Note: “Cheat Sheets” are for paying subscribers only (please consider becoming one and supporting the tremendous amount of work that goes into 17 Carat K-Pop!), but the articles listed as “Additional Reading” are free!

aespa

The “Cheat Sheets”

A guide to aespa and KWANGYA

Breaking Down aespa’s Third Short Film

“NEXUS,” the “SMCU,” and the Meanings of Doppelgangers

(Part 2) “NEXUS,” the “SMCU,” and the Meanings of Doppelgangers

Additional Reading: aespa Concert Review: Surprising, Spectacular Sights

ATEEZ

The “Cheat Sheets”: A Guide to ATEEZ’s Music Video World; ATEEZ Story Updates

Additional Reading: Reviews of THE WORLD EP.2: OUTLAW, GOLDEN HOUR : Part.1, GOLDEN HOUR : Part.3 ‘In Your Fantasy Edition,’ and GOLDEN HOUR : Part.4

Billlie

The “Cheat Sheets”

My Theory About Billlie’s Story

Billlie’s Music Video Universe

Billlie’s Music Video Universe (Part 2)

Billlie’s Music Video Universe (Part 3)

Billlie’s Music Video Universe (Part 4)

Additional Reading: Reviews of Of All We Have Lost, the Billage of perception : chapter one, and the Billage of perception: chapter three

CIX

The “Cheat Sheet”: CIX’s Music Video Universe

Additional Reading: Reviews of GO Chapter 1: GO Together, THUNDER FEVER, and ‘OK’ Episode 1 : OK Not

DPR IAN

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Summary of My DPR IAN MV Theories

Additional Reading: Where DPR IAN’s Story Goes from Here; DPR IAN’s Five-Star Feat

Dreamcatcher

The “Cheat Sheets”: The Dreamcatcher Music Video Universe; Dreamcatcher Story Updates

Additional Reading: Reviews of [VirtuouS], [Apocalypse : Follow us], and [Apocalypse : Save us]; a review of SIYEON’s band’s debut album

ENHYPEN

The “Cheat Sheets”

The ENHYPEN Music Video Universe (Part 1)

The ENHYPEN Music Video Universe (Part 2)

TXT story parallels

A recap of the ROMANCE : UNTOLD era

A recap of THE SIN: VANISH era

A Guide to DARK MOON : THE BLOOD ALTAR

A Guide to DARK MOON : THE BLOOD ALTAR (Part Two)

Additional Reading: What it Means to Be ENHYPEN; DARK BLOOD and ENHYPEN’s Humbling Journey; ENHYPEN’s “FATE” and “FATE+” Storytelling; The Deeper Meaning Behind ENHYPEN’s Setlist

EXO

The “Cheat Sheet”: The EXO Music Video Universe

Additional Reading: SUHO’s Remarkable Comeback

G-DRAGON

The “Cheat Sheet”: Inside G-DRAGON’s World

Additional Reading: A review of ÜBERMENSCH

IU

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Guide to IU

Additional Reading: IU’s “HEREH” World Tour Review: Unsurprising Talent and Surprising Warmth

KAI

The “Cheat Sheets”: Decoding KAI’s Latest Short Film; KAI’s Role in the SMCU

Additional Reading: A review of Peaches

LE SSERAFIM

The “Cheat Sheets”: A Guide to LE SSERAFIM; A Guide to LE SSERAFIM’s New Era

Additional Reading: Reviews of EASY, CRAZY, and HOT

LOONA

The “Cheat Sheets”: A Guide to the LOONAverse; 17 Reasons for LOONA’s Popularity

Additional Reading: A quick interview with HeeJin; an analysis of Yves’ discography; reviews of CHUU’s albums: XO, My Cyberlove, Only cry in the rain, Strawberry Rush, and Howl

MONSTA X

The “Cheat Sheets”: The MONSTA X Music Video Universe (Part One); The MONSTA X Music Video Universe (Part Two)

Additional Reading: MONSTA X’s No Limit Tour: Chicago Day 2 Review

NCT

The “Cheat Sheet”: Thoughts & Theories: NCT DREAM’s DREAM( )SCAPE

Additional Reading: An In- “Depth” Look at YUTA’s Album; NCT DREAM Chicago Concert Review; NCT 127’s “The Link” Chicago Concert Review

NewJeans

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Guide to NewJeans

Additional Reading: Making Sense of NewJeans’s New Videos

PURPLE KISS

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Guide to PURPLE KISS

Additional Reading: A Tribute to PURPLE KISS; PURPLE KISS’s “FESTA” USA Tour Review

P1Harmony

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Guide to P1Harmony

Additional Reading: P1Harmony’s DUH! Review: Proof of Earned Hype; P1Harmony Return with a New Kind of “SAD SONG;” P1Harmony Keep “Killin’ It;” HARMONY : ALL IN Press Conference: 17 Takeaways; P1Harmony’s HARMONY : ALL IN: Album Review; P1Harmony’s “P1ONEER” Chicago Concert Review

Red Velvet

The “Cheat Sheet”: A Guide to Red Velvet

Additional Reading: Reviews of Cosmic, Chill Kill, and Queendom; a review of SEULGI’s Accidentally On Purpose; a review of WENDY’s Wish You Hell

SEVENTEEN

The “Cheat Sheets”

“The SEVENTEEN Files” series

• Chapter 1: 2015 and 2016 releases

• Chapter 2: 2017 releases

• Chapter 3: 2018 releases

• Chapter 4: 2019 releases

• Chapter 5: 2020 releases

• Chapter 6: 2021 releases

• Chapter 7: About Face the Sun and DREAM

• Chapter 8: About FML

More “Cheat Sheets” breaking down the meaning behind specific SEVENTEEN eras

• The Ultimate Guide to HAPPY BURSTDAY!

• Each SEVENTEEN Member’s Role in SPILL THE FEELS

• 17 Key Details About 17 IS RIGHT HERE

• Key Details Throughout the “Ima” Music Video

Additional Reading: An ENORMOUS amount of essays and reviews!

SHINee

The “Cheat Sheet”: The SHINee Music Video Universe

Additional Reading: Reviews of ONEW’s PERCENT and CONNECTION; reviews of TAEMIN’s Guilty and Advice; reviews of KEY’s HUNTER and Pleasure Shop

Stray Kids

The “Cheat Sheets”

A Guide to Stray Kids’ Discography

A Guide to MAXIDENT

A Guide to 5-STAR

A Summary of My ROCK-STAR Theories

Thoughts & Theories: Stray Kids’s ATE Era

Additional Reading: ATE Review: An Explosive Expansion of the Stray Kids Universe; Stray Kids’ ODDINARY: Album Review and Press Conference Coverage

TAEYONG

The “Cheat Sheet”: Decoding TAEYONG’s TAP Era

Additional Reading: TAEYONG’s Purposeful Playfulness; A Guide to TAEYONG’s Solo Music

TXT

The “Cheat Sheets”

The TXT Music Video Universe (Part 1)

The TXT Music Video Universe (Part 2)

The Star Seekers recap part one

The Star Seekers recap part two

The Star Seekers recap part three

The Star Seekers recap part four

The Star Seekers recap part five

More on TXT’s Neverland-inspired era

Decoding “Chasing That Feeling” and The Name Chapter: FREEFALL

minisode 3: TOMORROW Story Notes

(Part 2) minisode 3: TOMORROW Story Notes

(Part 3) minisode 3: TOMORROW Story Notes

“TXT’s Real Magic” essay outtakes and related notes

Additional Reading: TXT’s Real Magic; TXT coverage compilation; Decoding TXT’s Neverland; TXT’s Take on The Little Prince; another essay that is coming SOON!

Dig Deep into Even More K-Pop Artists’ Discographies with These Articles!

BOYNEXTDOOR: Reimagining the “Boy Next Door”

BTS: BTS Coverage Compilation; Diving Deep Into ARIRANG; An Underrated Message in Agust D’s D-DAY; BTS’s Book: 10 Main Topics

Epik High: The Best Lyrics from Epik High Is Here 下, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2 (paywalled); also check out this (free!) podcast interview: Authentic: The Story Behind the Story of Tablo

HUNTR/X: KPop Demon Hunters: The Most Interesting Coverage

i-dle: The Many Sides of MINNIE; What (G)I-DLE’s I love Represents; The Triumph of (G)I-DLE’s I NEVER DIE

NMIXX: A Guide to NMIXX (from the “Cheat Sheet” series)

The Rose: Inside The Rose’s Feature-Length Film!

tripleS: Unpacking tripleS’s “Girls’ Capitalism” Music Video; tripleS EVOLution on Superpowers, Resilience, and Standing Out

Xdinary Heroes: The “Beautiful Mind” of Xdinary Heroes

東京を拠点に活動するバンドが、彼らの音楽的な世界観の構築にインスピレーションを与え続けている「おとぎ話」について語る。

Please introduce yourselves and share what special traits and skills each member adds to the group!

自己紹介と、メンバーそれぞれがグループにもたらす特別な特質やスキルについて教えてください！

Igarashi: I’m Gozyu Igarashi, PompadollS’ guitarist and vocalist! The name “Gozyu” comes from the number 50. I chose it because I write my lyrics using the Gojūon, the 50-sound phonetic chart of the Japanese language. I serve as the core of the band, handling everything from songwriting and composition to designing our CD jackets and merchandise. Through our music and visuals, I strive to bring the unique world of PompadollS to life.

五十嵐：PompadollSのギターボーカル、Gozyu Igarashiです！Gozyuは数字の50で、日本語五 十音で歌詞を書くのでこの名前です。作詞作曲、CDのジャケットやグッズのデザインを担うバンドのコアです。音楽やビジュアルによってPompadollSの世界を生み出しています。

Aoki: I’m Rentaro Aoki, and I play the guitar. I’m a fan of Japanese rock bands, of course, but I also have a passion for international hard rock and punk rock. Beyond just playing the guitar, I support PompadollS behind the scenes by handling management duties and strategizing our future moves. We hope you’ll look forward to seeing what we do next!

青木：ギターを担当しているAoki Rentaroです。日本のロックバンドはもちろん、海外のハードロッ クやパンクロックが好きです。ギターを弾くのはもちろんですが、マネジメントや今後の作戦を考えたりなどPompadollSを裏か ら支えております。今後の私たちの動きをぜひお楽しみに。

Tajima: I’m Kaoru Tajima. I actually started out on drums before switching over to the piano! As for my personal tastes, I love jazz and theatrical film scores, [and] Jacob Collier is a huge inspiration to me. Oh, and I can play percussion, too! I’m responsible for managing the band’s overall sound. I’m constantly keeping my ears peeled to ensure that no strange or jarring noises slip through. Moving forward, I intend to keep honing my arranging skills so that I can continue to add cool, vibrant colors to the unique worldview created by Igarashi.

但馬：ドラムからピアノに転じました、Kaoru Tajimaです！趣味としては、ジャズや劇伴音楽が好 きです。Jacob Collierに憧れています。そういえばパーカッションも出来ます。 バンドの音をマネジメントしています。変な音が鳴っていないか…常に耳をそばだてています! 五十嵐の世界観が格好良く彩られるよう、これからもアレンジの筆捌きに磨きをかけていきたい です。

For those who have not heard your music before, how would you describe it to them? How would you finish the sentence “PompadollS is ___” or “PompadollS’s music is ___”?

まだあなたの音楽を聴いたことがない人に、どのように説明しますか？「PompadollSは___です」または「PompadollSの音楽は___です」という文をどのように完成させますか？

Aoki: “PompadollS represents the fusion of ‘fairy tales’ and ‘impulse.’” Musically, “PompadollS is a blend of rock and classical.” While drawing inspiration from fairy tales, we aim to convey both the raw energy of a rock band and the sheer beauty of music. We are constantly exploring and refining new musical expressions [to create] the kind of music that only we can.

青木：PompadollSは、童話×衝動 そしてPompadollSの音楽は、ロック×クラシック 童話をモチーフにしながらもロックバンドらしい衝動や、音楽の美しさを伝え続けていきたいで す。私たちにできる新しい音楽を日々研究しています。

What is the story behind how you became a band?

バンド結成の経緯を教えてください。

Igarashi: I was introduced to each of the current members through various friends. Essentially, the band came together through word-of-mouth. We weren’t all acquainted right from the start, yet I truly feel [like] it’s a miracle that our individual sensibilities and passions have aligned so perfectly, allowing us to create music together as a unified whole.

五十嵐： 色んな友人から各メンバーを紹介してもらい、友人づてで集まったのがこのバンドなんです。 なので、全員が最初から知り合いだったわけじゃないのですが、そういったメンバーで、今こうし て各々の音楽性や情熱がばっちりハマって、一つの音楽を作ることができているのが奇跡だなと 思います。

How did you choose your band name? Did you consider any other specific band names first?

バンド名はどのように決めましたか？他に候補となるバンド名はありましたか？

Tajima: I remember clearly that when we first met as a group and the topic of a band name came up, Igarashi, who had already given it some thought, immediately suggested “Pompadoll.” We all reacted with, “Oh, hey, that sounds great!” It was the only name ever on the table. Incidentally, the name’s origin traces back to a plastic shopping bag from a bakery — specifically, one Igarashi had spotted [with] the name “POMPADOUR.” He apparently tweaked the spelling. Later on, we added the letter “S” to signify that we [are] a collective, a group of multiple individuals coming together to play music.

但馬: 初めてメ ンバーで顔合わせした時に、「バンド名は？」という話題になった時、五十嵐がもう考えているも のがあると、すぐに「Pompadoll」と答えてくれて、おーなんか良いね！と皆でなった記憶がありま すね。候補はこれしかありませんでした。因みに由来は、五十嵐が見かけたというパン屋のレジ 袋に書かれた「POMPADOUR」から、dollに文字ったんだそうです。その後、複数人で集まってバ ンドをやっていることで「S」を付けました。

Please describe your newest single, “little world”!

最新シングル「little world」について教えてください！

Igarashi: This marks the very first time PompadollS has received a [TV anime] tie-in opportunity! We were selected to provide the ending theme for I Want to End this Love Game. Since the anime featuring our song [is] a high school romantic comedy, I sought to capture that fresh, vivid sensibility unique to one’s student days. The inspiration for this track struck during the production period. While watching a group of high schoolers frolicking by the sea, I was reminded, with a sense of nostalgia, that I once possessed that very same feeling. In their own little world, a realm distinct from the outside world, governed by its own unique values ​​and rules… If they believe something to be true, it functions as truth. Conversely, if they do not believe in it, it simply does not come to pass. It is a world that is fleeting, perhaps a little cruel, and inherently unstable, yet precisely because of those qualities, it is invincible and beautiful. I endeavored to capture a snapshot of that very world and distill it into this song.

五十嵐：PompadollSが初めて、タイアップをいただいた曲です！TVアニメ「愛してるゲームを終 わらせたい」のエンディングテーマとして起用していただきました。エンディングとなったアニメが、高校生のラブコメディだったので、学生時代特有の瑞々しい感覚 を曲にしました。制作期間に、海辺で遊ぶ高校生たちを見て、自分にもこういう感覚があったなあ、と思い出した のがきっかけでできた曲です。外の世界とは違う独自の価値観やルールがある、彼らの小さな世界では、彼らがこうだと信じれ ばそれは真実として機能するし、逆に信じなければそれは実現しない。儚くて少し残酷で、不安定で、でもだからこそ無敵で美しい、そんな世界を切り取って曲にしまし た。

Your music is heavily inspired by fairy tales. Why do you think that is? What makes fairy tales such good source material for making songs?

あなたの音楽は、おとぎ話から大きな影響を受けています。なぜだと思いますか？おとぎ話は、楽曲制作の素材としてなぜ優れているのでしょうか？

Igarashi: During my childhood, due to the nature of my parents’ work, we moved around a lot. Just as I would begin to get accustomed to a new environment, we would have to pack up and move to yet another place. This cycle repeated itself so often that I struggled to make friends and felt as though I had no true place to belong, no matter where I went. Amid this constant upheaval, the one unchanging sanctuary I could find in every town was the world of fairy tales. Consequently, it felt entirely natural to me that these fairy tales, which served as the very bedrock of my personal development, would eventually become the central theme of my music. Every fairy tale contains a moral lesson within its narrative. Moreover, since these stories are read by people all across the globe, they serve as a kind of universal textbook shared by the entire world. I believe they make for excellent source material for songwriting because they are readily accessible to a broad audience, allowing me to convey the messages I wish to share with minimal resistance.

五十嵐：私は幼少期、親の仕事の関係で引越しがとにかく多かったんです。 その環境に慣れた頃、また違う土地に移らなければならない、なんてことばかりだったので、友人 もなかなかできず、どこに行っても居場所がない状態でした。そのなかで、どの土地にも置いてある、変わらない居場所となったのが童話でした。 なので、人格形成の根幹となった童話が、曲を作る上でテーマになるということはとても自然なこ とだったように感じます。おとぎ話は、すべて話の中に教訓が存在し、かつ世界中で読まれているものなので、全世界共 通の教科書のようなものです。より多くの人が受け入れやすい、言いたいことが抵抗少なく伝えられるという点で、楽曲制作の 素材として優れていると考えています。

What specific fairy tales did you grow up enjoying the most?

子供の頃、特に好きだったおとぎ話は何ですか？

Igarashi: I love The Seven Stars. It tells the story of a young girl from a village where the water supply has dried up due to a drought who sets out with a ladle to search for water for her ailing mother. She finally manages to fill her ladle, but on her way back to her mother, she ends up sharing the water with other people she meets along the way who are just as desperate for a drink. With every person she shares her water with, the ladle transforms, from wood to silver, and then to gold. Before she knows it, seven gems appear floating inside the ladle, and it becomes a magical vessel from which water flows endlessly. Once the water flowing from the ladle has reached everyone in the village, the seven gems finally rise into the sky, where they become the Big Dipper, [and] that is how the fairy tale ends. It is a beautiful story that inspires me to want to be a kind and generous person, someone who is willing to share with others, no matter what kind of world we live in.

五十嵐：七つの星というおとぎ話が好きです。日照りで水が枯れた村の少女が、病気の母親のためにひしゃくを持って水を探しに行く話です。 やっと手に入れたひしゃくの水を母親のもとに届けるのですが、その途中で、同じように水を求め る人たちにそれを分け与えてしまいます。すると人々に水を分け与えるたびに、ひしゃくは木から銀へ、そして金へと変化し、気づくとひしゃ くの中には七つの宝石が浮かび、水が湧き出る不思議なひしゃくになっています。 湧き出るひしゃくの水が村の人々に行き渡ると、最後、ひしゃくの七つの宝石は空に浮かび、そ れが北斗七星となる、というおとぎ話です。どんな世の中でも、人に優しく、分け与えられる人間でありたいという気持ちになる、美しいお話 です。

Aoki: The Town Musicians of Bremen. I was drawn to the cool sound of the title itself, and I loved how fun it looked, the idea of ​​joining forces to overcome something stronger than yourselves. I really hope they managed to make it to Bremen and successfully join the band!

青木：ブレーメンの音楽隊 タイトルの響きのかっこよさと、力を合わせて自分たちより強いものに打ち勝つことが楽しげに見 えました。無事にブレーメンで音楽隊に入れているといいなと思います。

Tajima: I didn’t actually read many fairy tales growing up, but Orpheus, a Greek mythology book on [my] classroom bookshelf, left a lasting impression on me. You know the one: the story where he turns around to look, and his beloved falls back into the Underworld. Even as a child, I could vividly imagine the anxiety, the sense of urgency, and the sheer despair of that moment. Now that I’ve grown up, I feel as though I’ve matured enough to be able to imagine the complex interplay of love and hate within that story as well.

但馬：あまり御伽話を読んだことは無かったのですが、小学校の教室の本棚にあったギリシャ神 話のオルフェオは印象深いですね。振り向いて愛する人が冥府に落ちてしまうあれです。子供な がらに不安感、切迫感、絶望感をリアルに想像しました。今となっては愛憎も想像できるように成 長した気がします。

Do you think fairy tale motifs will always be central in your music, or will there come a day where you change themes?

おとぎ話のモチーフは、今後もあなたの音楽の中心であり続けると思いますか？それとも、いつかテーマを変える日が来るでしょうか？

Igarashi: For the time being, I have no intention of making any changes. However, as I grow and evolve — both as an artist and as a human being — if I ever feel that a change is necessary for the music I am creating at that moment, I might indeed make one. The concept of “fairy tales” is not something meant to constrain my self-expression, [and] I believe that maintaining complete freedom in my creative expression is of the utmost importance.

