familiar to me at this point, out of the 5 kpop shows I've been to, only hyuna wasn't there. I didn't get any videos, my girlfriend did, I just got a photo from where we were sitting, I'm on mobile and have no idea how to add a photo, so I'll edit one in later or something. but yeah, really great show, having so many members meant there was very little stalling or downtime between songs like smaller groups had. it was also hoshi's first show of the tour, so everyone seemed extra hype based on other videos we watched from other dates.

if they ever come around near y'all I'd highly recommend it

edit: here's my one photo

and for comparison, our better seats from monsta x

kpop never slows down. heck, two new songs released literally as i typed this

seventeen - clap

sonamoo - i

plus you missed the song of the year, twice - likey, as well as the new loona/odd eye circle - sweet crazy love

also jbj - fantasy, and a.c.e. - callin

plus exid is coming back with a sure banger, ddd, kim sohee is debuting, samuel is coming back, chungha is coming back, gugudan is coming back, monsta x is coming back, there was a new epik high album, whatever this is... happened... lots of stuff out and coming out!

also please listen to these as well

bts - dna

odd eye circle - girl front

seventeen has been doing this thing lately where their internal teams are just releasing songs/mvs and they've been really good?? definitely give them a try even if seventeen is not typically your thing

hiphop team - trauma

leaders team - change up

performance team - lilili yabbay

hiphop team - check in

performance team - highlight

performance team (jun & the8) - my i

those last 3 they had out in time to perform them at the live show & it was incredible

in other news, the group formed by produce 101 season 2, wanna one, has debuted with 2 songs, energetic and burn it up

also, gugudan has an orange caramel style subunit of just the youngest members called oguogu. ioi's doyeon & yoojung's group weki meki has debuted with "i don't like your girlfriend". and sonamoo literally just dropped their first new song in like a year, "friday night"

i'm goin to see seventeen live next week & they uploaded a special intro video for their world tour that's got me hype

here's their two latest, boom boom and don't wanna cry