As November draws to an end and December begins, we can finally start to begin feeling festive for the Christmas season! This month will be filled with various end of year shows, and Christmas tunes, but let’s check out this week’s latest releases!
Jun.K (2PM) – A Moving Day
Release: Jun.K returns for his newest comeback, named ‘A Moving Day’. The song self-written and self-composed by Jun.K talks of a scenario where he prepares to move away from his old house, which explains the meaning behind ‘A Moving Day’. Whilst he is in the process of moving, he is seen reminiscing the times between him and his old lover, with memories flooding around the house. It’s an interesting concept where the reality is blended with his thoughts, which is demonstrated on screen through the MV. You’ll see images of the pair expressing their love, whilst the reality is shown the moving people packing and moving his possessions. The MV was released along with his mini album ‘My 20’s’ on the 27th of November.
BLK – Hero
Release: With a brand new boy group in town, BLK hopes to build upon a fanbase through their various talents. Along with their skills in choreography, rap and vocals, the group hope to capture the attention of new fans through their acrobatic skills. The 6-member group released their debut song ‘Hero’ along with their 1st mini album ‘INTO BLK PART1. ‘I” on the 27th of November. The concept of the MV provides a East-Asian theme, whilst incorporating martial arts, as well as the scenic view, you can follow their thought process of choosing a traditional approach for their debut. Similarly to their name ‘BLK’ their outfits predominately are black as well. The chorus for the song is rather catchy, particularly the ‘Hero’ part.
Yves (LOOΠΔ) – new
Release: The newest member of LOOΠΔ has been revealed! Yves who has been revealed as the 9th member of the group, represents a ‘swan’ as her animal. As the first member to be introduced for the final sub-unit of LOOΠΔ (with 3 remaining members to be unveiled). Her name ‘Yves’ is a French masculine name, pronounced ‘Eve’ which follows onto the concept Adam and Eve. She is depicted within the MV eating an apple, similarly to the story of Adam and Eve. The description describes Yves asking Eden “Is it really a bad thing to disobey God?” which once again refers back to the biblical tale. Regarding her title track ‘new’, “Yves declares that she will be herself no matter what kind of hardships, pain, and frustration faces her.” The track can be described as bold, with a heavy beat, conveying her charismatic personality and dynamic dance moves. The MV also features previously announced LOOΠΔ member, Vivi. On the 28th of November, LOOΠΔ released their single album ‘Yves’ along with Yves’ latest title track ‘new’.
John Park – Smile
Release: John Park’s latest release named ‘Smile’ is a suitable winter ballad, for a comfortable evening. The song as it states itself, talks about the importance of smiling. It describes a heart-felt situation where smiling is the best thing you can do, particularly to erase bad memories and more. The MV concept itself is very festive, as we calmly relax ourselves listening to John Park’s soothing voice. With the winter snow falling, Christmas decorations up, it tries to provide us with the happiness of Christmas through this track. With his charming voice, you’re sure to feel at peace. Released on the 28th of November.
Fromis_9 – Glass Shoes
Release: Fromis_9 is a group who recently released their pre-debut song called ‘Glass Shoes’. They performed the track at this year’s Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMAs) in Japan for the first time, followed by the released of their digital single the next day. The group as you may know were formed through a survival program known as ‘Idol School’ produced by Mnet, the producers of popular survival shows such as ‘Produce 101’ and ‘Sixteen’. The final 9 came together to form ‘Fromis_9’ pronounced as ‘Promise’ in Korean, refers to the girls ‘keeping their promise [to the viewers]to be the best girl group, whilst the ‘_9’ is said to refer to the idea that the girls will continue on as a 9 member group together. Their track ‘Glass Shoes’ is upbeat and catchy, and has vibes of a cute J-POP style, as they parade in school uniforms. ‘Glass Shoes’ was released on the 29th of November.
KISSES – Hope You’re Ruined ft. Sik-K
Release: Another new debut, as KISSES a new female R&B singer releases her first track called ‘Hope You’re Ruined’ featuring H1GHR Music artist, Sik-K. The song which portrays conflicting feelings between wanting an ex to suffer whilst at the same time deciding whether you want an ex to be well. The scenario portrays a bad breakup overall. The song which incorporates the use of electronic R&B provides the remainders of old school tunes. KISSES voice is a soothing and rather unique R&B voice, and hopefully we can look forward to many of her upcoming releases as an artist. The track ‘Hope You’re Ruined’ along with her first single ‘K1SSES’ was released on the 30th of November.
Rain – Gang
Release: Along with the release of his mini album ‘MY LIFE愛’, Rain released his title track ‘Gang’ on the 1st of December. The track which differs from Rain’s most popular tracks such as ‘Rainism’ and ‘Love Song’ etc. shows that Rain is trying to incorporate other styles far from his own. Although the combination is rather interesting as he tries to include a more techno, westernised style, focusing on choreography, rap and repetitive lyrics. The repetitive lyrics ‘in my crib, there’s a hundred dollar bills’, are autotuned, and seem to portray himself within a gang, which refers back to the name of the song, but it’s up to the viewers whether they would deem this as a successful attempt – at least you can say his dress code attempts seem relevant to his ‘gang’ theme with a fur coat, gold chains, wearing black and an expensive car.
Baek Ayeon x Wendy (Red Velvet) – The Little Match Girl
Release: Another SM Station is back, this time with a collaboration between SM and JYP. For their latest SM Station, SM has put together Baek Ayeon and Wendy of Red Velvet, both very powerful singers, for this heart-felt ballad. The MV which features NCT’s Jaehyun is said to be based off the Hans Christian Anderson story. The winter ballad conveys the feelings of wanting a significant other to feel the hole in their hearts. Particularly with Christmas drawing closer, where Korea is overloaded with couples, for these lonesome characters, they’d want to find someone they can share their love with. The beautiful track ‘The Little Match Girl’ was released on the 1st of December.
