#kpop july releases

[averagekpoppermideko87]

LE SSERAFIM 'UNFORGIVEN' (Feat. Nile Rodgers) | Short K-Pop Review

I reviewed LE SSERAFIM 'UNFORGIVEN.' 'UNFORGIVEN' is the title track from LE SSERAFIM's first studio album 'UNFORGIVEN.' The group collaborated with legendary musician Nile Rodgers. He featured on the track. The track and album were released in May.

[fingerheartselcaapologists]

July Music Video Release Masterpost

For groups Mod Ferret has knowledge of, there were 35 music videos released! This post is a collection of the releases with links to their official music videos. Please read pinned for more information regarding tags!

7/1/2024

'Forever' - BABYMONSTER Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: Minor Kpop Idols, 5th Gen, YG Ent, Girl Group Music Video: Link

'Sticky' - Kiss of Life Korean Single Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: CW: Alcohol, 5th Gen, Girl Group Music Video: Link

'Cheeky Icy Thang' - STAYC Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: CW: Alcohol, 4th Gen, Girl Group Music Video: Link

'Songbird' - NCT WISH Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: Minor Kpop Idols, 5th Gen, SM Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Honeybee' - CHUU Korean EP Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, LOONA (former), Solo Music Video: Link

7/2/2024

'Fallin'' - Park Chorong Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 2nd Gen, APINK, Solo Music Video: Link

7/3/2024

'We'll Never Change' - TXT Japanese Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 4th Gen, HYBE Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Hot Mess' - aespa Japanese Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, SM Ent, Girl Group Music Video: Link

' 나홀로 (Feel Lost)' - JU-NE Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, iKON, Solo Music Video: Link

'Don't' - Lee Chae Yeon Korean EP Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, Iz*One (former), Solo Music Video: Link

7/5/2024

'Home' - Hyuk Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 3rd Gen, VIXX, Solo Music Video: Link

7/8/2024

'Love and Fear' - Xdinary Heroes Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, Band, JYP Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Heaven' - Taeyeon Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 2nd Gen, SM Ent, Girl's Generation, Solo Music Video: Link

'Klaxon' - (G)I-DLE Korean EP Flash: Uncertain Tags: 4th Gen, Cube Ent, Girl Group Music Video: Link

7/9/2024

'T.P.O' - Youngjae Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, GOT7, Solo Music Video: Link

'Lights On' - Weeekly Korean EP Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, Girl Group Music Video: Link

7/10/2024

'Earth, Wind & Fire' - BOYNEXTDOOR Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: Minor Kpop Idols, 5th Gen, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Serious' - FTISLAND Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 2nd Gen, Band, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Justice' - Dreamcatcher Korean EP Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, Girl Group Music Video: Link

7/12/2024

'coco water' - WheeIn Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 3rd Gen, MAMAMOO, Solo Music Video: Link

'XO (Only If You Say Yes)' - Enhypen Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, Boy Group, HYBE Ent Music Video: Link

7/13/2024

'참아본다 (I Still)' - Lee Dong-hun x Park Je Up Korean Single Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, A.C.E. Music Video: Link

7/14/2024

'The Giant' - APEX Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 4th Gen, Re-Debut, Boy Group Music Video: Link

7/15/2024

'Walk' - NCT 127 Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, SM Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'월화수목금토일 (All Day)' - ONEW Korean Single Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: 2nd Gen, SHINee, Solo Music Video: Link

'My Type' - LEE SEUNGHOON Korean EP Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, Winner, Solo, YG Ent Music Video: Link

7/16/2024

'Flat Coke' (feat. Lee Young Ji) - pH-1 Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, Solo Music Video: Link

7/17/2024

'Dive' - Twice Japanese Album Flash: Uncertain Tags: 3rd Gen, JYP Ent, Girl Group Music Video: Link

7/19/2024

'Chk Chk Boom' - Stray Kids Korean Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 4th Gen, CW: Gun, JYP Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

'Who' - Jimin English Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, HYBE Ent, BTS, Solo Music Video: Link

'Gibberish' - THE BOYZ Japanese Album Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 3rd Gen, CW: Gun, Boy Group Music Video: Link

7/24/2024

'Superpower' - Julie & Natty, Mark Tuan Korean Single Flash: Unsafe (Presumed) Tags: 5th Gen, 3rd Gen, CW: Alcohol, Kiss of Life, GOT7 Music Video: Link

'I Do I Do' - KARA Korean Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 2nd Gen, Girl Group Music Video: Link

7/26/2024

'Xtra McNasty' (feat. Jessi, Awich, MILLI, Ramengvrl, Lil Cherry, MIRANI, Maliibu Miitch, CAMO) - Jay Park Multiple Languages, Single Flash: Uncertain Tags: 3rd Gen, Mature Audiences, CW: Alcohol, 2PM, Solo Music Video: Link

7/31/2024

'You&Me' - Super Junior D&E Korean EP Flash: Safe (Presumed) Tags: 2nd Gen, SM Ent, Boy Group Music Video: Link

Robin from the Books That Burn podcast and associated review blog. Books that Burn Can Be Found Here

[throwing-roses-into-the-abyss]

the entire kpop industry is trying to get that big summer hit huh

[leafostuff]

Her money dont jiggle jiggle (but her boobs sure do) [FT. Lightsum Nayoung]

Tags: Smut, Quickie, Titjob, Dirty Talk, Hooker!Nayoung, BFH-ish,

Author's Note: Part of @i-am-lifeform24's Project, was supposed to be a standalone smut but I figured that the idea is best for this project and he was kind enough to let me into it late, this counts as my July upload

thank you, and hope you will enjoy this fic

================================================

"So? You are the next customer?"

You gulp, not sure what to say to the beautiful girl in front of you, her clothes resemble the look of a popular college girl: a frilly white lace corset top that revealed her surprisingly cute belly and navel, paired with a denim skirt that left her thighs exposed for you to see.

Meanwhile you were just sitting there, nearvous and shirtless since those were the rules of the club, "Uhh yeah... here's the receipt" you answer, its obvious you are trying your hardest not to stare at her chest while you hand her the recipt, you still a bit surprised that you were convinced by your friends to spend 100$ on this new club, but the premise of real kpop idols being hookers was the nail in the coffin to get you to come.

As the girl finishes scanning the recipt she throws it to the side, "Okay good enough" she says nonchalantly while she gets closer, making you feel nervous by the second, and you are not the only one as just a look from her toward your pants causing her cleavage to displayed to you forms an erection, rolling her eyes she says in a tired voice, "whatever, let's get this over”

One swift motion and her top is thrown to the side, wearing no bra as instead her breast reveal their true form to you, almost freeze in place from the spectacle in front of you, however no time to waste about admiring them as she goes in to straddle your lap while her hands now work on taking off your belt from your own jeans, giving you a little wink during the process.

After what feels an eternity (Or maybe that girl is really into strip teasing you) your cock is finally released from your pants, standing long and hard in front of her eyes, “Not bad…not bad” she quietly mutters as she hops off your lap and kneels in front of you, “you mind if i…” she asks.

“Uh…sure?” you are a bit surprised that a hooker asks you in the first place considering how she didn't ask for your opinion when she straddled you and took your pants off, but regardless she laughs at your response while she lowers herself toward you.

However you didn't expect her to grab her tits with both hands and let them envelope around your member, her eyes lock into yours with a big grin as she begins her work, rubbing her chest up and down on your cock, each up causes her tits to fully hide your tip while each down she lightly slams her chest onto your thighs while her lips lean in closer giving your mow exposed tip a small kiss, sending tingles to your brain that make your moans to grow larger in response.

“Oh i love how you are so nearvous, it's adorable” she says, eyes still on you meanwhile you are looking at the ceiling, “And how you are so hard for me even though i am just getting started” she adds, try to look down at her but your vision is now blurry from the amount of pleasure you receive from her

“Nngh” is the only thing you manage to mutter as the rest of your attempted sounds turn into unintelligible moans, meanwhile your hands hold the fabric of the sofa you are on, each movement of hers drives you insane while she can't help but giggle.

“I can't wait for you to release all of that cum in there all over my tits, just let yourself loose while i will drain you from all of that cum” Her dirty talk is deadly while her pace is getting quicker and her smile grows wider at each rock

“Yes yes yes, come on i can feel it on your balls, release it, you know you want it,~”

And that's the final blow for you and as an expert at her job she knows it, so just as you are about to cum she lets her lips latch themselves into your tip and as strings of cum flows into her mouth you could feel yourself getting relieved by the second.

