~ FEBRUARY 2021 ~

DISCLAIMER 1: All the pictures included in this article are screenshots taken by me from official music videos. If there is copyright infringement, I apologize in advance and will remove any problematic picture upon the owner's request. 

DISCLAMER 2: Viewer discretion is advised. Some of the pictures may contain sensitive content.

Hello everyone, and welcome to my top Kmusic releases of February 2021! This month was PACKED with comebacks. This one was really hard to make, especially the top 5. Honestly, the songs that are in the top 5 are all amazing, but the #1 had to be #1. The link to the YouTube playlist can be found at the end of the article as usual. Let's start!

#18 Imlay ft. Chenle (NCT) - Too Good - February 24

The beat and the melody of the song is pretty similar to this song called "Catch and release" of Matt Simons, and it's a very chill and relaxing song. This collab never crossed my mind but it's a win for me, and the MV is pretty cute too. Watch the official MV for "Too Good" here.

#17 Jun (Seventeen) - Silent Boarding Gate (single) - February 14 [CHINESE]

I may be wrong but I think this song is all about leaving everything behind and flying to another place, asking yourself when you will get used to this. And this is kind of what I'm going through right now in my personal life so this song holds a special place in my heart. Watch the official MV for "Silent Boarding Gate" here.

#16 Kang Daniel - Paranoia (comeback) - February 16

The strength of this song lies in its lyrics and its message. The song in itself is powerful (especially the chorus), the MV is really dark (sometimes creepy), and the melody very hypnotizing. The song is even more powerful when you know that Daniel has been struggling a lot lately. Watch the official MV for "Paranoia" here.

#15 J.UNA - Foolish - February 10

I really want to thank the YouTube channel Kville entertainment for making these "new kpop songs (week x)" types of videos because it helps me discover hidden gems like this one. I have absolutely NO IDEA about who this guy is, but that song is a MOOD.  Watch the official MV for "Foolish"here.

#14 I.M (Monsta X) - God Damn (solo debut) - February 19 [ENGLISH]

The best unleashed itself, I repeat. THE BEAST UNLEASHED ITSELF! I mean, this is totally different from the I.M we know in Monsta X (and it's a totally different vibe too)! I'm so glad he finally has the opportunity to express himself as a solo artist. Also, I need a collaboration with DPR IAN ASAP. Watch the official MV for "God Damn" here.

#13 Chungha - Bicycle (comeback) - February 15 

You might be surprised of this relatively low ranking for Chungha, especially that I praised the album in my full review of her comeback that you can check here. But after multiple listens, I realised I wan't even paying attention to the song. However this does not mean that it's a bad song, far from this, neither that the album isn't good. This album is in fact one of the best that has been released so far during the year. Watch the official MV for "Bicycle" here.

#12 Lucy - Hero (comeback) - February 16

You guys, they are so cute. I've been paying attention to Lucy since their debut as I always love to discover new bands, but this song is on another level. The violin is the key to me, it brings such depth and originality to the song and even to the whole group. Watch the official MV for "Hero" here.

#11 GOT7 - Encore (special release) - February 20

I called it you folks, I knew that this wasn't the end of GOT7 and that it's just a page that's turning. They made this song to reassure all of us that they'll always be there for us and sing the "encore" for us. Ugh guess what? I cried again. Watch the official MV for "Encore" here.

#10 The Boyz - Breaking Dawn (comeback) - February 24 [JAPANESE]

Ok so this song isn't fully in japanese but it's still a japanese comeback so yeah. Sunwoo and Eric KILLED their rap and they all killed the choreo (damn Juyeon…). The contrast between the vocals in the verses and the chorus is really interesting. I just can't wait to see them on Kingdom. Watch the official MV for "Breaking Dawn" here.

#9 Mark Tuan & Sanjoy - One in a million (single) - February 14 [ENGLISH]

I'm so happy for Mark, his solo career sounds promising already. This song is just soo good, and it is such a great collaboration. I seriously cannot wait for more from Mark. Watch the official MV for "One in a million" here.