五十嵐：今のところ変えるつもりはありません。ですが、自分がアーティストとして、人間として成 長し、変化する中で、その時の音楽に必要だと感じれば、変えることもあるかもしれません。 おとぎ話は自分の表現を縛るものではないので、表現において自由であることが最も重要だと 思っています。

Have you ever considered writing your own fantasy book?!

ご自身でファンタジー小説を書いてみたいと思ったことはありますか？

Igarashi: I have! When I was little, my dream was to become a novelist. I truly love books, so someday I’d really like to try writing one myself!

五十嵐：あります！幼少期は小説家になるのが夢でした。本当に本が好きなので、いつか自分でも書いてみたいですね！

What was the first time you felt truly famous?

初めて自分が本当に有名になったと感じたのはいつですか？

Igarashi: It was when we held our very first solo concert. I was deeply moved to see so many people gather just to witness a day created entirely by our own performance. Thankfully, the scale of our activities has steadily grown since then, and we have finally reached the point where we can hold solo concerts in South Korea. I still can’t quite believe that so many people go out of their way to attend our shows solely to listen to our music, and [I] feel truly blessed. No matter how large our audience grows, I never want to lose this feeling.

五十嵐：初めて単独公演を行った時です。自分たちの演奏だけで作り上げられる一日を観るために、こんなに人が集まってくれるんだ、と 感動しました。ありがたいことにその規模は確実に今大きくなっていて、ついには韓国で単独公演を行うことが できるようになりました。自分たちの音楽を聴くためだけに、たくさんの人が足を運んでくださることがいまだに信じられ ず、本当に幸せです。どんな規模になっても、この気持ちを絶対に忘れたくないです。

Aoki: Ever since our song “Akujiki” reached a wide audience, we’ve had more opportunities to perform live in distant places. Since we live in Tokyo, I distinctly remember being surprised during our first trip to Osaka by just how many people there were who genuinely knew and appreciated our music. Then, during our first headlining concert in South Korea, I truly realized that even across the ocean, there are so many people who listen to our music. It made me feel that it was all worth it [and] that it was right to keep pursuing music while eagerly awaiting moments like this. I want to personally express my gratitude to everyone who listens to PompadollS.

青木：「悪食」がたくさんの人に聞かれてから、遠くの地でライブをすることが増えました。私たち は東京に住んでいるので、初めて大阪に行った時に私たちの音楽を本当に知ってくれている人 が多かったことに驚いた記憶があります。そして、韓国での初めてのワンマンライブでも、海を越 えても私たちの音楽を聴いてくれている人がたくさんいてくれることを実感しました。全然有名じゃ ない時から、この時を待ち望んで音楽を続けてきて良かったと思いました。PompdollSを聴いてく れているすべての人に感謝を伝えにいきたいです。

Tajima: In terms of a moment where I truly felt it, it would have to be when we went to South Korea for busking. In a land we were visiting for the very first time, an unbelievable number of people gathered with the sole purpose of seeing [us]. I was absolutely dumbfounded — so shocked that all I could do was laugh. Personally, that remains the most intense experience I’ve had. The moment “Akujiki” went viral was certainly surprising, but there is a world of difference between seeing numbers on a screen and seeing actual human beings right there in front of you. It is truly an incredible thing to know that people feel a desire to come out and meet us in person.

但馬：感じた、、、実感したという意味では、韓国のバスキングに赴いた時ですね。日本の外の初 めて訪れる地で、あり得ない人数のお客さんがPompadollSただ一つを目的に集っていて、流石 に驚愕で思わず笑うしかなく。個人的にはあれが一番強烈な体験でしたね。悪食がバズった瞬 間も驚きましたが、やはり目の前に人間が居ると居ないとでは全然異なっていて。会いに来たい と思っていただけるって本当にすごい事ですね。

What are some of the proudest moments of your career so far?

これまでのキャリアの中で、最も誇りに思う瞬間は？

Igarashi: While it’s not a single specific moment, what I take the greatest pride in is the fact that throughout all our activities to date, we have never once cut corners. That applies to me personally, but also, looking at my fellow members, I feel truly happy and proud to be able to declare that there hasn’t been a single moment when any of us held back or gave anything less than our all. Moving forward, we will continue to strive to deliver only those creations born of our absolute best efforts, work that we can present to all of you without a shred of shame.

五十嵐：瞬間ではないのですが、ここまでの活動の中でひとつも手を抜いたことはない、という事 実を最も誇りに思っています。それは自分ももちろんですが、メンバーを見ていても、なにひとつ手を抜いた瞬間はない、とバン ド単位で胸を張って言えることが幸せです。これからもみなさんに恥じることのない、全力で生み出したものだけを届けられるように頑張りま す。

Aoki: Each of our solo headline concerts has left a truly deep and lasting impression on me, down to the very depths of my heart. It brings me such joy, and I truly want to convey my deepest gratitude. At the same time, I also feel a sense of pride in us, in the fact that we are here now, delivering our music directly to each and every one of you.

青木：それぞれのワンマンライブは、本当に心の底まで印象に残っています。 私たちが音楽を続けることができていることはここにいる一人一人のおかげだ、本当に嬉しくて、 本当に感謝を伝えたい、と思います。それと同時に、今目の前にいる一人ずつに音楽を届けてい る私たち自身のことも素晴らしいと感じることができます。

Tajima: It’s hard to pick just one [most memorable moment]. Thanks to all the people who love and support us, we’ve had the opportunity to stand on countless stages. In doing so, we get to deliver our live performances at a distance close enough to potentially spark a new influence in the lives of those who might have only just started taking an interest in us. I feel a sense of pride in the very fact that through our musical activities, we exist within this cycle of gratitude and giving back. Also, reading through everyone’s heartfelt reactions and emotions on social media fills me with a profound sense of pride!

但馬：最もというのは難しいかもですね。好きで応援してくださる方々のおかげで、沢山のライブ に立って、そしてまたちょっと興味を持ってくれた方に、その人生に新たな影響を与えられるかも しれない距離で、生演奏を届けられる。音楽活動を通してそんな感謝と恩返しの循環に居ること 自体が誇らしい気がします。あとSNSで文字と なった皆さんの感動の気持ちを読ませていただく瞬間も、だいぶ誇り高いです！

What are your short-term and long-term career goals?

短期および長期的なキャリア目標は何ですか？

Igarashi: It’s to witness firsthand at a live concert the sight of people all over the world singing along to our songs in unison! During a performance we gave in Korea, everyone sang along with us, and it made me incredibly happy. That was the moment this goal first took shape for me.

五十嵐：自分たちの曲で、世界中の人たちが合唱してる景色をライブで見ることです！ 韓国で行った公演で、私たちの曲をみなさんが一緒に歌ってくれて、とても嬉しかったんです。 その時初めてこの目標ができました。

Aoki: I’d like us to hold large-scale concerts — drawing audiences of several thousand — in both Japan and Korea as soon as possible. I think it would be a truly exhilarating experience to share PompadollS’ music with so many people in such spacious venues. My long-term goal is that, by building upon those kinds of live performances, we will eventually create music that becomes universally recognized. I believe that if we keep moving forward without overthinking things, holding fast to the confidence that this is the sound of PompadollS, creating that kind of music will absolutely become a reality.

青木：短期目標としては、日本と韓国で数千人規模のライブを早く行いたいですね。PompadollS の音楽を多くの人と、広い会場で共有できたら心地よいだろうなと思います。 長期目標は、そういうライブの積み重ねで、いつか誰もが知る音楽を作りたいと思います。 後先考えず、これがPompdollSの音楽だ！と自信を持ち続けていればいつかそんな音楽を作る ことも可能だと考えています。

Tajima: My bandmates have already covered the “big picture” goals, so is it okay if I mention something a little smaller? In the short term, I really want to become more confident and poised when speaking in front of an audience! In the long term, I aim to grow into a “super-pianist” and a “super-musician.” Through my own efforts, I want to help propel PompadollS to spectacular new heights!

但馬：デカいことは上で同志が言ってくれてるので、小さいこと言っても良いですかね。短期的に は、もっと人前で堂々と喋れるようになりたいです！！長期的には、スーパーピアニスト、スー パーミュージシャンに成長し、PompadollSを僕は僕の働きで派手に高みに引き上げたいで す！！

Where can people follow you on social media to stay updated about your new music?

最新の音楽情報を知りたい方は、ソーシャルメディアでどこをフォローすれば良いですか？

Aoki: Please be sure to check out our Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) accounts! We post frequently, so don’t miss out on anything! We also have a fan club called “Doll House.” You can join even if you live in Korea, and since I believe there is a translation feature available, I hope you’ll give it a try and enjoy it!

青 木: ぜひInstagramとX（旧Twitter）をチェックしてください。たくさん投稿しているので、お見逃しのない ように！ あと、Doll HouseというFanclubも存在します。韓国在住でも入れるし、翻訳機能もあると思うの で、ぜひ楽しんでください。

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourselves or your music?

最後に、ご自身や音楽について何か伝えたいことはありますか？

Igarashi: Thank you all so very much for your continued support. We promise to keep striving with single-minded dedication to delivering music that is undeniably cool and that truly moves your hearts! Even when we are far apart, may our music always be right there by your side.

五十嵐：みなさんいつも本当にありがとうございます。PompadollSはこれからも、ひたすらにかっ こいい、みなさんの心が震える音楽を届けるために努力し続けることを約束します！ 離れていても私たちの音楽がそばにありますように。

Aoki: We really hope to visit Korea often in the future. When we do come, please be sure to come say hello and hang out with us! Also, please continue to enjoy PompadollS’ music whenever you can.

青木：これからもPompdollSは韓国にたくさん来たいと考えています。来た時はぜひ仲良くしてください。あといつもPompadollSの音楽をぜひ楽しんで。

Tajima: I truly feel that opportunities like this are once-in-a-lifetime experiences. We are still navigating our way through the creative process, but I’m incredibly excited to see how our music will branch out and evolve from here on out. Everyone, please, you really have to look forward to what’s coming next!

但馬：こんな風に音楽的に挑戦できる機会はまたと無いなと思っています。手探りでPompadollS の音楽と向き合っていますが、この先どんな風に枝葉が広がり進化していくか、だいぶワクワク ですね。皆も本当に、楽しみにしててね！

Check out PompadollS’ newest single, “little world,” here!

PompadollSの最新シングル『little world』を、こちらからチェック！

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

回答は、分かりやすさを考慮して軽く編集・要約されています。

#10: adieu, adieu 5

This down-to-earth diary hits close to home for anyone and everyone with love on the brain. The singer-songwriter focuses more on what it means to be in love than love itself, reliving the thrill of jumping into a lover’s arms, the distraught state of having texts go unanswered, and the dam-breaking moment when a relationship’s cracks become too obvious to shove into one’s subconscious any longer. She sings about all these sensations and then some, with relatively minimalistic, guitar and drum-featuring instrumentals that keep attention on her relatable words and evolving emotional state.

She works through stages of post-breakup grief, but she ends back at stage one. In “Genki?,” she seeks to uphold the image in her mind of her ex-lover on a perfect pedestal: “You remain exactly as you were that day / And I remain exactly as I am… Is it okay if I keep you here… just like this?” She knows the answer is “no” and that time waits for no one; they are drifting apart, and there is nothing she can do about that: “The same amount of time has passed for both of us / Yet here we are, in two completely different places…” That comes across in “naiteshimaisou,” too: “Sparks flew… I feel like I’m about to cry;” “I have to pull myself together… bid farewell to the time that can never return.”

“blue hour” meaningfully marks when her interpretation of what it means to “take flight” shifts. She has seen romance as the key to feeling like she is flying and sings about doing so in the first few songs, but she realizes flying can be associated in her mind with post-breakup freedom instead. To fly, she doesn’t need a partner; she needs this time and space to come into her own: “I was looking at the sky… dancing the waltz at dawn alone;” “Now, I’m just feeling it quietly… sadness and love.”

She starts to enjoy her own company in “Night Bird,” seeing her interior world as a newly-vast space to hold new memories and abilities. On the other hand, her former lover’s influence remains: “syokubutuen” is about a botanical garden her former lover told her is located at the end of a certain road, so she keeps walking despite never seeing it come into view. This metaphor for clinging to a piece of the past yet still moving forward is not because adieu feels ready to do so, but because she does not. She knows she needs to get herself mentally unstuck. She parts with her “old friend” that is “stagnation”: “I’ll live on, forgetting you / Passing through the words of goodbye… My favorite song.” “syokubutuen” features “la la la”s, just like “naiteshimaisou,” a song about keeping her feet planted in the past. She transfers the breezy buzz of a relationship to one that can exist in her newly-single life.

She ends with “Untitled,” which paraphrases the “Please don’t change” wish she makes to her former lover in “Genki?” She pledges to “go on singing of love” and uses a rainy-day metaphor about the balance between valuing the past and parting with it: “I raise my umbrella / Navigating the drops… I don’t need so much that I become waterlogged / But please, let me be nourished just enough.” She recognizes, “The more I dwell on it, the more paralyzed I become / The more I struggle, the more I’m sent back to the start,” so she tries to stop struggling and to start letting go.

This EP is about moving on, but more importantly and cathartically, it’s about why that is so hard to do.

#9: Yves, NAIL

The “NAIL” music video is a more natural outgrowth of past Yves eras than it first seems. Back in the “LOOP” era, Yves alternated between the role of a leader and someone running and hiding from the public eye. In the “Viola” video, she sang about needing all kinds of space: liminal (which she was in while digital eyes stayed focused on her), metaphorical, and physical (which the lyrics were about, as she wished to go somewhere too small and enclosed for anyone to follow her, like a viola case!). “LOOP” and “Viola” were not about Yves breaking free, but at least gaining some control over her position within a “loop.” That craving for control took a dark turn in the “Ex Machina” video, although outfit changes and role reversals left it unclear if Yves was the main character worth fearing. Her openness to turning to violence if necessary to recreate a former relationship dynamic spoke to her unhealthy sense of attachment and deep insecurities about who she was outside of the context of someone else. The “running and hiding” pattern is bound to continue as long as she wants the feeling of control more than the feeling of stable confidence and independence. The endless pursuit is exhausting, though! And it explains the direction several previous EPs took, starting with the higher-energy and faster tracks before growing more lethargic. It sounded as if Yves went from active to passive participant in her own life. This succumbing shows itself anew in NAIL, through hyper-pop-ready, high-pitched vocals that stick to a lower-than-expected tempo, as well as through repetition that reinforces the sense of being stuck. Yves remains content playing a character at the margins - like the street cat she sang about wanting to be instead of a pampered indoor cat in the Soft Error song “White cat”! What ultimately ties past and present Yves eras together is this off-center role. Her inscrutable character is always addressing some form of attachment: to her own identity, to others, to her career… Yves wonders what she is willing and not willing to compromise and to what degree her attachments are good versus toxic.

The mind games that Yves plays in the “NAIL” music video underline her desire to stay at a remove, not taking complete accountability for her actions and keeping her motives a mystery. She is a possessed character who tortures people and generally disrupts their lives in ways that favor slow deliberation over flashy, fast reflexes, as if when she puts them under her control, she too is doing so under someone else’s command. She crawls around indoors and moves as if sleepwalking down the street outdoors. Her final thoughts on the EP I Did come across as more ominous in hindsight, because in “NAIL,” she is implied to have killed everyone in a dim dining room. In the I Did song “DIM,” she talked about “the silence growing on the floor” and “slipping out of control.” “DIM” is also newly relevant for mentioning feeling “lost in the dark” and “fading fast like a flame.” Now, in “NAIL,” she sings about basking in a “slow glow,” and being “born in [her] own light” in “birth.” Yves feels stuck whenever her inconsistent inner flame disappears, and that presents itself through methodical pacing and a coercive compulsion (“I’m going to free up your mind. You like it,” she insists in “NAIL”).

NAIL is an apt analogy for this era, because as Yves hammers down her multi-lane musicality that exhausts the bounds of “alternative” - alt-R&B meets alt-pop meets alt-hyper-pop - she plays with the screws she purposefully keeps loose in that foundation - loose screws with which her video personas thrive!

#8: DPR IAN, “THE SHOW”

DPR IAN remains allergic to genre and format constraints, making this song somehow sound like just one song, two in one, and three in one! It is just one song about showtime, but it sounds like two in one when it pivots partway through into emphasizing a bass-driven groove over theatrics. And the “three songs in one” descriptor is apt if also considering the prelude to “THE SHOW,” the intro track “Burn.” “Burn” is also several things at once, a complete (albeit abbreviated) song in isolation and one that is linked to “THE SHOW.” It completes a thought - “Why don’t we figure it out? / Before we… burn it to the ground?” - but leaves no time for a response, as if he and the listeners are abruptly cut off and swept into the spectacle that is the following track. Further avant-garde entertainment comes from a music video that refuses to sacrifice comedic moments for dramatic ones or vice versa. The backup dancers in elaborate period costumes exaggerate different reactions, as if they are reading from different scripts. “THE SHOW” makes a more layered statement than just “Everyone’s in their own worlds,” though. It fits into DPR IAN’s ongoing musical universe and is particularly worth a closer look when reassessing the “Welcome to the Show” video.

A brief refresher: DPR IAN’s musical world involves several alter egos, the main ones being MITO, Mr. Insanity, and at least one to-be-revealed hybrid of sorts. MITO stars in “Welcome to the Show,” and a “hybrid” appears to star in “THE SHOW.” First of all, IAN’s appearance is different in “THE SHOW.” He has bright red hair and a glam-rock ensemble, departures from both the uber-bright Mr. Insanity and the dark and disheveled look of MITO. Second of all, the chronology is different. In “Welcome to the Show,” MITO enters an empty auditorium (through white doors) at the beginning and makes his way towards the spotlit stage, eventually performing there. In “THE SHOW,” IAN enters an empty auditorium (through dark doors) after his performance, at the end of the music video, in a dark suit that contrasts with the red velvet worn by MITO. Furthermore, “Welcome to the Show” features a series of flashbacks in quick succession, and it begins with a framed picture of what happens in the video. In other words, there is already a framed memory of what he is about to do. He says, “I feel like I’ve been here before. Everything feels familiar…” “THE SHOW” also unfolds like it could be past-to-present or present-to-past. Besides entering the auditorium after “showtime,” the title screen doesn’t pop up until the middle of the video, and the “ending credits” play soon after the title.

There is also a shade of Mr. Insanity here, because like the chapters in which that alter ego is the star, “THE SHOW” inverts concepts like “climax” and “rising action.” One possibility is that this is the start of a new show, one coming out of the metaphorical ashes of the old ones. Perhaps IAN is going back to where the story started. Another possibility is that everything preceding “THE SHOW” video was a mere dress rehearsal - some “rising action.” Now is when the real show actually begins! Then again, “THE SHOW” is characterized as a home base, like a place for resolution. As he says at the start of “THE SHOW” video, “There is a place where I often go not to disappear, but to search deep below. When the past returns to burn my soul... What I go through… Most will never know. But I don’t really mind. As long as you make it back… To the show.” It is worth flagging the “make it back” framing, because in “Famous Last Words,” IAN narrates a letter to Mr. Insanity: “[T]ime is running out… But don’t worry. I’ll find a way to come back. I always do.”

IAN, Mr. Insanity, MITO, a new hybrid… whoever is in “The Show,” the bottom line is that the venue for it carries a magnetic mystique, always drawing him back into it. Many more paragraphs could be spent unpacking this, but the point is that DPR IAN raises questions about the performative nature of life that are striking in their strangeness and subversion.

#7: Novelbright, PYRAMID

With a primarily sunny disposition and a firm commitment to keeping the faith - in themselves, in their loved ones, in their futures - this rock band has something important for people from all walks of life to hear. They begin with a question that is, to paraphrase, “Why do we try?” Their aspirations seem forever out-of-reach: “So vast and never-ending / I wonder how long this journey… will continue… Is there any hope?” But they decide that “Falling down seven times and getting up eight is fine;” they do not give up on the “caravan ride” towards their dreams.

The album goes on to give answers to “Why do we try?” “We do it for love” is the answer in the older song “Ivy” (about a romance that goes in no direction other than deeper), the older song “Canopus”(“You were the one who transformed all my anger and tears into laughter”), and the new songs “Live, Laugh, Love” and “Transparent.” “Live Laugh Love” is about every day feeling ten times rosier thanks to getting to see a loved one grow up, and “Transparent” is about the moment of realizing an emotional border has been crossed, and love has stopped disguising itself as hate.

“We do it for the memories” is their answer in the older song “Everywhere I Go” and the 2026 songs “Anemone” and “Kanzashi.” All three are about being hung up on trying to preserve the past.

