Kpop highlights #7 - August and September
Here we go again, this time with both August and September in one post. August was the least eventful month of 2024 for me in terms of kpop and less stuff caught my attention than usual. As that month’s highlights would have been too short, I thought posting them together was a good idea. September had a lot of exciting releases but nowhere near the craziness of October and November! Those will certainly deserve their own separate posts 😄
The trend you’ll notice here is that I liked a lot of Japanese comebacks and B-side promotions. These months were also great from a soloist perspective since eight of my entries are about soloists! I think it’s safe to say that groups usually dominate these lists so that’s a welcome change. Expect mini-essays on Taemin and Key!
Oh, and there’s a serious testosterone overload in this installment, somehow almost everyone on here is a male 😅 I AM a boy group stan first and foremost but I still try to listen to female artists a lot. Somehow there weren’t that many interesting releases by them this time!
As always, you’ll find a Spotify playlist at the end of the article. If you enjoy reading this post, please make sure to like and leave a comment. That always gives me a lot of energy to continue with this blog.
And to end this intro: I should have been doing this the whole time but look out for the end of the post cutting off in emails! I recommend reading in your browser or the Substack app.
Le SSerafim Make It Look Easy documentary
Le Sserafim already released a docuseries about their debut process but this second one was a bit unexpected. Some people maliciously guessed that it would be in response to the whole Min Heejin/NewJeans debacle but I thought it was pretty obvious that they’d be addressing the hate they received after Coachella. Even the title suggested as much.
The whole focus of the series is the invisible work idols do behind the scenes to be able to put on the quality performances that we’re used to from them. After watching idols for long enough, we might get used to the constant high quality and are prone to forget that there’s hard work involved—they just make it look easy.
I thought the documentary was very heartfelt and authentic. None of the members seemed to fake the feelings shown on camera and their concerns seemed absolutely legit. My favorite member is Sakura and she happened to have received the most hate so seeing her struggle made me really emotional. You can even see Kazuha share some of her insecurities, even though she’s usually the most collected member who lets us see the least of her internal life.
I would honestly make this mandatory viewing not just to Le Sserafim fans and haters but to all kpop fans. Some people don’t know enough about what goes on behind the scenes and I don’t think you can truly love and appreciate kpop for what it is if you’re unaware.
RIIZE Japanese single
I’m not sure what’s up with Japanese singles these days but sometimes I love them even more than regular Korean releases. Lucky, the title track, is exactly my kind of song: it’s groovy, upbeat, and disco-inspired. It fits into RIIZE’s discography as the songs by them that I enjoyed the most had a similar mood. The highlight of RIIZE releases for me is always the choreo though and that doesn’t disappoint here either.
Be My Next is similarly energetic, the highlights here are the shouty parts of the chorus, sung together by the members.
Same Key is a slower, sentimental piece. Not really my cup of tea but I know so many people who adore these kinds of songs.
ENHYPEN - Brought the Heat Back promotions
The Romance: Untold album came out in July but the promotions of the B-side track Brought the Heat Back didn’t take place until August. It was actually one of my favorite songs on the album so I was elated when I found out it would get its own MV and promo period.
First of all, I really recommend checking the MV out! It’s so freaky and I love how it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It has beautiful 80s horror movie visuals, too. I didn’t know I needed a horror comedy concept from ENHYPEN but it really fits them and they should do it more often. It reminded me of when Red Velvet does horror concepts.
The true highlights here are the choreography and Jay’s high notes. He mesmerized me right from his opening lines but those high notes after the dance break were phenomenal. The other member who really caught my eye was Jungwon, he is like a fish in water in this concept. And he looks damn hot in that sleeveless top!
I also loved how this song required strong acting skills both in the MV and the performances and everyone delivered. ENHYPEN are underrated when it comes to facial acting but they totally thrive in concepts where they need to express complex emotions.
You can read what I wrote about the Romance: Untold album in my July highlights.
