#still one of my fave concepts/mvs

[negrowhat]

"Jackson's in Got7?" anon here. Cause I watched python, sometimes they show up on my youtube shorts. Well, I watched a video of people saying their favourite song of the band - with a cut of the music video of the song. And I can just say I had so many jpop flashbacks from the late 90s, early 00s. Their hair! Their clothes! How scrawny they are!! xD If you're bored, how about a quest? Would you be so kind as to find maybe your favourite gifs/looks/videos of Got7 from them early on? Hope that helps your boredom!!

Welcome back 'Jackson's in GOT7?' Anon! This ask will DEF help with my boredom. I'm not sure how far back is considered early on for them but I'm gonna try.

Right before their very first comeback, GOT7 released a couple of dance practices for their B-Side song 'I Like You' and they are filled with CHAOS! Everyone looks so incredibly young and they are laughing and playing throughout the practices and just having a good time. Also you can always hear their shoes squeaking on the floor and Youngjae singing over the track because his vocals are so powerful. This was in 2014 which was their debut year.

Stop Stop It Era. Most of GOT7 HATED this era because of the bad haircuts...BamBam and Jackson's haircuts were terrible NGL, but Jinyoung's emo boy bang, Youngjae's Blonde hair, and Yugyeom's pink hair really hit for me. Not to mention the styling with the 3 different sets of overalls gave 90s boy band which I loved! Also there is a point in the choreography that Jackson kept messing up and everyone clowned him for it. It really wasn't even that bad, he kept getting his leg placement mixed up. This was also in 2014.

If You Do Era was GOT7's first "dark bad boy" era. The styling for the members was very much punk rock and pop (lots of leather, skinny jeans, black, and printed t-shirts). It was a phenomenal era and the MV was fire and we were gifted some incredible footwork in the choreography. It was essentially them shedding their cute boy image and showing their manly sides instead. At least that's what they said lol. This was in 2015.

Umm Just Right Era was a Pretty Fun and cutesy era. It was most memorable for me because it was so vibrant and that was around the time BamBam's voice dropped and he had us all SHOOKETH! We couldn't believe it was the same kid. Also they really all seemed to enjoy that era and the message behind Just Right. This was also in 2015.

The Flight Log Trilogy was actually a fun time because we got 3 albums with some storyline and lore. There was a ton of imagery in the MVs and we really had a grand time breaking everything down. The title tracks were bops and we did get some good styling from the concepts. Departure and Turbulence released in 2016 and Arrival was 2017.

We also got this really cute video of them trying to sing Never Ever live while also trying to decorate a cake. They were WAY more interested in the cake decorating than the singing.

I have no idea when we started getting their little video interviews called Got2Day but I know it was old because Jinyoung was still being called Junior in some of them (OK the video is from 2016). But this one Jinyoung did with Mark was my fave. He was talking about how Mark was acting like such a gangster that day and he kept calling him an LA Gangster which is hilarious because Mark forreal used to get in hella fights when he was a trainee.

Okay this is starting to get super long so here are a few other styling eras I loved from GOT7.

Teenager/7 for 7 Era. 2017. One of their best eras and the album had NO SKIPS. I think this era was the era where they got creative control. They wrote and produced most if not all of the songs.

Aura and Not By the Moon/DYE Era. 2020. This was their most classically aesthetic era. Loved, loved the styling! Everyone looked like princes and I loved Jay B's long hair and BamBam's pixie cut.

Look/Eyes on You Era. 2018. 10/10. LOOK AT THEM! MY LOVES!

Adidas Lullaby Performance Video/Present: YOU Era. 2018. This particular performance video was just chef's kiss. Loved the way Adidas styled them and the whole black and white vibe was so clean. They also have an adidas performance video for Look.

Thursday/Call My Name Era. 2019. Thursday is like one of my TOP 10 GOT7 songs and this Studio Choom performance was the cutest ish ever. They all had on their boyfriend-iest outfits and they had so much fun this era.

OH WAIT Let me Include their HORRENDOUS teasers for their first comeback 'A'! Jinyoung was just recreating all of these a couple weeks ago when Python Promos began. They'd all like to forget it but they can't and I won't let them. This is from 2014.

WAIT ONE MORE THING! THE POSTER FOR THEIR KDRAMA CALLED DREAM KNIGHT! IT CAME OUT FOREVER AGO! in like 2015!

Okay now I'm done! Okay as you can see I can go on and on and on about them lol. This has truly been fun.

[borisbubbles]

Eurovision 2024: #23

23. POLAND Luna - "The Tower" 29th place

Decade Ranking: 85/153 [Above Luke Black, below Tvorchi]

POLITICS CLAIMS ITS FIRST VICTIM!!! ORACLE NATALIA WAS RIGHT!!

JK, I wish that were canon, but I cannot reverse-engineer our reality into a fiction where Serbia qualifies over Poland by a hair because they blanked them after Xi's visit hijacked the live broadcast.

Anyway, this section of the ranking is always chaotic and inconsistent. Bad songs with acts that made me lol, alongside kind of charming hopeless filler, alongside great songs with painfully bad lives.

Enter "The Tower". People been saying it's a bland, generic song and as is often the case in a democracy, the people are fucking WRONG!!!! Quirky indie wenches with brittle voices singing metaphorical build-me-up synthpop is MY safe zone and you won't make me leave it!

This came with the addition of Luna having the best warbled pronunciation since Maggie Burger ("BREAUXKEN BAWDEEZ SCAATERT FRUE MAHISTERRY" OB*SESSED*.) and being relatably bad at chess (same, girl.) I refused to believe Luna was birthed into this world. She emerged fully formed from a pod, (designed by the same crazy medical students that have now captured Slimane to use his live voice as ethical (for the patient) cancer therapy), created with the sole purpose of fitting the template of a Bubblecore Fave. Luna represents EXACTLY the sort of act I would love to overrate at my leisure.

Sadly... nope. It all kinda went the way of Roxen in Malmö. It was badly performed and badly mixed. I feel like a lot of Poles (I'd say "people" but do "Poles" count as such? Isn't selling your entire soul for the first bad banger a mandatory initiation for Eurofan Poles?) would just scapegoat Luna because THAT WITCH BEAT JUSTYNA, but I disagree. I sympathize with her and I think her team did her dirty. This Polish NQ was a group effort and Luna was only one cog in that machine. 🙂 Besides, Justyna deserved a break from the spotlight so she can enjoy her four remaining Christmases.

The capital mistake was to not recognize the level of performance maturity Luna had. She's fairly inexperienced and not the most powerful vocalist. She's also NOT a dancer. At the time of the contest she was at a level of "can hold a tune when standing still, on a good day."

So if she struggles to perform the act you've planned, somebody's got to step in and make it so she can perform it every time.

Simplify and practice it until she's able to do it.

and do not, for the love of Sennek, make her MOVE WHILE SINGING?!!

LET HER CONCENTRATE ON HER VOCALS, YOU SHITS.

WE ALL SAW HOW ROXEN MURDERIZED FOUR SONGS INTO AN EARLY GRAVE FOUR YEARS AGO AND THEN DIED THE FOLLOWING YEAR WITH AMNESIA UNDER AN ELABORATE CHOREO.

HOW HAVE SOME DELEGATIONS STILL NOT LEARNED THIS EASY, ESSENTIAL STAGING LESSON?!

IF YOUR PEFORMER CANNOT SING + MOVE, PICK ONE ("sing" unless she's Kaleen) AND STICK TO IT. FIND SOME OTHER WAY TO ADD IN MOMENTUM.

(lol sorry for the rant but i'm writing these late at night on whatever energy reserves I have left so I can to keep up with 1 update per day. Anger's all I have left. 😔)

It's not like the MV didn't offer an easy way into good Eurovision-friendly staging. Dear TVP, what exactly was wrong with this?

Just stick her in the middle of the cross on a podium, and drape finery around her until she resembles the titular tower. The song was about self-discovery and growth, and that would send the message across with minimal confusion.

But Poland went with what they went with and sigh. It was the opposite of Slovenia, really - it looked AMAZING but didn't really compensate from the fact that it sounded VERY BAD.

But if the staging looked that good, then why was it bad? Well, Poland had a concept, an idea and it could have worked, but it didn't.

Conceptually, this is good staging. The backdrops and floordrops were rad and the chess-themed styling worked gave it a beautiful and unique feel like we'd never seen before.

However, it came across as Poland making an attempt at directing the part of Europe that weren't on Xi Jinping's visit schedule away from their song, and this an erroneous display of disrespect. Visualize according to what the song needs in order to shine as a song. Don't obfuscate it with flourishes that don't synergize with it.

There were too many elements. You don't need three chess piece dancers, AND LED sorcery AND an elaborate choreography AND two giant rook props AND two fucking dress changes (one of which happened in wideshot because ofc it did).

The beauty of Art is knowing what elements you can keep and which you can (and should) take away. (does not apply to "minimalist art" which lands somewhere between "decoration" and "scam".) Simplify, rather than complicate. Don't thrown in all the ideas you have as a Hail Mary (notice that this route is often taken by desperate countries that are notoriously shit at Eurovision - Poland, Denmark, Malta, etc). Test out which elements work, and choose those that suit the artist the best.

Poland's failure is choosing excessive staging that pushed too hard for (1) a performer who was not ready to execute all the pieces (2) a really simple, fun basic synthpop song. It overwhelmed both Luna and "The Tower".

It was not Luna's fault. Not entirely. The Polish creative team had a series of lapses in judgement, and it ended up in a shock NQ that I didn't see coming until it actually happened. Even though I like the overal package (the song's really that good!) I didn't feel it was an undeserved elimination.

What killed Poland wasn't just inexperience, politics or overambition.

It was foremost a lack of confidence in their own product.