Finally she releases her mouth from you while she rises up from the position, “Oh wow, that was… *sigh* surprisingly fun” she says, catching her breath while she cleans some leftover cum from her face and tits, some of it she takes with two fingers and puts inside her mouth while she beams a smile at you with a confident wink

Look at the time, you could swear that an eternity passed from the moment she started pleasuring you but in reality it's only been 15 minutes, and it seems those 15 minutes were not enough for her.

“So… I have some time left before my next customer and usually I would have kicked you out to get ready but…” she stops, giving you time to finally gain your composure and look at her again, now taking her hands work on taking her denim skirt and hot pink panties off her body, now leaving herself fully naked in front of you.

“Since you are kinda cute and VERY big, I don't mind having some more fun, so what do you say?”

She asks, once again she straddles your lap but this time her back is facing toward you leaving her ass in full display in front of you only centimetres away from your cock getting inside, meanwhile both her hands grab yours, taking them toward body as she leaves each of you palm at her naked chest as by instinct you let your hands grab each tit.

“Ready for the real fun?” She looks back, another wink coming at you as it seems almost aphrodisiac how her winks get your member hard again.

=================================

Posted at July 14th, 2024

[sageistri]

Jimin had a solo era where he had 10 days of mostly local promo except for Jimmy Fallon for his 6 song EP (1 b-side + 1 title track) in Mar 2023 + 1 collab (with Kodak and Jvke) in the F&F movie franchise in May 2023 + 1 collab with Taeyang of Big Bang in Jan 2023 with accompanying mvs for both collabs + 1 fansong released on christmas week 2023 with 30 hours of notice and recycled footage for its mv + 1 documentary released on weverse in Oct 2023.

JK had a solo era where immediately after hiatus he released left & right in June 2022 with Charlie Puth who's pretty famous in his own right, a world cup song in Nov 2022 and performed solo in the opening ceremony which was watched by 1.5 billion viewers. He then proceeded to release Seven in July 2023 with latto who's also pretty damn famous in the west with Grammy winning producers and an accompanying mv with Han So Hee. Seven is perhaps the most payola'd kpop song of all time - I can't even list it all down without making this ask huge but suffice to say that with all the ads and playlisting on several platforms including tth from day 1 and some help from spotify to keep all his combined versions together instead of splitting them and probably a tiktok heating deal - seven managed to stay on top of global for weeks and netted a bunch of records.

However moving on, JK performs at good morning america, is supposed to perform at the mtv emas (gets cancelled) and announces his next single 3D with Jack Harlow at Global Citizen Fest at NY releasing in Sep 2023. He also has a collab too much with kid laroi and central cee in Oct 2023 with an accompanying mv. After that we're gearing up for his all English album release in Nov 2023 with a 11 track album. He has features from major lazer and dj snake and songs composed and produced by the likes of Diplo, Ed Sheeran and Shawn Mendes. He goes on to perform snty at Jimmy Fallon, Times Square and iHeartRadio live. While none of his songs post seven are as heavily payola'd, they're still very well promoted. In Dec 2023, he releases a remix of SNTY with usher with an accompanying mv. He also features in hots in single I wonder in March 2024. Finally he's released a fan song never let go for festa in June 2024 which is a fansong but has a bunch of benefits usually seen for digital singles but no MV.

Obviously I haven't mentioned everything like their ambassadorships, their single bad decisions with benny blanco (mostly because I forgot about it), smaller promo like suchwita, JK's radio interviews, his visualisers, Jimin's Korean shows, either of their mnet performances, their myriad of tiktoks, their dance performances on youtube, JK's week-long station head parties or accompanying Yoongi on the D-Day tour. Plus as I said I can't mention the full length and breadth of JK's promo compared to Jimin in smaller aspects like number of remixes / remix albums or cd stock because this'll go on forever. And of course this is only the status as of today. We know pjm2 is coming as is probably a documentary for JK and their travel show together. Though I've probably missed out some things for both, I think I've covered the main points of both the solo eras.

There's a bunch of stuff happening here. For one JK's solo era is spaced out very well regardless of who else among BTS is releasing. While other members are clustered in specific times to avoid overlap, JK manages to have the most well spaced out solo era sometimes to the detriment of a member whose promo he might be encroaching on (debatable but I think it's true). The world cup gig which undoubtedly went to BTS being co-opted as JK's solo has never sit right with me but whatever. People can delude themselves about how in demand JK is but the truth is Latto, Jack Harlow and others probably got very well paid for collabing with JK and were certainly approached by Hybe / SB projects rather than the other way around. Same goes for them putting the full force of their marketing department in netting all those performances in the US plus awards. The new jeans controversy gave some insight into how Hybe can use their leverage to net spons, awards and performances when they want to. The fact that most of the collaborators JK had are good buddies with 🛴 isnt lost on any of us. JK's almost exclusive focus on the western market with all English songs is also noteworthy. I haven't even mentioned Jimin's sabotages because I can see how it's debatable but certainly JK's team at Hybe / SB projects were at the least way more careful handling his releases than whoever the hell is running things for Jimin at Hybe even if you don't want to acknowledge the sabotage he went through or the sheer disrespect of having his album release cut off by another members. Also not going into the bs with the delay in Jimin's RIAA certification just so that JK could get that first kpop soloist title or the insanity of Jimin's billboard sales filtering versus JK's premptive itunes preorder for seven before the official announcement of the BB rules change and helpful midweek sales updates that seven had.

After all this, it's amazing that JK's main point of comparison is Jimin. The fact that jjks and armys still feel this compulsive need to compare JK with Jimin after he releases something inspite of JK's peers supposedly being Taylor Swift now (their words not mine) speaks to both how JK was unable to capitalize on his heavy marketing and records versus how much Jimin was able to achieve with Face and Like Crazy.

JK managing to get the most likes on tiktok, staying on charts after heavy playlisting, becoming the darling of kpop stans - notoriously known for being visual stans and extremely fickle, and getting a bunch of kpop awards at the end of 2023 and probably 2024, having the most name recognition among all the members, still needing most of his streams for SNTY to come from Thailand, having album retail sales equal almost the same as Jimin inspite of the huge difference in gross album sales - are these really worthy accomplishments after this extremely long list of moves he's made? Jungkook was very popular to start out with and has always been the darling of armys - to the extent that he managed to avoid getting boycotted inspite of being associated and working with a bunch of zionists for golden. Apart from his new kpop fans, did he manage to net new fans during his solo era though? Or are his main fans still the armys he started out with in the first place from his time in BTS? Is this what anons in your asks think we're supposed to believe is impact?

Impact is what happened after BTS released Dynamite and Butter. A breakout star or single is what Baby was once upon a time for Justin Bieber or Espresso is to Sabrina Carpenter today. You get gp fans when you release good music like Olivia Rodrigo or Billie Eilish. You get critical acclaim when your albums have overarching themes that were carefully constructed and thought out like Beyonces albums. Your solo fanbase becomes more dedicated when you share parts of yourself in your music like Taylor Swift does.

When you make an album with care and dedication, then even when your label doesn't give a damn about you or actively tries to suppress you, your song can still chart more than a year later with your solo fanbase working dedicatedly towards you. That might not be a PCA, but it's a damn sight more valuable imo.

Sorry for how long this got. I just kept remembering more and more stuff to include...

Wow... This is such a perfectly summarized version of the major points and opinions we've all had since jimin's debut... I love it, this is probably the best ask and best post related to this whole thing i have ever read.

It is good for pjms who still ask certain questions about stuff we already talked about and I can never find the exact post where we already talked about it so I'll pin it.

[nayeonline]

Ari's K-Pop Roundup: July 2024 (aespa, KATSEYE, KISS OF LIFE, STAYC, tripleS, + MORE)

last months installment ✦ full masterlist welcome back to episode SIX (!!!) of this review series I started back in february - I've tried a lot of review formats in my time on kpop tumblr, but this one feels the most fun to do, and is by far the most well received. thanks so much to everyone who likes, reblogs, or even just reads these rambles, I appreciate it so much <333 This month was pretty fun from the get go so lets go get into it ~ ari

Hot Mess - aespa

A month and a half after their first korean full album, aespa have dropped their first proper foray into Japanese releases with 'Hot Mess'.

This is a classic aespa style track, like something off the 'Savage' or 'Girls' mini albums. Powered by a distorted trumpet base melody and filled with vocals delivered with a hyperconfident attitude, 'Hot Mess' is very Bratz doll, very Y2K. The chorus is reasonably catchy, but the verses fall somewhat short in my opinion, and the post chorus feels slightly out of place? The bones for a great song exist within 'Hot Mess', but for me the song peaks at 'good'. Is it anywhere near on the level of 'Supernova' or 'Amargeddon'? No, but it is cute and shows off the aespa members' skills well, as a debut song should do.