“We do it for a better, brighter future” is their answer in the older song “Winding Road” (“Through that endless repetition / True treasures are born”), the older song “Call me” (“Even if it’s still incomplete right now / The future will greet us with a smile”), 2026’s “Mystery” (which shares the older songs’ message about the need to put one foot in front of the other), and the album’s last track. “No matter what happens, I want you to keep looking forward,” they say in the new song “IF.”

The hope that persistence pays off relates to what otherwise sounds like an outlier on the album: “Chasing blood.” They sing, “You’re running and running from the morning light / Draining me dry, like a sweet parasite / Does it ever fill the void inside?,” and “I hope you are really proud of the person you’ve become / Wearing my pain like a crown.” The biggest dividing line between them and their haters is the same one dividing people who are living with a greater sense of purpose and people who are not. That difference is who is chasing something versus running towards something, and Novelbright lead the way on the latter.

PYRAMID combines older and brand-new songs to show how hindsight has insights for the future, and they glean those insights through an accessible caravan metaphor.

#6: T.O.P, TOP SPOT - ANOTHER DIMENSION

The best metaphor for T.O.P’s new era is a library bookshelf that keeps the most popular titles on the higher rows and the least-checked-out ones on the lower ones. T.O.P gravitates towards telling his eye-level stories and would rather avoid the ones that are purposefully less convenient to retrieve. He is inclined to tell the stories that the most people want to hear, which are not the same as the stories that he would personally benefit the most from letting out of his busy mind and onto the sheet music. What allows him to do both at once are deployments of two powerful tools: analogy and comedy.

While addressing his past on his own terms, he packages the stories in the guise of “just joking” and “It’s not who or what it sounds like,” with liberal usage of onomatopoeia and ad libs; the relegation of some memories to those of an alter ego, like his “Moon Man” persona, or a famous artist he sees himself as comparable to; and the matching of his most honest takes with the most unserious demeanors. In “BE SOLID,” as he admits he wishes he were a more “warm and cozy” person, his voice sounds stuck in digital muck, like he is a machine using the last of its power. In “SELF CRUCIFIXION,” he talk-raps in an uber-deep voice about the “nauseating” news cycle that gives him a “scarlet letter,” samples a TikTok about being “99% angel,” and concludes with a montage of negative news clips about himself. The extra-deep voice returns and endures constant self-interjections in “SEOUL CHAOS,” which describes his status in Seoul as precarious (“If you fall, you’re just chunks of meat”) yet maybe not - perhaps just the stuff of a fever dream, with “pink-winged elephants and squirrels with spinning eyes”! The spaceship noises during “ZERO-COKE” and “Another Dimension Holy Dude!!!!!!!!” dilute the credibility of the loneliness he says he has in the former and the “Pandora’s Box” of emotional baggage he says he has in the latter. And in “FOR FANS,” he plays the “expected” part of a K-pop idol, sounding perky and responding to his name being chanted, but it is during that perceived joy that he lets out a secret: “I’m scared of getting bored, scared of myself.”

T.O.P finds many other ways to get his real feelings across under the guise of goofiness, and these feelings often have to do with his time in BIGBANG and desire to keep that in the past. Given the band name, it sounds like a reference to the group when he comments on being “just cosmic dust” in “THE GIANT,” celebrating being “finally off the grid.” “A SMALL, FILTHY SHOW WINDOW” stresses that he appreciates his time in the group but is glad it is over: “It’s beautiful when we go our separate ways;” “I loved my old days in BIGBANG” (emphasis added). He again insists he is “done playing the clown” and “had a nightmare chasing that high,” which could refer back to the “I’m so high” lyric in “SEOUL CHAOS” (that is also the primary chorus lyric in the BIGBANG subunit song “High High”).

Like how the album gets the most vulnerable when it also seems the most absurd, “STENDHAL SYNDROME” involves both a lot of hedging and a lot of head-on statements. He compares his story to those of famous artists like Ed Ruscha (whose work he cleverly mentions by using the phrase “that was then, this is now”!), but he gets real about how much of an “outcast” he has felt like, while also feeling the weight of paparazzi’s gazes (“The lights [that] busily follow the actor”). He also underhandedly reveals he is talking about himself when he mentions needing a “new tempo;” Tempo was his pre-BIGBANG rapper name.

T.O.P’s hodgepodge approach to telling his story on his own terms is a fascinating look into an inexplicable musical mind.

#5: LiSA, LACE UP

LiSA keeps each element one of surprise, like she’s playing with lit matches and never knows when each one will strike! She dips into and out of nostalgia (with Easter eggs), folklore (often involving dark descriptions), and songs with the goal of simply shouting from the rooftops (with lots of fast-paced pop-rock). These songs scream “life in the fast lane,” and besides taking life by the handlebars, LiSA insists on living it up in an extra “DIY” way! “DECOTORA15” is about “Adding color to even those lonely roads,” by treating marking days on a calendar like a game of connect-the-dots! “HOMEdayo” describes attachments as turning into “badges.” Relatedly, the last song celebrates living a custom-tailored life, like “A colorful dream, the patchwork walk of this era”! Treating life as a fun art project is a fun twist on the “turn pain into fuel” mantra! “The pain inside us / Should never go away,” she insists in “ReawakeR.” That pain becomes useful and is an essential color in the palette of life. “Decorate with every emotion,” she encourages in “DECOTORA15,” so that it can look like a “masterpiece”! Celebrating all of life’s highs and lows is the primary theme: “Even my scars are lovely” (“QUEEN”), “I want to live every day without regrets” (“HOMEdayo”), “It’s beautiful to be alive” (“Shine in the Cruel Night”), “I don’t need sloppy pessimism” (“Shouted Serenade”), “This world is overflowing with miracles” (“HELLO WORLD”), “Treasure or junk? Flip it over. It’s easy!” (“Shadow”)... the list goes on.

Whether singing about living with both her head in the clouds and her feet on the ground or casting herself in the role of a supernatural force, each song shines or spooks thanks to LiSA’s signature spunk!

#4: Chevon, San Sha San You

This eclectic Japanese band loves to play games with the audience, keeping it up-in-the-air exactly who and what on Earth they are talking about or alluding to in their songs! The songs distort the sense of past versus present, which is not even in the top three on the list of their music’s most puzzling parts! Each song is big and bold in its own ways, with cramped instrumental arrangements and words that tumble over each other. It is always “go big or go home” time, whether summoning a choir (like in “DUA•RHYTHM”) or breaking out of an orchestral mold into something more stomp-along and stadium-ready (like in “B.O.A.T.”). They do not always gallop at full speed, though that is more often than not the case. They lower the tempo for “Sayonara, Irene,” “Love rut,” “The Art of Being Wrong,” and “Hallucigenia.” Still, even those songs share the faster ones’ memorable ways with words! “FLASH BACK!!!!!!!” hits like a sucker punch: “I feel like I’m losing my mind!;” “FLASH BACK! / Remember everything! Scream out a crimson cry;” “To my brain, now starting to CRASH / CLAP!” Listeners get whiplash from this chaotic cry, since it follows the relatively solemn “Sayonara, Irene,” which describes thoughts as light as bubbles!

The melodrama recurs in songs like “meimei” (“Sharpen your words in the eternal night, when no one can save you”), “Sayonara Ni Narimashita” (“I will live drowning in song”), and “DUA•RHYTHM” (“A voice that awakens the beast”). Chevon love to, as they say in “Love rut,” stay “thinking wildly;” they thrive on both narrative and musical mayhem! Making that even more evident are the meta pivots; they constantly describe the songs they are making and why they are making them. They encourage younger generations to raise their voices and sing in “meimei” and pray that their music will inspire them in “Sayonara Ni Narimashita.” They urge someone to “[f]inish writing it all down before it’s too late” in “Daisy,” promise to “weave words with single-minded devotion” in “Ruten,” and describe being “moved to tears by the sound of [their own] voices” in “JUDENCHU!! (2026 Ver.).” “Daisy” has the most curveballs of them all. It sounds like a message Jay Gatsby is giving to his former lover, the hopelessly naive Daisy, in The Great Gatsby. They urge “Daisy” to “be prepared” for when their inner madness becomes apparent, a “twisted nature [that] will one day inevitably” arrive! One can certainly argue that Jay Gatsby is a “twisted” man, making it reasonable to assume he inspired this track. After all, that novel is essentially about things not being what they seem, which is a nice and neat way to summarize Chevon’s musical identity!

#3: AKMU, FLOWERING

FLOWERING exudes warmth and likability, as the duo sings odes to the natural world. What could have sounded like an overwrought, corny jamboree is something much more sincere and satisfying. That is not to say that calmness comes at the cost of liveliness or vice versa; there is plenty of room for both, and many of the songs sound suited for sitting around and clapping along at a campfire. Besides lively western flair (especially in “Paradise of Rumors” and “Spring Colors”), a sense of homespun happiness takes the form of a big brass band (“Graceful Breakfast”) and choir (“Stains”), mellow mood-setting at a sway-worthy speed (“Tent,” “Young and Married,” “Festival of Refugees”), and/or voices that convey quiet conviction (“Joy, Sorrow, A Beautiful Heart,” “The Right Person”). All the while, AKMU believably sing their gratitude for feeling connected to nature and keeping good company. This good company includes plants and animals; they treat their surroundings with the kind of care most people reserve for fellow humans. Besides directly singing their appreciation for all living things, they express it implicitly by describing themselves as equals, merely fellow travelers and temporary Earth stewards. “We’ve all left somewhere behind,” they say in “Festival of Refugees.” They empathize with a “weary traveler” in “Paradise of Rumors,” too, insisting the traveler should be proud of going on a journey to “a world cowards will never know.” They stress the need to see the world with one’s own eyes: “There are things you’ll never see on TV;” “There are things you only learn by leaving.” They too “leave” to learn more, soaking in the open roads and blue skies in the album’s teaser video; emphasizing an “it takes a village” way of life in the video for “Joy, Sorrow, A Beautiful Heart;” and singing about insatiable wanderlust, most directly in “Paid with Bugs”: “My soul, rattling and restless / Time is short, and there is so much to savor.” If one does not see much worth “savoring,” AKMU offer places to start: watching a happy budding family (“Young and Married”), the rainbows that can only come after rain (“Joy, Sorrow, A Beautiful Heart”), a loved one’s conscious efforts to do right by someone (“The Right Person”)... One need not have an exceptional life to have one that feels rich and abundant. It just requires a patient and keen eye.

AKMU celebrate the bountiful blessings that life offers those who look for them, those who are willing to travel for them, and those who understand that optimism is much less groundless than many assume.

#2: Xdinary Heroes, DEAD AND

Each song on DEAD AND is its own brand of dynamite! There are constant adjustments to the tempo, the degree of vocal filtering or lack thereof, and the times when “more is more” or “less is more” for a dramatic effect. Examples of the latter include a relatively quiet moment before the guitars and electronics burst forth again in “Hurt So Good,” the “machine powering down” noise that ends several songs, and multiple lengthy instrumental breaks. Internal disarray is apparent more often than not. “Rise High Rise” can’t decide between restraint and its antithesis. “Voyager” has clear-voiced choruses but verses that sound filtered through an intercom. In the start-and-stop-filled “No Cool Kids Zone,” they can’t decide if they want to curse or not, so they settle on the equivalent of a slant rhyme (“Fool sheet”)! “Helium Balloon,” “KTM,” and “Voyager” each change partway through to sound prepared for a crowd to join them. And in “Hurt So Good,” spaceship-type noises start things out on a fun note that makes the screams in the second half of the chorus more jarring!

A different but just as deliriously delightful game is played via lyrics. Each song is in a game of “Telephone” with at least one previous one, taking a term or topic in a new direction. They begin with a clever “Helium Balloon” analogy for a breakup, singing about “drifting away” and how “[t]he higher it goes / The smaller the memories grow.” This makes them “feel obsolete,” and they elaborate on that in “Voyager,” describing a “fading signal” and how everyone is just stardust in the end: “Someday, everything / Will scatter and be cast aside / Like a star does when it dies.” “No Cool Kids Zone” works with those comments about lights burning out: “I like the dark of my life.” “Hurt So Good” talks about dark insides in a more graphic way: “Vomit it out, even my heart / Burned black, all tattered and torn”! “Rise High Rise” goes off of the destroyed state described in “Hurt So Good” and complains that they are too deep into a toxic relationship, lying to themselves that “just one more game” will be worth it: “Should’ve sold, but I hold, can’t let go… One night… I’ll be rich… I am so close.” This gambler’s mentality is scorned in “KTM” and called a “misfit ego.” Lastly, “X room” uses words and phrases from multiple tracks, including “Memories in fading light” (the memories mentioned in “Helium Balloon” and the fading light mentioned in “Voyager”) and “I rolled our dice in the darkness” (a die is mentioned in “Rise High Rise,” and the darkness is referred to in “No Cool Kids Zone” and “Hurt So Good”).

Internal sentiment consistency paired with external instrumental chaos collide and spill each song’s contents over like the exposed guts of a truly gnarly body of work!

#1: TXT, 7TH YEAR: A Moment of Stillness in the Thorns

Stay tuned for a separate write-up all about this release!

Catch up on past “Best of” reviews here!

K-pop boy band Big Ocean found a delightful way to “make it up to” their fans: with a new single called “Make It Up to You”! The love letter to fans doubles as an apology for those who were looking forward to their abruptly-cancelled European tour. They went even further for those former ticket-holders, holding a private online concert for them, where they first debuted the new song!

“Make It Up to You” features the members’ co-writing credits, the work of Grammy-winning producer Frankie Biggz, strong ‘70s influences, and a piano melody that leads into a live-band sound. PARASTAR Entertainment’s statement added:

“The cities they couldn’t reach are called out by name, with local-language phrases woven in so that fans across each country hear their own corner of the world reflected back at them. What could have been a missed connection becomes, in Big Ocean’s hands, one of their most personal releases yet.”

“Make It Up to You” will be available on all major streaming platforms starting May 19!

ICYMI: 17 Carat K-Pop was early to see Big Ocean as one to watch!

Read more

For those who have not heard your music before, how would you describe it to them? How would you finish the sentence “Kang Seung-sik is ___” or “Kang Seung-sik’s music is ___”?

아직 승식님의 음악을 들어보지 못한 분들에게, 음악을 어떻게 소개해 주시겠습니까? “강승식은 ___이다” 혹은 “강승식의 음악은 ___이다”라는 문장의 빈칸을 채워본다면 어떻게 하시겠습니까?

“Kang Seung-sik’s music offers comfort.”

강승식의 음악은 위로를 준다.

Who or what first inspired you to pursue a music career?

승식님에게 음악인의 길을 걷게 하는 영감을 누가 혹은 무엇이 처음 주었나요?

I began my journey in music after taking the stage to sing at a school festival. The mix of nervousness and joy I experienced there settled in my memory as a cherished moment.

학창시절 학교 축제에서 노래를 부르며 무대에 서게 되면서 그 긴장과 즐거움들이 좋은 기억으로 자리 잡으면서 음악을 시작하게 되었습니다.

What career would you be pursuing today if it could not be music-related?

만약 음악과 관련된 일이 아니라면, 오늘날 어떤 직업으로 있었을까요?

I imagine I’d probably be working an office job at some company, considering my personality!

어떤 회사의 사무직을 하고 있지 않을까 싶습니다. 저의 성격을 고려해봤을 때^^

How have your personal music tastes changed over the years, and have they influenced your solo music?

지난 세월 동안 개인적인 음악 취향은 어떻게 변화해 왔으며, 그 변화가 솔로 음악에도 영향을 미쳤나요?

I began my journey as a vocalist with a fondness for ballads and R&B. However, after debuting with VICTON, I grew to love K-pop and dance genres. Currently, I have an interest in band music and am primarily focusing in that area. That said, I believe that sometime in the future, I may find myself drawn to yet another style of music, and through that, I might once again reach out to you with a fresh sound and a brand-new image. Please look forward to that moment as well!

시작은 보컬리스트로 발라드나 알앤비 음악을 좋아했고, 빅톤으로 데뷔를 하며 kpop 음악과 댄스 장르를 좋아하게 되었습니다. 지금은 밴드 음악에 흥미를 느껴 주로 밴드 음악을 작업 중 입니다. 하지만 앞으로 또 다른 음악에 흥미를 느끼고, 그를 통해 여러분에게 새로운 음악과 새로운 모습으로 다가가게 될 수도 있다고 생각합니다. 그 언젠가 역시도 기대해주세요!

What are the biggest differences between “Kang Seung-sik the Soloist” and “Kang Seung-sik from VICTON”?

“솔로 아티스트 강승식”과 “빅톤(VICTON)의 강승식” 사이의 가장 큰 차이점은 무엇인가요?

Undoubtedly, the biggest difference is the need to fill both the music and the stage entirely on my own. At first, this felt a bit awkward and unfamiliar. However, I feel [like] I am gradually improving at preparing and presenting performances and music.

아무래도 가장 큰 차이는 혼자서 음악과 무대를 채워서 보여드려야 한다는 것입니다. 처음엔 이런 것들이 조금 어색하고 낯설었지만, 조금씩 더 나아지는 무대와 음악을 준비하고 보여드릴 수 있게 되는 것 같습니다.

Please talk about each of these songs:

다음 곡들에 대해 각각 이야기해 주세요.

“Perfectly Imperfect”: This is my first solo digital single, and since I personally love the lyrics the most, I believe it is a song that will leave a lasting impression on me for years to come.

괜찮은 오차 : 저의 첫 솔로 디지털 싱글이고, 가사도 개인적으로 가장 맘에 들어서 앞으로도 기억에 크게 남을 곡 이라고 생각합니다.

“I’m still loving you”: This song holds a very special place in my memory, as it is a track that my fans, uniting as one, gifted me the opportunity to sing.

사계절이 지나도 : 이 곡은 팬분들이 한 마음으로 힘을 합쳐 저에게 이 곡을 부를 수 있는 기회를 선물해주신 곡이라 기억에 참 많이 남습니다.

“afterimage”: This is a song I worked on with the intention of simultaneously conveying a refreshing clarity and poignant lyrics. I believe it is a track that truly showcases my personal musical tastes.

기억의 잔상 : 청량함과 아련한 가사를 동시에 보여주고 싶은 마음으로 작업한 곡이며, 저의 개인적인 음악적 취향을 많이 보여드릴 수 있는 곡이라고 생각합니다.

“Dear. Tomorrow”: The lyrics of this song hold deep significance for me, as they capture many moments when I was personally grappling with a great deal of worry.

“Dear. Tomorrow” : 이 곡의 가사는 개인적으로 고민과 걱정이 많던 순간들이 많이 담겨 있어서 의미가 깊은 곡입니다.

What made “afterimage” and “Dear. Tomorrow” compatible songs worth putting on the same album?

“기억의 잔상”과 “Dear. Tomorrow”가 하나의 앨범에 함께 수록될 만큼 서로 잘 어울리는 곡이라고 생각하신 이유는 무엇인가요?

Both tracks feature a band-driven sound, yet they each convey a distinct vibe. However, I felt [like] the lyrical atmosphere of the two songs was cohesive enough to fit naturally within a single release.

두 곡 모두 밴드사운드지만 각각 다른 느낌을 담고 있습니다. 하지만 가사의 분위기는 한 앨범에 수록되기에 적절한 느낌이라 한 앨범에 수록하기 좋다고 생각하게 되었습니다.

What is your favorite OST that you’ve ever recorded, and why?

지금까지 녹음했던 OST 곡들 중 가장 애착이 가거나 마음에 드는 곡과 그 이유는 무엇인가요?

I feel a deep sense of attachment to the song “WHAT IF” [from EXchange]. So many people have recognized it and enjoyed it together.

환승연애 ost인 ‘WHAT IF’라는 곡이 많은 분들이 알아봐주시고 함께 즐겨주셔서 애착이 많이 가는 것 같습니다.

What show would you love to record an OST for that you have not already?

아직 OST 작업을 해보지 않은 작품 중에서, 꼭 한번 참여해 보고 싶은 드라마나 프로그램이 있다면 무엇인가요?

I would love to participate in an OST not necessarily for a specific TV show or program, but for a piece of music featuring very minimal instrumentation, where I can sing by simply tossing out each line in a casual, effortless manner.

꼭 어떤 프로그램이 아닌, 악기가 굉장히 간소화 된 음악에 한마디 한마디 툭툭 던지는 노래를 할 수 있는 OST에 참여해보고 싶습니다.

When or during what circumstances do you tend to feel the most inspired?

언제, 어떤 상황에 처했을 때 가장 큰 영감을 얻는 편인가요?

It seems that moments of struggle and moments when I seek solace through music are what inspire me the most.

