Somi XOXO | Review

It's long overdue but finally, I'm writing my thoughts on Somi's XOXO! 

I’m not sure if I’ve written reviews for Somi's songs in the past but I’ve been a fan since her debut… maybe even before her debut if you count I.O.I.  

 

When she made her solo debut, I was excited, and I was pleasantly surprised. Birthday was a great song!  

 

After Birthday, her next few comebacks all did well too, considering that she has a comeback only once a year.  

 

Out of her title tracks, Birthday, What you waiting for, Dumb Dumb and XOXO, I like XOXO the most. I think it's great that she has a say in the making of her songs and Music Videos. 

Here are my thoughts on her latest comeback! 

Girls Planet 999 & Kep1er Songs | Review

It’s been a while since Girls Planet 999 ended and we are gearing up for Kep1er’s debut. I told myself, after Produce 48, I will not get so invested in another survival programme just because it was too sad watching the girls get eliminated from Produce 48. But… I got started on Girls Planet 999 from the first episode and I followed it closely every week. Lol.  

It was the whole scene with Choi Yujin and Fu Yaning that got me curious and once I started watching, there was no turning back...

Stray Kids 24 to 25 | Review

It’s almost Christmas again 🎄 What’s Christmas without music right?  

Years ago, Christmas was a time for K-pop Christmas albums to drop. Lately, there have not been many Christmas albums. As such, I don’t think I've come across another Christmas song that I liked as much as EXO’s Miracles of December (2013) until Stray Kids’ Christmas EveL album came out this year.  

Here’s me trying to stay objective about this album as a new Stay ◡̈  

BTS Permission to Dance | Review

It's been a long time since I've liked any song as much as this song! This song has been a constant earworm and played on repeat since it was released. I even got the kids at work hooked onto this song from the constant singing and using this song to wake them up from naps. 

What exactly do I like about this song? 

Taeyeon U R | Review

I haven't really been writing about new song recommendations much recently because I've been listening to the same songs over and over again. Occasionally, I do get hooked on a new song or fall in love with a song I've heard before. 

In this case, this song isn't a new song but I don't think I've heard it till a few months ago but even then, I didn't think I'd love it until now. It's been quite a persistent earworm and I've been wanting to sing it during my online k-sessions. 

BTS Dynamite | Review

I don't think I have written a song review for a BTS song before. I guess I pretty much stopped fangirling any particular group as work got busier over the years. I do still listen to Kpop songs based on their popularity and keep myself updated with Kpop related news but I don't have the energy or time to go back to being a fangirl just like before. 

So if I do come across any songs that are nice, I would write a short review here and share it with anyone who's interested! This is probably my current method of being a fangirl LOL. I've received some song recommendations on Twitter some time ago, I'll find the time to check those out :) 

Without further ado, let's talk about BTS' latest song Dynamite! 

SHINee Colorful | Review

Wanted to write this song review to commemorate SHINee's anniversary on 25th May but ended up dragging it out and going WAY past the date. Nonetheless, I will still write this post and dedicate it to SHINee! 

I think I've loved most songs that SHINee released. I definitely love this song. If I'm not wrong, Colorful is a song dedicated to their fans. 

Wanna One Twilight | Review

Lately, I've been very into Wanna One. I know, almost 3 years too late. It's alright... Probably would've spent lots of money on them if we had liked them 3 years ago. Think of it as being a cost-effective Kpop fan. But it's true I'm always late to the party :P

After listening to almost all the Wanna One songs, there's that one song that just sticks and continues to annoy you day and night. At first, it was Energetic but now it's this song. 

IU Love Poem | Review

I'm actually quite surprised that this song is a B-side track. I think it was mentioned that IU herself didn't realise that this song would be popular. It's actually a really good ballad song. 

Produce X 101 Pretty Girl | Review

Always late to the party. I know this song has been out for some time and everyone already probably knows how awesome it is. 

I chanced upon the song while watching those random play dance videos. Have been watching lots of random play dance videos, if you are interested to know the links, let me know. 

So this song has been a constant earworm and had to listen to it on repeat for a few days to get it to stop playing in my head. I didn't follow the Produce X 101 series but somehow after listening to the song and watching the dance on RPD videos... I must say, it has really grown on me! 

This is definitely a highly recommended song if you're into those slightly cutesy concepts. I don't really know why but I've been really quite addicted to this song so do check it out!! And the dance too. 

NCT Dream We Young | Review

Chanced upon this song while watching some random dance videos on Youtube. The video was featuring dance moves that are difficult to accomplish even for dancers. Went to search for the song and have been quite liking the song since.

Lovelyz Cameo | Review

Another B-Side track that I’ve been listening to lately. First heard this song while watching Queendom and I have to say, Lovelyz has done quite a good job changing the original song up. 

Mamamoo Ten Nights | Review

As most of you might already know, I'm a huge fan of Mamamoo! It's not really surprising as I like groups that have strong vocal capabilities.

In the song Ten Nights, they get to showcase just that...

Red Velvet In and Out | Review

Featuring songs that are B-Side tracks, which are mainly songs that aren't the title track and as such aren't promoted as much. Many of these songs are really good but not featured or listened to just because they are not the title tracks of the albums.

So here's the first B-side track that caught my attention and it's a really catchy one! 

Jukebox #86: Birthday ♥︎

I must say, I've been looking forward to Somi's debut since watching her on "Unnies" so I'm glad her debut is finally here and glad that it's not disappointing. 

The song is catchy and quite addictive! After a few listens, it was already playing in my head on repeat. Usually, songs that are more successful tend to have that addictive trait. 