Giselle, as the member who speaks the most Japanese, is the BEST on this song, she sounds the most comfortable in her delivery and the tone of the song suits her style perfectly. Ningning is also a huge highlight of this track.

'Sun and Moon' is a classic SM style b-side, half way to a dance track, half way to a ballad. Where 'Hot Mess' highlighted vocal tone, 'Sun and Moon' emphasizes vocal range and the runs the members can pull off - in that sense it is the perfect b-side for a song like 'Hot Mess'. It's an easy hit, I like it a lot.

'ZOOM ZOOM' has actually already been released, so I won't delve into that one today, but the tl/dr is that it's a 10/10 aespa dance track that is forgotten about FAR TOO OFTEN.

Overall, this was fun. 'Hot Mess' didn't quite do it for me as much as I would have liked, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The b-sides are great, and as a debut, it works well. With their influence on the Y3K aesthetic in japan, success over there is inevitable and I'm wishing the best for them as always.

Touch - KATSEYE

If nothing else can be said about 'Touch', at least it was a decent song this time around.

Let's not lie, you can hear the PinkPantheress print on this song as well as I can, and while that results in an enjoyable song, it does not bode well for the future of KATSEYE. The derivative nature of 'Touch' isn't inherently bad - PinkPantheress coded songs have been popping up in kpop frequently over the past year or so (though granted never quite as obviously referential as this), but contextually the song is a bizarre choice. Even though their 'Debut' was released last month, KATSEYE is still extremely fresh on the scene, and every choice they make right now in musical, conceptual and creative direction will impact how they are perceived by global audiences.

Making music that sounds like a another artist will almost always tarnish your reputation and brand as a soloist/group UNLESS the artist you are emulating caters to an entirely different market. For example, ILLIT got backlash from kpop fans both inside and outside of Korea for emulating the sound of NewJeans, but the discussion of Tinashe's undeniable influence on kpop is limited to select groups of international fans. KATSEYE are trying to appeal to the western market presumably, so while 'Touch' imitating PinkPantheress may result in a few million streams and TikTok song of the hour status, it does nothing to build a brand, create a signature sound, and make a name for KATSEYE outside of kpop. Not to mention, it sounds unconnected from 'Debut' sonically, tonally, and conceptually, further meddling with any chance they have of building an iconic (in the original sense) discography.

However, this concept did seem to suit some of the girls better, Yoonchae especially seemed comfortable taking the centre this time, she was the star of the song for sure.

I would be remiss if i didn't bring up the song length after bitching about it so heavily last time, so here we go for round two. From 'Debut' clocking in at an appalling 2 minutes and three seconds, the HYBE overlords have blessed us with SIX MORE SECONDS on 'Touch'!!! At least this song calls for a bridge slightly less than 'Debut' did, but regardless this is absurd. I may be glad that the recession has triggered a resurgence in upbeat pop music from the west with BRAT summer and all that, but if it means song length shrinking by minute every year, I'm not sure if it's worth it.

Sticky - KISS OF LIFE

Kiss Of Life are just KILLING it, every release has been fucking incredible and 'Sticky' is no exception. Built on a foundation of afrobeats and powered by spirited vocal runs from all the members, 'Sticky' is the perfect song for the summer. It doesn't over-complicate itself, this is a song all about wearing short-shorts in the blaring July heat and having a blast with your friends. the melodies aren't especially new but they are classic and highly enjoyable. Hanuel is the beating heart of this song. Her vocal tone is on the more nasal side which usually means she's delegated to the verses or adlibs while Natty takes the frontline, but in 'Sticky' she is centre stage and I couldn't be happier about it. Natty and Belle take the post chorus sounding incredible as always, and Julie punches up the verses and post chorus ad-libs with her citrus-esque vocal tones. All the girls come together on the chorus in a chant thats been stuck in my head since I heard it. This and Chuu's 'Strawberry Rush' are my songs of the summer.

If 'Sticky' is a midday bike ride along the beach, 'Te Quiero' is a midnight beach party lit by campfires and neon swimsuits. Its the perfect b-side for 'Sticky', equally as addictive but slightly more unique in its construction. The strings on this track are to die for, and the lyrics are surprisingly enjoyable too.

A great single album for the summer months, Kiof have done it again - are we surprised?

Cheeky Icy Thang - STAYC

STAYC's last couple of releases, 'Bubble' and 'Teddy Bear' have been highly divisive, and while they didn't perform poorly by any means domestically, they were pretty unpopular among international kpop listeners. It seems HighUp recognized this lack of interest, and when the head prophet said the omens were right for STAYC to have a full album, they dropped the more childish concept and circled right back to 'RUN2U' - and now we have 'Cheeky Icy Thang'.

To be honest, the first couple of times i heard this song I didn't get it. My main impression was that it was messy - there were too many elements fighting for dominance, too many hooks, too many words in one line. And while I do still stand by some of those elements (you cannot convince me Sieun says 'rock' in the line 'on-the-rock whiskey ring-a-ring ding-dong'), but now I see the song as more maximalist than messy. I consider 'RUN2U' to be one of the most polished and well executed kpop songs of all time, and 'Cheeky Icy Thang' is not that at all - but it's charm comes in how rough and chaotic it is. While yes, the lyrics did need a second draft in some cases, notable exceptions being Sieun's '미녀와 야수면 내가 Beast' in the intro (excellent, no notes), the song's structure is genuinely a masterpiece - J's subversive pre-chorus having that tinny answerphone layer was amazing, easily the best part of the song. The production is top tier throughout, but that is to be expected from Black Eyed Pilseung.

It's difficult to pinpoint what exactly is so charming and subversive about 'Cheeky Icy Thang', because on paper it is neither something new for STAYC, nor something new for the industry at large in terms of concept or sonic style. However, what this song does that is so odd for kpop is that it does not put all of its eggs in one basket at all. Kpop songs, especially kpop songs post the TikTok era (thanks SO MUCH for that Zico), tend to be top heavy, and concentrate all the fun and creativity and catchiness into the chorus. 'Cheeky icy Thang' does not do that - the verses are a treat, the pre-chorus is a stunner, the breakdowns are groovy, and the chorus leaves us just satiated enough to keep listening. Crucially, 'Cheeky Icy Thang' cannot be compressed, and while they undoubtedly will make a dance challenge out of it, you cannot get the full experience of this song from a 20 second soundbite, as you can with so many other songs coming out right now.

### - tripleS

Lack of music video aside, '###' is the perfect tripleS japanese debut. A lovechild of anime intros and tripleS's iconic maximalist sound with a tS trademark 'lalala' post chorus, EVERYTHING about '###' is deliciously addictive. It's hyper-cute to the point of psychosis, and the members vocal delivery is perfectly imperfect.

Like a year ago I started yapping about what I called 'love island pop', and with this review I would like to introduce another micro-genre my prefrontal cortex cooked up 'Rhythm Heaven Fever pop'. Basically, music that sounds like it wouldn't be out of place in a Wii U rhythm game from 2011. '###' fits this perfectly, other notable examples being 'Dumb Dumb', 'Rookie' and '#Cookie Jar' - Red Velvet, and 'BBoom BBoom' - Momoland. This is the kind of music that keeps kpop going in my opinion, it's been a steady undercurrent of the trending sounds over the last 3 generations, and I am more than glad to see tripleS stoking the embers.

Such an unabashedly FUN song, it never takes itself seriously and that works FULLY in it's favour. Definitely a must-listen track from the July roster.

MINI REVIEWS:

[ALBUM] MINISERIES 2 - SUMIN & Slom: Wasn't sure if I should include this since it's not really kpop, but what the fuck SUMIN IS BACK BABY and yeah its another FUCKING BANGER of an album. Just go listen to it. I might do a separate review of it because it's just that good, so expect that in the next 2-5 business years. Just go stream it.

Klaxon - (G)-IDLE: For all I don't really like (G)-IDLE's music, I can usually admit that it is at least catchy. And yet, somehow Klaxon is not that catchy? The first line of the hook feels like a bizarre Frank Sinatra interpolation, and that post chorus does most of the heavy lifting for this track. Overall, this felt pretty derivative, but hey, sometimes a throwback isn't the worst.

FOREVER - BABYMONSTER: Babymonster are leaps and bounds away from my stan list, and even though this is vaguely something different from them (not really, it's just that there isn't an empty chorus), it's once again not for me. The vocal mixing on this song is very odd and as a result any emotion or power the girls used in their vocals is totally lost and tonally the song falls flat. The key change in the final chorus is a nice touch, and Pharita and Haram especially shine on this track. The fact that this was somewhat 'something new' gives me hope though - perhaps all is not lost over at YG. Perhaps.