THE RANKING

[stepswordsen]

【Magi】 Judar Wearing Hanfu 🖤❤️🐈‍⬛

【Magi】 Judar wearing hanfu 🖤❤️🐈‍⬛

【マギ】 漢服（ハンフ）を着るジュダル

Intro

Judar is my fave Magi chara, and JuAli is my fave Magi ship, so I REALLY wanna create plushie designs of them one day, as well as a Tegaki fan-animatic MV... It's my dream 🙏

My unhinged gremlin black cat son who's Black Sun, Moon, and Eclipse themed! 🐈‍⬛☀️🖤🌙

1st Judar doodle is a planned concept art reference sheet I wanna do for my headcanon design of him wearing black and red hanfu 💞

2nd Judar doodle is based on a Vocaloid song parody with JuAli (Judar/Alibaba) x Unfriendly Hater by Meddmia (drawn by WOOMA) 🖤❤️💛

In my HCs, Judar wears a type of hanfu called Ruqun (襦裙). Ru (襦) is the cross-collared top of a hanfu, and the wrap-around skirt is called Qun (裙). The coat jacket is called Da Xiu Shan (大袖衫)

He'd look great wearing black and red hanfu with white and gold accents~ The black outer coat jacket is slightly translucent, so it'll show the cross collared top's red sleeves through it.

I drew some tentative rain drop earrings for now, but I imagine he would wear gold and red hanfu earrings, and/or snowflake/icicle ones (since Judar is an ice magic user) ❄️

I've been forgetting to post my doodles from my side account onto main, so here you go. I missed talking about my son and drawing him.

I think my art style is getting more refined 🥰💖 The way I draw faces/eyes has been improving steadily! The first Judar doodle was the first time I experimented with an eye style with thicker eyelashes and underlashes! I love the new eye style a lot, so I've comfortably settled into it for the rest of my arts.

I want to draw him in different styles of huafu too, but I made the main hanfu he wears in my HC version, simple to draw (black coat jacket, red cross collared top, black wrap around skirt) with simple patterns, just for my own sake.

...

I'm obsessed with Meow meow mf charas. Black and white colour scheme and design aesthetics. Black and/or white hair. Black Sun & Moon themed. Sharp tsurime eyes. Eyeshadow. Causes problems on purpose. C*nty Sen-core bastard cat. Smug chaotic edgy evil asshole character. Violent, unhinged, bloodthirsty and murderous. Arrogant with a huge ego that distances them from humanity (or social interactions).

I love "Sen-core Meow meow mf" and "Cunty Sen-core" bastard cat Annoying Nyam Nyam types like him /pos <3 🐈‍⬛💗

Judar's long black hair with braids, and black + white + red + yellow design hits my fave aesthetics 💗I love his braids sm

Judar is my fave Magi chara. No one is surprised LOL. Judar is a perfect Sen-core character.

Especially since I KNEW I have a history of being obsessed with Kuroha (KagePro) since I was 12. I knew exactly what would happen

The fact that my evil unhinged meow meow pipeline has led me from Kuroha (2013) to Judar (2022) is really not surprising at all.

It's so funny rereading my messages from 2022 when I first read Magi and guessed that he'd be my fave after seeing his 1st CAMEO appearance 😭😂 It's like watching my downfall in real time /lh

My friends mainly associate me with my meow meow mf faves like Douman, Xanxus, Judar, Idate, Kuroha, and Hibari. To be known for them is an honour ✨ It makes me very happy (❁´◡`❁)

Judar's a fun chara and a perfect squishable gremlin it's natural I'm devoted to him. I love my son

I wanna draw even more of him cuz he's just so fun to draw. I need to practice more cuz I have trouble drawing his spiky hair at times

I put the rest of my doodle WIPs, and talks of my headcanon design for him, and my art process under the cut ✨ Cuz I don't think I ever talked about how I got obsessed with this chara in full? I'll put that too

WIP Shots

The last one is an older doodle. I still like aspects of it but I'd redraw it (also the above doodles are just better drawn versions of it)

Headcanon Design

Judar wears hanfu and hanfu earrings in my headcanon design.

I imagined that he would wear gold and red hanfu earrings, and also snowflake/icicle ones! Silver snowflake ones, and glass icicle earrings would be cool...

So I think I may wanna put snowflake/ice and dragon patterns on his hanfu. The silhouette of a Chinese dragon (ice dragon) would be rad 🐉

I want Alibaba to wear traditional Arabic clothes (white and yellow). I've been looking into it for now, but I wanna draw it soon... I also HC Alibaba to have tanner skin in my HC design

Ohtaka is really good at harmonizing colour palettes (seen with the volume covers). I loooove using teal/cool tinted black when colouring my meow meow mf faves, so this is a treat hehe

Since Judar is from the Kou Empire, which is based on China, I wanted to project Judar's ethnicity onto his design more (since many friends who I've spoken to from my other interests didn't know he was even CN inspired until I told them)

I always take aspects I like from canon and imbue it with my own tastes! I base my drawings on my own headcanons/interpretations of my faves.

I agree with the above post <3

Magi is in my top favourite series ever in terms of art and writing. It's generally peak imo

Magi's biggest flaws are the whitewashing, colourism and racial stereotyping (ex. racially stereotyped clothing in the character designs) and some parts of the setting being bastardized takes on SWANA and South Asian cultures, and I've always been critical of that.

Of course, it's totally normal for cultures to do cultural exchanges with each other, but that's not what's going on here.

A lot of EA media feeds into insensitive/distasteful racial stereotypes on non EA cultures, we don't need more of it being perpetuated in fandom spaces. I personally won't be drawing certain Magi charas in their canon clothing designs.

Ohtaka's drawn him (Judar) in hanfu before, it should've been his canon clothes instead.

I love his hair design with the braids sm. I draw him in huafu in my HC design instead as a fix-it for the obvious colourism going on in Magi's chara designs, and also, the charas' clothing designs and parts of the settings too, being bastardized and racially stereotyped takes on SWANA and South Asian cultures.

WIP Shots (Art Process)

I drew these, which I like, but I liked the original best (up top). A few of them have slightly more curled hair strands! I think 1st and 2nd are the best in capturing the vibes, but the others are also interesting to see. I might incorporate some aspects from them when I refine this doodle

I think there's a lot of improvement from my past doodles. I still like this but I'd redraw it (since I feel like my recent doodles are just better drawn versions of this)

Admittedly I'm MUCH better at drawing meow meow mfs, so I haven't gotten the chance to draw Alibaba yet.

I find Judar's spiky hair hard to draw so I'm still trying to decide how I want to draw it...

I love how Ohtaka draws the shape of his braids. I didn't get the time to refine the sketch yet so I just blocked in the shape of his braids roughly with a silhouette (so I'll go fix it later)

I wanna redraw and refine the hair and clothes later 👍

I think when I actually get to colouring, though, I'm gonna desaturate the teal tinted black colour slightly

On the 1st sketch pass, I just care about making the face and eyes look good (since it's usually the main focus of my pieces)

Then I just scribble whatever for the clothes.

And then when I go back to clean up the sketch, then I fix everything else, including the clothes

Inspiration

(Magi: Kou Empire Arc - Ch. 255 Spoilers)

I was rereading the Judar vs. Aladdin fight in the Kou Empire arc and I love how dynamic Ohtaka's art is. I'm in love with the compositions

Judar's ice dragons and the the last page with Judar being themed with the moon!!! That's so cool. My son is so cool and iconic

Judar’s leitmotif is the Black Sun and Moon ☀️🖤🌙

I reread the Kou Empire arc so many times cuz it's SO good art/writing wise and just in general like WHDSHDHSH

But this is why I want Judar's hanfu to have snow/ice and ice dragons on it. I'll make it an easy pattern/silhouette and use a stamp brush probably cuz uh I don't want to have to draw that by hand every time

...

Ohtaka is one of my main art inspirations of what I wanna draw like someday in terms of technical skill. Her inking is godly.

Ohtaka is BRILLIANT with inking, dynamic battle compositions, perspectives, and colours... Her art is soooo good, it's such visual eye candy.

Ohtaka is brilliant with complex dynamic perspectives and inking. She draws GREAT expressions. Her colours harmonize really well. She's a brilliant author/story writer.

Her inking style is so unique. And it fits thematically too with how Magi is mainly in black and white (black and white rukh)

Since Magi was loosely based on 1001 Nights for the charas' names and parts of the setting, the roc/rukh is a giant legendary bird.

It's apparently a reference to Rukh/Rok (A mythological bird) and Rūḥ ("Essence/Soul")

Source: (X)

The way her inking stands out on its own with minimal screentone usage (except for BG effects and lighting) is a testament to her skill

Misc Rambles

These are my top fave meow meow mf faves.

My top main faves are all very important and personal to me, just in different ways. So I tie them all as no. 1 ✨

Irt Judar and Kuroha/Saeru, they're completely different characters personality wise, since Judar is mischievous, bratty and playful, childlike and emotionally immature (due to his personality and context), but they have similar~ish designs and a couple similarities, in terms of their basics.

As in, they're both evil black haired meow meow mfs with similar expression ranges, who are bloodthirsty, sadistic, and love causing violence for fun. They have the same Sen-core character type.

They have similar~ish hairstyles (black hair with braids in the back, unique eyes (Kuroha's snake eye pupils and the rings in Judar's eyes), and are unhinged bloodthirsty meow meow mf core charas

...

My History

(Magi: Ch. 15 - Judar's 1st Cameo Appearance)

Ok I don't think I ever told in full my origin story with this chara, I guess. Basically I was going off the mutuals/blorbo osmosis and just my friends' rambles at this point before I read the series.

And I was reading back my messages of what I sent to my friends at the time

I first read Magi, I think around Sept 2022, two chapters, then started again in Oct 2022 read to Ch. 15 saw Judar and was like. (.) 🧍 This design is Sen core. Don't let me go down like this.

When I first saw Judar’s CAMEO in Ch. 15... I had a feeling.

Cuz I sensed Sen core meow meow mf.

I felt my doom. I knew it... I sensed it with my instincts 😭

WHEN I FIRST SAW THIS PANEL OF JUDAR, I WAS LIKE OH NO... I SENSED MY DOWNFALL.