#8 Purple Kiss - Can we talk again (debut) - February 3

These girls have rock-like solid voices. The technique is amazing! Their facial expressions are on point too! I seriously cannot grasp how talented idols are when they just debut! Hands down, great job girls. Watch the official MV for "Can we talk again" here.

#7 Wonho - Lose (comeback) - February 26

This MAN!!! I wonder how many hours a day he spends at the gym... "Open Mind" as a song didn't convince me honestly but this song is on a whole other level. The beat is so sexy, the bass is amazing, and the choreography is powerful. The man on his own holds a huge power. Watch the official MV for "Lose" here.

#6 HyunA - Good Girl (release) - February 3

I prefer this song to "I'm not cool" because it's easier to listen to, it's more catchy and more melodious so I can hum over the song lol. And I was honestly surprised by her singing voice! Damn girl can sing. Watch the official MV for "Good Girl" here.

#5 Gaho - Home (single) - February 3

I don't think I need to make any more comments on Gaho's voice. One of the best and one of the most unique voices in this industry. And not only he has a delicious tone of voice but his technique is on point too. The way he plays with notes is extraordinary. Watch the official MV for "Home" here.

#4 ONF - Beautiful Beautiful (comeback) - February 24

They be like "let's pump the budget up"! I seriously felt like I was watching a movie with all the robots and the futuristic world, which matches the storyline they've been going for for a while now (since "why" I think). The song is very cheerful and almost has this summer vibe, but in contrast we have a very powerful choreography. I just love this comeback. Watch the official MV for "Beautiful Beautiful" here.

Before we enter the top 3, here are some honourable mentions:

• Kim Woo Seok - Sugar (comeback) - February 7 - MV link
• Momoland X Chromance - Wrap me in plastic - February 5 - MV link
• Tri.Be - Doom Doom Ta (debut) - February 17 - MV link
• Narachan (of M.O.N.T) - Beautiful Sunday - February 19 - MV link
• J.Don (of N.Flying) - Clicker - February 22 - MV link

 

#3 ONF - My name is (pre-release) - February 19

If you guys want to get to know them, you should just listen to this song. This is the most original way for a group to introduce themselves, the song is so catchy and the lyrics pretty accurate, I just melted. Cuteness overload. Watch the official MV for "My Name Is" here.

#2 SHINee - Don't call me (comeback) - February 22

I was planning to put Shinee at #1 since they are my utimate group. However, after multiple listens, I realised that the song lost a bit of its magic. It's still an amazing song done by a legendary group (I invite you to listen to the full album, it has so many amazing b-sides), but there's one song that deserved the first place and that, after countless listens, makes me happy every time. Watch the official MV for "Don't Call Me" here.

#1 CIX - Cinema (comeback) - February 5

I'm currently witnessing myself becoming a hardcore FIX (CIX's fandom name). Movie Star was such an iconic debut, Numb had such a strong message, Jungle won my "Best MV of the year" award (see the 1st edition of my own Kpop award show here), and Cinema is just so addictive. I dare you to name a song that's catchier than this one. Watch the official MV for "Cinema" here.

There's one last song that I didn't want to "rank" because it was such an emotional song, and it's "Wish you were here" by CL. CL lost her mother not long ago and dedicated this song to her, saying how much she missed her. There's this line where she says: "Can't believe you went from mother to angel in the space of a day". This line hits hard because we forget that everything can change in no time, so it's important to say "I love you" to the people you love because you never know when they'll be gone. 

That's it for this month's top Kmusic releases! I'm eager to know what were YOUR favorite releases of the month, so feel free to leave a comment under this article or in the comment section of the dedicated instagram post (if you're still not following me there... what the hell are you waiting for T-T... kidding). 

Here's the link for the YouTube playlist if you want to listen to (and watch) all the songs at once.

Take care and I'll see you all soon ;)

Love, Swan

Hello everyone, and welcome to the summary of all the "Top Kmusic" you can find on the blog! Each month I rank my favourite Korean Music releases. I sometimes include all-english songs, Chinese or Japanese remixes, but the majority of the songs are in Korean. I hope that these rankings will help you discover new songs and new groups as well. 