Something Ain't Right - XG: XG are so consistent in the quality of their releases it's actually insane - from the production to the hooks to the vocal direction this is such a fun song. I don't know if I love it as much as TGIF or New Dance from X-GENE, but it's a very solid release. XG are well and truly the ones to watch, and the dichotomy between this and 'Woke Up' proves that perfectly.

Let It Burn - H1-KEY: You know, this was so close to being one of several contenders to be included on my mini reviews segment that just get cut, but this release really shocked me. I went in with almost no knowledge of H1-KEY, I had heard of them, but I had no idea what the concept was, who the girls were or even how many of them there were. 'Let it Burn' is a fucking delight from start to finish. A lot of these kpop takes on punk rock anthems fall flat for me, but this one keeps it honest and heartfelt throughout. The lyrics are honestly a delight, the chorus is fun, but the verses are the real star of the show, snappy and well delivered, and backed by a clean, classic hip-hop beat. You probably missed this track this month, and I would definitely recommend a listen.

JUSTICE - Dreamcatcher: Trust me, I am SO CLOSE to getting dreamcatcher to click for me, and 'Justice' proves that. It's lowkey fucking amazing, SO well executed. I truly think I am one discography deep dive away from falling in love with DC, this song is SUCH A BANGER. I really appreciate how DC never sacrifices their unique sound for whats trending, no one else is doing what they are doing, and holy hell are they doing it well.

Don't - LEE CHAE YEON: It's cute? I guess? Not overly spectacular, but not spectacularly awful either. I still don't know who the fuck Charlie is.

[pnutbutter-n-j-elyy]

UPDATE

Heyyyy my sunshines!!!

I hope you guys liked the Pt3 I put out for the Maknaeline Clinginess Angst!! If you haven't read it yet check it out ;)!!! I JUST updated my Masterlist post-You'll notice there are a lot more things added onto it that I have not released yet. To keep myself more organized with requests and manage my posting more efficiently (my schedule still won't be completely set because unfortunately I'm a mood writer regardless of whether or not I have time 🥲🥲🥲) - I've decided I will start posting my TBR's. Meaning you guys will be able to see what I will be releasing - which will help me manage tags better as well. And will help those of you who like my page; who are not on my permanent taglist and want to know when I post. IF you would like to be tagged message me WHICH post you would like to be tagged on and I will be tagging the first 10 tag requests + those who are on my permanent taglist as of today- June 28th, 2024. FOR REQUESTS I will tag the person who requested the fic. The one catch is I can only really tag if you don't request anonymously. I am a judgement free zone and I want you guys to all feel safe and comfortable on my page and with me as both author and friend. So if you do have a request and you want to be tagged with your request feel free to request freely. I will NO LONGER be sharing the FIC requests via POST rather I will note the title and genre of the fic in the masterlist to - - A. Keep you anonymous EVEN IF you decide to not remain anonymous when you send the message -B. Declutter my page by minimizing posts Me not sharing requests does NOT mean I won't share any of the messages you guys send. A lot of you send me encouragement and compliments via my inbox so I will occasionally share those messages since they make me smile :) Despite me not sharing request answers and just putting them straight on the master list you can STILL choose to be anonymous when requesting. I just want to make sure you all know that you don't have to feel afraid of me judging a request or anything of that nature if you DO decide you would like me to know your user so you are automatically put on the tag list for that fic before the 10 spots are filled. It will be first come first serve for all of them so I do apologize if you don't make it onto the taglist for that fic, but I trust you'll find it at some point after its release. My masterlist post will be updated EVERY SUNDAY; so you guys can start the week with knowing what's up 🙌🙌🙌! Okay sorry for that long informational rant but here's another shorter one.

I will be dropping an Enhypen masterlist. The same rules stated above go for the Enhypen list once it is up and running. But since it isn't I will be taking 2 requests for each member and 1 request for OT7. Again- it is first come first serve so I'm sorry if I don't get to your request 😓😓😓 I WILL BE TAKING REQUESTS UNTIL JULY 2nd (sorry for the short notice 😓) FOR ENHA. Once the Enha masterlist is up and running - which will be by July 3rd my pinned post will be

THE MASTERLIST MASTERLIST (read this is Lord Garmadon's or President Business's voice idk why but it just sounds right) - this will be the masterlist to all my masterlists - which will soon be expanded out into different kpop/misc fandoms/ misc works in the future (ig; TXT, BND, ZB1, ATEEZ, potentially some anime fandoms, snippets from novels I have started to write).

BUT ANYWAYS AS ALWAYS-

Stay SAFE. Stay SANE. And most importantly-

Stay SLAYING. 💅 Love you all ☀️☀️☀️

[fictitouscore]

BEST SOLOIST (FEMALE) IS A GRAND PRIZE AKA DAESANG AWARD!

Who's the best soloist in the fic? Meet the eight amazing female artists who are nominated for BEST SOLOIST!

BORN IN THE CAPITAL OF THAILAND, naiyana’s introduction to the world was bloody and wretched. She danced because her m jiho loved when she danced, enrolled in singing lessons, and was whisked to seoul to audition at a company she didn’t know. because she ought to put her talent to good use, no? \\ @xonaisu

VERONIKA  (  베로니카  ),  a  fictional  female  soloist,  emerges from the shadows with  unique  haunting  music  style  and  witch-themed  visuals.  her  self-titled  debut  album,  released  alongside  an  intense  music  video,  created  a  buzz  in  the  industry  with  its  dark  and  mysterious  theme.  the  concept  resonated  strongly  with  audiences,  who  were  drawn  to  the  blend  of  mythology,  witchcraft,  and  music. \\ @iamvercnika

HEEJIN KWAN, also known by her stage name, ASTELLA is a fictional soloist that originally debuted on July 13th, 2017 with her former group PARADISE, and later in late 2021 as a soloist is managed by STARSHIP Entertainment. \\  @heejinkwan

Dayna Seo was originally set to debut with CLC, but due to a lineup change last minute. she was benched. That's in the past because now she is a talented producer, creating all of VIVID's songs alongside Sora under the duo name SoDa. She finally made her solo debut on January 12, 2021, with the single "거기너!" and has also contributed her songwriting and producing talents to various idol tracks, working closely with Sora. \\ @alwaysvivid

Sora first gained widespread recognition by competing on Unpretty Rapstar in 2016, where she placed 3rd, and Produce 101 from 2016 to 2017, just missing the final I.O.I lineup by placing 12th. Her solo debut came on April 4, 2022, with the release of her debut album CHERRY under Angelico Entertainment. Every song on the album was written and produced by Sora and Dayna under SoDa. Sora’s creativity and artistic vision have made her a standout figure in the music industry. \\ @alwaysvivid

Judy (judi. 주디, often stylized in all caps) is a soloist managed by cult creative. The singer was originally a part of Project HotPink, she debuted with Heart Attack in the spring of 2013. Gaining the name disaster rookie due to her debut being a complete disaster. it wouldn’t take long for the singer to redeem herself, however; the release of Purple Night did wonders for her failing career — peaking at two on the Gaon Digital Chart and securing her two end-of-the-year awards. \\ @anqelsweep

SHIM MIYEO, also known as MEW is a fictional south korean soloist under glasshouse inc. she debuted in 2017 with a single album, CATz TALK. originally under alfea labels, MEW was in the lineup to debut with VENUS TRAP in 2020, but after a conflict in her contract, she left the company three years earlier to debut as a soloist. \\ @mimcw

CHLOE KWON is a kpop SOLOIST and CEO of LOVELY RECORDS. she was first introduced in the survival show SIXTEEN, where she placed 10TH overall, just missing the final lineup of TWICE. she then debuted as a SOLOIST less than a year later, skyrocketing in popularity. \\ @chloekwon

  ┈─★ ⠀⠀⠀CLICK HERE TO GET TO VOTING!

[angryorbit]

A list of abuse that FIFTY FIFTY, the Kpop girl group behind "Cupid", was subjected too by their company ATTRAKT and CEO Jeon Hongjun:

FIFTY FIFTY were under constant surveilance by CCTV

FIFTY FIFTY had daily BMI checks

FIFTY FIFTY were not given proper meals

When the parents of the members brought them food, the food was thrown out and the members were insulted

One of the members ran away from the company due to stress, had multiple panic attacks, fainted, and woke up with a ventilator

FIFTY FIFTY members had panic attacks often

Whilst making around $4.5 million in US markets, the company forced FIFTY FIFTY to pay THEM $2.2 million.