And then I was like, "Well I made my bed, so time to go lie in it 👍"

Since I saw the charas from my friends' tweets before, can you believe that at this point I was like "Wow I wonder how my would be ship interact together. They're on the same page!!!" 🤸

THIS IS INSANE OF ME DSAKLSDKLKLSDKLS

My friends were like "I can't believe you're shipping them this early 😭 Even before they actually interact omggg"

And I started shipping JuAli by Ch. 15. So before they even interacted. So when I JUST saw Judar. And then I doodled them right after (it was my first doodle of them!) 😭😂 LMFAOOOO

Good god me getting obsessed with charas/ships is like my insanity speedrun

Me with JuAli and KuroEne... Insanity speedrun x1000000

Like I had a feeling that he'd become my fave by his first CAMEO appearance... He makes his first major appearance around like ~Ch. 44

Douman took 5 days for me to be obsessed with after I found out about his character/writing.

Judar just took me seeing his 1st cameo appearance in the manga.

Kuroha/Saeru took just seeing the Outer Science MV when I was 12 (Tbf, Outer Science is peak KagePro and is one of the best KagePro MVs in terms of visuals and storytelling)

...

Judar is extremely important and personal to me, I feel this as someone who comes from a similar cultural background to him as well, Judar is EA/CN inspired and so his background and backstory context really makes me feel for him… Speaking personally, as someone who is Viet/SEA diaspora.

Considering Judar's backstory context, and his character arc themes of resentment and grief… Wahhhh ;__; I can mildly relate to him.

Like, ahhh, this character makes me so emotional… He makes me want to cry (in a good way). Emotional tears, cuz this chara is so healing and cathartic for me. I'll punch him out of love! 🫶

[roadyblr]

HIIIII i wanted to ask you what xikers album i should get 😭 i dont have xikers albums but i want to buy some for christmas ( ik christmas is in 3-2 months but i have to like prepare myself 🥲) SO I BASICLLY DONT KNOW WHAT XIKERS ALBUM IS THE BEST TO BUY SOO COULD YOU GIVE ME SOME KIND OF ADVICE OR TELL ME WHICH ONE TO BUY ?!?!

(idk why but this sounds so weird😭😭)

no no it doesn't sound weird at all! 💜💜

so i can't exactly tell you definitively which one you should get like "ah yes this is the best one" bc personal preference but i can hopefully give you enough information to try and help?? if that helps?? imo it should come down to -do you like the songs on the album? -do you like the vibe/concepts of the album?

HOUSE OF TRICKY: Doorbell Ringing xikers debut album, big hitter imo and no that's not just because i miss junghoon (i miss junghoon) but also my love of oh my gosh as a track probably makes me weigh this a bit heavily in comparison

I had to go on a hunt for the group concept photos but Tricky vs Hiker vers and this is where i tell which one i'm partial to but its pretty even for these ones there are two other versions (Nemo and Platform) and both concepts are that of the rockstar mv

HOUSE OF TRICKY: How to Play so there's something brighter about this album and it's not just the colors, the vibe as a whole is just something more summer (august release album go figure) song standouts for roadyblr admin are Sunny Side, Run, and Koong

Tricky vs Hiker vers, i am once again riding the fence but i'm attached to punk yechan as a vibe and no outfit has topped that so i'm picking tricky for the sake of this post-

this is where i say the above albums also came with wide polaroids and i just point that out because i think that's cute

HOUSE OF TRICKY: Trial and Error ahhh We Don't Stop is so aerosmith ft run dmc coded like- possibly controversial and i don't mean this in a bad way when i say that sonically to me this is the most varied(?) title track is very 90s hip hop, Red Sun is a lot harder, Supercalifragilistic is more club vibes, i dont think i could describe Break a Leg and Every Flavor Jelly in a way that would do them justice im already butching the first three roadyblr admin faves: supercalifragilistic and red sun

Tricky vers vs Hiker (like with how to play there are two other concepts split between them but one of them didnt have a group photo so i just picked the main two) for this album also the tricky version comes with a little cardboard standee of the members and the hiker vs has a id card

HOUSE OF TRICKY: Watch Out I don't think I have enough time to properly go over how much i like watch out or the ability to form the words to express it? like there's so much i enjoy about watch out as a whole roadyblr admin track picks: back off is my top favorite like its so close to dethroning the current queen and sandcastle

Unlike HTP and TAE there's only one concept per album but there are THREE versions So Tricky vers vs X vers vs Hiker vers there is a plve vers but if i say anything about it kq's gonna send me a cease and desist- anyway X vers is best imo, but tricky is like very close

So if you got this far here's roadyblr admin's album ranking sonically (don't lynch me this hurts me)

1. Doorbell Ringing = Watch Out 2. How to Play 3. Trial and Error

And for no reason in particular than my need to have opinions top 5 concepts 1. How to Play Tricky vers 2. Watch Out X vers 3. Trial and Error Hikers vers (the suits/chessboard one that i didnt show) 4. How to Play Hikers vers 5. Doorbell Ringing Tricky Vers

And if this still hasnt helped and you just want me to pick: Watch Out and Doorbell Ringing

[diarylogbook08]

🍋 GHP3 ISN’T AN ALBUM IT’S A SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE??? — NO BECAUSE THIS COMEBACK IS ACTUALLY INSANE, I’M FOAMING 🫨🔥

— me unraveling over ateez golden hour pt.3 aka “8 men decided to commit a felony on my soul again.” 🤡🤡

Did you guys SEE the “Lemon Drop” MV drop today?

CUZ I CAN NOT BREATHE 🤯🤯

I haven’t stopped screaming since I've watched the MV. Hyperventilating, on the floor, surrounded by shattered glass and existential dread.... 😵‍💫🧍‍♀️

WHY DID THEY SNAP THIS HARD. WHY DID THEY CHOOSE VIOLENCE. WHO ALLOWED THIS???? HOW is it legal for a COMEBACK to hit this hard??? Like hello?? I just got run over by 8 men in military fashion with choreo so sharp it cut my will to live 💀AND SQUEEZED EVERY SINGLE LAST DROP OF MY SANITY WITH IT??????

No bc what was in the water at KQ during the making of this comeback??? The MV, the concepts, the tracklist??? I haven’t recovered since the teaser dropped and now the full thing is out and I am emotionally AND spiritually obliterated.

⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷

VISUAL AESTHETICS, THE WHOLE 90's vibes = LITTERAL Chef’s Kiss 😘🤌🤌

from the COLORS, the CONCEPTS, to the sheer audacity of that MV—HONGJOONG IN THAT HAT? SAN’S ABS?? MINGI RAPPING LIKE HE OWNS THE SUN??? THE POOL SHOTS ???…. I’m dead 😭💀YUNHO'S SHOT WITH THE TANK TOP ???? HELLO ???? JONGHO IN THAT ALL JEAN + CAP FIT ??? LORD HAVE MERCY !!!! THE CARS ??? ATEEZ DRIVING ????????? (driving me crazy for sure) I’m not okay.

can we talk about Hongjoong dripping foam & charisma? 🔥

ALSO SOME CAMERA CLOSE UP LIKE WHAT THE FREAKING DUCKLING HELL !!!? WERE THEY EVEN NECESSARY ???? They were totally C-R-A-Z-Y for doing this shit !!!

⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷

AND DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE TRACKLIST 😭👇

Obviously Lemon drop is a peak summer energy BANGER and choreography that makes me want to dance outside in 35°C 🌞

Masterpiece: After listening the preview, tbh I wasn't much conviced by this one and now i've listen to the full song i'm still having a hatrd time processing it. I'm not saying it's bad, just need a least some few listening more to get the vibe of it i guess.

Now This House Ain’t a Home: feels like a midnight heart-to-heart—my soul literally aches. Did i cry this morning (at 8AM) while listening to it ???? ABSOLUTELY FUCKING YES ! Ateez i hate you for this 🙃

Castle: arena-ready chants + echoing keys = want to see this live on tour ASAP. I also cried but the song is so freaking beautiful, my head was full and empty at the same time. Vocals are just a pure blessings in this one ♡

Bridge: The Edge of Reality: barely 90 seconds but hits like an emotional gut-punch. I didn't check the lyrics yet but why do i understand "throw it back ?" in the lyrics ? Am i the only one ? I guess Ateez just wanted to do another twerking anthem.

⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷

Conclusion : I’m emotionally unstable and it’s their fault. Golden Hour pt.3 is a masterpiece and I will NOT stop talking about it.

Tequila Tequila Sunrise ~ Soundtrack of my entire summer. 🥵🍋

⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷

Which song are you replaying on loop?

Let's be honest you also got wrecked hard by all of them ?

Which moment in the MV made you actually pause and rewatch on loop at least 3 times or more ?

What’s your ultimate Lemon Drop mood board: “sunset drive,” “pool party,” or “midnight city lights”?

If you could steal one outfit or prop from the MV to wear IRL, what would it be?

⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷

Feel free to mix and match—or come up with your own! Let’s see how deep the ATINY feels go. ✨

Tag your faves & let’s talk ALL. THINGS. LEMON DROP. 🍋

[heybaetae]

gifmaker / cc wrapped 2023!

thanks for tagging me my angel @jkvjimin 💜

i tried really hard not to choose all comp sets, but those take the most effort and therefore are what i'm prouder of than a standard set, but regardless...

here are my top 10 fave creations of the year:

bts chapter 1 insta feed // this was an insanely taxing project and is probably the most work i've ever put into anything, but i was really inspired to do it. it took about a week (one day for each panel) and was repetitive, i literally threw out my back by day 3 from sitting working on it that my body was in SO MUCH PAIN, but i wanted to get everything right and make it make sense which is why i wrote up a detail post breaking it down and explaining every decision that went into this. i still intend to make this a series and do one dedicated to their japanese discography (i actually started on one before i published this but didn't like the concept) and for their solo work, but it doesn't feel like the right time yet as things continue to release. but i look forward to it!

cheesy bts valentine cards // this was purposely corny, but the response was unbelievable! i had fun working on it and was so happy it made people laugh and smile. the tags were a joy to read on this post and it's my fourth most popular gifset ever. thank you!

bts guide to troubled birds // yet another corny idea, but i get a kick out of making silly comps and was inspired to make this. i started with jimin's as an experiment because his poem was the easiest to choose and built the rest of it from there, carefully deciding which poem to apply to each member and recreating them from scratch. i love celebrating their chaos in fun ways, so this was nice!

jungkook's sensitive tear ducts // sometimes i get really random comp ideas and spontaneously start making something with no plan. this was one of those times and it is now my third most popular gifset since making this blog in 2020 lol. ofc i'd never gif him upset about anything serious, so i only chose moments that didn't feel inappropriate to include to keep this set lighthearted and humorous.

long live bts (10th anniversary set) // i always knew i wanted to make something with the lyrics of that song because every word of it reminds me of their story. the 10th anniversary was perfect since it literally says "it was the end of a decade". i wanted the set to just be really simple so i went with a more desaturated look and focused more on choosing a scene from each year that fit the lyric per that gif.

love me again mv // this was my first time bothering to gif a music video in 4k. i usually avoid it bc it slows my computer down and takes a lot longer (i also have to reconvert the youtube download to a different file type to get it to play in my kmplayer, it's a whole process) but i waited a few days after it came out because i originially didn't think i could color it when it premiered so i just didn't gif it. but i gave it a try anyway when i didn't feel so pressured and i really like how crisp they came out.

jungkook's bday set // i didn't have a plan for this when i started, but i searched a lot for inspo and finally found something i felt like i could make something with so i came up with this very barbie-esque rendition for jungkook that i'm still very fond of. i purposely didn't write happy birthday on it anywhere so it could be shared year-round. it's probably my fave set i made all year and everyone seemed to like it too!

jimin's bday set // this was originally just going to include songs from FACE, but i decided it didn't celebrate jimin's work as a whole if i didn't include all his solo songs/endeavors so it turned into a big monster. i like how it came out though!

standing next to you mv // this year i was introduced to HD master files, so instead of rushing to download a new mv from youtube and giffing it fast, i'd wait for a higher quality rip from apple music to show up online. the difference is quite astounding. i made gifs with master files for all three of jk's music videos this year (seven, 3D), but i like how this one turned out the best.

vmin comp // just felt like giffing my two favorite people before they left and needed to channel my sad emotions into something before seeing them seperate for so long. i included moments i've giffed before and ones i've never had the chance to gif. i could have made this post so much longer but forced myself to stop lol. i like the pink and blue colors in it a lot <3 i miss them so much

thank for all your support on my work this year! i have lots of (old) new stuff in my drafts to share in the new year so please keep your love coming x

i'm going to tag @userjiminie @userjungkook97 @btsiu and @cordiallyfuturedwight to do this if they'd like to!

[petrichoraline]

svt SERVED those mermen, or whatever they were going for, looks. never seen before sways, sauves and smolders. what did you like most about the mv?<3

aaaaa I'm so happy to see you in my inbox, hii🥰

this is long and rant-ish, i apologise <33

what WERE they going for, the cave and ocean scenes lead to mermen but the tarot concept was so detached from that..though if you think about it, if we're talking sirens I guess it all ties in together with the spell concept?

serve is an understatement, like you could put an idol in an outfit but you cannot make them WEAR the outfit the way it deserves to be worn. that jun fit (I can't find any gifs from the mv in the search bar yet) was made that much better because he knew how to pose and move to its benefit

chan absolutely left me speechless at his part and that outfit (though not smth im personally that big a fan of) created the interesting imagery to catch the attention which he had the task of keeping on himself AND KEEP IT HE DIDD

idk why im so happy with hao's tie dye shirt, tank top and loose pants combo, might be because it's different than the other flashy and intricate pieces or because he reaallly suits flailing oversized shirts. who knows :]

hoshi pulling out those wings had me like oh! I didn't know we were doing angels as well?? hahah, honestly I think the one thing that made me a bit uncomfortable was hoshi having a serious face on for the entire mv lol like he has the smoldering gaze and the sad expressions and I couldn't pinpoint it until now but I'm not used to seeing him like this for a whole song.. that being said, amazing presence as always

I'm still crazy about the outfits and omg the accessoriesss and jun's earring being the centre of a shot, insane

genuinely can't tell you which part is my fave because I watched it only once, I don't know what to do with myself. you know that feeling where something is so amazing you need to talk to someone about it (like quite literally yell and shake them) that watching it alone without the possibility to do that is too much..yeahh

I'm scrolling through hoshi's stories rn and a snippet came up and I started fangirling again 😮‍💨 ALSO he posted smiley photos and im laughing cause all is right again!! sorry that I can't post ss rn

I have to say my mouth was agape with the jun and hao shot, the props, the heart, the colours..beautiful, I love practical effects (if you can call it that?)..the shot of jun laying on the beach is so peaceful, I loved that as well

EDIT: I just watched it again.. im heated from punching the air im so hyped its insane

thing is this mv made me like so many things I usually don't enjoy for reasons beyond my understanding like icy landscapes.. I have some questions about the combo of sets but it's okay

turns out they all had the more casual fits as I suspected, it's just that hao had a parallel shot with jun in his slay coat-y fit

(I just realised how good joshua would look in this makeup...everyone else too oh my goodness now im even happier we got this..and also I wonder what they did for vocal team's mv)

honestly i started rewatching and went "it's gonna be most of the scenes, isn't it..yeah this one..and this one too..this one is also amazing" like I can't pick a fave 🥹💗 songwise, I loveee the spell part but that is also related to the fact I was already in need to get my energy out somehow and it gave me a reason to, it's so fun lol

please tell me what part you liked!! ☺️ i thought I was more normal about this but apparently nahh

[13thpythagoras]

favorite ancient Greek philosopher after Pythagoras? Just curious

-@new-hampshire-real

I'm gonna have to go with Heraclitus, given that Socrates was Plato's sea lioning sock puppet and Plato was highly problematic. I actually need to learn more about Heraclitus, but he was a fave of one of my favorite modern philosophers, Nietzche, via this relevant write up:

""Nietzsche's Archetypal Philosophers: Pythagoras (the Religious Reformer), Heraclitus (the Solitary Searcher), and Socrates (the Eternal Investigator)

In the summer of 1872, Nietzsche taught a seminar under the curious and defiant title of “Pre-Platonic Philosophers with Interpretations of Selected Fragments”. The central thesis of the course was deliberately unorthodox, as it defied the traditional historiographic division between presocratic and postsocratic philosophers. Nietzsche, in contrast, believed that Socrates was the last philosopher of a tradition that ended (ironically) with Plato. This paragraph expounds the main argument of Nietzsche's lectures:

Now it remains to be explained why I am considering “pre-Platonic” philosophers as a group and not pre-Socratics. Plato is the first grand mixed character both in his philosophy and in his philosophical typology. Socratic, Pythagorean, and Heraclitean elements unite in his theory of the Ideas: it should not, without further qualification, be called an original conception. Also, as a human being he possesses the traits of a regally proud Heraclitus; of the melancholy, secretive, and legislative Pythagoras; and of the reflective dialectician Socrates. All subsequent philosophers are of this sort of mixed philosophical type. In contrast, this series of pre-Platonics presents the pure and unmixed types, in terms of philosopheme [sic] as well as of character. Socrates is the last in this series. Whoever wishes to do so may call them all “one sided.” In any case, they are genuine “discoverers.” For all those afterward, it became infinitely easier to philosophize. They [the pre-Platonics] had to find the path from myth to laws of nature, from image to concept, from religion to science. (p. 5)

By the summer of 1872, Nietzsche had already published The Birth of Tragedy (January 1872) and had therefore become a problematic figure in classical studies:

I am lecturing on the Libation Bearers to 6 students at the University, to 10 students on the pre-Platonic philosophers. It’s pathetic! Our worthy colleagues are still silent about mv writing; they don't make so much as a sound. (letter to Edwin Rhode)

This testimony from a student is very revealing:

Nietzsche was giving a sort of introduction to Platonic philosophy. He let the so-called pre-Platonic philosophers pass before my inner eve in a series of fascinating personalities. Since he also quoted them directly, he read slowly and let the deep thoughts in their statements penetrate all the more into my spirit. They moved along grandly and majestically, like a shining cloud… But one of those lofty forms detached itself with clearer profile from that dissolving flow. Here the lecturer's voice also was overcome by a gentle trembling, expressing a most intimate interest in his subject matter: Heraclitus!!! I will never forget how Nietzsche characterized him. If not that lecture, at least what he had to say about the sage of Ephesus will be found among his posthumous papers. I always feel a shudder of reverence when I think of the moving end of that lecture. Words of Heraclitus! According to Nietzsche they summed up the innermost motive of the Ionian philosopher's thought and intention (and his own?). He drew a breath in order to pronounce the sentence. It resounded then fully in the harmonious tones of the Greek original text. More tonelessly yet understandably in German. Nietzsche folded the pages of his manuscript together as he said: “I sought myself!” (p. XLI)

The young Nietzsche found a great predecessor in Heraclitus. Nevertheless, I suspect Nietzsche would later find himself in the other two. But let us first read what he meant by this “philosophical typology”:

We must designate these three as the purest paradigms: Pythagoras, Heraclitus, and Socrates — the wise man as religious reformer; the wise man as proud, solitary searcher after truth; and the wise man as the eternal investigator of all things. (p. 58)

PYTHAGORAS: THE RELIGIOUS REFORMER

We detect in him the religious reformer; it is absolutely certain that he shared the doctrine of the transmigration of the soul and certain religious observances with the Orphics, [although] Aristotle and Aristoxenus know of no physical and ethical doctrines. He seeks spirituality in the more profound significance of the long worshiped chthonic gods. He teaches to conceive earthly existence as punishment for a prior transgression. According to one account, a human being is reborn eternally in ever-new bodies. Piety, practiced in secret ceremonies, to which his entire life complies by holy customs, is able to extract one from the circle of eternal Becoming. (p. 47)