Skz @ Lollapalooza Chicago
Stray Kids at Lollapalooza Chicago will go down in history as one of their best concerts and it’s also my favorite online concert so far in 2024. It was a 1.5-hour, relentless set without any VCRs, minimal ment, hardly any breaks, and on top of it all, it was an absolutely crazy selection of songs! It was deathly, I have no idea how they survived performing it, especially because Stray Kids isn’t famous for their slow songs.
My highlights were: Han Jisung going “Our shit's so bussin’” during Super Bowl, the Domino footwork which was luckily caught on screen despite the shit camerawork, Hyunjin's energy, every single time Leeknow is center, My Pace forever my queen, their glorious live singing, Chan's long high note in Maniac, the absolute madness of the Chk Chk Boom festival version, and all the songs with band instrumentation.
If you’re new to Stray Kids and want to know more about them or already love them, watching this concert is mandatory. Luckily, someone uploaded the full thing on YouTube but I’m not sure how long it will be up.
Xikers Japanese album
Xikers has a habit of swooping in out of the blue and releasing a totally unexpected banger that ends up becoming one of my favorite songs of the year, even though I sadly don’t follow the group too closely. They did this last year with Sunny Side, an unassuming B-side, and now it’s happening again with a Japanese release which is equally insane.
I like this song so freaking much that as things are currently standing, it could very well be in my top 10 at the end of the year! I love everything about it but my personal highlight is the post-chorus, I could probably listen to it for 10 hours straight. It is a masterpiece of melody—the members who are assigned to it have the sweetest, most enticing voices and it feels like I’m getting mesmerized. I also love the choreo and the simplicity of the MV, especially the part where it’s slowly panning from right to left. I’m not sure what that technique is called but I keep seeing it in Japanese videos (I remember something similar in LOONA’s Hula Hoop) and I’m a huge fan.
The B-sides Cool and Are you serious? are no less amazing.
Stray Kids JJAM promotions
I was beside myself when I learned that JJAM would get its own promotion period! It was my favorite song off the ATE album and it happened to be the second B-side that month that I adored and got its time to shine in music shows (the first one being Enhypen’s).
I love Chk Chk Boom and how it’s a bit different and more experimental for the kids but JJAM is still the quintessential Stray Kids song, both musically and visually. It bears all their stylistic quirks, has the typical 3RACHA structure and production, and the humor we love them for. The live performance and choreo are mind-blowing.
I know I’ve mentioned this several times already but Stray Kids has truly reached their evolved form in 2024 and I’m not saying there’s nowhere to go from here (I’m sure they can exceed my wildest expectations) but if you aren’t already a stan, this is the time to hop on the train!
I wrote extensively about the ATE album in my July highlights.
BamBam BAMESIS album
I was surprised to learn when I was researching for this post that this latest album by BamBam isn’t that popular. Personally, I like this the most out of everything he’s ever released. I enjoyed his first two mini albums just fine but something was still missing. It was probably just that he didn’t venture into genres that I truly enjoy but now I’m finally satisfied.
Last Parade is dark, heavy on hip-hop and the MV has striking, dramatic visuals. I feel that the rap flow, the choreo, and some of the symbolism reference queer culture, so that’s definitely a bonus for me—I’m not sure how intentional it is though. It also summons the mood of a Bosch painting, Mad Max, and ATEEZ’s Guerilla or Halazia at the same time, which are all great places to draw inspiration from. This is a fantastic direction for him, I just wish this wasn’t a one-off thing and BamBam was an artist with more of a consistent visual and sonic identity, like Key or Taemin.
I enjoyed most of the B-sides, too: Mi Último Deseo is Latin-inspired, Ball Like That is great R&B, and Must Be Nice has an alt-emo sad boi sensibility which I usually vibe with.
Fromis_9 single
I have no way of knowing what went on behind the scenes that caused the long radio silence surrounding Fromis_9 over the past 1.5 years but I'm glad they came back with such a phenomenal song. I was starting to get seriously worried about them and thought they had a disbandment air around them. Fromis_9 is a seriously underrated 3rd gen girl group full of members with amazing potential so it would have been tragic if they disbanded just like that. I don’t think we’ve had any news about their contract renewal yet so we’ll see what happens but it would be a really stupid move by HYBE to not promote them more.