CEO Jeon Hongjun lied about selling his car and house to support the group

CEO Jeon Hongjun lied about getting FIFTY FIFTY a dorm in an expensive part of Seoul

FIFTY FIFTY have filed criminal charges against CEO Jeon Hongjun for fraud

The staff of ATTRAKT have said that the 8 billion won invested in the group was not used for the group. Their debut album cost 1 billion won, and Cupid 1.25 billion won. The other 5.5 billion won has not been seen.

ATTRAKT has disclosed Aran's surgery without consent

EDIT: ADDED INFO BELOW

For 12 out of 33 months, the company gave FIFTY FIFTY zero money to pay for food. For the months that ATTRAKT did provide FIFTY FIFTY with meals, they spent $41 a month.

It was often the managers that brought FIFTY FIFTY food and not ATTRAKT, so ATTRAKT bared no expense.

It took NUTRITIONISTS AND HEALTH EXPERTS to complain before ATTRAKT allowed FIFTY FIFTY to eat at a nearby salad shop, but were only allowed to spend around $8.21 a day.

The CCTV surrounded almost all corners of their dorms and were personally viewable in CEO Jeon Hongjuns office.

The diet prepared by the agency only consisted of chicken and butter coffee.

Translated quote from a health trainer in 2021: "Lack of protein and vegetables. Please provide breakfast. Insufficient supply of nutrients, essential nutrients must be consumed. Konjac jelly should be used as a snack, not as a meal replacement."

It was not until July of 2022 that a nutritionist was consulted ONCE.

ATTRAKT claims they spent around 750 dollars a month on meals, but this includes the meals of multiple trainees, photographers and a fifth member that was supposed to debut in the group.

Translated quote from FIFTY FIFTY's legal representative: "The agency only provided each member with a menu, but most of the members took care of purchasing ingredients, cooking and eating, and reported to the company using photos."

There is revenue from FIFTY FIFTY's first album, but it was put directly into another company instead of ATTRAKT so they can avoid taxes.

ATTRAKT is releasing a remix of Cupid featuring Sabrina Carpenter mid lawsuit: it can be assumed this was done for the same reason Blockberry Creative announced a LOONA album after kicking out Chuu.

- Please do not send hate to Sabrina Carpenter and direct any negativity to the company

WE STAND WITH FIFTY FIFTY.

[itsvivace]

— VIVACE . . THE DISCOGRAPHY . . !

VIVACE is a fictional thirteen-member girl group formed by the survival show I-Doll, where seventy contestants competed for a chance to debut in a group under the company I-Teen Media. VIVACE is split into three active sub-units, but today, we’ll be talking about the main group’s music, which has captured the hearts of fans worldwide and solidified them as one of the best Kpop acts of the current generation. VIVACE has stated that they want their music to be reminiscent of the older generations in Kpop and music for girls all around the world to feel empowered by.

— 2019 - 2020 . . ORIGINS OF A SUPERSTAR . .

After the finale of I-Doll, I-Teen Media announced that VIVACE would debut in mid-September, leaving fans in anticipation of their upcoming debut. VIVACE officially debuted on September 17, 2019, with the self-titled mini album “VIVACE” consisting of five tracks, including the title track “Gee!”. VIVACE debuted with 63K album sales and Gee! charted #22 on the global charts within the first 24 hours. Gee!’s cute sound and second-gen influence attracted even more attention to the group, and by the end of the first week, both the title track and album topped the charts at #1.

With their debut a huge success, many waited for VIVACE’s first comeback, announced to be released in December of the same year. On December 12, 2019, their first single album, “QUEENDOM,” was released consisting of three tracks, including the title track, “Royalty.” Royalty captivated fans for its themes of self-love and upbeat lyrics but wasn’t enough to get it to more success than “Gee!” with Royalty charting #48 on global charts and QUEENDOM earning 15K album sales, a lot of netizens were saying VIVACE was one-hit wonders and would end up flopping after this comeback.

VIVACE would take a small break and focus on their sub-unit releases until they came back on July 5, 2020, with their second mini album, “SUMMER VACAY,” which consists of five tracks, counting the title track “Drunk In You”. Despite the low reception of “QUEENDOM”, SUMMER VACAY instantly trended for its catchy songs and fresh sound, which earned the album 98K album sales, and the entire album charted in the top ten on the global charts. SUMMER VACAY was known as the uprising of VIVACE and the start of their international stardom.

By their next comeback, VIVACE had become one of the biggest Kpop acts of 4th Gen, especially with all of the popularity their sub-units were getting. Their third mini album, “PAPARAZZI”, was released on October 24, 2020, with the album consisting of six tracks, including their breakout title track, “RUN”. RUN was a darker, more mature sound than what VIVACE usually did, but it ended up going viral just from the teasers alone, earning the album 283K sales and 8 million views in just the first 24 hours. Fresh off RUN's success, VIVACE released their first digital single, “Ladies Night”, on December 25, 2020, as a Christmas gift to fans. The song charted #2 on Melon and went #1 on global charts.

— 2021 - 2023 . . LIVIN’ IT LIKE A STAR . .

VIVACE took an almost year long hiatus as a group to further focus on sub-unit releases until they finally made a comeback with their first full album, “CELESTE”, on September 17, 2021. CELESTE is a two year anniversary album with thirteen tracks, including the title track, “YES, YOU”. CELESTE introduces a retro theme, which, despite not having done so before, fans say sounds authentically VIVACE. CELESTE sold 1.4 million copies, a huge jump from PAPARAZZI, after gaining an insane number of fans during the group’s hiatus. The entire album charted within the top 20, and the top 5 spots on the charts were all VIVACE. Fans refer to this era as the start of VIVACE’s prime.

With VIVACE releasing only CELESTE in 2021, fans went into 2022 hoping for a release sometime soon; they got their wish when VIVACE released their second full album, “MY IMPACT”, on April 19, 2022. MY IMPACT is an album consisting of 11 tracks along with the title track, “The Boys”, where VIVACE talks about their impact on the kpop industry and also empowers women not to let gender discrimination hold them back from their dreams. MY IMPACT sold almost 9 million copies, the most copies VIVACE has sold to this day, and most of the songs off the album charted within the top 10. MY IMPACT ended up being the most successful era they had so far with them winning Song Of The Year, Artist Of The Year, and almost winning Album Of The Year for 2022.

On November 13, 2022, VIVACE released their fourth mini album, “ALL I ASK”, consisting of six tracks, including the title track, “SAVE ME”. The album has a slower, elegant sound than some of their previous releases, earning the album 7 million album sales and the title track charting #3 in Korea and #9 internationally. ALL I ASK is known as one of VIVACE’s forgotten eras, a lot of fans even think VIVACE themselves don’t remember the album.

As a collaboration project with the Barbie Movie, VIVACE released “Barbie Girl”, their fifth mini album, on June 10, 2023. The album consists of five tracks, including their first English title track, “VALENTINE”. VIVACE promoted the album completely in the United States, and the album sold 7.8 million copies and charted #1 on iTunes. VALENTINE ended up being the end credits song, which attracted even more international fans to the group.

VIVACE’s most recent release, “1-800-LOVERGIRL”, is their second single album, released on December 29, 2023. It consists of three tracks, including the lead title track, “YOUNG LOVE.” 1-800-LOVERGIRL sold 6 million copies, and the title charted #2 on Korean charts and #5 on global charts. As of July 2024, VIVACE has not made any news on a comeback, including with any of their sub-units, leaving fans wondering when VIVACE will make a comeback.

[heejinkwan]

FALLEN ANGEL is the second mini album by ASTELLA, a South Korean soloist. It was released on February 23, 2024 by StarShip Entertainment. The album consists of seven tracks, one including title track NOBODY KNOWS. It is available both physically and digitally.

ASTELLA promoted the album for 4 weeks total, promoting NOBDODY KNOWS and b-side MANIAC for 2 weeks each. NOBODY KNOWS peaked at 2 on the gaon charts while MANIAC peaked at 11. although unpromoted, Kingdom Come and Lucid Dream also charted, peaking at 19 and 25 the week after the album's release. The album received global attention as well, peaking at 10 on the US Billboard 200, also charting in 20 other countries including Japan, Brazil, FinLand, Thailand, and the UK. ASTELLA won a total of 9 music show awards for this album, NOBDOY KNOWS winning 7 with MANIAC earning 3.

˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ i. the tracklist !

i. ✭ .   nobody knows ( title track )

ii. ✭ . maniac

iii. ✭ . rewind

iv. ✭ . lucid dream

v. ✭ . kingdom come

vi. ✭ . automatic

vii. ✭ . thirsty

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ get your photocards here !