HERACLITUS: THE PROUD SOLITARY SEARCHER OF TRUTH

What we have seen from his political behavior shows us every characteristic of his life: the highest form of pride, from a certainty of belief in the truth as grasped by himself alone. He brings this form, by its excessive development, into a sublime pathos by involuntary identification of himself with his truth. Concerning such human beings, it is important to understand that we are hardly able even to imagine them; in itself, all striving after knowledge of his essence is unsatisfactory, and for this reason his regal air of certainty [Überzeugheit] and magnificence is something nearly unbelievable. We observe the entirely different form of a superhuman [übermenschlich] self-glorification with Pythagoras and Heraclitus: the former certainly considered himself an incarnation of Apollo and acted with religious dignity, as Empedocles records. The self-glorification of Heraclitus contains nothing religious; he sees outside himself only error, illusion, an absence of knowledge — but no bridge leads him to his fellow man, no overpowering [übermachtig] feeling of sympathetic stirring binds them to him. We can only with difficulty imagine the feelings of loneliness that tore through him: perhaps his style makes this most obvious, since he himself [uses language that] resembles the oracular proverbs and the language of the Sibyls. (p. 55)

SOCRATES: THE ETERNAL INVESTIGATOR OF ALL THINGS

He is a self-taught ethicist; from him proceeds a moral flood, an incredible force of will [Willenskraft] directed toward an ethical reform. That is his single interest: “Whatso'er is good or evil in an house.” What is most remarkable about this moral reform, however […], is the means. The means, knowledge (ἐπιστῆμη), distinguishes him! Knowledge as the path to virtue differentiates his philosophical character: dialectic as the single path, induction (ἐπαγωγικοὶ λὀγοι) and definition (ὁρἰζεσθαι). The struggle against desire, drives, anger, and so on directs itself against a deep-lying ignorance (ἀμαθἰα). He is the first philosopher of life (Lebensphilosoph, and all schools deriving from him are first of all philosophies of life (Lebensphilosophien). A life ruled by thought! Thinking serves life, while among all previous philosophers life had served thought and knowledge: here the proper life appears as a purpose; there proper knowledge [is seen as] the highest. (p. 144-5)

I wrote this post because I suspect Nietzsche later realised that he, like Plato, had also become a “grand mix character”. (This might explain the powerful ambivalence Nietzsche felt towards the Athenian). Like Pythagoras, Nietzsche sought "spirituality in the more profound significance of the long worshiped chthonic gods" — not in vain is Zarathustra's main commandment "Remain faithful to the Earth". Like Pythagoras, Nietzsche would postulate a "circle of eternal Becoming" (yet a very different one). Nietzsche's rebellion against any form of metaphysics does contain undertones and fervors that seem "religious" (in the rhetoric of Zarathustra) and the fiery ambition of a "Reformation", his "campaign against morality". (Ecce Homo)

Like Heraclitus, Nietzsche would find that "no bridge leads him to his fellow man, no overpowering feeling of sympathetic stirring binds them to him." In other words, he would also find a great (but painful) solitude in his renunciation of pity. What Nietzsche wrote about Heraclitus would also be written about him: "We can only with difficulty imagine the feelings of loneliness that tore through him". Like Heraclitus, Nietzsche would indulge in a rhetoric that "resembles the oracular proverbs and the language of the Sibyls" in his Zarathustra. Nietzsche's prophet and his eagle would also convey "the highest form of pride, from a certainty of belief in the truth as grasped by himself alone."

Finally, like Socrates, Nietzsche's works from Human, All Too Human and Daybreak onwards would strive after a "philosophy of life" driven by "an incredible force of will directed toward an ethical reform. That is his single interest". In hindsight, Nietzsche's Pre-Platonic lectures were the programatic blueprint of an ambitious philosophical project that would occupy him for the rest of his life.""

[stepswowdsen]

Art WIPs [8-26-2024]

XanLena Doodle WIPs:

Me after I edit the post to update my XanLena sketches (particularly Selena's concept art) morbillion times

I'm still planning to update it again

Making constant edits is just so like me WHDHSHDSH

Cuz I always notice stuff I need to add/refine right after posting

My friend Feuri told me he likes how the softer upturned eyes of the OG Selena has a softer expression, so I'll keep both expressions ^^

I'll just update the hair, ribbon, etc., and post both versions

I'll either post it today or tomorrow on main

KagePro Art Ideas:

Rambles

Outer Science, the 14th song of KagePro, first released on August 31st, 2013. Its anniversary is approaching VERY SOON…

Context: Outer Science depicts the "Bad End" of KagePro's Music Route where Kuroha/Saeru (Snake of Clearing Eyes) kills everyone in the Mekakushi Dan (Blindfold Gang), the protag cast, and forces Marry to reset the timeline, causing a never ending time loop tragedy.

I'm planning to draw Outer Science themed pieces for its upcoming anniversary ^^ Outer Science is my favourite KagePro song (and KagePro MV) since it was my gateway into KagePro that got me into the series. It's also the song of my fave KagePro chara, Kuroha/Saeru, so it's very important and personal to me.

In celebration of my favourite KagePro song, I have a few art ideas in mind for it. It'll be Outer Science gen-fanart. It won't be gorey, but it will have mild blood and violence.

In the following days after that, I'll be posting my analysis rambles on Outer Science since I love it sm ^^ I always try to have new things I have to say, irt my KagePro MV rambles.

I'm not gonna spoil my ideas cuz I want it to be a secret, but I'm really looking forward to drawing the art concept <3

I had 4 art concept ideas in my head, I was planning on drawing 2 of them but I think I might only get to draw 1 of them. I might draw the others though sometime in the future ^^

I'm not gonna talk in detail about my composition ideas since I want it to be a secret, but I can guarantee that people will be shocked in a pleasantly surprised way ^^ I've always wanted to draw mild horror and dark aesthetic pieces. Yippee!!!

My mutuals are gonna get the first snippet sneak peek of my upcoming art idea ✨

Though it also depends on my ability to pull it off.

I haven't drawn it yet. The art concepts are pretty ambitious, though, so let's see if I can pull it off. Otherwise, I'll just post my old Kuroha sketches from before.

I usually post drawings right away, but this time I'll keep it a secret until August 31st, cuz I wanna surprise people with it… If I don't get it done in time then I'll just post it late, so it's not an issue.

...

Usually I post my art WIPs right away, but I wanna keep it a surprise, so I'll post it on the day of August 31st. My mutuals and followers are gonna get the first snippet sneak peek of my upcoming art idea ✨

I have 3 composition ideas in mind, but I think I'll only get the time to draw 2 of them. Though, it also depends on my ability to pull it off since my ideas are pretty ambitious. Otherwise, I'll just post my old Kuroha sketches from before.

Douman (FGO) and Kuroha (KagePro) fit PERFECTLY for artistic horror themed arts, so I've always wanted to draw mild horror pieces 🥰💞

So I hope my future Outer Science drawings can manage to evoke the sense of haunting-ness and subtle horror ^^

I just wanna get the sketch concept down, so it'll be pretty sketchy with rough splotchy colours (not refined). I like doing rough sketch concepts since they're quick for me to do.

Cuz I know that my full art process from sketch -> rendering would take like 10 - 20 hours total, but doing rough coloured sketches only takes me around 1 - 3 hours depending on the complexity

Misc Rambles

Coming back to KagePro was one of the best decisions I've ever made KuroEne makes me SO happy they give me so much comfort and constantly inspire me to come up with new art and writing ideas. They got me out of the rut of never posting anything. Ty to my 10 year old ship!!! They are very important and personal to me

Even though I draw often, I honestly loathe posting sketches, cuz I felt like my art blog should just be for finished pieces, but I'm slowly getting more comfortable with posting WIPs.

I understand that my art will inevitably improve over time 🙏 And I'm happy with my improvement when comparing my current drawings to my 2022 ones!

I first got into KagePro when I was 12 when I first watched Outer Science, which is known as the "Bad End" of KagePro's Music Route. Sidu has such a wonderful art style and an amazing aesthetic sense… I look up to their art very much.

My KuroEne AU ideas (both writing and art ideas) are 100000x better now compared to when I was a kid cuz I can see and analyze things through a whole new light. I revamped all of my old ideas and my analysis rambles and art are much better now too. I'm very happy to see such major improvement.

[wishheroes]

Weekly K-pop Round-Up (20240523-20240531) pt.2

make sure to check out part one of the post here! 🪼

Virtual Angel - ARTMS

now that artms released their debut album dall and yves released loop, all 12 of the loona members have officially redebuted. right off the bat, i must say this is probably my favourite post-loona release. no matter what my opinion on jaden jeong is, i do have to praise him for creating masterpieces every time. the visuals and references to the loonaverse as well as the queer themes in this song/mv are incredible, and as blinding as the music video is, i definitely do understand the concept of it. does it need a warning? absolutely. but i also don't think it's a bad mv, i think it's very artistic. but releasing a safe (?) version of the music video wouldn't hurt either, it would be nice if ALL fans were able to enjoy this music video. i think odd eye circle and artms definitely have the most loona like feel to them in terms of music which shouldn't be surprising since well, they are under jj's roof. but i just think that whatever the loona-genre is, it just works so well and i will never get tired of it. virtual angel isn't really similar to any of loona's past works, but at the same time it still screams loona right at your face. the instrumental is extremely dreamy, the vocals are really nice to the ear and the lyrics are also very pretty. everything about this release made me emotional, i think it's beautiful all around. from the melody, to the instrumental, to the music video, to the lyrics. i'm so excited to see what artms will have in store for us next comeback, because it's going to be very hard to beat their phenomenal debut.