아무래도 힘든 순간과 음악으로 위로 받고 싶은 순간이 저에게 가장 큰 영감을 주는 것 같습니다.

What are some of the proudest moments of your career so far?

지금까지의 활동 중 가장 자랑스럽거나 뿌듯했던 순간들을 꼽아본다면 언제인가요?

I still have very vivid memories of my debut. The moment my voice went live on music streaming sites — and the experience of sharing that beginning with others — remains the most powerful memory of all.

여전히 데뷔했을 때가 기억에 많이 남습니다. 음원사이트에 내 목소리가 나오고 그 시작을 함께 했던 순간이 가장 강렬하게 기억납니다.

What are your short-term and long-term career goals?

승식님의 단기적인 활동 목표와 장기적인 커리어 목표는 무엇인가요?

In the short term, my goal is to perform on various stages more frequently to share my voice and music. In the long term, I simply aspire to keep singing on stage for a very long time.

단기적으로는 여러 무대에 더 많이 서서 저의 목소리와 음악을 들려드리고 싶고, 장기적으로는 그저 오래오래 무대에서 노래하고 싶다는 목표가 있습니다.

Where can people follow you on social media to stay updated about your new music?

팬분들이 승식님의 새로운 음악 소식을 가장 빠르게 접할 수 있는 소셜 미디어 채널은 어디인가요?

You can [see] both casual updates and official news through Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), and Bubble!

인스타그램과 X(구 트위터), 그리고 버블을 통해 사소하거나 공식적인 소식들을 함께할 수 있습니다!

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourself or your music?

마지막으로, 승식님이나 승식님의 음악에 대해 덧붙이고 싶은 이야기가 있다면 자유롭게 들려주세요.

First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who has shown interest in my music. I will strive to create music and performances that can offer solace [and be] something to lean on whenever you wish to take a brief moment to rest, or whenever you find yourself in need of a gentle, helping hand. And to my “family,” my fans, who always cheer me on, no matter where I am: thank you, from the bottom of my heart!

우선 저의 음악에 관심 가져주시는 모든 분들께 감사드립니다. 언젠가 잠시 쉬어가고 싶을 때, 누군가의 작은 손길이 필요할 때 음악적으로 도움이 될 수 있는 음악과 무대가 될 수 있게 노력하겠습니다. 그리고 어디서나 늘 응원해주시는 식구(팬분들)들 정말 감사합니다!

Check out Kang Seung-sik’s newest release here!

강승식의 최신 앨범을 여기서 확인해 보세요!

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. Photos courtesy of MUMW.

답변은 명확성을 위해 가볍게 다듬고 요약했습니다. 사진 제공: MUMW.

People who listen to “Kind of love” are in for a VERY good time! There is a head-spinning amount of sounds, yet none are too superfluous or monotonous. A rapid BPM rate carries the Latin foundation forward, topped with layers of classic J-pop flair and rock and orchestral elements that quickly come and go. The fast and rhythmic vocals keep up with the piano at an impressive clip, and the harmonies between group factions are staggered in a momentum-sustaining way. Completing the relentless rousing are some bongo taps and extra piano notes here and there. The hoopla makes the relatively dialed-down latter half of the bridge extra impactful, when instruments stop racing each other and gradually re-enter. But as showy as “Kind of love” is, there is sweet sincerity at its core. The group overtly questions if this is love and talks about the “dopamine screaming” inside of them! They fear the overwhelming force of this new-to-them sensation (“I know I’ll be haunted by a bittersweet ache”), touch on the fact that “love” and “caring” are quite similar (“The reason I’ve become so gentle / Is that I found myself empathizing with a pain I recognize all too well”), and express the desire to tamp down crush-related nerves by preparing “step by step” to confess (“But this feels like… a car in a right-turn lane forcing its way into heavy traffic / Unless I signal… you’ll never know how I feel”)! If any song topic deserves to be represented by a spirited and splashy soundscape, it is falling in love for the first time, and that “about to burst” intensity warrants the excesses of “Kind of love”!

#19: ASH ISLAND, BURN PART.2

BURN PART.2 serves up succinct satisfaction. Across four tracks, this cross-genre singer/rapper says what he feels needs to be said, nothing more, nothing less. He picks up where he left off with the last track on BURN PART.1, “FIRE,” by beginning BURN PART.2 with “WATER.” Both songs describe a romantic flame as an essential life source, but “FIRE” is directed at his love interest, and he asks for help consciously keeping their flame alive no matter the risks. In “WATER,” ASH ISLAND talks to himself, trying to convince himself that post-breakup pain is temporary (“‘This too shall pass,’ I whisper [to] myself again today”). He tries to enjoy his newfound freedom during the next few songs. “Butterfly” and “Nah Nah” are about his desire to be entirely his own person, rather than someone motivated by fleeting trends (“Price tags everywhere… Stuck on Instagram / People in a box,” he laments in “Butterfly”) or someone driven to change due to haters’ reprimands (“They talk too much… I need to stop for a minute,” he tells himself on “Nah Nah”). But he concludes back at square one, singing about how empty life still feels given a lover’s absence. It is meaningful that the last track, “The Answer That Never Came,” is the EP’s sole non-collaboration. After singing about speaking for himself, ASH ISLAND fully does, which is bittersweet, since no one is there to answer his lingering questions about why exactly the breakup happened.

#18: ifeye, As if

As if sticks to the “love on the brain” theme that makes it a treat for both the eyes and ears! A light pink machine that prints out “Love Complaints” includes a warning: “Please watch over this dizzying, hazy feeling so it doesn’t end as a fleeting dream.” The ifeye members spend the “Hazy (Daisy)” music video doing just that, “watching over” that feeling and channeling it through dance moves and heart-shaped props. They perform a cute dance routine in a pretty garden, pink and purple-streaked skies behind them, while wearing spring-perfect dresses. They hold that “hazy feeling” close in the less-picturesque settings, too. They ride a heart-printed subway, go to a boxing ring with heart-shaped corners, and more. They even project the glowing feeling onto a literally glowing orb, Cupid-esque bows and arrows, and emojis that pop up above couples’ heads “IRL”! The album itself holds the same light and fluttery feeling of being in love, with upbeat sounds and vocals that hint at the coexistence of excited apprehension.

#17: Ha Hyun Sang, New Boat

New Boat is a clear and chronological telling of Ha Hyun Sang’s recent journey. He recalls what his life has been like in recent years, and his lived experiences and seasoned voice keep the story out of the realm of the generic and forgettable. He talks about his journey using an array of approaches, from a rock ballad (“Playback”) to an acoustic-guitar-led number (“biscuit”) to one with a city-pop-esque foundation (“Tiny dance”). Neat details accentuate each chapter: the higher-key jumps in a song about how “[a]ll [he] thought [he] kneeeew” is gone in “love letter,” the instrumental portion in “+++” that offers time for the “What’s left is behind us” message to sink in, the quickened pace of “Odyssey” as he makes a “SET ME FREE!” command, the distant echo as he re-embarks on a journey in “New Boat”... Lyrically, the most humorous is “biscuit,” when he takes a “snack break” to curb his fatigue, and when collaborator SUMIN says the best line on the entire album to summarize how daily life feels: “The tea is getting cold / And everything’s on fire”!

#16: QWER, CEREMONY

CEREMONY dives headfirst into the “Isekai” sub-genre of fantasy manga and anime. The term refers to stories about going to an alternative world, and in the case of this J-rock-inspired Korean band, that is one where up is down and down is up. They are the ones winning the marathon by stopping to buy bracelets from a young entrepreneur! They are the groomsmen, developing facial hair and giant muscles, despite being dressed as brides! The groom is dressed as a bride too, and he enjoys a fancy tea cup and pearl-adorned front-door decor. “ISEKAI WORLD” is filled with countless other opposites from reality. Here, their small pet rock is a giant, sentient being; an abandoned truck is their mode of dimension-crossing transportation; a summoning circle is not to conjure up ghosts but their wildest dreams! Most importantly, a “special occasion” is an ordinary one, so it makes sense why they treat the world as their wedding venue and dress accordingly!

Although this group has sung about an “upside-down” world before (most overtly in “FAKE IDOL,” which has a music video in which haters become fans and insults are taken as compliments), they have excitingly expanded the bounds of their world of whimsy! CEREMONY provides a suitable soundtrack for this world, with triumphant tracks about embracing the strange and the surprising. They finish strong with “PIONEER,” which has a thoughtful nod to their 2025 song “Blue Whale.” “PIONEER” references a “blue wave rising” that offers courage and a sense of strength in numbers; “Blue Whale” reassures that “You’re not alone” and shares their hope: “May we live [in] this wide world without fear.”

#15: Satoshi Hayashibe, Koibumi

These songs are poignant poems that cherish how love provides the strength to carry on, a power that Satoshi Hayashibe thinks so highly of that he cannot bring himself to do anything but praise it. His moments of wistfulness and regret are ones for which he blames himself; love is portrayed as always a savior, never a culprit. The real culprit is the unforgiving passage of time, which is what he sings about with palpable pain in “Boukyou no Waltz” and in “Boukyaku no Tango.” Although the latter sounds more cheerful, it shares the regret captured in the former: “If only I had realized back then just how deeply I loved you.” In “Boukyou no Waltz,” he sighs, “I left it all behind… By the time that truth dawned on me, I was utterly alone.” Fittingly, the title track is the one that makes his vow explicit: he will continue “writing these love letters” even if they “can no longer reach” their subject. He sings about his love-letter-writing compulsion most poetically in “Boukyaku no Tango”: “Love may be formless, but memories are like paintings.” That formless yet vivid nature of romantic recollections is brought to life with often-subtle yet significant shifts throughout the album, like opting for a spoken-word monologue in “Koibumi;” repeating “Because you are by my side” several times to end “Ai ni aisarete;” and referencing birds carrying his love letters in “Boukyou no Waltz” and again in “My Song My Love.” Sometimes, though, the best part of a song is not in the details, but in the broad strokes, like when he observes this in “Doushite tsutaeyou”: “You’re [the one] who taught me that happiness isn’t about acquiring something, but about needing nothing.”

#14: Park Hyo Shin, A & E

This album gets its title from the Latin character “æ,” and when Park Hyo Shin sings about a lover being the “A” to his “E,” he is expressing the desire to be their own individuals yet also each other’s “other half.” He sings about the letter “O” for a similar reason, describing the ideal relationship as providing a sense of wholeness where dividing lines are obsolete. This care and concern behind his romantic commentary is conveyed throughout the rest of the album, too, not to mention through the corresponding videos. “AE” and “Any Love” prioritize slice-of-life snippets from outsiders’ perspectives that are moments of wholeness and contentment to insiders. True love stories are special and singular secrets, and Park Hyo Shin respectfully recognizes the mere snapshots of those stories that he is able to witness.

Living with an open heart and mind does not come without its troubles. In “Cover My Wounds,” he solemnly sings about bottling up his feelings, while allowing for a moment of levity by describing past romantic gestures as such: “[when] breaking the ice, I fall down… till I can’t fall anymore”! Yet he holds firm in his belief that doing it all for love is valuable: “When the winter rain has ceased, you and I will bloom once again,” and “If there is any reason to keep on living / Love is right here,” he sings in “Any Love.” “Look at me, bathing in a miracle / Hit me like I wanted it to,” he cheers in “Miracle.” “May you weep freely for the things you hold dear,” he includes in his “Prayer.” “Prayer” is a ballad that is just as stirring as the choral interlude, “Sogno Stellare.” It is about a “[s]ummer night” when dreamers are “united in prayer,” speaking to lovers’ cosmic connections that require music to explain, because words on their own are insufficient. Park Hyo Shin provides that kind of music, knocking it out of the park the most with his soaring vocals on “Stellar Night.”

#13: BINI, Signals

With casual confidence and a mix of energy and ease, BINI stay in their aesthetic and musical sweet spots. Signals is fronted by the sugariest of the pristine pop songs. Then, the group smoothly glides into an adjacent lane, adding a touch of hyper-pop to “Honey Honey” and a more mature tone to “Tic Tac Toe” (although they also stay playful in the latter, chanting in unison “K-I-S-S-I-N-G, one for you and one for me”). After another smooth lane shift into a more retro spot with “Sugar Rush,” they end with the instrumental that sticks out the most, “Step Back” - suiting the moment of “stepping back” to see how far they’ve come! And while each song is the epitome of BINI in one way or another, the epitome of BINI in every way is “Blush,” with silky-smooth voices, a sticky hook, and a music video that projects the members’ internal glows outwards. Sparks periodically emit from their fingertips and fall like raindrops into a glimmering pond, to gorgeous effect! When they are not by that pond and shimmying in outfits with fabric textures that accentuate every move, they shine within a bright, tropical color palette. Sealing this single with a kiss are a couple of hints at plot twists, including a mermaid-like presence in the second half of the video and a more high-tech scenario in a brief opening scene. The Signals EP says it all, while the “Blush” music video shows it all: BINI have fully blossomed!

#12: cosmosy, “Silence ~ body & soul ~”

These supernatural characters are not just ones with their surroundings; they are their surroundings, and the entire universe is their canvas! One member appears as if made of the starry skies, with a celestial silhouette that ripples as if her hair is blowing in the wind. Flowers and other decor bloom out of their lips and fingers. And they have simultaneous surface-level and more substantive character transformations, from trading one jewel-encrusted accessory for another to sprouting new devil horns! Like how the platforms for cosmosy’s transformations and the acts of those transformations often appear as one and the same, fight scenes and dance routines converge. Yet there are juxtapositions, and they are visually striking ones, especially when a member wearing pastel blue engages in combat-resembling choreography with a partner dressed in black. Other dance/fight scenes include changing partners in the blink of an eye - the same speed at which a small rainbow of light becomes a much larger beam, reflecting off of cosmosy’s magical amulet and showing that besides stunts and dance moves, lines are drawn connecting lighting and props. All of the video’s components cooperate to make for a mesmerizing marvel, and it elevates the song tenfold. Demure voices glide on house-beat-driven synths in a way that could sound forgettable but is instead trance-like. They hypnotically sing about the need to leave a relationship: “Falling for you was my big mistake… Take me to the rooftop, just let me fly.” They express a yearning to turn off their busy minds and be overtaken by music instead: “Leave me where the music’s loud enough to breathe… don’t speak.” The music stays on the same page as the video; as they ask for permission to “fly away,” they fluidly change identities and surroundings.

The contrast of quiet voices and a loud presence sums up cosmosy’s appeal. They are relatable yet supernatural, with a “fantasy-characters-next-door” demeanor! The parallels between “Silence ~ body & soul ~” and the “Lucky=One” music video compound that characterization. Underlying both videos is the question of who cosmosy really are and how much of the action is in their heads. In both videos, there is an anticlimactic ending following a confetti blast, raising questions as to what was really worth celebrating and what “true accomplishments” have been achieved. Also in both, there are “commercials” between scenes, raising questions as to whether cosmosy are more committed to the role of marketers or of true superheroes. Much remains unclear about cosmosy’s musical universe, but what is clear is this group has a one-of-a-kind story worth watching!

#11: LUCY, Childish

LUCY have sung about their inner children before - after all, their first full-length album was called Childhood! - but Childish hits differently, being the first album release since all of the members completed mandated military service. But as much as “adulthood” has a different ring to it post-enlistment, they remain hung up on the same concerns of years prior. Fortunately, the music attests to this. Childish sounds like classic LUCY, with well-made mixes of jovial and more serious instrumentals and with vocals that shift accordingly. Partly as a preference and partly an inevitability, the members still carry parts of childhood with them. “PLAY,” a music video corresponding to Childhood, was about consciously, successfully resurrecting an inner child, hosting a birthday party for a young boy and being reminded of how much joy can come from something so seemingly simple and short-lived. Now, in “All Ages,” they take their inner children on a trip, reliving good childhood memories in ways that leave them feeling animated - not to mention literally being animated!

LUCY’s desire to keep the past close at hand is reiterated through the tracklist, which includes songs from several past EPs alongside five new songs. Some of the new ones would fit right in on older LUCY projects, like “Sprout,” on which they share their evergreen wish: “May we all bloom into the flowers we’ve always longed to be;” “All Ages,” on which they humorously emote disgust, surprise, and everything in between that comes with learning adulthood is not “rated G;” and “blah-blah-blah,” which compares feeling dizzy over a crush with feeling like one is on “a roller coaster” even just when sitting on a couch! The other two are “Porch Light,” which shows a matured worldview and is about why people put up with life’s turbulence in the first place: the people who make anywhere feel like home; and “Chameleon,” which pairs their age-old concerns about simultaneously wanting to blend in and stand out with a new-to-them fusion-funk sound.

Stay tuned to find out the Top Ten!

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For those who have not heard your music before, how would you describe it to them?

I’d describe it as a palette full of colors. I’m not the type of artist who wants to stay in just one lane. Because of that, some people might wonder what my identity as an artist really is, but to me, that fluidity is my identity. Sometimes my music feels soft and flexible, like paint dissolving in water. Other times, it comes out more solid and intense, like paint that has fully dried. Just like a palette, I want to show a wide range of colors and emotions through my music. It might be hard to define my sound as just one genre, but I believe that showing these different sides and personas is the most honest way [to] represent who I am in that moment.

Who or what first inspired you to pursue a music career?

The biggest inspiration has always been myself. I’ve always had a lot of emotions [without] a place to go, and music became the one thing that stayed with me through all of it. It [feels] like a lifelong friend that comforts and truly understands me. At one point, I even felt like I wouldn’t be able to keep going without music; it became the only space where I could fully express everything I carry inside me. Of course, inspiration sometimes comes from people around me, from nature, [and] even from small, ordinary objects. But in the end, I think I’m always at the center of it, the one who shapes those inspirations and gives them a voice.

How did you choose your stage name?

My stage name came from the word “youth.” I found myself reflecting a lot on my own youth, and that word really stuck with me. To me, “youth” isn’t just about age. It’s something I define in my own way, and it represents the version of myself I want to express through my music. I want to capture different moments of my youth, almost like collecting them one by one in songs. That’s why I slightly altered the spelling and turned it into “YOUS.”

What career would you be pursuing today if it could not be music-related?

I would probably still be working in the entertainment industry. That’s actually what I used to do. I could bring together my second language, English, my academic background, and my understanding of music. So even if I couldn’t make my own music, I think I’d still find a way to stay close to it, maybe by supporting other artists and helping bring their music to life.

Who has been on your playlist recently?

I feel like I’m living inside a wide range of music these days. I’ve been listening to a lot of Daniel Caesar, SAILORR, and Don Toliver. I don’t really limit myself to a specific genre or sound, so my playlist changes quite often, but those three artists are definitely ones I keep coming back to.

How have your personal music tastes changed over the years, and have they influenced your approach to making your own music?

My music taste changes constantly - sometimes even within minutes. I can be completely into a certain sound or artist and then suddenly shift. I think that reflects how my mind works. I tend to experience emotions very intensely and frequently, and that naturally affects what I’m drawn to. But honestly, I see that as a strength. Having such a wide and ever-changing taste allows me to explore different sides of myself more freely. Since I carry a lot of different emotions and perspectives within me, the more kinds of music I listen to, the easier it becomes to express who I am.

Please talk about each of these songs:

“PLOP!” (ft. Ja Mezz): My debut single, “PLOP!,” is a very playful track. The title comes from the sudden splashing sound something makes when it drops into water. I felt like that was a perfect metaphor for the kind of love I was experiencing at the time. These days, people tend to be cautious about love. They fall in, then pull away just as quickly. I found myself stuck in the so-called “friend zone,” and I wanted to express that frustration in a witty way. It’s almost like a warning to the people who briefly dive into my heart only to leave right after.

“LOVE FLU” (ft. ARON): “LOVE FLU” tells the story of being in love with someone I truly care about. I used to be very guarded when it came to love, but this song captures the moment when something real finally broke through those walls. The feeling came unexpectedly, like catching a cold, and before I knew it, I was completely immersed in it. It’s about a kind of love that slowly takes over you, even when you’ve spent so long trying to resist it. I think this song shows the most honest and vulnerable emotions of someone who has fully fallen in love.

“Serenade...”: “Serenade...” is my most recent release, and it captures a completely different stage of love. There’s no hesitation or guardedness anymore. It’s about that state [when] your mind is constantly filled with someone, [when] they naturally take over your thoughts. The song itself came together very effortlessly. Since I was already overwhelmed with those feelings, both the lyrics and the melody flowed out naturally.

I didn’t want to portray a cliché kind of love [in the music video], so I approached it in a more intense and direct way. It reflects the idea of wanting to be with someone forever, even if it means crossing a line, almost like wanting to keep their soul with you for eternity. Because of that, when you watch the music video, it can feel a bit dark and unsettling in an interesting way. I definitely recommend experiencing [the song and video] together.