*ੈ♡⸝⸝ ii. the styling !

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ iii. the reception !

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ iv. the notes !

₊˚ෆ the concept of this album was basically an omen to her performance on fictitouscore, her being a fallen angel, like the title of the album says.

₊˚ෆ the album was automatically a banger, earning a 7.2 score on pitchfork, astella garnered many new fans off of the release of nobody knows itself.

₊˚ෆ a lot of stellars believe that they should’ve made kingdom come be the title track, seeing that it’s gone so viral, but others understand why nobody knows was chosen for the title track.

₊˚ෆ astella blew up on tik tok! people already saying that nobody knows is soty and that it was the best release so far!

₊˚ෆ she did many challenges with julie and hanuel of kiss of life, karina of aespa, joy of red velvet, and yeji of itzy.

₊˚ෆ she made many new friends including yeji, who she met from being friends with karina.

₊˚ෆ and all the rumors are true! the album may or may not be about yeonjun, who she has been rumored to be dating ever since 2020 west they had a minor acquaintance.

₊˚ෆ she began being close to him while being in promise, but after leaving he was one of the only people she talked to all the time, the rest being her family, the promise members, and karina.

₊˚ෆ they began officially dating in 2022 but never actually confirms it so nobody knows is like her saying it but not actually saying it.

₊˚ෆ when it peaked number two on billboard, heejin’s family called her and they celebrated with a cake, congratulating her on her success.

₊˚ෆ she literally did a live at like 1am happy, which turned into her crying because of how overwhelmed and happy she was that the song was doing well, the comments were congratulating her and telling her not to cry.

₊˚ෆ during maniac promotions, a lot of people felt like the song did not fit the album and complained that it was being promoted and not kingdom come, which was gaining more streams than maniac.

₊˚ෆ starship released two videos of the recording process of both nobody knows and maniac, which gained so much traction on twitter and tik tok with videos with over 1m+ likes and views.

₊˚ෆ even though she hadn’t planned it, heejin ended up finding out that she will be performing at coachella 2024 in california alongside other kpop artists such as lesserafim and ateez.

₊˚ෆ even though no one expected it, rewind also ended up getting popular! after many stellars posted the song in a sped up version, making people who did even stan heejin wonder what the song was, it even got non kpop fans bopping to it!

₊˚ෆ after catching onto it, heejjn ended up posting a lyric video of rewind on her channel, and after a week it charted at number 8 on top 100: south korea on apple music, youtube music charts at number 1, and gaon chart at number 5.

₊˚ෆ stellars can really say this is their favorite era of astella so far, when the music is good how can you not stan?

₊˚ෆ very much inspired by this by @dr3amluc1d

[averagekpoppermideko87]

Stray Kids 'Chk Chk Boom' | K-Pop Review

Stray Kids "Chk Chk Boom" is the second track from their ninth mini-album, 'ATE.' It serves as the title track. Both the track and album came out in July.

[anqelblccm]

⊹˳⁺ ⠀⠀⠀ YOU’RE  WATCHING  :  WHO  IS  HERO?  THE  STORY  OF  BETRAYAL,  FEATURING  THE  CULPRIT  :  PDX101  ! 

ib.  :  midnight  theories  on  yt  ! 

final  word  count  :  1.4k

warning(s)  :  none  as  far  as  i  know,  but  do  lmk  if  you  find  some  ! 

𓂃 ⠀⠀⠀ INTRO  ! 

❝  everyone  remembers  the  trainwreck  of  a  survival  show,  aka  the  fourth  and  last  season  of  the  franchise,  PRODUCE  X  101.  and  just  like  that,  everyone  should  know  the  story  about  the  fan’s  favourite,  HERO,  who  reached  far  in  the  show  and  continues  to  do  so  as  a  re-branded  soloist.  you  better  buckle  up  and  grab  the  popcorn  because  this  will  be  a  long  story.  ❞

𓂃 ⠀⠀⠀ THE  HISTORY  OF  PRODUCE  101  ! 

❝  for  those  kpop  fans  that  haven’t  heard  about  the  PRODUCE  101  franchise  (  which  i’m  still  wondering  because  everyone  knows  about  it  at  this  point  ),  the  franchise  started  back  in  2016  as  a  female  survival  show,  where  one  hundred  and  one  female  trainees  (  hence  the  “one-oh-one”  in  the  show’s  name  )  battled  against  each  other  for  one  of  the  eleven  available  spots  in  a  girl  group  that  would  debut  following  the  last  episode  of  the  show.  the  trainees  would  do  challenges  in  each  episode,  showcasing  their  talents  and  abilities.  by  the  end  of  each  episode,  a  certain  amount  of  trainees  would  pass  into  the  next  round,  while  others  would  simply  be  kicked  out.  terrible  to  be  in  that  position  of  each  episode,  i  know,  but  something  about  this  show  intrigued  people.  oh,  and  before  i  forget,  the  viewers  get  to  decide  which  of  the  trainees  would  go  forward  in  the  show,  despite  it  having  judges  for  each  aspect  (  singing,  rapping  and  dancing  ),  but  before  you  gasp,  remember  that  fact  for  later. 

as  the  years  went  by,  so  did  the  show's  seasons,  up  until  2019,  when  this  video’s  point  begins  too.  for  some  reason,  the  fourth  season  was  named  PRODUCE  X  101,  and  it  was  for  the  male  trainees  to  compete  against  each  other  while  the  creators  of  it  could  sit  back  and  watch  it  all  go  down.  the  show  has  many  controversies,  but  for  now,  we’ll  focus  on  only  one,  or  at  least  try  to. 

the  produce  franchise  was  notorious  for  debuting  strong  project  groups  like  I.O.I,  WANNA  ONE  and  IZ*ONE,  so  people  expected  the  same  for  fourth  season  winners  X1,  only  in  their  case,  everything  ended  in  shambles  only  a  couple  of  months  later.  X1  was  supposed  to  promote  as  a  group  for  two  and  a  half  years  just  like  the  other  three  groups,  yet  they  only  managed  to  release  one  album  (  the  debut  album  )  called  EMERGENCY:  QUANTUM  LEAP.  debuting  in  august  2019,  the  group  promoted  the  title  track  FLASH  as  much  as  possible,  but  with  the  allegations  their  creator  show  received,  they  disbanded  the  following  year  in  january.  what  a  kick  to  2020,  am  i  right?  now  i’m  not  saying  it’s  mnet’s  fault,  but  i  am  one  hundred  per  cent  saying  precisely  that  because  in  july  of  2019  (  before  x1  even  had  a  chance  to  breathe  as  a  group  ),  an  investigation  started  due  to  suspicion  of  voting  manipulations.  ❞

𓂃 ⠀⠀⠀ THE  VOTING  MANIPULATION  SCANDAL(?)  ! 

❝  remember  when  i  said  that  you  need  to  recall  that  everything  was  decided  by  the  public?  well,  here’s  where  it  all  comes  together.  as  mnet  explained  in  the  first  season,  everything  was  selected  by  the  fans,  from  the  ranks  to  the  final  lineup  that  would  happily  debut.  turns  out  that  mnet  lied  and  wanted  to  change  the  trainees’  positions  as  they  wished  to,  which  was  quite  dumb  of  them  because  they  couldn’t  hide  it  well  enough  and  outed  themselves.  of  course,  the  culprits  were  arrested,  but  too  late,  in  my  opinion.  after  the  scandal  broke  out,  X1  could  do  nothing  but  (  not  so  )  silently  disband,  which  angered  fans  because,  unlike  them,  IZ*ONE  continued  promotions  as  if  nothing  had  happened.  if  you  asked  me  personally,  it  was  fucked  up  from  the  company’s  side  to  abandon  X1  and  only  focus  on  their  sister  group,  but  that’s  another  story  we’re  not  concentrating  on  right  now. 

i  think  i  speak  for  everyone  when  i  say  that  the  fourth  season  was  the  last  straw  because  it’s  when  the  manipulated  ranks  started  to  show.  just  by  releasing  the  total  number  of  votes  following  the  end  of  the  final  episode  of  PRODUCE  X  101,  fans  began  noticing  inconsistencies  for  each  trainee  featured.  every  contestant's  final  vote  was  a  multiple  of  7,494.442,  which,  if  divided  by  the  remaining  trainees,  is  impossible  because  of  how  similar  the  number  was,  and  it  didn’t  mathematically  vary  from  each  contestant.  it  was  on  december  5th  when  it  was  confirmed  that  the  votes  for  IZ*ONE  and  X1  (  and  possibly  I.O.I  and  WANNA  ONE  )  were  manipulated,  making  this  worse  for  the  fans  supporting  them  from  the  start.

to  make  things  worse,  november  18,  2020,  was  when  the  court  released  a  list  of  trainees  that  were  fucked  up  by  the  manipulations,  our  dear  HERO  being  one  of  them.  ❞

𓂃 ⠀⠀⠀ WHO  IS  HERO  AND  WHY  IS  HE  IMPORTANT  ? 