Satellite - TAEHA

speaking of dreamy, i think this MIGHT just be the resurrection of yukika. jokes aside, i have never listened to taeha's stuff. so if she has been making songs like this in the past, i had absolutely no clue. anyway, i think this release is worth checking out. it might not be the best song you'll ever listen to, but it's certainly not the worst either. i enjoyed this song a lot! the retro sound works with her voice so well, and i think this song is perfect to listen to while stargazing or just relaxing in general. the more i listen the more i fall in love. i think it's a song that would be to many people's liking, so make sure to check it out!

WORK - ATEEZ

i'm really liking the sound ateez have been doing for the past 2 comebacks. something about it just works (pun not intended). their voices really match this kind of sound and i think it's just really addicting. is it better than their noisy music? debatable. but both of these sounds match ateez very well. not that anyone asked, but crazy form is my favourite title track from ateez. so work having a similar vibe is nice, although funnily enough this is definitely nowhere near my fave tts from them. still, it's a solid comeback and i thought it was fun. i especially liked the mv. i think it's nice that ateez are willing to do something different for their titles these days.

1 to 3 - SUHO

i'm just so obsessed with the artistic direction for this whole comeback and mini. this man seriously needs to continue this sound for his future releases! if not something like this, then something similar. this fun sound is just absolutely perfect for him. this song feels like a cheese 2.0, but i'm not complaining at all. i actually don't know what to say because this song is just insane. i love everything about it. song so good it makes me want to rethink all my life decisions and delay my not confirmed trip to korea just to go to his concert in warsaw instead. i'm actually considering it.. but we'll see what the future brings.

that would wrap up this week's weekly roundup! as always thank you for reading, and make sure to check out part one!

[xcziel]

this has been sitting in my drafts as a response to some ideas that were circulating online a week or two ago due to that bang sihyuk interview, and it's clumsily worded but i still feel like it's a valid take so i'm just posting anyway. i'm not a music professional or connected to the industry, so if i'm far wrong just ignore this random post. i just get frustrated that for all the talk of strategy etc. everyone seems to act like bts (and by extension jk) are an established *western* act while either still promoting like a kpop act in sk schedule-wise or like a beyonce/tswift level act (which ... yeah duh) with vast u.s. name recognition (not so much) - and then wondering what's not clicking

idk about this "crisis" but i know one thing has struck me about the kpop and sk press and kpop stans in general

i touched on it back when i was talking in my tags about like crazy getting traction in the us

and what i meant was that those involved in kpop are too blinded by the industry cycle and too used to that cycle's accelerated evaluation by stans and press alike

like no one in the us who is not already a fan is waiting on the day of release to listen stream and buy. it is NOT like sk with weekly shows, several comebacks per year, etc etc

and most especially it's not this thing of: create song, choreo, mv, do a spate of music shows, see what hits if anything, maybe leverage concert dates if it does - but if not then done! next concept! move on and keep it moving - got to fill those music shows and if you don't constantly have new pieces to show you could lose attention and traction

but the general public in the u.s. is NOT socialized to all tune in to check out what's new at a certain time each week or whatever

only some check the charts and even that is mostly just to see where their personal fave is

what gp recognition goes by is repetition (that's one reason why radio is weighted so heavily in ratings- not fairly, but it's true): have we heard a song before? was it in the car on the way? was it in the club? was it in the music in the background at a store, at a party, on a friend's playlist?

when americans say they heard a song "everywhere" it means literally you could not escape it - and for that kind of feeling or environment to exist, it has to happen over *t i m e*

true, yes, sometimes a song takes off and gallops out of control like a wildfire catching but that is the exception not something that can be planned for or marketed into existence

and once you are a big enough name and have enough fans (us population @ 330 million so ... a lot more fans than it take to equal the same percentage of sales in sk ... so only a sliver of a percentage of that can mean a #1 bb hot 100) you CAN get that immediate-drop chart push

but most of the time, u.s. artists need to build up name recognition with the folks who wouldn't know a music chart if it popped up in their excel spreadsheets. that's why you get youtube reactors or even music business professionals months after release going oh i didn't know they even had an album/track/mv out

the larger a group, the longer it takes for things to disseminate past the early adopters and the media who watch them and the industry (nobody wants to be left behind, so journalists/talking heads are always like pets when you walk into the kitchen: heads on swivels in case it turns out relevant, and will write things just to be on top of a possible trend)

and this is where, i think, after watching hybe and its american arm try their push on jk, the kpop focalists are veering astray in their plans and projections: not seeing immediate huge success (or not *sustained* huge success) they think there is some kind of crisis rather than understanding that a u.s. or even just western gp fandom cannot be a top-down thing - it will take time

bts are huge (and yes a triumph for bts IS NOT and SHOULD not be lumped in as "a win" for kpop in general as has been pointed out is too often the case) but in the first days of jk's album release, *2 months* after seven had debuted, the huge nationwide retailer where i work couldn't even get his name spelled correctly in the point-of-sale database, so

the u.s. music industry is a big machine and busy on its own, many listeners only stay in their own bubbles and don't pay attention to anything outside that, because just keeping up with the output of one scene or genre can take as much effort as watching the kpop industry as a whole

to break wide you need to be either insanely ubiquitous and not just on social media (which runs the risk of people getting sick of you just as fast) or you need the slower groundswell of people going from "oh *that's* them? i heard of them but i didn't know that was their song" to "omg that's my song!! turn it up!"

there's just too much out there today to catch people's attention and the media cycle turns ever faster - used to, a song could be out and getting steady radio play and it still wouldn't hit the consciousness of the national public for like 3 or 4 months sometimes. sometimes it could take a year or more.

so this thing of short promotion periods for kpop acts - even bts! - is just not viable as a way to attract a wide gp following in the states. being on late night tv shows is a good step, but since the advent of streaming the influence of shows like that has waned considerably since the days of ed sullivan or johnny carson.

jk's run of promoting *was* the right kind of thing to do in fact - it simply should have been much more spread out over time. you can see all his album collab artists have things coming out *now* ... and there's no way to really take advantage of that with the curtailed promo.

and yes, obviously jk did get probably the second longest promo period of all of bts chapter 2 solos efforts (i think yg's tour ran longer?) and it was cut off for very valid reason! but!

i think bangpd et al. taking the fact that they couldn't make jk a household name in the u.s. nor nab him a grammy nom (nor any other kpop groups) within the 5-6 months of their fairly blatant push for us recognition as indicating a "crisis" is just not looking at the long game.

they didn't get all the accolades right away, so it seems they've decided 'that didn't work we need to make some big changes' instead of continuing what they'd been doing in support of the artists

it's this attitude of welp they didn't give us a grammy we were entitled to even though it's the first time we played ball in this particular way, so now we're worried bc we don't know how to shop kpop beyond people who aren't primed for it

like, they are looking at the business of it, and likely accurately, but not at the audience itself

it's not that the observations bang is making are wrong i just think he is basing them off premature information - songs in the u.s. DO benefit from purchase power, but they ALSO rely a lot on word of mouth. not for charts positions necessarily, but for longterm growth, support, and more importantly demand, you cannot beat a fandom that grows on its own.

the paid promotions at the end of the day serve the same purpose as bts's early days vlogs in the current western music climate - getting the artist and songs in front of as many eyes and ears as possible. but then you have to allow time for that wave to spread - and the bigger the pond, the more time it may take

[emoremix]

tagged by @choiliner and @lesseraive !! tysm omg

rules: link your favorite and/or most popular post from each month this year (totally fine to skip months) and tag some CCs you love!

i haven't done a lot of giffing this year despite being back after YEARS but i'm still (mostly) proud of what i've done !! so:

january only giffed one -- sugar rush ride ot5 !

april most popular: teddy bear mv my fave: dojaejung color focus in perfume mv

june most popular: txt invitation cover my fave: same one

july only giffed one -- hyunjin fancam

august only giffed one -- txt summer package

september most popular: hyun.e's vlog 7 my fave: trans flag in blue hour & bias and wreckers in galileo mv

october only giffed one -- yeonjun in freefall diff concepts

november most popular: txt as wong kar-wai movies my fave: same one i'm so proud of it

tagging: i am very late it is literally january 2024 so if u haven't done it please feel free to do it and tag me in it !! <33

[complexhaystack]

I super enjoy the music from Smash Into Pieces - honestly almost every song is a straight up banger. I've just recently started getting into the MV lore and wow! Really interesting!

I think the simulation idea as well as the APOC/Ghostis ideas are awesome - though I'm still trying to figure things out from their MVs hehe! I also think they seem to have fun with the concepts and not take themselves too seriously at times... some of their older MVs are quite hilarious (also because maybe a smaller budget at the time).

But shamoley the newer MVs are really gorgeous and the lore is deepened and I'm really invested! Just also started looking up their instas and APOC seems like a downright funny dude. How is this band so frigging talented??

I thought the Vanguard video was really wonderfully done, I liked the concept about not leaving war for future generations. I also really enjoy how their MVs have alot of continuity! I super like bands with concept albums (that's why I fell so hard for MCR in the past haha!!) and any band with ongoing storylines + songs that actually makes sense to those storylines is just whoa!!

This video seems very relevant to our current world era of chaos and conflict...

Gosh I really want to see them live one day - just saw one of their posts that they were performing with Shinedown and Palaye Royale?! Like three of my favourite bands?? They also did a collabo song with my other current top fave band, Citizen Soldier (Six Feet Under).

Ridiculously talented people!!!