What are the biggest similarities and differences among the singles you have released so far?

The biggest similarity is that they all revolve around love, but interestingly, the biggest difference is also about love. What really changes from song to song is my perspective on it. If you follow the three tracks in order, you can actually see a progression: my guard slowly coming down, learning to accept love, and eventually allowing myself to fully fall into it. Each song captures a different stage of how I experience love, and together, they form a kind of emotional timeline.

When or during what circumstances do you tend to feel the most inspired?

I think it’s actually quite difficult to pinpoint a specific moment; inspiration often comes to me very suddenly. Sometimes it’s from meeting someone and picking up on the energy or the emotions they make me feel. Other times, it can come from being in a completely new place, where the atmosphere brings out certain feelings in me. I think inspiration can come from almost any situation. It usually happens most vividly in moments when I feel most aware of myself.

What is your personal definition of “success”?

To me, it means being able to live a stable life without constant uncertainty - being surrounded by the people and things I love, and not feeling restricted by money or circumstances. If I could ask for a little more, it would be the freedom to fully pursue my music. I want to be able to perform my songs anywhere in the world, and to stand on any stage without feeling out of place. Since I’m someone who really loves people, being able to share my music freely across different places and cultures would mean true success to me.

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourself or your music?

I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment. Even though I’ve only released three songs so far, I plan to continue showing a wide range of personas and emotions beyond just stories about love. I carry a lot of contradictions within myself, constantly moving between different emotions and identities, and I want to explore that honestly through my music. I think we’re all like that in some way. We’re not just one version of ourselves. Through my music, I hope to share those different sides and create something that people can relate to and find comfort in. I truly hope my heart reaches listeners all around the world.

Check out YOUS’s music here, and keep up with her on Instagram here!

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. Photos courtesy of YOUS.

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Please introduce yourselves and describe what special traits and skills you both bring to the group!

Shine as one! Hello, we are ARISE! JIHO gives uniqueness to our music with her voice, and JIHU’s charisma gives power to our performances!

For those who have not heard your music before, how would you describe it to them?

Our music is not going to be what everyone expects! We bring something that isn’t in the industry nowadays!

Did the same experiences inspire you both to pursue music careers?

We started dreaming of becoming K-pop idols together! Our friend back in [New Zealand] asked us if we could join her for her K-pop dance performance, and that was the start!

Do you remember experiencing any culture shock when you first moved to New Zealand? What major differences did you notice from life in Seoul?

When we went to [New Zealand] the first time, neither of us could speak any English besides “Hello.” We still don’t really know how we adapted to using English well… maybe it’s the [effect of having] native friends! Seoul and [New Zealand] have very different environments, more buildings [versus] more nature. Both are great and very entertaining in their own ways!

Would you ever consider switching singer and rapper roles?

We think it would be interesting - especially for the fans to see!

What are your interests outside of music?

We both love to draw, [and JIHU loves] to design characters and make random fashion designs for fun!

How similar or different are your personalities, and do you think those similarities or differences are present in your music or performances?

[Regarding] MBTIs, JIHU is ESFP and JIHO is ISTJ. From just [that], you can tell that our personalities are different! We don’t think those differences show in our music or performances, but we believe we match each other pretty well!

Do you address each other differently when you’re in “practice mode” instead of just talking to each other as sisters?

We’re very silly and energetic, but when it comes to “practice mode,” we try to focus more and stay serious.

Was it difficult to adjust after the group became just a two-member one?

ARISE’s identity has changed quite a lot due to the fact that right now, it’s not really [considered] a group. [But since] we [have been] together for a long time, it wasn’t too difficult to adjust to the changes.

Please describe your new single, “RUN IT”!

“RUN IT” is a hip-hop track with JIHO’s powerful rapping and JIHU’s charismatic vocals. It’s a song that has [the] message “We will show ourselves to the world! ARISE has arrived, and we are ready to RUN IT!”

The single album has “EP.1” in the title. Does this mean there are more “episodes” coming soon?!

We are preparing another “episode”! We can’t say what it’s going to be like, but it will have a different story and charm from EP.1!

What are your short-term and long-term career goals?

In the short term, we’re preparing for music shows and our upcoming album, RE:BOOT EP.2. We’re also preparing for overseas performances, and we want to meet our international fans as soon as possible. In the long term, our plan is to release a full album, then appear on broadcasts, hold concerts both domestically and internationally, and go on a world tour.

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourselves or your music?

Without rushing, we want to gradually become an unforgettable artist with our music and performances. We wish to be able to have a concert for our fans, EYZ. Please continue to give ARISE lots of love and support! Thank you!

Check out ARISE’s new single here!

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. Photos courtesy of BY-U ENTERTAINMENT.

For those who have not heard your music before, how would you describe it to them? How would you finish the sentence “JunSung is ___” or “JunSung’s music is ___”?

“JunSung is a vintage cinema.” In an era dominated by instant [digital] streaming, I see my music as that old-school theater that refuses to close its doors. It’s a space where I give my all to screen a “film” for the audience, preserving that classic, historical soul that’s becoming rare these days.

Who or what first inspired you to pursue a music career?

It was the day CNBLUE debuted on Music Bank when I was in fourth grade. Watching Jung Yong Hwa play guitar and sing, I had this instant “I want to do that” moment. Later, seeing Charlie Puth’s creative process gave me that same spark again. That’s when I knew music was my calling.

Is your album Not GEN - Z more about rejecting what is “so Gen Z” or redefining what is “so Gen Z”?

I’m rejecting it. I was born into Gen Z, but I believe we shouldn’t just follow this generation’s lead. The intensifying individualism and raw capitalism are killing the romance that existed in the ‘90s and 2000s. I want to stand against that loss of soul.

Not GEN - Z starts out very lively and high-energy, and it gets slower in the second half. Did you always intend to format the track list in that way?

It wasn’t calculated at first, but the songs naturally found their places. I love the contrast. Listeners might start the album thinking, “Oh, he’s a dance artist,” but by the end, I want them to realize, “Wait, he’s a true musician.”

Was the album always going to be called Not GEN - Z, or did you have other titles in mind?

Great question! Believe it or not, the original title was Fantasy & Realizm. To me, fantasy is reality, and reality is fantasy. It was about my version of a utopia or paradise.

How did you choose which pre-released singles to include on Not GEN - Z?

“Twenty Five” is for those just starting out in society, and “Mom’s Mother” is for women who have lost their mothers, a [gesture of] comfort that is deeply lacking in this age. Both songs capture the joys and sorrows of everyday people. They were essential pieces of this full-length project.

Can you talk more about some of the songs on Not GEN - Z?

I wrote my manifesto, “I Don’t Care About,” last July, when the pressure of [making] money after military service was weighing me down. I wasn’t sure if it should be the lead single, but once I heard the mix and master[ing] by my partner/producer iBurn, I knew. Shout out to [the company] MUSICTWOS!

I also highly recommend track six, “I Love You.” It features Ham Chun-ho, one of Korea’s legendary guitarists. The intro harmonies are a nod to 90s contemporary ballads, reminiscent of Boyz II Men.

What has the feedback from Gen Z listeners been like to Not GEN - Z?!

Interestingly, my main listeners are actually women in their 30s and 40s. While younger listeners might react to the upbeat rhythms, it’s the older generation that truly connects with and finds truth in the lyrics.

What are your short-term and long-term career goals?

I don’t “dream” in the traditional sense; I leave it to God. I just paint the inspiration I’m given. Whether I’m a star in a small theater or a global superstar, I just want people [to] truly love my music. I’ll just keep releasing albums and staying the course.

Lastly, is there anything else you want to say about yourself or your music?

I want to leave you with three words: “Vision,” “Victory,” and “Value.” You will dream, fight the world, and win. But to do that, you must know what is “real.” My music holds these truths. Let’s not just follow this generation. Let’s live romantically! Also, please show love to my crew, MUSICTWOS, and iBurn! Love and thank you!

Check out Not GEN - Z here!

Answers have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. Photo courtesy of JunSung.

TV and movie references

References to famous artists and works of art

Literary references

#1: Adonis

Overview: Mortal with “godlike” beauty who represents a life-and-death cycle

K-pop references: BF’s ADONIS era; FIFTY FIFTY’s song “ADONIS” & reference in the “Pookie” MV

#2: Ajax

Overview: One of the most powerful and successful warriors who uses a ship’s mast as his sphere

K-pop reference: The boy band A-JAX

#3: Aphrodite (aka Venus, in Roman mythology)

Overview: Goddess of Beauty who is made of sea foam and has no parents; created for the sole purpose of provoking feelings of love; her abduction is what triggers the Trojan War

K-pop references: B.I.G’s APHRODITE era; the girl group HELLO VENUS; ONF’s song “Aphrodite;” plus, modern apple symbolism often replicates the apple symbolism in the “Apple of Discord” story, a story in which Aphrodite plays a key role

#4: Apollo

Overview: God of the Sun, Music, and Healing; builds temples in his sacred space, Caves of Delphi (where nine muses hang out); plans to kill Python with golden arrow; the one who popularizes leaf crowns

K-pop references: PITTA’s “Apollon” (the name means “strength or father light” and derives from the name of the god Apollo); the girl group named 9MUSES; plus the countless times artists have used python symbolism

#5: Artemis

Overview: Goddess of Hunting, Nature, Childbirth; rides a silver chariot; treats wild animals as sacred; controls the tides; associated with deer symbolism; in some tellings, she helps young lovers’ rendezvous stay hidden and secret!

K-pop reference: The girl group ARTMS

#6: Athena

Overview: Goddess of Wisdom, Craft, Warfare; protector of many cities

K-pop references: JAURIM’s “ATHENA;” QUEENDOM PUZZLE team named Athena

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#1: The Promotional Strategy

Surface Layer: The first phase of the ARIRANG promotions involved a cryptic website (defunct as of publication time) asking the same question as signage posted in major cities around the world: “What is your love song?” This was a classic BTS move: to ask a globally applicable and easily understood question, but to do so in a way that prompts individualized, story-carrying responses. The open-ended question allowed fans to attach their own memories to this era from the jump.

Deeper Layer: Netflix hosted a first-of-its-kind live-stream comeback show that was filled with Korean cultural homages but directed by Hamish Hamilton, who is behind every Super Bowl halftime show since 2010. What can also be seen as an attempt to target both South Korean and North American audiences simultaneously: the choice of venue for a performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. BTS performed at New York City’s Guggenheim Museum, which is run by a foundation with the mission of exploring “ideas across cultures.”

#2: The Release Date

Surface Layer: ARIRANG came out on March 20, the day of the spring equinox, a symbol of new beginnings.

Deeper Layer: The transition from winter to spring carries special significance for BTS fans. One of BTS’s most definitive songs - one of the most-praised critically and most-beloved by fans - is “Spring Day.” It is about hopefulness for brighter days after a long metaphorical winter.

What is most likely coincidental but interesting to note nonetheless: the “Spring Day” video features No Man’s Land by Christian Boltanski, an art installation involving piles of laundry. By bringing a spring day to mind and then the “Spring Day” music video, fans get the message that BTS are the same BTS they were years ago, people who resonate with physical and unconventional works of art that can represent fears of being discarded and forgotten.

#3: The Word “Arirang”

Surface Layer: “Arirang” is a traditional Korean folk song with context that has evolved over centuries; it did not start out as an overt message of Korean pride. By sampling “Arirang” in the song “Body to Body” and featuring a rearrangement of it on the piano that plays during the album’s trailer, BTS remain the epitome of a new-meets-old, always-in-flux culture.

Deeper Layer: Arirang is also the name of a short film from 1926. Yi Jeong-suk - who was renowned for genre-crossing back then, just like BTS are now - was hired to sing its theme song at the premiere. Japanese authorities tried to censor the performance, but the audience joined in to finish it anyway! Like what haters might end up doing for BTS now, the censorship attempts only boosted enthusiasm for Arirang, and by the time the movie house that hosted the premiere shut down (although it was soon after the premiere), it was already too late to revert back to the old meaning of the song. “Arirang” was a solidified symbol of Korean pride. (Read more about the history of “Arirang” here, here, and here!)

#4: The Album Cover

Surface Layer: BTS pose in formalwear as if taking a class portrait, and they stick to dark tones and serious expressions. It shows their “back to business” mentality, as well as their united front, since nothing in particular makes any single member stand out more than the others.

Deeper Layer: The way BTS are dressed and posing is likely how the history-making class of Korean Howard University students would be photographed in the 1890s. In 1896, those students recorded “Arirang” at the university with wax cylinders, and it is considered the first-ever proper recording of that centuries-old song.

#5: The Live Comeback Show

Surface Layer: The Netflix-hosted ARIRANG comeback special did everything right from a marketing perspective. The event was open-air and free of charge, so when touting crowd size, anyone passing through the area could be included in the total! This meant that even people who did not intend to be included in the crowd were made to feel included, both technically and metaphorically!

The message of unity was also stressed via the speaker distribution. Sounds bounced off of hard surfaces in ways that incentivized collective crowd movements. Popular Science Korea noted that rhythms stayed at the forefront of the experience, since the sound’s movements “made lyrics even harder to catch.” Because “[l]ow frequencies, which bend around obstacles more easily, held up,” the crowd was grooving as one as much as they possibly could from a technical standpoint!

Deeper Layer: BTS performed at Gyeongbokgung Palace, which has a gate that runs by modern government buildings, which is where the king used to visit with civilians. Mixing the themes of tradition and change, that road used to be called “Sejongno” but is now “Yukjogeori,” aka “Six Ministries Street.” Further combining “past” and “future” concepts was the fact that BTS were unable to rehearse on-site before the main event. When they stepped on the wol-dae (a ceremonial stage in front of Gwanghwamun’s gate), it was as much of a first-of-its-kind moment as it could possibly be!

#6: The Outfit Choices

Surface Layer: Designer Jay Songzio paid meticulous attention to not only BTS’s comeback show costumes, but the costumes for all other participants. He was intentional about distinguishing BTS’s looks from those of the instrumentalists, mixing hanbok and patchwork styles for the latter. He took personal input into account, too, changing the material used for studs on Jimin’s outfit to look more “jewelry-type” upon his request. He also took into consideration Jung Kook’s request for a more distressed shirt, one “inspired by Korean landscape painting[s].”

Deeper Layer: While Songzio took inspiration from Joseon Era generals while designing all of the members’ “warrior” looks, his team gave each member a specific nickname that could lead to different design approaches. RM was dubbed “The Hero,” Jin “The Artist,” SUGA “The Architect,” Jung Kook “The Vanguard,” and Jimin “The Poet.” The other two received Korean nicknames: J-Hope the “Sorigun” (aka “Sound Man”) and V the “Seonbi” (aka the “Nobleman” or “Gentleman”).

Additional significance came from the silhouettes and lining of the dancers’ outfits, with vertical folds in them reminiscent of traditional folding doors.

#7: The “SWIM” Video
Surface Layer: A lot of metaphors naturally go with a sailing theme, including navigating choppy waters, treading water, diving into feelings, and setting sights on new places and adventures.

Deeper Layer: The performance video was filmed at the epitome of the “old meets new, classic meets ever-changing” theme: Sunhyewon. The name means “a place that bestows wisdom,” and the residence belonged to SK Group founder Chey Jong-gun. The family saw it as a beacon of educational and mentorship opportunities; they saw it as much more than just a house. SK Group’s current chairman, Chey Tae-won, spent part of his childhood there, adding to the nostalgia. The Seoul-based residence is also rich with meaning from an architectural standpoint. Its renovations incorporated a hybrid of traditional and modern techniques and designs.

#8: The “2.0” Music Video

Surface Layer: [Spoilers ahead!] The video pays homage to Oldboy, an iconic South Korean neo-noir film. Its themes that can be relevant to post-hiatus musicians include the passage of time (the events in the movie span 15 years) and living in an isolated and out-of-the-loop way (the kidnapped main character learns about his wife’s death from the TV news, which he watches while trapped in a hotel room for reasons kept a secret from him). The movie is also about revenge and psychological games, an understandable mindset for celebrities dealing with adversarial media outlets and a judgmental public. BTS’s song “2.0” hints at a desire for revenge against rumor-mongers and haters, with lyrics like “Hit ‘em with the truth… Let it bleed.” While making someone “pay up” takes much more gruesome forms in the movie, the “Don’t put words in my mouth” attitude is the same.

Deeper Layer: Using Oldboy as a reference is not just a tribute to a famous piece of South Korean pop culture or an expression of resentment. It also combines traits of the “old BTS” and “BTS 2.0” in an understated way. BTS’s Wings era drew heavily on mythological sources of inspiration, and Oldboy is also full of mythological allusions. The movie includes an Apollo-like image, powers of a hypnotist character that mirror those of the goddess Aphrodite, and a tongue-severing scene that parallels an eye-gouging one in Oedipus (both scenes that represent avoiding the full truth, either not wanting to see it or to say it).

#9: The Lyrics

Surface Layer: Many lyrics simultaneously address BTS’s relationships with fame and with other people. For example, “Merry Go Round” is about feeling stuck, and “SWIM” and “Into the Sun” are about wanting to stay close to someone for the long haul. Others allude to a struggle for autonomy once one becomes a public figure: “[P]art of me is hauntin’ me, heard the things they callin’ me / What the hell you want from me?” (“NORMAL”); “Everybody hears the story that they wanna” (“they don’t know ‘bout us”). They mention feeling restricted by the “K-pop” categorization several times: “This that K, gotta get a better pop here,” and “This is international,” they assert in “Hooligan;” “Everybody know[s] now where the ‘K’ is,” they say in “Aliens.” Lastly, there are overt concert crowd requests: “I need the whole stadium to jump / Put your phone down.” These lines are repeated later for emphasis in “Body to Body.”

Deeper Layer: There are some moments when BTS nod to their Korean roots, like when they tell house guests “Take your shoes off” in “Aliens”! And they question if they are considered “red” or “blue” in “NORMAL;” both are colors on South Korea’s flag, and like how that flag would be erroneous without both colors, BTS wouldn’t feel like it was “right” if they showed up as less than their full selves.

Additionally, there are subtle nods to solo songs. The “shadow” in “Like Animals” is presumably in the same Jungian context as it is in SUGA’s MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 solo “Interlude : Shadow.” And a lyric in “NORMAL” parallels one in SUGA’s “People,” about “normal” and “special” being flexible and arbitrary terms.

#10: The Album’s Overall Sound

Surface Layer: The clear aims for BTS this time: western appeal and equal member participation (or at least more balanced line distributions than usual). They changed their procedural approach, making this album during extended time in Los Angeles and teaming up with western producers, whose stamps are all over these tracks. El Guincho is a particularly noteworthy choice, having previously worked with Rosalía on the same goal of combining cultural specificity with more general western influences (in Rosalía’s case, he mixed Flamenco with EDM).

Deeper Layer: Beyond just a marker between the fired-up first half and the more low-key second half, “No. 29” is a meaningful interlude because it involves the Bell of Great King Seongdeok. The song lasts exactly 1:37, the same length it takes for the bell’s sound to completely fade after being struck. This bell is officially designated as South Korean National Treasure Number 29.

“Body to Body” is also more than what is first apparent. It is a straightforward hype song, but it samples “Arirang,” and the sample’s placement later on in the track changes its meaning. The Korean cultural emblem becomes not an introduction as much as an invitation to learn more about the group and a bridge into the rest of the album.

Read more about the best new music here!

Catch up on previous BTS coverage here!

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#10: ORORA, On My Way

ORORA’s breathtaking voice glides across minimalist waves yet carries an unflinching honesty that cuts like glass. All of the attention is owed to her voice, as she sings about clinging to silver linings like life rafts. “Hold My Breath” puts it poetically: “They said I’ve done so many things / That my life is a work of art / But all I did was try to find / The pieces of me that fell apart.” She does not sing with the confidence of someone whose hardest days are past her, but someone who is still actively learning how to exist in choppy waters, and this allows the weight of her words to sink in deeper. To paraphrase, “I want people to love me for me” is her ultimate wish, and the “me” she refers to includes every piece of her, both now and from before the world told her how she should change. She is actively disentangling the positive and negative forces in her past and present to seek growth and inner peace. She sings about recovering her truth more than discovering it, grieving for her inner child in “Hold My Breath” and “Crying Child,” filing away some past memories for good in “Forever Yours” and “Save Your Tears,” and pondering whether learning from her past and starting anew are actually mutually exclusive (from “Save Your Tears”: “The pain once burned [but] now warms my core / I walk through shadows wanting more / Every scar I used to hide / Became the place where love’s alive”). ORORA’s revised inner monologue reminds her she is worthy of being loved and cared for, and that she always has been. Befitting that “back to who I used to be” theme is the fact that one of the wisest remarks comes from the first song, “Siren Song”: “Our time here is short / We’re born to flow, not to belong.”