❝  so,  after  all,  everyone  must  wonder  WHO  THE  FUCK  IS  HERO,  why  and  how  is  he  included  in  this  video.  well,  you  will  know  if  you  wait  just  a  few  seconds.

HERO,  full  name  KWON  EUIWOONG,  was  one  of  the  most  known  contestants  of  the  PRODUCE  101  franchise.  not  much  is  known  about  his  past;  he  did  mention  that  he  didn’t  plan  on  becoming  an  idol  at  first  but  was  later  encouraged  by  his  friend  to  try.  his  final  rank  was  SEVEN  in  the  last  episode,  and  throughout  the  show,  his  levels  were  consistently  high  and  never  got  under  fifth  place.  need  i  remind  you  that  EUIWOONG  has  been  the  fans’  favourite  from  the  start  due  to  his  calm  nature  and  talent  in  singing  and  dancing  (  i  would  say  in  rapping,  too,  but  he  admitted  he  felt  insecure  in  that  aspect  back  then  ).  so  imagine,  to  fans’  shock,  when  he  was  called  onto  the  podium  as  the  group's  SEVENTH  member  instead  of  a  higher  number.

despite  that,  fans  supported  him  along  with  the  group,  which  some  would  say  was  a  mistake  due  to  the  d-word  (  disbandment  )  of  X1.  like  avatar  aang,  he  vanished  from  the  public  and  left  everyone  in  shambles.  he  successfully  avoided  cameras  and  dispatch  for  a  year  and  a  few  months,  which  didn’t  go  well  on  social  media.  back  then,  when  his  fans  were  unnamed  (  now  called  ODDITIES  ),  they  would  boycott  the  company  and  demand  to  know  what  was  going  on  with  their  idol.  and  as  usual,  boycotts  never  worked  for  companies  like  MIGHTY  DEVIL  and  GLASSHOUSE;  it  went  nowhere,  and  their  questions  weren’t  answered.  twitter  almost  went  up  in  flames,  and  everyone  was  seen  posting  the  same  sentence  over  and  over  again:  WHO  KNEW  THIS  WOULD  BE  THE  LAST  TIME  WE  HEAR  OF  X1  AND  HERO  FOR  A  WHILE  (  spoiler  alert:  everyone  knew,  they  just  didn’t  want  to  admit  it  ).

when  the  list  came  out,  fans  could  see  KWON  EUIWOONG  being  mentioned  in  it,  showing  that  he  was  initially  supposed  to  be  in  SECOND  place  and  not  SEVENTH  like  it  was  established  in  the  end.  pissed  and  thirsty  for  revenge,  his  fans  refused  to  support  their  sister  group,  IZ*ONE  and  flooded  the  mnet’s  comment  section  with  negative  words  and  threats.  this,  of  course,  went  almost  unnoticed  by  other  fandoms,  but  it  was  mentioned  a  couple  of  times  when  talking  about  the  whole  shitshow. 

i’m  mentioning  only  HERO  in  this  video  because,  unlike  other  trainees  whose  ranks  went  from  low  to  high,  EUIWOONG’s  went  the  other  way  around,  which  is  the  first  time  that  happened,  from  my  knowledge.  not  only  that,  but  everyone  knew  he  was  too  good  for  SEVENTH  place,  with  his  talents  and  being  named  the  ACE  OF  X1,  but  no  one  had  proof  of  it  until  the  ranks  were  released.  ❞

𓂃 ⠀⠀⠀ WHERE  IS  HERO  AND  WHAT  IS  HE  DOING  NOW  ? 

❝  the  hiatus  and  disappearance  of  HERO  was  hurtful  to  his  fans  and  other  idols.  his  previous  members  would  say  they  missed  him  and  wish  to  see  him  perform  again,  indicating  he  wasn’t  interacting  with  them  in  private.  for  some  time,  i  thought  that  was  it  for  EUIWOONG’s  career  and  was  ready  to  give  up  when  all  of  a  sudden,  it  was  like  a  blessing  from  the  angels.  the  july  of  2021  started  terrifically  for  us  because  MIGHTY  DEVIL  finally  had  the  balls  to  release  the  news  about  HERO. 

you  might  be  wondering  how  did  the  company  announce  his  return?  well,  they  technically  didn’t;  they  released  his  debut  single  one  day  and  went,  ‘oh,  here  he  is  lol’.  it’s  badass,  in  my  opinion,  because  there  wasn’t  any  pity  shown,  just  a  short  and  straightforward  debut  single  (  which  received  high  praises  and  30m  views  in  the  first  twenty-four  hours,  might  i  add  ),  bringing  attention  to  him  and  waking  up  his  old  fans.

i  know  that  he  just  debuted  (  again  ),  and  i’m  posting  this  way  too  early  (  and  on  his  birthday,  happy  birthday,  hero!  ),  but  i  am  sure  that  he  will  be  okay  and  be  able  to  showcase  his  abilities  as  best  as  he  can.  he’s  still  the  ace,  but  this  time  not  only  of  X1  but  the  whole  industry,  and  he  can  only  go  up  from  here.

interested  in  his  debut  single?  check  it  out  in  the  description,  and  don’t  forget  to  stream,  support  and  love  our  hero  as  much  as  possible.  ❞

[r5lette]

— ROULETTE'S TITLE TRACKS

listen to the playlist!

、∘⠀ ་ ⸼ ⸒ ✴ 2021!

roulette debuted on may 14, 2021 with their single UNFORGIVEN. the song was well-regarded by critics and fans alike as a breakout debut. the music video garnered 20 million views in one week and was the most-streamed debut song out of the artists signed to BE:Ond. the song granted them two music show wins. GLITCH, released in july of 2021, was roulette's first taste to the public of how drastically their musical style could change between comebacks. while the song was praised for its production, done mostly by member jihye, some felt that the change was too abrupt for such a new group. they received no music show wins from this comeback, but the song gradually became one of their most underrated classics. the tide started to change for the group when WARNING was released that november. the song's unique and odd sounds made it a target for a lot of initial hate. people believed that warning was a sign that roulette was strictly "noise music". it became such a trend to make fun of the song for being noisy, that the song became extremely popular. the main adjective to describe the public's opinion on the song is that it's an earworm. you hear those introduction sirens in the shower, at work, during an exam, and especially at a red light. again the song didn't grant them a music show win, though they came extremely close to nearly beating out senior group nct. the group performed a mashup of UNFORGIVEN and WARNING at the MAMA awards which went viral for the girls' stage presence and live vocals.

、∘⠀ ་ ⸼ ⸒ ✴ 2022!

BAD GIRL was when the trajectory of roulette's career would change forever. before, they were known as a group with amazing production and talented members, but with songs that had a lack of replay-ability to the general public. bad girl changed all of that. the song was released in february of 2022 and was a near instant success, attracting multitude of new fans. fancams of the stages went viral, specifically ones of yasmin and mei. the song won them three music show wins and was the top streamed kpop song on spotify for two weeks. soon after in april, the girls released RISING. the song was extremely well-received internationally and gained them a lot of fans throughout the world. they only promoted the song for two weeks before announcing that they would soon release a full length album. the pre-release to their album, INSECURE was a major win for aces who enjoyed roulette's more r&b inspired tracks. it gave fans hope that the album and comeback would also be full of the same sound.

fans were livid when OH! was initially released in june. people felt trolled by the group as all of their promotional photos showed that it would be a sexy and mature concept next. in response to the backlash, mali commented on live: "our concept is to divert expectations so i'm not sure why people are so surprised at the title track, especially when we have b-sides that fit the mature mold that people wanted from us. it's a fun song. if you get it, you get it. and if you don't then you must not know us." after mali's comments and a repeated listening of the song, the public couldn't deny the musicality, skill, and endurance that it took to preform the song. the song won them two music show awards. that august, on the group's one year anniversary, they released their first english track SHOOTING STARS. the song was a massive hit on both american and korean airwaves. the girls went on a press junket in america, preforming the song on shows like good morning america and the late show with stephen colbert. the group went on to win a daesang that year for best song for BAD GIRL and another bosang for best dance performance for OH!.