[jentlemahae]

alter ego thoughts no one asked for:

born again - it's a decent song but it's so out of place. why is it on here?

rockstar - i still believe that this is kinda the perfect lisa song

elastigirl - hated it for the first 10 seconds and was SO into it by the end

thunder - LOVE! this is a 2009 rihanna song and i'm not mad at it

new woman - a god tier song

futw - i see the vision... however the execution... icb this is her fave. future feature was dooks too. might hit live the same way money did idk

rapunzel - weird as hell but i see this growing on me. megan feature was cute ig but not necessary at all

moonlit floor - skip!

when i'm with you - obsessed

badgrrrl - i will never listen to this song again. literally her worst ever.

lifestyle - yeah this is a hit. anons kept saying this should have been a single and i agree. a speedi mv would have been cunty too smh. will smash at coachella

chill - top 3 honestly

dream - this is so cute wtf? all the pinks went through it in 2019 it seems

i got scared that i would hate this album but i don't? it has a lot of flaws that are VERY prominent but i still like it. 3/4 of alter ego will be on repeat. this album is a very mixed bag tbh. the great songs are Great but the bad songs are Bad but overall for me this is a solid 7/10

ohhh! my thoughts are pretty similar 🪿

born again — i like the chorus and the song is overall enjoyable, but it sticks out on the album and not in a good way :| it just doesn’t fit

rockstar — this queen of a song 🤩 im just sad she included the snack version on the album because the extended outro is SOOOO GOOD

elastigirl — top 3 on the album for me 😁 it’s so WEIRD but in the best way ever

thunder — it’s not bad, it’s actually a very enjoyable song! i wouldn’t willingly listen to it tho. the production is sooooo good!

new woman — best song ever

futw — the remix is terrible and the solo version is equally dreadful. the mv is very fun and tied the concept together nicely, but i am afraid that the mv can best be enjoyed on mute. and considering that she liked lalisa and money too, i fear she just has a questionable taste with songs for herself

rapunzel — eh! i’m not crazy about it but i can see myself putting it on in the background and letting it grow on me. the remix could have been scrapped tho what was megan doing there

moonlit floor — a snooze and a half but it could be worse

wiwy — SO GOOD !!!!!!!!

badgrrrl — why would she release this

lifestyle — i can see the vision so clearly but unfortunately i don’t like it 🙏🏻 it’s an okay song but i won’t listen to it unless i’m in a specific mood idk it will go so crazy at coachella !!!!! also, why wasn’t this the album opener

chill — i like this! i really don’t know why but it reminds me of music from the 2000s idk

dream — cute! she sounds gorgeous! don’t think i’ll listen much to it tho it reminds me of about a million other kpop bsides

overall i would give it a 6/10. the highs and very high and the lows are very low. i also enjoy it more than i thought i would, but there are several songs i won’t listen to again 🤷🏻‍♀️

[pocima]

My seasonal music highlights: summer 2024 🏎️

Welcome back to another installment of my songs of the season list, yes this is WAY long overdue but I was busy pretty much all throughout August and September, but it’s never too late to talk about good music. You can check out this spring’s installment here 🕳️ one fave song per artist, no particular order, the mini review section is for songs I couldn’t find to say as much about but still adore, you know the drill. * = full album/EP to be discussed in the yearly favorite project recap.

💿 Thirsty - Tinashe (Quantum Baby*)

Tinashe is never not an interesting figure in experimental alternative R&B, and she never fails to come through with something fresh right on time. I have a lot of praise for her new album Quantum Baby, which most famously includes her hit single Nasty this spring, followed up by the 2-step influenced Getting No Sleep. I adored the added experimentation of the entire project, and Thirsty was the first new track to really catch me. The essential formula is the trap genre that she’s dabbled in previously in her discography unlike, say, the Jersey drill Cross That Line or the Oklou-coded Red Flags, but the execution makes Thirsty a personal all-time stand-out nevertheless. The crunchy fast-paced claps and hi-hats among the serene synths, and as always Tinashe’s divine voice and harmonies, form this satisfying, scrumptious contrast that I can listen to at any point in time. I adore this specific type of songs that mix the gritty with the sublime. Here, Tinashe alternates between showcasing her pleasing head voice and mid-high range, I especially love the melodies in the pre-chorus and the harmonies towards the mid-end of the song. And as I mentioned, her punctuality comes through when it comes to giving me the music I need, when I need it. It’s one wonderful “end of the summer” song that firmly stayed on rotation in September as well, I’ve mentioned this trait of Thirsty on my page previously, but the song feels like a warm rain with all its textures and bliss. Fresh, timeless and flawless simultaneously.

💿 VIP - Isabella Lovestory

Previously seen in the Amor Hardcore era, Isabella knows how to do a good, intricate, attention-grabbing rollout: From the single choices to the accompanying concepts and visuals, she really lets you know that she’s back and about to show what being a real multi-media artist looks like. After the Helter Skelter inspired, kind of dramatic and theatrical, even, neo-reggaeton IL2 lead single Botoxxx, came the West coast hip-hop influenced BANGER that is VIP. I’ve been on the VIP wagon since May 11, when she teased it on a live-stream, and coincidentally it was the only unreleased song I could properly screen record, and I was hooked right there and then. That didn’t stop me from breaking the YouTube Music loop button on June 7, the actual release date of the song. Firstly, one thing Chicken (VIP’s producer, Isabella’s long-time collaborator) is gonna do is turn a track into a complete earworm with synths alone. Once you hear that trap synth pattern, good luck getting that out of your head for a good couple of months at least, not like that’s something you’re gonna want to do anyway. Secondly, Isabella’s earthiness and showcase of confidence is in a different dimension specifically on this track of hers. The bars and delivery are extra sticky, and I quite gravitate towards her singing/rapping in a deeper voice. Overall, VIP was pretty much THE summer anthem for me as well as instantly topping my personal Isabella Lovestory song ranking, however I am looking forward to her outdoing herself once more on her next project. (Embedding the SoundCloud link because the song sounds differently mixed in the MV, however as mentioned I highly recommend giving Isabella’s MVs a watch.)

💿 Underground - f5ve (+ an incredibly niche girl group redemption arc)

My mutual @nayeonline (whose music reviews I highly recommend checking out btw if you haven’t) made this compass diagram of girl groups and their concepts, and while the compass pertained to girl groups, they asked me about J-pop girl groups that pulled off something cute-futuristic. In a way, if we stretch and reach, this was a manifestation of f5ve’s 2024 comeback(s) and rise to recognition. After the debated (and overhated imo because have we heard the Umru remix?) “pots and pans” trap debut Fire Truck under the name SG5 and a Sailor Moon concept, they rebranded as their current name alongside an “intergalactic agents” direction, and came back with Lettuce. The first comeback was cute but was on the line of losing me due to the… puzzling visuals (literal lettuce involved out of nowhere) and the song not being as interesting as it could be. After garnering more fans through relatable, “chronically online” social media humor, f5ve made their real grand entrance with the rollout of Underground. This is where the girl group concept talk comes in: the girls and their creative team finally got the precise formula to serve the perfect mix of glitzy, sweet, forward-looking and nostalgic — right in the middle of the compass.

Underground, produced by the group’s executive producer BloodPop and Count Baldor, puts down sonic roots in happy hardcore and Eurobeat, two genres I’m drawn to. The track subtly nods to fast-paced 2000s J-pop and Japanese rhythm games while bringing in sounds that the current microtrends haven’t caught up on into the pop game. It tells a story of a getaway from corporate life and workaholicism, into an underground alien club. (I described Cyberia by Meth Math in a similar way and both are happy hardcore… crumbs?) Recent “office siren” aesthetics, Japanese raves, parapara and dekotora are some of the sugar and spice for the flashy, well-defined music video and visuals. What I love about this overall release and f5ve’s current direction is the precision of everything. The vision truly has settled for the music, the sound design, the concepts, the promotion and everything that makes up the group’s artistic and commercial identity. The audio-visual world f5ve are trying to convey is crystal clear, which is a trait I absolutely yearn for and something that desperately needs to be achieved more in pop music. Underground is pointy and straight-forward, it’s a throbbing pop tune that presents itself as very much one, however not only is it done with such excellence that it becomes an advantage rather than “just another girl group pop song”, but also with where f5ve and the team behind them are heading right now, there will be room for versatility while their said identity and uniqueness remains fully in tact. These girls are on a roll and I can gladly say I’ve BEEN standing with them.

💿 Hot Mess - aespa

Get up, it’s K-pop cybergirls aespa serving EDM realness o’clock. After their debut album Armageddon, which contained some of aespa’s absolute peaks but unfortunately was underwhelming as a whole album, the girl group make their Japanese debut with a triple single (or double if we’re excluding Zoom Zoom which was previously released as the Beyblade ending theme). With Hot Mess, aespa drift from the density of Supernova and Armageddon, and return with a more poppy song and a more frisky theme while staying true to their origins. The track possesses the sharp trap foundation of Savage while introducing a sax (don’t let that throw you off like because it’s done in a way that fits really well), and it all forms something possibly 2000s/10s Vocaloid J-pop coded, especially with how textured but bright the production is. (I don’t think I need to mention the vocals because, come on, it’s aespa we’re talking and they’ve sung times more difficult stuff.)

As for the visuals, aespacore is versatile after all: it doesn’t only have to mean the metallics and the digital world, it can also be flipped into more luminant æ-emblems, pastel-colored 2000s editorial aesthetics and posing on a scanner à la the cover art for Electro World by Perfume. The music video plays around with many of the core elements and past scenes that aespa have had to offer, and it’s why I think it deserves a lot more appreciation. The Rocket Puncher, Xenoglossy, Armamenter and ED Hacker equipment take a more techy and down-to-earth form, while their users undergo magical girl transformations straight from beloved fantasy anime. This is a great choice for a Japanese debut especially, as well as the nostalgic sticker filters going on in the scenes for the second verse. Besides, Ningning now has a whole pink gas station to set on fire instead of Giselle’s house, and the girls are giants during the daytime with their heroine main character outfits, and the iconic flying Winter scene in Supernova gets a callback. All these self-callbacks are the most wholesome thing ever to me, it’s a such good nod to aespa themselves and their memorable past moments, while standing firm as a full-fledged music video on its own. It brings me an insane amount of joy, to me it’s literally dopamine in the form of a YouTube link.