On My Way is a moving message of self-love and the audacity of insisting one is worthy of it.

#9: FIRST CONTACT, Earth Nation

This J-rock group is for fans of BABYMETAL and PassCode sonically, but they take a different tack lyrically. Strong symphonic soundscapes define these odes to the Earth. Deep percussion, synth streaks, and screaming guitars are go-tos, and as-they-go technical tweaks add nuances to the instrumentation. For example, the guitars in the last few songs convey a heightened hopefulness, like their “superhero stewards of the planet” personas see now how everything will end peacefully, as they conclude their mission, go “Back to the Stars,” and land at the “Final Destination.” That “Final Destination” ends on a satisfying electronic note and bookends the clarion call that is “Prologue.” The other best parts: when a lovely flute steers the songs (“Bless the Nature,” “Back to the Stars”), and when they sound like the group Perfume went pop-rock (with the most pop-adjacent song, “Around the World”)!

All comparisons aside, this band is commendable for their hands-on experience and effort. The unique team that brings these songs to life includes not one but two vocalists, MaoMao and TanTan; two members with prior band experience, Sawa and RYU; and a member pulling double-duty as an in-house producer, RYU. Contrary to a popular assumption, RYU spends 100+ hours producing each VFX-requiring music video herself; this group does NOT release AI-generated videos! Judging Earth Nation’s visual counterparts requires this context and an altered rubric. There is an established audience for this one-of-a-kind work.

#8: Kiro Akiyama, Magic if

This album is dismal yet defiant and, above all, distinguishable. It offers the “something different” that music enthusiasts are seeking, with auto-tune excessiveness (“DO NOT DISTURB”), anime OST-ready rock (“Quest” and “Wannabe”), a style not unlike a country jamboree (“Nagareboshi”), and much more. “INSOMNIA” is a particularly fun grab bag of instruments and sound effects, and “My pace is mine” takes second place. “Furin” comes across as “changing on a whim as we go along,” and “Magic if” also finds a groove all its own, from the guitar notes to the cymbal taps.

Despite the album’s fast rate and wide instrumental breadth, its sentiment stays the same and is quite the contrast from the sound. He sulks a lot and seeks personal “redemption” in “DO NOT DISTURB” and “Furin.” He questions his belief in a higher power in “Magic if.” And he addresses the cognitive dissonance of lives lived online, being “cheerfully depressed,” in “INSOMNIA.” In that song, he compares an endless time spent scrolling on apps to getting lost, and he complains about presenting himself to the world via “The SNS Stage.” On the other hand, like many other songs, “INSOMNIA” plays devil’s advocate, contradicting its initial conclusions! He says, “We’re going to die eventually anyway — but then again, we were born into this world anyway”! In other words, he goes from a “Why not just kill me now?” mindset to a “Why not just live now?” one! If he’s going to associate both life and death with meaningless voids, he might as well try changing life into something better! The desire to try to find meaning despite despair is clear in “Quest”: “Dark or light, I don’t care… simply, I want to;” “I search while living.” Both “Nagareboshi” (“being laughed at… It’s a price well worth paying”) and “Wannabe” ( “I’ll leave the ‘perfect way of living’ to someone else”) reiterate that stance. “My pace is mine” also sums up his flipped-over mindset: “It’s not just that going at your own pace is okay / It’s that going at your own pace is the best way to be.” Kiro Akiyama proves to be adept at channeling the moments when bleak thoughts and breakthroughs collide, and he deserves to be considered an alt-rockstar in the making for it!

#7: P1Harmony, UNIQUE

UNIQUE is a fun form of revenge for P1Harmony’s superhero characters! They seemed ready to hang up their capes in the DUH! era, but the UNIQUE era says, “Psych! You thought you’d seen the last of us?!” It is a comeback about a comeback, and their fictional characters boast about knowing they’ve been missed. They do so through songs that remind fans what made them fans in the first place: strong synergy yet plenty of solo spotlights, too (a mix that’s the smoothest on the B-side “Wednesday Girl”); team pride (“Everything we do, we do as one,” they repeat in “UNIQUE”); hands-on experimentation (four members have writing credits, and two of them do on every single track!); and a remixed take on EDM and hip-hop (“UNIQUE” was the right call for a title track, representing the sextet’s swagger and swerving the best, with trilingual lyrics and a new-to-them phonk foundation). While the “Told you you’d miss us when we were gone!” boasting is implicit and playful in the songs, it is dramatized and more overt in the corresponding videos. The trailer gives the audience the eyes and arms of the main character, piecing together clues to find the MIA icons. The audience eventually does find the group, gathered under a beam of light. That gathering is where the trailer ends and the “UNIQUE” music video begins, and the latter reinforces the “We could disappear at any time, with just a flash of light” message, as they teleport and appear to dimension-hop.

P1Harmony never do anything halfheartedly, and sure enough, “UNIQUE” lobs an excessive amount of imagery at viewers: barking dogs, gravestones, a motorcycle crash, speeding helicopters, mechanical wings, facial scars that mimic the sprawling appearance of twisted tree branches… The group can’t say “You want it? You got it!” fast enough!

By acting like their presence is a rare and elusive commodity, P1Harmony increase their value in the “real world” and enhance their mythological status in their fictional followers’ imaginations. They didn’t need a redemption arc, but giving themselves one shows the high stock they invest in themselves!

#6: SB19, Wakas At Simula

This comprehensive compendium is a great resource for long-time SB19 fans and a solid introduction for new ones. Wakas At Simula includes several old EPs in their entirety, remixed and remade versions of songs that are newly fully-owned by the SB19 members under their self-started agency, and six brand-new songs that epitomize the P-pop icons’ essence.

“Wakas” is Tagalog for “Finally,” and “Simula” means “Beginning.” A previous SB19 album was called Simula at Wakas, representing the beginning of the end. Now, vice versa is the case, which sums up the band’s stance well. They have treated the whole world as their sonic playground and have made a globe-circling return! They have completed an SB19 life cycle and have entered the next one without a break between them. The tracklist emphasizes this, with a beginning and ending that are explosive self-introductions. “VISA” shouts out fellow famous Filipinos and lightheartedly laments the comparative status of a Philippines passport’s strength. They end with “DUNGKA!,” another authoritative, assertive exclamation.

If one is not persuaded to be an SB19 fan after listening to this album, it is worth giving the songs’ corresponding music videos a chance. They capture more of the band’s many charms, from dance skills (“Emoji”), to a sense of humor (“VISA,” “DUNGKA!”), to dramatic acting chops (“DAM”), to model walks that eventually lead to a wild plot twist (“GENTO”)!

Because Wakas At Simula is largely a celebration of SB19 in isolation, the times they do collaborate are particularly notable. Teaming up with C-pop superstar JOLIN gives “Emoji” a more seasoned performance flavor, and partnering with Japanese boy band BE:FIRST on the funky “Toyfriend” proves they can excel just as much with closer-in-status industry peers.

The same portfolio that holds SB19’s music and messages affirming pride in their roots is the portfolio that holds the music and messages proving their collaborative openness and flexibility. Everybody wins as a result: fans get to remember why this group is worth keeping an eye on, and SB19 get to thrive as their multifaceted selves.

#5: WONPIL, Unpiltered

WONPIL’s mind is a vicious yet somewhat vexing place, and he plunges listeners straight into it with “Toxic Love” and “Highs and Lows.” Both represent internal conflicts through contrasts, the former with its clap-along nature and unison chants mixed with grieving lyrics about trying to “break free” and failing, and the latter through WONPIL constantly interrupting his own flow. When he seems to be restoring order to his thoughts, gathering them clearly enough to express “I’m not alright” and “I’m about to burst,” sonic and vocal-filter detours distract him before he can unpack why that is. The dark feelings remain as long as he cannot identify their root causes. He does in “Already Grown Up”: “[T]he child who longed to shine bright / To flaunt their light… Kept giving one wrong answer after another;” “cherished dreams… Weathered away.” WONPIL’s distress over a breakup is not just romantic; he is distraught over breaking up with his past dreams and imagination.

Now that WONPIL has identified the core of his pain - losing his childlike traits over time - he can take the first steps towards addressing it, and he stays “Up All Night” doing so, taking it “Step by Step.” These songs mark the start of a sunnier chapter - not to mention his best work from a vocal standpoint, especially in “Step by Step.” It is an extra-clear testament to his new “I must withstand instead of wither” mentality, with lyrics like “My scars pile up as experience points… Refusing to give up” and “I dreamed / For the sake of who I am today.”

The anticipatory, live-band-warranting “Hold My Love” narrates the moment WONPIL tells a crush how he feels and offers a rose, giving a real-world example of what a rekindled “Go for it!” mindset can look and sound like. But the album ends with “Piano” and WONPIL back down in the dumps: “Over the white keys / Tears begin to fall;” “The sound of this piano / Is calling out to you.” Recovering from any kind of internal, metaphorical breaking is not a linear project, and so while the album might not end on the hoped-for high note, it does end on a realistic one. WONPIL’s ability to move on wavers.

Unpiltered refuses to stay neat and tidy; everything is a mess, as also represented through the “Highs and Lows” music video! If the purpose of it is to get audiences to feel WONPIL’s pain to an uncomfortable extent, mission accomplished! It is unsettling and unsettled, with emotions left as exposed as his demolished surroundings! He is beside himself, overcome by post-breakup pain and regret to the point that he gets so stuck in his head he’s hit by a car! Moments that resemble shaky amateur camera footage, incessantly flashing lights, and electrical spark eruptions all emphasize an unwillingness to sanitize his fullest feelings.

Unpiltered is not a feel-good listen, but it lives up to its (punny!) name as an honest, unfiltered recreation of agonizing memories.

#4: YENA, LOVE CATCHER

A Looney Tunes streak runs through the “Catch Catch” music video, from the old-school fonts to the cartoonish hijinks to YENA’s bunny alter ego! It is best enjoyed without trying to read too much into anything; YENA is just having a blast causing havoc and staying confident that she’ll win over everyone eventually! As she calls herself “half teddy bear,” knowingly mentions making a scene (“lips pouting… you’ve noticed by now, right?”), and instructs her crush to “Pull that love arrow,” she taunts a fancy restaurant’s customers. The antics get more and more absurd, from using a shoe as a working phone to suddenly developing super-strength and physically fighting people! Her targets are as indiscriminate as her faux-innocent reactions are guaranteed! The “golly gee!” demeanor continues as she winks and smiles her way through setting, outfit, and scenario changes. Those include making faces at the players losing a Dance Dance Revolution-style arcade game and giving an “Oopsie!” expression to the camera after trying to wipe “crumbs” off of a customer that are actually his tattoo! Her persistence makes it seem like she knows she is pushing buttons and is truly curious how much further she can go!

While it is hard to top the quirkiness of “Catch Catch,” the B-sides give it their best shots! After listeners indulge in the electro-pop “Catch Catch” that brings to mind second-generation K-pop girl groups, their sugar high continues with the chipper and fast-paced “Spring Fever.” It likens fluttery feelings related to crushing on someone to the passing seasons. The next song is “Sticker,” which compares an ex’s impact to a sticker that leaves permanent residue! In “April’s Cat,” YENA compares herself to a pet who seeks but is scared to stick her neck out for reassurance that she is loved and not alone. Lastly, in “Question Mark,” YENA describes changing her belief that her love story is already over, as the period in her mind becomes a question mark.

The featured artists help balance out what would otherwise be a cavity-inducing EP! The collaborative segments of “Spring Fever” offer a substantive perspective worth savoring: “If you fall in love even in winter / Then that moment becomes spring” (emphasis added). Plus, indie rockstar MRCH adds some spice to “Sticker”! And YENA herself does sound more grounded and introspective at times, especially on “April’s Cat.” YENA is “for real;” her preference is just to turn her real feelings into comedic and hyperactive presentations!

#3: WOODZ, Archive. 1

Archive. 1 is the musical equivalent of a stuffed and unsorted filing cabinet, and this comeback is WOODZ’s painstaking process of restoring order and context to its contents. The audience is right there with him organizing the “archives,” taking in chill grooves one moment and metal-adjacent anthems the next, his memories of the highest highs and lowest lows sans buffers between them - after all, real life doesn’t have smooth transitions!

The “Characters” filing cabinet includes files about WOODZ in different roles: an omniscient observer (in the “Human Extinction” music video), an average dazed and confused guy (in the first preview video), an idol (in the second preview), a protagonist (in the third preview as well as the “CINEMA” video), and a madman (in the fourth preview).

The “Emotions” filing cabinet has even more categories: determination, pride, and hopefulness (“Dayfly,” “To My January,” “Bloodline,” “Stray”); fury and envy (“Struggle,” “STOP THAT”); sorrow and acute pain (“CINEMA,” “BEEP,” “GLASS”); fear and insecurity (“Plastic,” “SAMO”); contentment and the ability to relax (“Super Lazy,” “Downtown”); nihilism masquerading as something else (“Human Extinction,” “NA NA NA”); and “wild card” moments, when how WOODZ’s emotional volcano will explode remains unknown even to himself (“00:30,” “The Spark”)!

Lastly, there is the “Topics” filing cabinet, and picking which folders memories go into is more difficult, since there are overlapping categories. Many of the subjects appear in “Plastic,” for example, so it is worth quoting at length (boldness added for emphasis):

“I got the life I used to chase / But something’s off, I feel outta place / The crowd gets loud, they call my name / But deep inside, it’s not the same / Their love burns hot, I see the flame / Still, I shrink back, I feel the shame / It’s weird, I should be feelin’ lit / But I fold too easy, like plastic.”

“I’m stuck in this neon haze / Wait, this night feels too loud / Stray, I move through the crowd / Fade, eyes locked in, I’m gone / Haze, I’ve been here but feel withdrawn.”

“Moments too loud, and space too tight… Heat gets drastic / Will I fade away?”

“Running” and “Chasing” are mentioned in “00:30” (“The same old thoughts keep chasing”), “Dayfly” (“I feel like I can do anything… If I just run around like this and that”), “Downtown” (“But today, I just need to run / Chasing roads that don’t care where I’m from”), and “To My January” (“I run this road to where I’m meant to be”). The noises of the crowd get to him in “NA NA NA”: “Moving with the noise, laughing like I know / Eyes are blank, heart is gone.” He mentions “laughing again” in “The Spark” and worries about that laughter being at him in “BEEP” (“You might just laugh and say my name”). He sings again about heat in “STOP THAT” (“All this fire in my chest got nowhere left to go”), “To My January” (“Let it burn”), “00:30” (“This moment’s burning up”), “Dayfly” (“Even if I burn…”), “The Spark” (“I don’t understand / How those cold words can make me burn inside”), and “NA NA NA” (“Make it hot, keep it tight”). (That tightness is mentioned again in “Downtown”: “Smoke and sound make the air feel tight.”) Other words and phrases in “Plastic” that carry over into other songs include neon lights (“Moving past the neon sign,” he sings in “Downtown;” “neon lights keep tracing her,” he sings in “NA NA NA”) and fading or fearing fading (“CINEMA” mentions a “long-faded romance;” “To My January” promises one’s light “will never fade;” “Super Lazy” includes the line “I fade like a summer;” “STOP THAT” is about worrying that he is “disappearing”). Perhaps most meaningful of all the recurring themes, though, is turning inwards.

In many ways, WOODZ articulates the state of being stuck and trapped. He spends too much time in his self-proclaimed “crooked head” (“BEEP”), and he’s only retreating further into it: “Deep inside… filled with worries now” (“SAMO”); “Every turn takes me deeper” (“Downtown”); “I’m trapped inside myself” (“00:30”); “falling into that pit” (“Stray”). “GLASS” connects that feeling to yet another recurring topic: physical human experiences. He sings, “Living in my head, I’m stuck inside my flesh and bones / Searching to find something beautiful.” He expresses his primal human experiences with flesh-and-bones phrasing again and again: “This moment… running wild in my veins” (“00:30”); “I’ve got my backbone” (“Stray”); “It’s in my bloodline” (“Bloodline”); “I bite my tongue… taste of blood” (“STOP THAT”).

There are many other topics and phrases that repeat in multiple tracks: “I guess I missed” (“CINEMA,” “SAMO”); “sick of it” (“00:30,” “Struggle”); “I hate” (“00:30,” “STOP THAT”); “frozen” (“To My January,” “CINEMA”); “lose control” (“NA NA NA,” “STOP THAT”); broken-down walls (“To My January,” “Dayfly”)... the list goes on! And they are not always negative: WOODZ repeatedly sings about flying (“00:30,” “The Spark,” “Stray”), as well as music’s healing power (“00:30,” “Struggle”).

By making music that covers so many markers on the extreme spectrum of human emotions, WOODZ proves two things. One is that the same person can feel and can be infinite things! It is normal to feel like a different person at different points in one’s life, to sometimes even be unrecognizable to one’s self when looking back, and to realize certain mental pictures have been smudged by fingerprints over time. This is represented in the last of the preview videos, when the photos that cover solid walls around WOODZ suddenly turn into piles of cloth, leaving pitch-blackness where they used to hang. This is not symbolizing a failure to accurately recall things; it is symbolizing how that initiative is always a work in progress. No memory stays pristine, untouched by time and distance.

The second thing that WOODZ proves by covering such a vast emotional spectrum is that the distances between feelings are often not as far as people assume they are. The “burning” feeling in him that stokes rage can just as easily stoke his passion. The sense of being alive can prompt euphoria as easily as mortality-related fear. Buzzy and bright surroundings can make him feel like an irreplaceable icon just as easily as they can leave him feeling numb. (This feeling of being very replaceable is made literal in a preview video that features clones. He is in a recording studio as the clones remain visible, since he leaves his “exit” door open while the clones run down the hallway. But given the crowdedness, the original WOODZ is prevented from leaving, stuck alone in a room as his copycats run forwards.)

With a constant good-faith effort to organize his memories and moods, WOODZ shows that each one is a document worth preserving, which allows him to always forgive others and himself. After all, to be a light in a dark world, one must remember that “Light does not judge. It only casts shadows.” This text appears on the screen during the “Human Extinction” video, a video in which WOODZ observes others’ painful circumstances that range from a hoarding habit to interpersonal drama. He doesn’t interfere, which implies that he sees no need to; he just lets people’s natural “light” and “shadow” sides reveal themselves and get unpacked at individualized speeds. He can stay nonjudgemental and empathetic, since his own “archiving my life” exercise has taught him that everyone’s story is more than the sum of its parts.

#2: BTS, ARIRANG

Click here for a separate write-up analyzing this release’s layered meanings and countless strong suits!

#1: Jay Chou, Children of the Sun

No succinct way of describing Children of the Sun does it justice. It is a sprawling, cinematic score with enviable penmanship, vivid depictions, and a corresponding short film with top-tier, IMAX-worthy production. It is one giant, epic saga, yet it is also a richly moving mosaic when each piece of it is seen and heard in isolation. Neither the grand scale and scope of the film nor the songs that are more fantastical come at the expense of addressing basic human instincts and impressions. In fact, many of the songs cover basic topics. They just do so in ways that provoke the audience into picturing those topics anew, akin to the feeling of seeing something that has been present for a while yet just suddenly noticing it. Jay Chou rekindles the feelings that come from seeing something with fresh eyes, reconnecting inner essences with external environments to form timeless and transcendent harmonies.

Inspiration comes from everywhere from his daily life (he hilariously describes how his daughter bosses him around in “My Daughter, Your Highness”!) to classic artists (many whose works appear in the short film and in song lyrics) to ancient legends (like “The Girl from Hunan”). Topics range from romance stories (“I Do,” “Aurora in July”) to a vampire-themed whodunit (“Children of the Sun”) to periods of pining for the past (“Christmas Star,” “Country Road,” “Aegean Sea,” “Who Cares,” “The Day It Rained”). This summary is just the tip of the iceberg; no song is just a generic love song or supernatural story. He goes the extra mile to get listeners to picture the sights, sounds, and even smells involved in settings like a mysterious bar and nearby church (“Children of the Sun”), a dark alley near a harbor (“Sicily”), a woman waiting by a window (“The Girl from Hunan”), a road trip (“Aurora in July,” “Country Road”), and more. He draws connections among the songs’ settings and characters often, sometimes seeming to tell the same story but from a new vantage point. For example, “Sicily” asks follow-up questions relevant to “Children of the Sun,” like “Whose hand is raising the glass?” and “Who leaves? Who returns?” Both “Country Road” and “Gold Rush Town” describe a time when a group made a toast and drank wine. “I Do” describes watching a loved one while sitting by the sea, thinking back to “The day [he] confessed” his feelings that is detailed in “The Day It Rained.” “I Do” also brings to mind “The Girl from Hunan,” with a shared mention of his “future wife” (not to mention the callback to Jay Chou’s 2000 song “Wife”). The list goes on and on, underscoring the theme of the past, present, and future all staying equally detailed in his mind.