This comeback finally had a proper budget and promotions but I can't figure out why this is a single album when the songs are so good and people were famished for some new music by them. From what I heard, Supersonic did really well too. I just hope the next release comes sooner and it will be at least a mini because I missed the girls so much 🥺
Taemin Eternal album
I don’t think I’ve talked about this enough here yet but Taemin is one of my ultimate favorite idols, truly a god among mortals in my eyes. I’ve been celebrating since he finally escaped the chains of being signed with SM for his solo activities but I can’t say I didn’t have my worries about him moving to a small company. BPM Entertainment has been busy making a name for themselves in the industry but I couldn’t be sure if they’d be able to handle a superstar of Taemin’s level. One of my major concerns was whether his sound or image would change considerably.
I’m glad to report that I’m 100% satisfied with this album, its promotions (there could have been a bit more but still better than SM), and the overall quality. The continuity didn’t suffer either: while the title track subtly hints at a new, more hip-hop-oriented direction for Taemin, the essence of his artistry is still there, unchanged. And most importantly, he seems really happy with how the album turned out.
Looking back, there was little chance that bigwig producers like Rhyan S. Jhun would stop working with an idol of Taemin’s caliber just because he left SM, so maybe I shouldn’t have worried too much about a drastic change of direction in his music. I did hear legit criticism from people who are much more well-versed in music production than I am that the mastering and mixing of the Eternal album is of a much worse quality than it used to be while at SM. I can’t personally comment on this but I thought it’d be worth mentioning for balance’s sake.
I know people around the internet are making fun of Taemin because of the title track Sexy in the Air and its ‘nonsense lyrics’ but I’m baffled as to why. It’s so obvious that the song was supposed to be Sex Is in the Air but it needed to be changed due to conservative Korean broadcast laws where the word sex is taboo but ‘sexy’ is hilariously not perceived to be related to it. While it might sound weird and unnatural to the native speaker, I’m fine with it, maybe because English is not my first language and thus I can allow more flexibility in its usage.
With that said, I love the title track. I love the bouncy hip-hop beat and how it manages to sound very Taemin while also introducing a new style that he’s been meaning to pursue. The choreo is phenomenal and Taemin can also show a new side here that we’ve seen less of in his solo career. I feel like most of his previous title track choreo was heavily artistic, leaning into contemporary/interpretative territory. Sexy in the Air is not a radical departure from that and still includes the signature T-pose and all the previously mentioned elements, but it adds powerful jumps and fancy hip-hop footwork that struck me as something new from Taemin.
My personal B-side highlights are Horizon (which got a great MV and promotion), Crush, and Deja Vu. I appreciate The Unknown Sea for its soft beauty and Taemin’s contribution to the lyrics but it will always be the faster-paced, groovier tracks that will leave an impression on me. I do love all the songs though, G.O.A.T is probably the most different than his discography so far with its straightforward hip-hop mood, and Say Less is a floaty, dreamy synth song that’s lovely to listen to at night and went straight to my Night Drive playlist.
And finally, I was relieved to find that Taemin didn’t leave his genderless/androgynous image behind. To me, this means that SM did not force it upon him, as many presumed. Now he is obviously the one holding the reins when it comes to creative choices and still presents himself the same way. Whatever he identifies as, he will forever remain an icon to us gender-nonconforming folks and I’m ecstatic it’s not something he felt the need to change.
NCT Jaehyun solo debut
I have a theory that since Baekhyun and Taemin signed to different labels for their solo activities, SM needed a new R&B powerhouse to follow in their footsteps. Jaehyun was the obvious choice due to his airy, deep timbre, which was just made for the genre. Some of the songs on the J album sound like they were straight-up intended to be on Baekhyun’s next album! This is, by the way, not a malicious comment in any way or means to take away from Jaehyun, it’s simply how song acquisition and selection works at big companies. Jaehyun is perfect for this role but I'm still kinda salty that that Doyoung’s solo didn’t sound more like this. If he had come out with something similar, it would have been the album of the year for me, no doubt.