Something I want to mention is how surreal it feels that aespa’s garbage fire record label is finally catching up with the value of consistency, giving us seasonal music instead of using the group as either unreciprocated piggy banks or shields during idiotic infighting. However, I am never a company devotee so I must also mention that aespa should’ve slowed down with the tours, and it’s unfortunate how said consistency came at the expense of the members’ health, due to the other side of the mismanagement coin. aespa we love you, SM you won’t get anywhere near the pearly gates.

💿 Blink Twice - Cecile Believe (Tender The Spark*)

One of my favorite things about keeping a closer eye on musical connections between artists, such as checking on artists’ producers, labels and collaboration circles, is frequently discovering new gems, and sometimes quickly getting into the artists I’ve been meaning to tap into. In this case, I’ve been severely missing out on Cecile Believe, who’s known for collaborating with SOPHIE (most of the vocals on Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides are by Cecile), Shygirl, Kero Kero Bonito, A. G. Cook, Namasenda and more. Back in late June, around Blink Twice’s release, Sega Bodega welcomed Cecile into his new record label ambient tweets and posted about Blink Twice, and while I was kind of late to the party, having only listened to the song in July, I was blown away by the vocals, the production, the sound design, the atmosphere and everything this track had to bring to the table. At first glance, the message is simple and effective: blink twice if you wanna escape from a loveless, hollow life, into the oblivion of company and euphoria. The song itself is almost like a hazy labyrinth, with the howling and pluck synths as well as the echoed and looped vocals. One thing about me, though, I adore motifs and details, and in this case, eyes and vision are the centerpiece, both physical and metaphorical. Blink, say it with your eyes, I’ll show you how I believe in you. Such a spot-on choice to accompany the misty, dusk-like worldview of the track: Cecile, indeed, shows us a gateway to her musical and inner world, and leads us into believing, by both expanding our vision, leaving us wanting more, and blurring it, leading us to getting lost in the world of Blink Twice.

💿 Junebug - Raveena feat. JPEGMAFIA (Where The Butterflies Go In The Rain*)

“Free therapy” is a colloquial phrase thrown around for music possibly more often than it should be, but in Raveena’s case, there should be academic studies on the healing powers of her mp3 files. In full seriousness. Her work, her songs, her projects go beyond warm hugs; Raveena gently caresses her listeners with her sugary voice, sincere lyricism, lulling melodies and contagious sweetness. What she does just heals my spirit, and shout-out to @timetravellingkitty for motivating me to experience that more and building up hype (at least on my dashboard) for a new chapter in her book. Junebug, the third single for the new era, currently remains my favorite off of the gorgeous new album. Maybe it’s just me being a sucker for a BEAT, but the drums and jazz organ immediately had my ears perked up. A key change, heartfelt vocals, beautiful storytelling are some strong suits of Raveena songs that reappear here as well. JPEGMAFIA’s verse not only fit the tone (which is, in all honesty, the bare minimum for features despite the mark being missed one too many times), but is also an addition to the story Raveena presents to us both with the lyrics and delivery. And let me mention the lyrics and the main theme again: it’s a romantic-melancholic tale of lovers that can only really last while the daytime is longer, as in the junebugs that will have to close themselves off when the sunset starts coming early. Wow, there really are musicians that will paint you a whole world using notes and lyrics and create it all on what’s most likely a casual Tuesday.

💿 Bubble Bath - AJ Tracey

This year, there were numerous high quality viral tracks with artists getting the recognition that they deserve, some of which include some all-time faves, but my personal nomination for “2024’s summer hit that got away” is undoubtedly Bubble Bath. AJ Tracey is a figure that the UK rap scene should be more thrilled to have, I’ve been a casual listener of his since hearing Wifey Riddim 4 on Shygirl’s Cover Mix for Mixmag (once again thank you Shygirl, because me getting into AJ AND Brutalismus 3000 through one DJ mix?). While I admittedly haven’t checked out his whole catalogue, from the recent stuff I’ve heard, he pulls off smooth laid-back flows (a quality you’ll appreciate if you’re anticipating more from Yuki Chiba) without leaving out the effort in his bars, sound and visuals (with all due disrespect, Central Cee and a good amount of other male rappers can catch it). This single by AJ, currently his most recent one in an ongoing immaculate single run, incorporates a music box synth into a catchy Afroswing base, and the verses and chorus are simply irresistible, replaying in my head to this day. With the intensity of a lot of the music I keep in my usual rotation (no shade whatsoever, I still LOVE my overloading music), the high-quality simplicity and casualness of this track adds to the variety of my tastes. “Bubble bath on the nail, she a Goyard girlie, she could short hair, bob it, or curly” specifically deserved a publicly acknowledged “one of the most fun lyrics of 2024” title.

Mini-reviews

🏁 survival dAnce - 4s4ki: Call it @pocima payola, call it bias, but you can never deny that 4s4ki never misses with her music and deserves her seasonal spot in these lists. Wonderful flip of a 90s J-pop classic by TRF with banging production. The music video is one of her best to date. Encapsulates the energy of the fandom really well, and by that I mean me and my oomfs that I converted into 4s4ki fanship really move like a cult. (She also teased this song in July that I STILL expeditiously need her to release. That honestly deserves a review of its own. In the meantime, stream her new EP Collective Obsession, which I will be reviewing as well 🫶🏻)

🏁 SCARYHOT - Taichu: Owing my Taichu discovery to @a-moth-to-the-light and @lilamala, she’s such a hit-making baddie and I quite dig her aesthetics. Her music has been on replay for my neoperreo-pilled soul, and the thumping house beat and confidence of this track was no exception. Oh, and another sick MV from the season (flash/strobe warning, view with discretion)

🏁 POPPER! - Akriila & Taichu: More neoperreo, more Taichu AND a new fave artist to keep an eye on. Honestly I loved Akriila’s entire epistolares album (another possible future review alert) and still struggle picking a favorite track off of it, but there’s something special about this type of noisy neo-reggaeton.

🏁 RED OUT - Kenshi Yonezu: One of the fathers of J-pop dropping a new album AND the lead single being the gritty electronic perfection I was craving more from him? I’ll take your entire stock, thank you. fogbound got its most worthy opponent yet.

🏁 Check - FLO: R&B princesses coming through as always and adding a Miami bass bop to their flawless discography. And remember how I was pleading for a debut album from them on my last entry? They heard me. So hyped for Access All Areas, out November 15 🙏🏻

🏁 Tartady - Ayau & A.boo: I have a soon-to-be-long post praising ALPHA sitting in my drafts, and if you’ve stuck around on my page this summer, you know I’m a huge enthusiast of their discography and the voices of their vocal line. A.boo on an R&B song was one of my wishes from the group, and I got that with his collab with the Kazakh alt pop delight Ayau. The music video being teased and not released is evil, though.

🏁 Senen Basqa - Madi Rymbaev & i: More exciting ALPHA features, this time with Aqzhol and his sweet higher range. As you can tell I’ve been needing more house in my life during the summer, which ALPHA’s group releases really showed out with, and now we get this piece leaning into garage too. It’s a yes from me.

🏁 GAME - echo: Hypertonic by TAN’s sister, and that’s already a huge compliment considering both are 2000s Japanese electropop inspired magnificence. I still can’t believe I discovered echo and this song on Instagram because the music promoted on there leans closer into being torturous, but this is a deeper cut with actual immense hit potential.

🏁 Bikini - Nick Léon & Erika de Casier: Firstly, can anything involving Nick Léon and/or Erika de Casier go wrong? The two are back at making magic after winter favorite Erika-Shygirl joint track Ex-Girlfriend (you can read the review on that in the winter installment of my music highlights), and now we get this Brazilian funk-dembow-trance sunset soundtrack.

🏁 Goodbye - Sumin & Slom: We’re SO back with the release of Miniseries 2, the entire project is a valley to lay in all day but this song especially does so much with its beautifully arranged minimalism.

🏁 Fugitivo Vol. 25 - Lua de Santana prod. Rico Rosa: Last but absolutely not least, Lua de Santana is a star. Rap, MCing, vocals AND it girl factor, she has and delivers all of these. It’s about time that such a talent will shake up the Brazilian funk scene.

I’m gonna be honest, I’m most likely missing a couple releases I was enjoying lots, but thank you so much for reading about my very late take on a 2024 summer playlist ❤️‍🔥 your own recommendations and feedback are encouraged

[wooyoungisbaby]

(hi sorry im late but!) utopia, answer, star 1117, fever and oh one day at a time ofc 💖

Questions from here :) Ty for sending an ask!! <3

· Answer: what is your favorite ateez performance? This!!! I don't know a lot of performances ig, i'm still catching up on the last 5 years of #content. But!! this one is SO good, and i'm so proud of them!! it's wild how hard they're slaying the vocals while dancing :')

· Star 1117: you have 24 hours with your bias. what is the thing you are doing first? - Wooyoung and Seonghwa: Clothes shopping :3 - Mingi and Yeosang: Go to an amusement park and have fun :)) But I'd love that with Woo and Hwa as well. For all of them, the important bit is that it's smth that can be a topic of conversation as we do it so we can chit-chat casually and it's not like an interview where i just grill him about what it's like to be an idol xD After the initial thing, i'd also want them to meet my dog Lilla and see my art! Maybe sing together since i'm lil bit of singer too. Tbh i'd want them to teach me some dance moves too, that'd be fun i think, even though i'd be so so embarrassed. Oh oh!! Also I'd love to watch ateez' MVs with them and tell them my fave songs and what i love in each one. it'd be a longass session :')

· Fever: what sort of concept do you want to see ateez try? i would love for them to do a mv that's like a medieval(ish) fantasy thing ;u; some of them would have littel elf ears, Wooyoung would be a horny bard, Yeosang would be a sorcerer.. . i don't think they'd ever do this but God i want that so bad. something that's epic in the original meaning of the word pff<3 i love fantasy things like that, and i think they would slay.

· One Day At A Time: free question. take things one day at a time and don’t be too hard on yourself. i love you 💕 :')) love you tooooo and i hope you're taking your own advice eheh <3