Whether you love them, or even if they infuriate you beyond words, the cute concept is a staple of the K-Pop genre. It is a style mostly saved for the girl groups, but it is also common for the males to turn on their aegyo-power in certain songs to show their versatility as performers. So get comfortable, and ready yourself to feel all squishy inside as we give you a selection of the cutest K-Pop around!
1. Girls’ Generation (A.K.A SNSD) – ‘Gee’
This song is a huge favourite of many K-Pop fans. It was actually the first K-Pop video to gain 50 million views on YouTube, way before the time when PSY’s ‘Gangnam Style’ took the world by storm. We see the SNSD ladies in all their cute glory in beautiful slim, coloured jeans. You can also catch a glimpse of SHINee’s very own Minho at the start.
2. H.O.T – ‘Candy’
Even if you aren’t really into any first generation K-Pop idols, you surely know this one! This one has been subject to a lot of recreation by the second generation and you can tell that it is regarded with a lot of love by many South Korean pop music fans. H.O.T are dressed quite ridiculously, in now infamous fury costumes. The song’s content is a little less cute however, as they talk about wishing to break up with a girl until they become enamoured with her all over again.
3. Apink – ‘U You’
Apink are one of the sweetest girl groups around. Their concepts usually openly embrace the ideal of the cutesy girls-next-door. This particular MV shows the girls having lots of fun together. The addition of cartoon bubbles and effects to show the members’ emotions add to that lovely cute feel.
4. Super Junior H – ‘COOKING? COOKING!’
This is another song that has a message a little less cute than it seems at first. The boys lament that their girlfriend can’t cook at all, suggesting that marriage is out of the question because of this. They endure her terrible cooking with faux happiness, until they discover that she has been taking cooking classes and that her skills have drastically improved!
Super Junior H (A.K.A Super Junior Happy) are a subgroup well-known for their silliness. This MV certainly doesn’t disappoint on that front. It also features the aegyo Queen SNSD’s Sunny!
5. Secret – ‘Starlight Moonlight’
Secret are another girl group that never shy away from the sugary-sweetness of a cute concept. This single shows a little more of a conservative version though. The song itself is possibly a lot more cute than the concept however, with cute, feminine dance moves to match. Keep an eye out for appearances from a few members of B.A.P too!
6. KARA – ‘Pretty Girl’
Okay, so this song was back in the very early days of KARA, and it does sound a lot like a garish disco tune played in holiday camps for kids. However, it is probably one of the most catchy K-Pop songs in existence – listen once and you will most certainly have the song on playback in your head for the rest of the day. I just thought of it without listening and it’s stuck there!
7. T-Ara – ‘Bo Peep Bo Peep’
One of the most surreal concepts going here. T-Ara themselves have discussed how appalled they were at this concept when it was initially pitched to them. The big animal paws have become instantly recognisable though. Partly thanks, perhaps, to the countless parodies from male idols and comedians alike. Sing it together now: “Bo Peep Bo Peep Bo Peep…!”
8. BOYFRIEND – ‘Boyfriend’
These guys debuted with this song full of loveliness. The members are pledging their love in this video, asking to be a girl’s boyfriend. I’m sure a lot of fans are more than willing to oblige!
9. Tiny-G – Minimanimo
The girls from Tiny-G are pretty cute without even trying, but this MV shows the girls in some very sweet and colourful dungarees, with cute hairstyles to match. They really pop against the contrasting simple set design. The song of course, is also full of cuteness.
10. Orange Caramel – ‘Ai-ing’
Yes! The cutest sub-group around! These girls live, breath and eat cute (maybe). Take a look at any of their music videos and you will be continuously confronted with cute. This song in particular embraces all that is aegyo, using that classic Korean cute expression “Ai-ing~”.
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What do you think of this playlist? Are there any tracks you would add?