、∘⠀ ་ ⸼ ⸒ ✴ 2023!

in january, BE:Ond announced that jihye would be taking a hiatus from group activities for "health reasons". aces were extremely upset at this announcement, as the label is known to put members on hiatus only for them to never return. fans were hard at work figuring out the real reason why jihye was gone, hyper-analyzing videos of her looking tired, uncomfortable, or upset. the idea that maybe BE:Ond was lying about jihye's whereabouts was silenced by the release of I'M SPICY in february which was promoted by only the four remaining members. the song was another massive hit for them, their biggest since bad girl. the music video amassed nearly 40 million views in the span of a week and a half. a lot the new fans that the song attracted were only there for ROT4 and thought that the sound of the group was better without jihye in it. ROT4 stans made it their mission to make I'M SPICY their most popular song, carrying out listening parties and tiktok challenges to gain the group the maximum amount of exposure.

ROT4 didn't last for too long though, when it was announced jihye would return for their next comeback QUEEN CARD on the group's two year anniversary in may. queen card was another domestic blockbuster, becoming their biggest hit to date. the song swept the charts and earned the group another six music wins. the girls preformed at lollapalooza that june when they teased a new song that they said wouldn't be released for months. the song in question was BAD BOY, the bad boyfriend to BAD GIRL's baddie girlfriend. the song was released in october to massive critical acclaim. aces were ecstatic that they finally got the r&b comeback of their dreams. the song earned them an additional 5 music show wins and is known as a top 3 roulette song in every aces eyes. the final release of the year was their second english track, THE DOLLS in december. the song was a success both domestically and internationally, with the girls promoting the song on both korean and american shows. the song gained a lot of traction for its styling and people recreated the signature snow suit looks with their own clothes and personal flair. the song didn't earn them any wins, which was a shock to casual and die-hard aces alike who believed the song was more popular than other songs that were being promoted at the same time. when asked if she believed THE DOLLS was a flop, cherry responded "absolutely not! i don't see wins like that as an actual mark of success. it's my favorite song we've done and a lot of those shows are kind of rigged anyways." this comment caused a lot of controversy to the group, with some people saying that roulette didn't respect their fellow artists while others agreed with cherry's statement noting that the popularity of the song worldwide was too grand to be completely ignored by music shows.

[svt-nari]

fun facts about nari !

— she got ranked #1 three times in a row in the 'top15 female idols chosen by lesbian korean girls' list, nari's really famous amongst the female audience of kpop.

— people say she's one of the prettiest 3rd gen idols, she's often praised by her beauty and how effortlessly pretty she is. that's also one of the main reasons she's called eternal nari and maknae noona, she's had the same face ever since their debut. she doesn't age in people's eyes.

— nari appeared on the episode 174 of 'the king of masked singer', using the identity of 'cheomseongdae', singing the song 'observatory'.

— she also did a studio choom 'artist of the month' performance, with the song 'mushroom chocolate', in 2021. she went viral for it, being one of the most watched performances.

— during seventeen's first appearance on 'knowing bros', suju's heechul asked nari out during the filming, the members immediately declined it and told him she couldn't go out with him. then, when asked why, they answered that their noona couldn't date unless it was someone they truly knew and approved of.

— all her past partners had to go through a type of test, in which the members would secretly analyze them and either approve or say no to the relationship.

— all the hybe 4th gen groups love to talk about nari and how sweet she is to them. she often sends coffee trucks and small gifts for them whenever they are having comebacks or doing something different to congratulate their work.

— her solo song became a hit due to the fresh and cool choreography. people loved how it fit her image and her song, the members love to mimic her dancing whenever they can.

— nari has a lot of idol friends in the industry, she's especially close to loona's yves, the twice members, fromis_9's chaeyoung and jiheon, the got7 members, blackpink's jennie and jisoo, somi and a lot of other idols.

— during the 'game cateters' with the hybe groups, nari was often praised by the other idols by how effortlessly pretty she was. she also used it for her advantage since she's close to them and know their soft spots. it was also one of the few times she used aegyo for her own advantage.

— she's a big taeyeon and snsd fan, she cried lots when they reunited to release a new album after years. she was also seen at various snsd concerts, being it either solo or group concerts.

— her english name was given to her by joshua when they first met, since then, whenever she goes to the us, she will definitely introduce herself as julie.

— if she sees someone crying, she will cry too. especially if the one crying is either her mom, dad or her members. nari has a weak heart for crying, she empathizes with people a lot and tends to cry easily too.

— her favorite food is spaghetti and her favorite drink is starbucks’ pink drink. she isn’t a big fan of coffee but she does drink it from time to time.

— her favorite color is probably purple, she isn’t really sure but she loves the color.

— nari loves to receive flowers as a gift, usually at fansigns, carats tend to give her tulips, sunflowers and roses.

— her representative emoji is a butterfly due to her nickname ‘nabi’, which means butterfly in korean. this nickname started during her trainee days and lives up until now.

all rights reserved © svt-nari, 2023

[lonewolflink]

hey author! really liking WSC. I was wondering how did you get into itzy? there doesn't seem to be a lot of midzy writers, we need more like you!

hi anon! glad you're enjoying wsc :)

tbh i got into itzy sort of by chance/randomly? bit of a long/weird story lol...

i've listened to kpop on and off for a long time but never really Got Into It in a stan way (when i was in college i definitely had (and still have) a ton of blackpink on my gym playlist, and i always really liked mamamoo, but i wasn't really paying attention to kpop culture at all or any content beyond the music itself). probably the closest i ever got was bigbang, and that was only because of my massive crush on taeyang :P

i'm in the last year of my phd program right now (if i'm able to finish my dissertation by the end of june, i'll defend and graduate in july! dr. link!!), and from what i saw in my time in grad school i knew the last year basically drove every phd student completely insane.

instead of trying to curb that insanity by becoming a mildly functional alcoholic or smoking too much weed i basically decided i'd funnel that insanity into FINALLY trying to understand kpop beyond casually listening to it, like understand the culture and the standom and the whole thing.

i knew i needed to pick a group to stan in order to do that, and i didn't want it to be blackpink even though i like them, since they release music so rarely (lol). so i was like ok you know what i haven't really listened to any kpop after 3rd gen. lemme see what 4th gen has to offer!

none of the 4th gen boy groups really caught my interest in a serious way (though i do really like some songs by stray kids and enhypen), so i turned to 4th gen gg. and like. holy shit 4th gen is literally the girl group golden age???

i was sort of listening around to some of the different 4th gen gg and really enjoying them, trying to find the right one for me, and then itzy's none of my business mv came up on my recommended on youtube, and i'd seen their name around. i clicked and...well. i was hooked.

i watched a bunch of the classic mvs (dalla dalla, wannabe, mafia), that one clip of lia singing can't take my eyes off of you, and like one compilation of OT5 being silly and chaotic. after that it was game over, i knew i'd found my group.

(and also i kinda love an underdog story; i think itzy's supposed "fall off" has been greatly exaggerated and with the overhaul of div 2 employees (...hopefully the marketing team) i am curious to see if they can recapture the 4th gen gg crown)

i wasn't at all expecting to write fic, tbh, especially not for a kpop group! i've actually never done it before, except maybe once when i was 13 and then immediately regretted it because i was bad at it lol. but in one of the most stressful years of my life, it became a really nice creative outlet for me, especially because i don't really have anyone irl to talk to when it comes to kpop and itzy.

in general, i've found midzys to be such a warm, welcoming group, at least here on tumblr and in the comment section on AO3 (i try to stay off twitter as much as possible).

and i didn't realize initially when i first stanned itzy, but turns out the whole jyp fam is really awesome! obviously the company has its issues, like any kpop company, but in general the jyp Vibes are really fun, and i've enjoyed listening more and learning about twice, skz, nmixx, etc.!

since my original goal (i guess?) was to understand the world of kpop, itzy ended up being the perfect group because, well. they have done almost every sub-genre of kpop at some point. they really can do it all! and as a group they've been on top, they've had their name raked through the mud, they've had a member on hiatus (...literally announced right after i decided to stan, RIP), been in a big transition period...

yeah man idk. it's been so interesting and fun to follow their journey, learn a lot about the kpop machine, do some really fun creative writing, give in to the insanity of being a stan, and listen to some really great music along the way. :)

anyway that's how we got here! sorry for the long-winded answer hahaha i guess i could've just said "last year of my phd program, went insane, instead of becoming addicted to drugs or alcohol i decided to become a kpop addict and my drug of choice is itzy" :P