Even seemingly unrelated themes come together, like questioning truth and the blooming and spreading of flowers in the wind. He asks in “Children of the Sun,” “Daisies and violets scatter away in the wind / What emerges, is it truly the truth?” “Sicily” goes on to mention the “secrets [that] remain hidden” in a “windless afternoon.” “The Girl from Hunan” mentions waiting “for the wind to rise” and comments that “In her dreams, all her secrets grow rich and vivid,” and “Your sorrowful thoughts are brewing a secret.”

Making Children of the Sun even more remarkable are the direct questions Jay Chou asks and some of the metaphor-centered advice he shares. Some examples: “How many mine shafts lie within Sovereign Hill? How many people carry lanterns in their hands? Souls yearning for achievement…” (“Gold Rush Town”), “Resilience is the radiance of stained glass” (“Saint”), and “Her tears fall like the notes of a zither. Shattered upon the ground, is there anyone to hear?” (“The Girl from Hunan”).

Each song is its own world and a corner of a larger shared one, familiar in some ways and new in others, making Children of the Sun a radiant and in-progress time capsule.

Catch up on previous “Best of” rankings and reviews for each month and year here!

Next up: March’s Top Twenty!

#20: Ssup, Love and Breakup

This rapper reaps the rewards of seeing potential in a stereotype-straying, softer side of hip-hop. These rhythmic and romantic odes change their tunes instrumentally far more often than metaphorically, with fantastic string, guitar, and piano arrangements that sync up well with both Ssup’s raps and his collaborators’ voices. Each artist hits all their marks, but especially Park Jung Eun on “Ssup Time” and Jung Yi Han on “Love’s Formula.” The latter gets an extra boost from horns, and the synth beat serves a similar role in “Maze of Love.” Other accentuating details keep the listening experience interesting and the genre barrier porous.

#19: JunSung, Not GEN - Z

This album is a romp and a half, and “I Don’t Care About” is an early “Best Songs of 2026” frontrunner! Countless tiny details combine for a catchy, colorful sound that suits its message of tuning in only to the beat of one’s own drum. JunSung scoffs at those who patronize the perspectives of those younger than them (“Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you know more”), and he remains indignant about his ideals not turning into the ones society foists upon him (“The world people want is not my dream at all… Don’t push your standards onto me… I believe in the truth I hold”). Not GEN - Z is not just him preaching staying true to himself, though; it is him dramatizing that preaching! He puts on an infectiously lively show at the outset, with a “Ladies and gentlemen” welcome announcement in “JS WORLD (Intro)”! He sustains the theatrical energy until the R&B-inspired “I Love You.” The rest of the album slows things down for a soft landing that makes sense given his “Don’t tell me which format is best” approach! If people think he kills his own musical momentum, so be it! In “Hwarang Farm (Outro),” as he softly speaks in one ear while a guitar strums in the other, he says, “I truly love this town… happiness lies close at hand… No matter how much money you have.” After putting on the show that society expects of him, he dials it down instead of going out with the expected bang, as a reminder that he will determine for himself what and who are worthy of hype. By consciously going from ecstatic to calmly content, JunSung shows the many forms the stamina derived from individuality can take.

#18: Big Ocean, THE GREATEST BATTLE

While this K-pop boy band has been making waves (pun intended!) for being the first one in which each member is hard-of-hearing, THE GREATEST BATTLE proves they deserve to represent more than change-makers. Their artistry has improved by leaps and bounds; the musical and performance growth is evident (plus, their amount of writing and composing participation has increased). Sign language is seamlessly incorporated throughout the “One Man Army” choreography, and they have a metaphorical stage presence in the music video that is fuller and more commanding than ever. They are excitingly coming into their own and further prove it with a more intricate soundscape, one that favors high stakes over breeziness. Grand orchestras, an 808 bass, traditional Korean instruments, and synth-pop and R&B layers are all recurring and often overlapping presences. The highest-quality arrangements are in “One Man Army” and “Back,” while the biggest testament to their vocal improvement is in “Cold Moon,” a bouncy, nu-disco finale that shows this group is not always serious and suspenseful!

#17: Defying Decay, Synthetic Sympathy

Through EDM and hard-rock tendencies alike, this Bangkok-based but globally-renowned band sings and screams gripes both personal and societal with a decisive bite. The electronic-meets-pop-meets-metal act delivers electronic layers between raw screams and rage-fueled raps, and they tackle topics from suppression to self-expression. The most HYDE-esque number is “System of Sinners,” “RX Regicide” has the best guitar parts, and “21 Stitches” has the most impressively prolonged screaming! For those seeking milder options, the most pop-leaning song is “Clouds,” and there are surprisingly calm intermissions from “Prelude: A Peaceful Sleep” and “Hide & Seek.” Songs that are the best of both worlds include “Debris,” a scream-filled song that lyrically seems more pop-song-oriented, and “MEANiNGLESS!,” an ironically auto-tuned outburst about anxiety and the desire to reveal their unfiltered selves!

#16: Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Fujieda

With impressive efficiency, this rock band draws lines between what is literal and metaphorical. One of the best examples: their sewing machine lyrics in “Welcome Back Jonny.” They say that no one knows how to use it but then sing about people being “Unable to stitch things together,” causing their drift. Similarly, in “NANPURAA BIYORI,” they sing about literal nice weather but also say their life mantra is that there is “always a light to be found somewhere.” And in “Pedal Boat,” they narrate a river-crossing trip while describing a life of “headwinds,” “twists and turns,” and being “like fish / Doomed to perish if [they] ever stop moving.” These songs’ precursor is “Shanks Mare,” which gives the thesis statement so that the following songs can dig into the supporting evidence. “Shanks Mare” is about humans’ fleeting time on Earth in the grand scheme of things: “What remains after a hundred years? / The physical form… What perishes in this very moment? / The physical form / One cannot swear an oath of eternity.” It is also about making that impermanent time on Earth matter: “If you claim that nothing matters, then why not just / Stop walking?… that is simply not an option.” The band’s “only way out is through” remarks double as breadcrumbs for the following songs, with mentions of lives “woven” together (like in “Welcome Back Jonny”) and bracing for when a current becomes impassable (the topic of “Pedal Boat”).

As much as these songs are cleverly tied together, they also create complete pictures separately, with a shared bottom line that “The choice is yours.” They insist to “Jonny” it’s not too late to woo his love interest (in “Welcome Back Jonny”), insist to all who have lost their way that there is still time to make an accurate “treasure map” that differs from what traditional lessons have taught them (in “NANPURAA BIYORI”), and they tell everyone there’s still time to hold onto the “still-vexing hope of youth” (in “Pedal Boat”). However, as much as they stress there is still time, they also stress there is not that much time, so people ought to make haste! That discouragement of complacency mixed with confidence in going with the flow adds some necessary friction into such a compatible collection of tracks.

#15: STU48, Sukisugite Naku Special Edition

These bright and beautiful J-pop songs are romantic and resolute. The sweet and sensitive title track is about loving someone to the point of crying. Despite the upbeat sound, the group sings remorsefully about waiting too long to confess to a crush. They fear they fumbled their last chance to do so: “Graduation is like a box for sorting out feelings… Somewhere, I dropped what was important to me… Confessing my love now would be useless.” They insist, “If I could turn back the hands of time… I’m sure that I could tell you how I really feel.”

The B-sides are about there being another chance if they make it and take it. They decide to go with gut instincts in “Mirai e Tsuzuku Mono yo”: “Since I don’t have a map anyway, maybe it’s that way / Cherish this intuition.” “Gomen ne Newton” compares crushing to floating in air, and they apologize to Isaac Newton (who discovered gravity) for entering a miraculous realm that ignores the laws of physics!

These songs essentially change the quote “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened” to “Maybe it’s not over yet! You just told yourself it was!” They ask themselves “Why not?” when it comes to simultaneously crushing on polar opposites in “Lemon to Lemon” (“If I can’t choose, is it alright to love them both?”), and when it comes to putting themselves out there in “Kokuhaku Jump” (aka “Confession Jump”). That final song includes lots of shouts of “BOO!” at things like “regrets” and letting “rivals” beat them in terms of courage!

Despite ongoing doubts - after all, they do admit to feeling “stuck to the ground” for a time in “Gomen ne Newton” - they enthusiastically pursue “unrealistic” ideals, wondering “What could go right?”

#14: Sakurazaka46, The growing up train (Special Edition)

Offbeat analogies remain the name of this J-pop group’s game! In the title track, a train ride through tunnels is a metaphor for adolescence: “Adolescence is always about fumbling your way in the dark, and it doesn’t always go as you wish… May the tracks to adulthood not rust”! Other metaphors amusingly address youthful instincts, like a need for instant gratification (from “Kougen”: “Life is always fast food / As long as I can satisfy hunger, that’s fine”) and antisocial tendencies (“Dried fruit” narrates losing track of time while on one’s cell phone, as well as part of one’s daily routine being to ignore the neighbor’s attempts at starting a conversation)! The group also unconventionally expresses a sense of detachment from the world around them and a related struggle to learn who they really are. “Kuragerashiku” compares being in love to swimming like a jellyfish, “swept away… Without having anything” to cling to, always just “drifting.” “Sunny side up” seeks certainty in at least knowing one thing about the day is predictable and within their control: breakfast! And in “Boku wa muitenai,” they view themselves as a “bump” but reconsider that status as not so bad - after all, “If you scrape all the corners / No diamond [could] shine”! They also sing, “I’m a bad guy who is bound by the rules / I lost my mind at some point,” which sums up their attitude towards what they consider a mad world!

As much as The growing up train (Special Edition) stays in Sakurazaka46’s wheelhouse, there are aspects of each song that reveal evolved emotional states, ones that leave more space for ambivalence. They sing about loneliness again and again, but they sing about putting themselves out there and knowing they will regret not doing so later just as often. They seem to be in a constant state of wavering, with an ongoing internal battle between fears and ambitions, and it changes from minute to minute which trait has the upper hand. For example, fear surpasses ambition for part of “Kougen”: “Life is full of missed swings… I hate myself for that.” But ambition surpasses fear when they realize “there’s a flickering light of hope” for which they ought to keep reaching. And “Kiss ga nigai” is about how a first kiss is nice enough, but it turns out to be overrated!

#13: GLIM SPANKY, Éclore

Named after the French word for “to hatch,” this rock duo indeed cracks open a new side of themselves! Their classic fired-up sound is alive and well (although there are some well-made slower songs too, like “Éclore” and “I am You”), but their words show newfound wisdom and wit (in part thanks to being entirely self-composed and self-written).

They indirectly make several arguments for living only by one’s own terms. First of all, flames of passion eventually die out, so there is no time to waste! This is the message of “Angel,” which shows how the “Make this world your own” insistence is of biblical importance to them!

Second of all, people should trust their intuition and live how they want to because love will always find a way to show up and hold their hands during the hard parts. They sing about love’s power in both “Start Anew” (“The outside world remains hectic, but you are by my side”) and “I am You” (“[Y]ou’ll always be my light”).

Third of all, fate has a plan worth trusting; if things do not seem to be working out as hoped for, something better is on the way and will appear when the timing is right. This trust in fate drives them to escape a past relationship (in “Neverland”), to make up their own definition of “beauty” (in “Camera Irony”), and to let an “Impulse” be their guide.

Besides “Éclore,” which comments on self-consciousness growing with age, the most insightful songs are “Angel” (their “unconventional” love story “is justice” in a cruel world!) and “Fly High.” The latter adds a modern touch to evergreen commentary. They decide not to part with their old dreams for the sake of social media cool points: “get away from days that end with a swipe;” “I don’t want to be killed by trendy ideas.” They also call for individuality in “Six Sense,” kicking open metaphorical closed doors, changing “the locks with new, sparkling nails,” and becoming “something no one can imitate.”

#12: Younha, SUB CHARACTER

Younha has clearly done her homework! Each of this remake EP’s tracks is a thorough and thoughtful tribute to the original. While the emotions, lengths, and lyrics remain the same as or very close to the original versions, her music videos justify the story revivals.

Younha’s version of “Karma” is like a live-action adaptation of Dareharu’s original animated video, with a recreation of the setting, props, and even the main character’s outfit! But she intersperses her scenes in that recreated setting with ones in which schoolgirls sneakily use the school’s printer and print out pictures for decorating their lockers. The song is about the pointlessness of living with a mask on, and Younha’s story shows the delight that can come from rule-bending (misusing the school’s printer) in the name of self-expression! This might be why she seems to be rewarded more than the original video’s main character is. Both Younha and the cartoon character get a birthday cake, but the latter gets her face smashed in it! And there is a television set in both videos, but it only airs a program with a maintained “star of the show” status for Younha.

In KARDI’s original “Skybound” video, a schoolgirl sees a translucent figure out the window, follows and mimics the dancing figure’s moves, and eventually leads a group of students in their own dance. They no longer need the mysterious instructor. In fact, doing the dance in their own way becomes more rewarding, and the school turns into a rainbow-lit club! In Younha’s “Skybound” video, schoolmates also enjoy each other’s company and bond over shared experiences, but with shared albums instead of shared choreography. Her version ends with the main character energetically running down the street with her headphones around her neck. These are the same headphones she wears in the first of the videos in Younha’s series. She has gone from tuning out the world to feeling content and happy enough in it to not need them anymore.

Both takes on “Skybound” are about contentment coming from camaraderie. Similarly, “Sub Character” (originally by wizu) and “Karma” are about wanting to feel a sense of belonging, rather than the jealousy that an “outsider” status can cause. What is specific to Younha’s versions are the scenes in which the schoolgirls giddily prepare to DIY their lockers (in “Sub Character”) and then do so (in “Karma”). They aspire to be the “main characters” in their life stories.

Lastly, Younha puts a new spin on “Seasonal Crime” by Miiro (ft. Saebit), which is also a new spin on the short story of the same name that inspired it. In both song versions and the short story, memories and seasons are described interchangeably, and people selling their “spring,” for example, means giving away all of their spring-associated memories. Viewing the passing seasons and the passing of memories as one and the same adds meaning to Younha including a plant and natural sunlight in her music video. She plays music while filming herself next to that plant and below that sunlight, putting herself in the center of a season and a memory. This is yet another way this EP expresses the theme of living as a main character, which Younha ironically does by emulating main characters of music’s past!

Younha exceeds at the ultimate goal of a remake project: to honor a relic of pop culture history without being reductive. She enriches the original songs and videos in the ways she plays around in original narrative worlds but passes through as a respectful visitor of them!

#11: verycoybunny, Bunny Tale

Fittingly, verycoybunny pulls listeners down a rabbit hole with this album! Her love for someone grows deeper and deeper from track to track, until the last couple of songs depict her new reality as the stuff of dreams. Her lyrics change accordingly. She expresses initial interest plainly in “White Dopamine” (“I’m drawn to you”) and “My Name Is” (“I’ve been worrying about you”). She goes for it wholeheartedly in “HELP!” (“I’m gonna love you for life”) and “Surviving Summer” (“Hang in there… let’s surrender ourselves;” “We did it all for love”). “Child of Mars” is about how falling in love has changed everything for her: “Before you came… built up walls all around me and retreated into solitude.” After spending a few more songs doting on and gushing about a lover’s influence on her life, she then ventures into fantastical storytelling. It is as if falling in love has opened a new door to new dreams, and she narrates what those visions look like to her. She vividly pictures “The Veiled Land of 7,” “Kairos,” and a “Montage of Fate.” The soft finale is “This is, Us, Now,” which has the right vibe for simply sitting with a good feeling, taking stock of where life has gone and why one is grateful for what miracles have led to this moment.

Listeners also follow verycoybunny’s descent into dreams thanks to a story-enhancing soundscape. From echoes to “lalala”s to blowing winds to a ticking clock, ad libs and sound effects inject more life into each twist! Compounding the effectiveness is the independent rock spirit that imbues this “lucky in love” “tail”!

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#10: KUN, KUN

While this is KUN’s first all-English full-length album, permission to musically explore clearly takes precedence over mass appeal. KUN shows disinterest in a digestible demeanor, instead keeping his lyrics and sound raw and even periodically graphic (“I’m a dead man… Wrapped in your body / Next to my bones,” he says in “Deadman;” “Got a pocket full of [one] hundred dead roses,” and “Feel like you been holding me hostage,” he says in “Don’t Call”). This self-titled project is not so much rough around the edges as it is rough, period. This is intentional, and KUN improvises often, refusing to kick to the curb his love of jazz and soul. Other songs draw from vintage rock and R&B influences, but the big-picture sound always eschews clear-cut genres. The songs are atmosphere-setting more than scene-setting, suiting the premise of discovering his signature sound in real time.

Like how KUN does not care who his sound appeals to, he does not care how the main character of this album is interpreted. He will not specify how much the KUN in the songs is like the real-life KUN and how much is exaggerated or flat-out fabricated, and he has described the KUN in the album as both himself and not quite himself. Regardless, the character is not made to be likable. With compelling but frequently unsettling outbursts, this person sounds like a very lost soul, one with unfiltered descriptions of desire and a sense of betrayal. He often sounds like he is stuck on a loop, like his thoughts are being played back again and again on a cassette tape: “How could you think you don’t matter?,” he repeats in “Honour;” “My lady, yes you are,” he insists four times in a row in “Deadman;” “Where do we go?,” he asks in both the bridge and outro of “Jasmine;” “Don’t call my phone,” he says four times in a row and two more times later in “Don’t Call;” “I’m drowning,” he cries three times in “Washed Away;” and so on and so forth.

There are some flickers of light, like in “Back in Time” (“Dissolve your pain / Let love remain”) and “What a Day” (the black sheep of the album, but frankly its best song), but they are just that: flickers. And while KUN’s journey isn’t linear, it has a notable increase in its vulnerability towards the second half. He sounds weaker and more fragile as he describes his lowly self in “Night Into Night (Interlude)”: “I could stay / If all the angels moved…” “Sometimes I get scared… Just know that I care,” he confesses in “Paranoid.” He sounds fearful as he says, “There’s nowhere left to hide” in “Washed Away.” And in “Colder,” the bleak and desolate thoughts never end: “This game I just can’t win;” “Can’t run from my sorrow;” “[Y]ou haunt me.”

KUN is about a deep internal search for himself that gets close to the surface as he pulls from old-school influences, the sparks that he turns to to light his own. His vocally astounding yet not-quite-approachable attitude keeps people inquisitive and, ironically, shows that taking biographical creative liberties might actually be the most honest route to take. Who really knows themselves fully and clearly, anyway?! KUN refuses to water down who he appears to be, too focused on his internal world to pay much attention to how people in the external world are reading him. That is, until “Fool,” which he describes as being both the story’s ending and a beginning: “I know it’s kinda awkward / Now you’ve seen me vulnerable… Was it worth the trouble?;” “If you ever run back / Better bring a shovel / Digging through the rubble / For my pride;” “I’m saying too much.” Listeners leave feeling sorry for him and perhaps confused, as intended, making this album a moving one in surprising ways.

#9: TenTwenty, Abyss Red

This rock band’s latest EP is an all-gas-no-brakes exclamation! Instrumental acceleration, seemingly spontaneous riffing amidst seemingly pre-planned segments, and rhythmic melodies despite the chaos circling them are hallmarks. In a similar fashion to their previous releases, the duo hides deep revelations within the frenzied soundscapes, turning philosophical and astute observations into bite-sized pieces. It is akin to hiding someone’s veggies in a dessert, to trick someone into digesting something they otherwise would not!

The band constantly uses metaphors related to light and rainbows (spreading rainbows in “Hare,” finding the treasure at the foot of a rainbow in “Matsurika Ha Yoru Ni Saku”...), overtly centering a sunny disposition! But they show their bright ideas through humble curiosity, too, wondering what metaphors the audience might resonate with, by asking them questions like “What do you do, and what do you throw away?” (“Eleven Back”), and “Who is chasing you, and what are you chasing?” (“Matsurika Ha Yoru Ni Saku”).

Adding to the vibrancy are moments when they seem to be calling themselves out, making fun of their love of excessive noise combinations and overall sonic unreliability! For example, they sing in “Hare,” “I’m studying everything / I want this and that, but / I’m considering a little more,” the best description of their, for lack of a better term, greedy music-making approach!