2020

October

November

December

2021

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

~ JANUARY 2021 ~

DISCLAIMER: All the pictures included in this article are screenshots taken by me from official music videos. If there is copyright infringement, I apologize in advance and will remove any problematic picture upon the owner's request. 

Hello everyone and welcome to the first top Kmusic of 2021! First of all, I hope you're all safe and in good health, and that you spent great holidays despite the difficult times. 2021, at least musically speaking, started on the right foot to say the least! (G)-IDLE, Oneus, Victon, MCND and many more came back while others debuted. As usual you'll find the link to the YouTube playlist at the end of the article, so if you're too lazy to read what I have to say, you can scroll all the way down (but I'll be forever disappointed in you T-T).

So, without any further due, let's see who captured my heart this month ;) 

#16 AleXa - Never let you go (single) - January 14

I wanted something new from AleXa and I got it, and I'm really happy to hear her beautiful vocals without too much autotune. Watch the official MV for "Never let you go" here.

#15 Lex - Sip (comeback) - January 11

If you're craving a chill song, this one's for you. I personally wouldn't listen to it under all circumstances, but it's really a great one if you're feeling relaxed or if you're driving in your car. Watch the official MV for "Sip" here.

#14 Hoppipolla - Your Ocean (comeback) - January 20

A couple of months ago I stumbled upon a video on YouTube from the competition "Superband", it was a cover of Radiohead's Creep. And then, a couple of days ago, I heard this song and got chills (especially the instrumental part). Instruments are one of the best ways to convey emotions besides lyrics. So I searched them on the internet and found out that they were the winners of Superband. Turns out it was them who sang the cover. They're definitely on my radar now. Watch the official MV for "Your Ocean" here.

#13 Baekhyun - Get you alone (comeback) - January 3 [JAPANESE]

I think that this R&B/Jazzy sound suits Baekhyun really well. When he's wearing glasses with his messy blonde hair in the MV he reminded me of Ji Chang Wook for some reason… And I think we all agree that he's one of the best vocalists out there. I just think the song could've used a little twist. Watch the official MV for "Get you alone" here.

#12 MCND - Crush (comeback) - January 7

They didn't win my rookie of the year award for nothing. This group is surreal, they showed chemistry, talent and originality since day 1 and they have been constantly evolving! Now, this song is a bit too much for me in the sense that there's too much rap/shouting and not enough vocals for my liking, but they still nailed everything in this. Their album is dope tho, you should check out their b-sides, they're amazing. Watch the official MV for "Crush" here.

#11 Golden Child - Burn It (comeback) - January 25

The MV shows us a zombie apocalypse with the members fighting against them. Whoever gets bitten is infected, and the members are protecting their loved ones during the battle. The MV doesn't have English subtitles so I read the lyrics and that's when it all made sense. From my perspective, this song is referring to the actual pandemic (I could be wrong tho). However, the music and the vibe doesn't match the story at all. The music is kind of upbeat and the vocals are pretty high and powerful. So the only reason this song doesn't rank higher is because of the inconsistencies with the MV. Watch the official MV for "Burn It" here.

#10 Dreamcatcher - Odd Eye (comeback) - January 26

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With Handong finally back, the queens have returned! Now, this song wasn't able to dethrone Déjà Vu, but it's still a strong one. The chorus's melody is really catchy, and the vocals in this group never disappoints. I was kind of disappointed visually-wise because their MVs are usually much more astonishing than what they have in this MV. But this song is still a killer one. Watch the official MV for "Odd Eye" here.

#9 IU - Celebrity (comeback) - January 27

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love how IU always does things in her own way. She has her own unique and distinguishable style, her trademark. I love the message in this song being how she perceives the celebrity title. The aesthetics of the MV are making the song even better. Watch the official MV for "Celebrity" here.

#8 Boyhood - Luxury Big House (comeback) - January 8

Atypical sound, atypical style, atypical guy and I LOVE IT! This song has been on repeat since I discovered it, and I'm still not getting tired of it. The instrumental is just so calming, to the point that I downloaded both the original version and the instrumental one. Watch the official MV for "Luxury Big House" here.