Out of the two pre-release songs, Roses is more my style. It's half Baekhyun song and half like a mid-2010s Justin Timberlake song (I used to love his music before I discovered that he sucked as a person). My other favorites from the album are the title track Smoke (badass and unconventional), Flamin’ Hot Lemon (I love this kind of song), Easy (what an addictive melody), and Can’t Get You (sultry R&B with jazz and soul influence and a nighttime feel).
ZB1 Cinema Paradise comeback
Based on the teasers, I thought I wouldn't like this title track that much but it's beautiful and has so many interesting parts. It's giving ASTRO and CIX with its synth-heavy, refreshing kpop feel. After looking at the lyrics, I like it even more which is great because the previous title track left me unsatisfied in that department. Also, as a side note, I love the titles of ZEROBASEONE albums!
Like I said, I like Good So Bad, but Kill the Romeo! Kill the Romeo is the real star of this comeback for me, especially after seeing the Studio Choom video. They're the kings of fanservice choreo, that moment between Jiwoong and Gunwook is the most beautiful piece of homoerotic choreography I've ever seen and it will forever live in my mind rent-free. Aside from that, the video does a great job emphasizing that they’re superior dancers. The standout for me was Gunwook, it really is his song.
The Sea is a remake of an older kpop song and I like this genre a lot! More bangers from the 90s and 00s should be covered by new idols. Insomnia is another beautiful song, probably my favorite after Kill the Romeo. It has the kind of pulsing dance beat that I’ll always be partial to. I re-listened the album to write about it and I just realized that Road Movie is also a track that should be in my regular rotation! It’s so good, why did I not realize it before? It’s memorable with the dichotomy of aggressive hip-hop parts and dreamy vocals.
It’s great that they're not wasting any time, we have limited time with them and they've already released 4 mini albums and a Japanese single in the year since they debuted! I just wish a contract extension was on the horizon 😭🤞
Bang Yedam Good Vibes album
I contemplated whether I should add this album as I didn’t listen to it as much as some of the other entries. However, I just heard that Good Vibes didn’t do as well as Yedam was hoping and I absolutely cannot have that. He’s really underrated and I need to spread the word about what a talented singer he is.
When it comes to vocalists in the kpop industry, he is definitely in the top tier, I just wish more people would know about him. This album will mostly appeal to hardcore R&B fans so don’t hesitate to put this on if you’re one (especially if you like Bruno Mars). My absolute favorite track is Lovin’ Ya, but I also recommend Lovey, We Good, and T. M. B.
Le Sserafim Crazy album
I want to start with how fucking proud I am of Le Sserafim for coming back triumphantly after the deluge of hate they received earlier in the year. And they seemed happy and resilient during the promotions so they must get great support from the people around them and must feel the love us Fearnots are giving them 😌
Talking about the actual album, Crazy is such a fruity song, it may be my favorite by them ever! I was probably destined to like it with how obviously queer-coded it is. Even leading up to the comeback, I could tell they were targeting their foreign audience (all their pre-release promo materials were in English and their newly launched Instagram broadcast channel was English-speaking only too) and a very specific demographic at that.
They have actual black ballroom dancers (the Iconic House of Juicy Couture) in the MV and they're credited too as they should be. HYBE finally did something right with this comeback. They probably would have received a lot of hate if they did such a voguing-focused ballroom/house song without the due representation so I’m glad they avoided that minefield.
The song is freaking perfect and totally my style. I love that everyone's rapping, I was especially impressed with Chaewon and Kazuha. Their bars are popping off! Oh and the part where Eunchae, Kazuha, and Chaewon pass each other the rap sections is 🤌
1-800-hot-n-fun is another favorite of mine, they spoiled this at Coachella and I have been impatiently waiting for the release ever since. Kazuha's pronunciation in both Korean and English is so satisfying, it just scratches some kind of itch in my brain.