#8: Quruli, Twelve Ephemeral Variations

Twelve Ephemeral Variations is an ironic yet apt exploration of the eternal nature of trying to grab and preserve what quickly comes and goes. The members put their instincts to good use, which include knowing when to prolong the point being made versus when to keep it concise and when to go from artsy to more simplistic statements. The pieces Quruli are trying to put together are less like ones in a puzzle and more like ones in a collage. Recurring metaphors give the songs overlap, creating a murky yet moving mosaic of fractured recollections. These recollections involve waves (“La Palummella,” “Wandering,” “oh my baby,” “sequoia”), wings and birds (“Regulus,” “Venus,” “La Palummella,” “sequoia,” “Never Fade”), wind (“Venus,” “Never Fade,” “oh my baby”), stars (“Regulus,” “Memories of Seto,” “oh my baby”), heat (“C’est la vie,” “oh my baby,” “Never Fade,” “Regulus”), and more. The lyrical consistency serves as a counterweight to the imbalance in the overall listening experience; listeners can expect sustainability in terms of sentiment more than structure. Songs that come across more poetically tend to be the “Eureka!” moments, ones when Quruli’s past and present places in the world become clearer to themselves. The songs that take the form of more cosmic reflections on the very nature of “a place in the world” (especially “Regulus”) show how some realizations need more time to crystallize. This extra time also justifies some songs being over five minutes long, like “oh my baby.” Other songs cut to the chase, including “La Palummella,” which urges someone to “Fly!” and “Soar!,” and “C’est le vie,” an around-two-minutes song that stays straightforward (the title translates to “That’s life”). The solemn plea that is “Never Fade” is another example of a self-explanatory nature benefitting the song. Lively and more serious periods alike effectively pull listeners into and out of different layers of memories.

#7: m-flo, SUPERLIMINAL

This trio brings their sprightly nature to dance, hip-hop, and R&B genre-jumping on this 25-year anniversary project that makes the “going on a journey” premise overt. The intro, interludes, and outro are voiced by intergalactic tour guides who narrate what the spaceship’s passengers can see and hear, as they journey through m-flo’s past, present, and future. The blasts to the past go down both specific lanes (like a song Lisa made during a dark time in her life, “You Got This,” and cultural-reference-filled songs like “ARIGATTO” and “RUN AWAYS”) and more generic ones (“MARS DRIVE” has the energy of an 80’s VHS workout tape!). The trip to the present applies m-flo’s go-to sci-fi-adjacent framing to modern-day situations and musical sensibilities (like “ELUSIVE” and the K-pop-meets-J-pop “EKO EKO,” both songs about seeking the same “frequency” as someone else). They apply similar terminology to their own myth-making (for example, they sing about giving themselves a robot-like “upgrade” in “HyperNova”). Then there are the songs that go into the future, into dimensions previously unseen and unheard. m-flo are still experimenting all these years later, and they go especially left-field with “GateWay,” an aggressive digi-punk jumble; “1CE AGAIN,” a two-in-one track; and “CHARANGA,” which treats each sound effect like an additional and equally valid instrument. By-the-books ways with words are also discarded; all pretenses are gone, and the trio shamelessly and constantly mentions laughing out loud! They most directly celebrate letting music’s magic light “the fuse” in them in “Reckless.” They personify and scoff at Judgement, celebrate “losing it” and making a “twisted anthem” mainly for their own amusement, and describe their state as “doomed, but having fun”!

One of the secrets to m-flo’s longevity is their insistence on laughing with the audience. They show pride in their legacy and rap often about their backstory, but they willingly show regret and call out their own shortcomings just as much. For example, they tout that “Youth is a weapon, [then] experience is armor” in “ARIGATTO,” and they go on to admit they “should have taken care of it more” earlier. Another example is in “tell me tell me”: “Nobody knows what the future holds / And I’m betting on you to be the answer.” These lines are both ego-inflating and ego-deflating, an acknowledgement that they know as much about the future as anyone else, yet a comment that shows confidence in “you” to succeed in that future.

While the entertainment value in SUPERLIMINAL is admittedly inconsistent, the album contains the coolness that comes from not trying so hard to be cool, and m-flo’s loud, open, and often silly sonic experiments keep the audience on board the out-of-this-world adventure!

#6: TIA RAY, NEW DAY

While TIA RAY tends to send multiple messages at once, her songs streamline those multitudes well. Her valuable advice-giving and personal confessions are woven together as seamlessly as her flirtatious suggestiveness and “I actually might be better off on my own” insistences do. Her acute degree of self-awareness allows each impact to land as intended. She genuinely sings like someone shaped by her experiences. She can clearly name her flaws and her impulses’ underlying reasons. She knows why she snoops on a lover she thinks is cheating on her: “When you’ve been hurt / You find yourself digging up dirt” (“PHONE”). She knows why it is difficult to fully disentangle from a lover: “We’re racing time but dead last / Green lights and red flags” (also “PHONE”). She knows why she puts walls around herself after being burned, worrying if someone will “catch [her] when [she] fall[s]” (in both “COLD” and “CALL ME”). Most importantly, she knows she gravitates towards toxic lovers because she would rather be with them than be alone with her insecurities. But she also reveals that she knows deep down she deserves to hold out for better. For example, she urgently repeats, “I want it, I need it, I’m never gonna leave it” and admits to be “dying just to feel it again” in “HEART SHAPED HOLE,” but other lyrics include “Respect my boundaries or else we’re done.” And in “OLD DAYS,” she owns the parts of herself she has felt expected to hide: “Thought the way out was to bury my scars / You might find out that’s the best part.” Also, she rejects the assumption that she needs an “other half” to feel like a full person: “Two of me needs the two of you.”

“BORED” and “OCEAN OF THE SUN” are a satisfying album conclusion. The former is from 2023 and self-explanatory, while the latter is new and exudes contentment and confidence about her life’s direction: “I’m in a good mood today / ‘Cause I’m choosing me.” As she tends to do, she simultaneously sings about two things, this time self-love and riding the high of a good relationship - one that is now finally, actually good for her. “You and I are one / Deep under the sea / You catch me,” she sings, showing the person whose loyalty she worried would waver is there to catch her after all. She also sings, “Testing my patience in all the right places / But nothing will replace this feeling,” indicating her relationship remains imperfect but valuable when rooted in a sense of inner worth and agency. (In typical TIA RAY fashion, there is more to read into here: “Testing my patience” is a lyric from 2025’s “PRESSURE”!)

As for the music itself, NEW DAY has a little of a lot: powerhouse pop for fans of AILEE (especially “BORED”), R&B (“BALANCE”), Afrobeats (“PRESSURE”), raw and acoustic sounds (“COLD”), future bass (“HEART SHAPED HOLE”), some dabbling in the blues (“CALL ME”), a harmony-filled ballad (“BEAUTIFUL DAY”), and even more. She alters her voice accordingly, knowing when to belt out versus use a harsher rasp or a gentler, hushed tone.

With songs and a creation process spanning the past three years, NEW DAY effectively embodies both how far TIA RAY has come and how much clarity she has had for a while now, regarding her mental state and inner strength.

#5: yanaginagi, Green Light

Green Light is both meta and a meta-analysis, raising interesting questions as to which elements in people’s subconscious and conscious minds trade places, expand, wither, or otherwise evolve. The J-pop/anime artist takes on the role of a dream-whisperer, singing about the “countless dreams” through which she travels. She stays keenly aware of “you” being her loyal audience, and she knows what makes “you” that way: the power of storytelling. This narrative is about narratives themselves, sometimes in roundabout ways and other times overtly. “Seinen,” named after a manga target demographic, includes lyrics about characters that “leap” off the page and exclaims, “With each turn [of the pages], my mind races.” “FutarinoHajimari” frames books as both a journey and a destination, a question and an answer: “Countless words shower me like rain / Piecing them together without knowing the rules… The answer you arrive at is good.” She celebrates reading’s escapist pleasures in “Green Light,” and she highlights the comfort and sense of companionship provided by parasocial bonds with a story character in several songs: “When you’re lonely / I can’t hold your hand / But we can talk” (“FutarinoViridiand”); “My chirps won’t reach you / But I can hear all of your feelings” (“Hanaemi”). The constant comparisons drawn between a good dream and a good chapter of a book are apt, and yanaginagi sings about places that are “close yet unreachable” (in “Facet”) and that hold memories that resonate forevermore (from “We Don’t Know”: “[W]ithout time or distance / It simply echoes endlessly”).

This album is about stories’ presences in one’s mind, which can be as strong as, if not stronger than, a physical presence. Something might not “really happen,” but the feelings it provokes are real, and this album unconditionally honors that. The fluid soundscape floats through one’s headphones like a good dream might, as an unseen but deeply-felt presence. And whether listening to one of the more lullaby-like tracks or one with more energy, yanaginagi sings with gorgeous grace, validating the passionate feelings of bookworms and dreamers of all kinds.

#4: ATEEZ, GOLDEN HOUR : Part.4

GOLDEN HOUR : Part.4 is a quintessentially ATEEZ era, because it comes across like a blurred memory, one with a prominent and indisputable presence but a presence that still has mystery and intrigue. Their journey is nebulous by nature, spanning worlds from “A to Z” on a “utopia”-to- “dystopia” spectrum. This gives their phrasing a sense of being in-the-know, as they liken their presence to a “Ghost”’s, take the story out of this world (“NASA”), and offer an “Adrenaline” rush that gets no explanation. The Easter eggs are most prolific in “Ghost” and “On the Road,” and they are rife with potential interpretations both between two main groups of listeners and at a narrower level. Lore-familiar fans and casual listeners will differ in how they view lyrics about illusions and control, for example, but even within those sub-groups, there are likely disagreements as to how much of the sentiment comes from ATEEZ themselves versus ATEEZ’s fictional personas. Likewise, watching the “Adrenaline” music video surely prompts diverse reactions. For instance, a faction of fans might agree that the fistfight scenes are meant to look choreographed, but there can be varied conclusions as to why it appears that way. Some might conclude it makes a general statement about not being caught off-guard no matter what life throws ATEEZ’s way, while others will see those scenes as speaking to ATEEZ’s resolve to keep on proving they’re no rookies and have been training their whole lives for their big moment. The degree to which ATEEZ’s storytelling is personal is an open discussion.

Another moment to read deeper into in the “Adrenaline” video is when ATEEZ dance in the desert for a few people. This contrasts with the scenes when they dance with dancers, and many more of them. Given the return to a debut-era story setting (the desert), it is reasonable to infer they are demonstrating their urge to re-audition, to re-prove they deserve their fame. Then again, it could be just a broader statement about starting over.

Lastly, it is worth analyzing the scene transitions occurring via opening and closing elevator doors in “Adrenaline.” Elevators are a very suitable symbol for famous musicians: an ascent happening as swiftly as a descent and/or vice versa, a surreal lifestyle and mundane moments coexisting, the constant entrances and exits to unfamiliar locations… The final unfamiliar destination in “Adrenaline” is a building level that is empty except for the same red, floating cube from the cover of GOLDEN HOUR : Part.3 ‘In Your Fantasy Edition’. The cube moves closer to the camera before changing forms and bursting. Whether it has permanently dissipated through destroying its old form or has turned into something else and popped into a new location remains unanswered.

As for the music itself, GOLDEN HOUR : Part.4 is best summarized as “playing around”! “Ghost” keeps electronic and auto-tune streams as equally pronounced as the more assertive aspects. “NASA” arranges its EDM components in many twisty ways. The synths rev up well during the pop ballad “On The Road.” “Choose” converts the breathlessness of the previous songs’ instrumentals into vocal haste instead, as they deliver another pop ballad but with urgency and more repetition. The other song is “Adrenaline,” and it is forgivable for not being the standout despite its promotional push. After all, ATEEZ’s albums are designed to prompt a second look!

#3: GOOD BYE APRIL, HOW UNIQUE!

This smooth and city pop-rooted listening experience pairs polished and poetic moments with ones that convey simple and likable sentiments. There is nothing to dislike and much to love about this album, and its reversibility is an example of the latter. Listening to the album backwards actually helps the story’s chronology make more sense, and whether that is purposeful or not, the tracklist effectively entices people to listen more than once! Other admirable aspects that might be coincidental but nevertheless speak to this band’s inherent artistry: the 2025 singles that are featured, which now seem to have been foreshadowing! For example, they try cheering someone up in 2025’s “Love Like Sympathy”: “I couldn’t find the loneliness in your eyes… let me send you a spark of wonder.” In 2026’s “Goodbye Under the Half Moon,” they sing, “The waxing and waning days… gave me a spark” and talk about now “Stand[ing] alone.” And in 2025’s “Velvet Motel,” they sing about a scene that “looks like a landscape painting.” In 2026’s “Unique,” they sing again about “a scene that becomes a picture.” The 2026 songs also nod to one another, like “BIOGRAPHY” (“Around the four seasons”) and “Breathless Love” (“Today’s weather and seasonal changes / You noticed [them] in the past”).

Despite key words appearing to be “loneliness” and “goodbye,” silver linings are also the name of this album’s game. To paraphrase, the way they see it is, “Well, if goodbyes are inevitable, let’s make the experiences leading up to them count!” So they turn up the modern-meets-retro grooves and celebrate! But HOW UNIQUE! is indeed unique in the directions it takes its feel-good nature. They have made a soundtrack that is self-referential in ways that emphasize time’s cyclical nature and compound the commitment to cherishing their life by continuing to merge past and present. HOW UNIQUE!’s go-to present state is recalling good past memories.

While no track is worth skipping, the best overall are “Goodbye Under the Half Moon,” “Tokyo Weekend Magic,” “Velvet Motel,” and “BIOGRAPHY.”

#2: BLACKPINK, DEADLINE

DEADLINE is not without its flaws. Besides the inclusion of a disgraced producer, it is a disservice for this album to feature more English than Korean lyrics, minimizing JISOO’s presence. That being said, it is a celebration of BLACKPINK then and now in other ways - musically, visually, and lyrically. The B-sides would not be out-of-place on a BLACKPINK project from 2020 or earlier, and the go-tos remain statements of sisterhood (“My whole crew with me, if I go then they go too,” they say in “GO,” and there is a straightforward “Me and my girls” theme to “Me and my”) and of being ice-cold (“All my tears turn to ice,” they say in “JUMP;” “I know you’re frozen,” they say in “GO;” “Call me icy,” they say in “Fxxxboy”)!

The single “GO” and its music video are where most of this comeback’s appeal ought to lie; they are a testament to BLACKPINK’s interest in trying new things, too. The song builds off of the experimental openness the group showed through a rave-ready number, 2025’s “JUMP.” “GO” has its own adrenaline shots in the form of beat drops, its EDM chorus suits the sensation of a furiously fast force, and the disjointed bridge suits the strange state of calm after a storm. It is like BLACKPINK are forcing themselves to slow down and take in their surroundings while they still have time to appreciate them. The commentary on fame extends to the video, which no longer has the “nowhere to go but up” premise of “JUMP.” It turns out, there is somewhere else they can still go: inwards! The camerawork shows that inverted journey, justifying its disorientation! The rowers move in a loop, staying on the grind with no time off, always pushing against the current to stay current. Add in the fact that the members put in equal effort to create an “X” shape with their props, and the “It takes a village” message is apparent.

The important contribution of each participant is also represented through things like JISOO’s butterfly wings and LISA’s mask (a possible nod to her solo album’s alter-ego premise). This mask is in a traditional Korean style, in line with the other traditional Korean imagery. The literal Korean symbols include one representing a wish for longevity (Sujamun), one for achieving that longevity (Hoemun), and one that explains one of the reasons why and how longevity is achieved (Unmun, which represents good fortune). “GO” also features the Hangeul characters for “go” and a taegeuk symbol, which is on South Korea’s flag.

“GO” is about how going back to a beginning is not the same as regressing. In fact, some of the most beneficial and personally transformative journeys are those that do not progress like and resemble standard journeys at all. BLACKPINK do not simply go back to their roots; they return as changed people, making those roots shine in new lights.

“GO” is a celebration of success at both individual and group-wide levels as much as it is an admission that sustaining that success takes conscious, continuous effort. It is a statement of defiance towards those who assume they understand BLACKPINK’s story and overly simplify it. It is not “from the bottom to the top;” like anyone’s full life story, it has been winding and spinning in many directions. It also speaks to their refusal to choose between solo identities and the one they share as four. After all, “GO” swaps out the old “BLACKPINK IN YOUR AREA” catch phrase for a possible new one: “BLACKPINK’LL MAKE YA GO,” an indication of their pride and ongoing interest in being the one and only BLACKPINK.

#1: IVE, REVIVE+

IVE both talk the talk and walk the walk when it comes to prioritizing self-esteem, and this time, they project their lessons onto the wider world, hoping to inspire more people to follow their lead. Fortunately, IVE change their “I am fierce” message to a “We are fierce” one without being cut-and-dry about it. Instead, the implications come from lyrics like “Shine like my crown” (“BLACKHOLE”) and “Isn’t it strange… With just one word from you, I can do anything” (“Fireworks”).

The album’s first half continuously implies the members of IVE feel like queens and want to remind others they deserve to feel the same. The second half features solo tracks that practice what the prior songs preach about showing off one’s true colors unapologetically. JANGWONYOUNG touts her skills and charms on the pop song “8.” GAEUL gushes about imperfections in the acoustic “Odd.” LEESEO changes how warm or cold she comes across on a dime in the electronic “Super ICY.” LIZ sings about keeping each other’s inner fires lit in the retro “Unreal.” In “In Your Heart,” REI encourages opening up amid “chiptune” chanting! And ANYUJIN says she’ll “invite” you to “Come up to [her] spotlight” and share the glory in the hip-hop “Force.”

As for the music videos, they are rife with symbolism about cheering each other on and self-hype. “BLACKHOLE” begins with one member alone on a suspended bridge between skyscrapers, and it ends with all six members standing in that spot together. This is after scenes that cycle through vantage points, lighting formats, swirly backdrops, and (literally and figuratively) colorful outfits. On the other hand, the most meaningful - albeit maybe unintentionally - outfit choice is a black outfit. They wear matching ones with white, fringe wrist cuffs. Their arm movements make it look like they are using pom-poms, so they resemble a cheerleading squad!

In “BANG BANG,” the biggest attention-grabbers are the overall surroundings. They seem random and unrelated, but IVE do still get their “dreaming big” and “teamwork making the dream work” points across. “KEEP YOUR BOOTS DIRTY,” one billboard reminds them! Plus, they light their own path, one star after another entering the sky as if being stamped onto it, forming a line that leads to a member. After she lights her own path, she shares the glowing feeling, and the scene pivots to a rooftop group dance.

There is also much to appreciate about REVIVE+ lyrically. When a song does not seize attention for its opening remarks (“Shall it all be sung, be done like this,” they command in “BLACKHOLE;” “It’s a new scene… Must have caught on already,” they state in “BANG BANG”), they do so for being just plain unique! “Stuck In Your Head” reveals their plot to get a crush to remember their birthday: changing a crush’s device password to it! They also talk about playing games more directly, comparing their flirtations to hide-and-seek in “Hush” and to a game of tag in “BANG BANG” (“Catch me if you can… I’ll play with you just a little bit longer”).

IVE’s lyrics also stand out when they are more reflective. They bring to mind older songs like “Wild Bird” when they sing again about flying despite “broken wings” in “BLACKHOLE,” as well as the desire to “take flight” again in “HOT COFFEE.” “♥beats” comes to mind when they reuse the topic of a cyber romance in “Stuck In Your Head.” And in “Hush,” their consolation seems directed towards an inner child, the same one they talked to in “Dear, My Feelings.” This adds weight to a lyric in the new song “HOT COFFEE”: “Feels like I’m growing up a little.” That may be true, but IVE are still very much the same IVE! They prove it with energetic yet varied pop songs: jam-packed “Hush,” sincerely sweet “Fireworks,” the clap-along-primed “HOT COFFEE,” and contrasting title tracks (“BLACKHOLE” has a stadium-ready sound suiting its manifestation message, whereas “BANG BANG” is for fans of IVE’s “Baddie” era, with an emphasis on attitude over atmosphere).

Lastly, IVE reinforce the fireworks theme in both group songs (“Fireworks,” “BANG BANG”) and solo ones (REI sings about a “spark inside;” ANYUJIN says, “Bang bang, light it up”), reiterating their belief that supporting one another can only enrich their collective identity.

Stay tuned for March’s Top Twenty!

Catch up on previous “Best of” rankings and reviews for each month and year here!