#7 (G)I-dle - Hwaa (comeback) - January 11

This song is really addictive, especially the chorus. Also, their vocals improved a lot overall, and I don't think I need to comment on Soyeon's rap. Yuqi's there to serve me as always. The only thing wrong with this song is the way it ends. The ending is unforgivable. Watch the official MV for "Hwaa" here.

#6 Bobby - Devil (b-side) - January 25

I'm going to be honest, the title track wasn't my style. Although the song's message was really strong and the rap amazing, the song isn't just my vibe. However, I listened to the whole album and god, Devil is so title-track material. The balance between vocals, rap and instruments is much better in this song than in "U mad". And I'm so glad he came back honestly. You can hear the audio of "Devil" here.

#5 Chungha - X (pre-release) - January 19

The melody sounds so familiar so please, if you have any idea of which song I'm thinking of leave a comment down below! Anyways, she did again. This is her FOURTH pre-release for god's sake, and Chungha still managed to show us another masterpiece. I can't wait for the whole album to come out. Watch the official MV for "X" here. 

#4 Youha - Abittipsy (comeback) - January 13

If I were to redo my top releases of October, I would probably place her song "Island" much higher. But now that I'm familiar with her and her style, I totally got addicted. This song follows the retro trend that picked up towards the second half of 2020 and that seems to be continuing,  and what I find adorable is the little hiccup at the end of the MV. I'm mad at YG for making her train for 10 years and not debuting her, but it seems that she's got past this and is moving forward. Please support her, she totally deserves it! Watch the official MV for "Abittipsy" here.

Now, before we enter the top 3, here are some honorable mentions:

• Treasure - My Treasure (comeback) - January 11. Watch the official MV for "My Treasure" here.
• Jang Han Byul - Used to this - January 14. Watch the official MV for "Used to this" here.
• T1419 - Asurabalbalta (debut) - January 11. Watch the official MV for "Asurabalbalta" here.
• Ab6ix - Stay Young (album repackage) - January 18. Watch the official MV for "Stay Young" here.
  
  

#3 Oneus - No diggity (comeback) - January 19

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm going to 'steal' someone else's words (coco, a.k.a GZBkarma, please forgive me): "They woke up and chose violence"! This song and this whole album, this is it guys, this is what I knew they were capable of and they finally did it. I knew since Road To Kingdom that they had amazing facial expressions and it totally got translated into that song, but they outdid themselves in terms of performance and vocals. I think that on Road To Kingdom they were unconsciously setting limits when, in fact, there were no limits. And now it's like the barrier's gone and that they finally let their crazy ideas become reality and I'm here for it. What impressed me the most is Hwanwoong's energy, Seoho's and Leedo's vocals, and Xion's mullet. Watch the official MV for "No Diggity" here.

#2 Victon - What I said (comeback) - January 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm mad because yes, I slept on them for a while. But I promise I'll be sleeping on my bed from now on. Seriously, the instrumental in that song is FIRE. My favorite part is 100% the pre-chorus because members sing/almost rap at a relatively fast pace while still being able to showcase their vocals if that makes sense. And oh my god Hansae... do I even need to explain that this guy is a genius who raps like no one else does? Watch the official MV for "What I Said" here.

#1 Victon - Flip A Coin (release) - January 17

I liked this song more than the title track of the album, but don't think what I felt can be expressed in words. It was like cupid aimed his arrow at the very center of my heart. I noticed them with "Mayday", I fell in love with them with "What I said", and I sold my soul to them when I heard  "Flip a coin". As soon as Seungwoo sang/almost shouted the first two lines in the first verse in his high-pitched voice, I went kaput. My heart is still hesitating between Sejun and Subin, but knowing that I usually fall for maknaes (Taemin in SHINee, Dino in Seventeen, Hueningkai in TXT, Niki in Enhypen) I think Subin's coming for me. Watch the official MV for "Flip A Coin" here.

That's it for today! You can click here to access the YouTube playlist with all the songs included (the songs are in reverse order meaning the song in the last place is up first). And you? What were your favorite Kmusic releases of the month? Let me know by leaving a comment down below!

Love, Swan