The theme of the song/MV had this very cool/chic vibe that suited Somi very well. It really related and represented her character. It had more of a YG vibe than a JYP vibe actually. Is that why she changed companies? :/

Although there were many controversies surrounding her solo debut and well people hating on her for not singing the song at her debut showcase, I'll give it to her that this song isn't all that easy to do live! Anyway, do give this song a listen and show some support for Somi! 

Jukebox #85: Produce 48 Songs ♥︎

Those of you who are watching and following Produce 48 would already know these songs that they wrote specially for the show. So far, I think there isn't a song that I dislike, which is something pretty rare considering that I'm quite picky with the songs I like and listen to.

Basically, Produce 48 is a survival program where trainees compete for a chance to debut at the end of 12 episodes. The only difference with this season compared to the previous 2 seasons is that they've included Japanese trainees. I wouldn't call them trainees actually because they've already made their debut in Japan under AKB48. Initially I didn't find these kind of survival shows interesting but after watching the first two episodes of Produce 48 and seeing how hard the trainees are working, I found myself looking forward to watching their progress.

The songs that I'll be sharing in this post are the six songs featured in episode 10 and they performed them on M Countdown last week. I'll rank the songs with my favourite pick at the top.

1. 1000%  

2. Rollin' Rollin'  

Jukebox #84 Perhaps Love 사랑인가요 ♥︎

I have been in love with this tune since the days of Princess Hours. I've almost forgotten that it existed until this popped up on my YouTube feed one day.

• Perhaps Love 사랑인가요 // Eric Nam & Cheeze // Your OST Vol. 1 • 

I really love how Eric Nam's vocals sounded in this remake and it brought back lots of memories of my younger days where I was crazy about the drama! I think almost anyone, even friends who aren't Korean drama fans, would have watched Princess Hours. It's really one of those dramas. Probably the Descendants of the Sun of those days. Hahaha.

But nonetheless, let's not forget about the original version.

• Perhaps Love 사랑인가요 // Howl & J // Princess Hours OST • 

It was a really good drama! 

Let's just take some time to listen to this song and reminisce about the good old dramas that we don't really get these days. Haha.  

Jukebox #83 Drama OST Craze Feat. Punch

A good drama becomes an awesome drama with the help of a really good soundtrack. Recently many soundtracks have been in the limelight. Even better, these soundtracks are completely original and composed for solely the drama.

Thus, here's a special post after discovering this singer that's been singing songs for many drama original soundtracks! Haven't heard of her before but her voice is really quite something! It definitely stays in your head especially since it plays in the dramas so frequently.

She's none other than Punch! Checking out her discography, she sings mostly OST songs and there are barely no videos of her singing live. Seems like quite a mysterious person huh. Let's take a listen to some of her songs!

• Everytime // Chen X Punch // Descendants of the Sun OST Part 2 

This would be the first song that caught my attention. Although it featured more of Chen's voice, I thought Punch had a very nice and clear voice that's pretty outstanding. Plus, she starts the song off so that really does catch your attention. I really like the part at the ending when they both sing together. It's a good match 👍🏻

• Say Yes // Loco X Punch // Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo OST Part 2 

I didn't watch the drama but checked this song out when a friend shared it on Facebook. Again it was her voice that caught my attention. It really does add like the feel to certain drama scenes. I guess you could describe her voice as crisp? That it's still clear even above whatever is going on in the drama. And somehow along with the rap, it makes her voice stand out even more. 

• Stay With Me // Chanyeol X Punch // Goblin OST Part 1

Last but definitely not the least, it's her latest OST song from the drama Goblin! Once again, alongside Chanyeol's husky deep voice, her voice just stood out and sounded almost angelic despite the rather heavy beat of the song. 

I was surprised to hear her voice again in the recent Goblin. Feels like I've been hearing it in the hit dramas these days. Is that the beginning of a trend? I sure hope it is as that means more hit dramas to come! Yay!

Jukebox #82 네 생각 ♥︎

So I haven't actually shared or talked about music for some time now. Well, I'm a creature of habit, I like listening to the same songs over and over again. This one particular song has been stuck in my head for the past few weeks... John Park's 네 생각!

I first heard this song while watching, "I Can See Your Voice" and the duet performance... It seriously blew me away!

After watching this performance, I liked the lyrics and tune so I went to find out what song it was. I haven't stopped listening to it since.

Honestly, prior to this performance, I don't think I've paid much attention to John Park. But listening to him sing live, he does have really good vocals. I normally don't like a singer or pay attention to them without checking out their live performances first. And as mentioned before, I really like singers or idols who have good vocal capability. If I'm not wrong, he went quite far on American Idol as well.

He seems pretty funny on variety programs too, maybe I should start paying more attention to John Park!

Jukebox #81 Cheer Up ♥︎

So I've been away for quite some time. Have had a lot of things to write recently so had to put blogging aside for awhile. If you've been a regular reader here, really like to THANK YOU for your support! 👏🏻

It's been some weeks since I released the voting and this song received the lowest votes. Rather surprising. Without further ado, here are my thoughts on Twice's Cheer Up.

Initially, I didn't like this song. My sister's a huge fan of Twice and she kept singing it, even setting it as her alarm tone. After some time, I guess the song grew on me. I do think that the Twice's members are pretty talented too. I mean to have gone through the whole process of a live program, there's no way to hide. Too bad Somi didn't make it into Twice.

As you know, I prefer groups that can sing and if every member can sing, even better. I think that's how Twice is. They showcased their talents during the live show so everyone is like clearly aware of what they're capable of. Smart move, JYP. I don't think anyone will doubt Twice's talent, ever.

And I do think that JYP is making his mark bigger in the entertainment industry and I'd like to believe that people in JYP are generally nicer and somehow the vibe is different from other companies. I think that Twice has a chance of making it big. So really, good job to JYP on this one.