I also have to mention the Vogue remix featuring Dashaun Wesley. I absolutely love the space they're giving to black queer culture in this comeback, and they have a looot of queer fans, so I hope this eventually opens up some doors within Korea too. The only complaint I have is that they never got to perform with ballroom dancers in the music shows but I know Korea has a lot of space for improvement in this area so it probably wasn’t possible.
LISA - New Woman
I didn’t even check this out for the longest time because Lisa’s solo stuff has always been hit or miss for me and collabs with non-Korean artists rarely leave an impression. But it randomly came up and I have to admit it’s very good! New Woman is totally a Western pop song, both in sound and visuals but it’s also catchy and polished and I found myself returning to it from time to time.
It’s funny how I originally wanted to write here “where are the solos of other Blackpink members since they’re now out of the dungeon?” but in the time it took to write this article, both Jennie and Rosé have released amazing songs. More on that later!
Loossemble TTYL album
I’m quite satisfied with Loossemble’s company as they’re providing them with a stable comeback schedule and mini albums that are consistently getting better in terms of quality.
TTYL is a bouncy, addictive title track and I’m perfectly happy with it but the real standouts of this comeback were the B-sides for me.
I love that Cotton Candy and Confessions got explicitly sapphic MVs. This fact was apparently confirmed by the members! It’s great that they know who their audience is and it's not queerbaiting (I will one day write about why I think queerbaiting doesn't exist). Rather it's a tribute to Orbits (who I dare say are majority lesbians, bi, pan, etc.) and whatever it means to the members personally. The two songs have the same instrumental, they just have different lyrics and melodies put on top of them, and of course, a different set of members are performing both. I am partial to the song Confessions, it might even be on my year-end list.
I am also a huge fan of the B-sides Hocus Pocus and Secret Diary: both have the soft, dreamy, and electronic LOONA sound we all love. This must be their most sonically well-thought-out album so far and I appreciate the effort both idols and management are putting into this group. It truly feels like a project of love.
Baekhyun Hello, World album
Sadly, Baekhyun is the only EXO member I follow but I am a huge fan of his solo career. I’ve absolutely adored everything he’s released so far and I was anticipating this album eagerly as well.
It was a considerable turning point since Baekhyun also left SM and founded his own company along with Xiumin and Chen. Given that their agency is totally new, I was astonished by the quality of both the music and the MV. I mean, we’re talking about artists who are 3rd generation kpop royalty but still. They really didn’t spare any resources to bring Baekhyun’s creative vision to life.
And what a beautiful vision it is! In a way, it’s exactly what we’re used to from him but at the same time it’s somehow more mature and accomplished. I’m sure there is a proper explanation to why I feel this way but I can’t analyze music to that degree, unfortunately. The only thing I can grasp is that the songs have a darker vibe and something that reminds me more of indie R&B singers rather than idols who sing R&B. The song Good Morning straight up could be a song by Colde.
This is an album where it would be pointless to name favorites because I love all but if I really had to, I’d say Pineapple Slice, Rendez-Vous, and Truth Be Told.
I heard his album did especially well sales-wise and nothing makes me happier than an idol who stands up to their abusive company and manages to succeed on their own 💜
Yeonjun - Ggum
Yeonjun’s solo came a little out of the blue but it was still expected that he’d be the first TXT member to debut on his own. I couldn’t be 100% sure what kind of genre he would go for but I was guessing dance-heavy and that turned out to be correct.
I don't even know why some people are hating on Ggum, it's so experimental and fun and encompasses everything that Yeonjun is. Not everything needs to be a vocal masterpiece! It's a masterpiece of a choreography though. The fact that he does the split in every single live performance is crazy. And I appreciate that he did the music show performances live with very minimal MR, even though there isn’t too much to sing in the song. He must have known he’d be criticized for it and still did it 👏As a side note, I've had this revelation since ATEEZ's Bouncy that I started to like baby voice if it fits the song's vibe! I observed the same here, I really like those parts in the chorus.
One more highlight for me in this song is how Yeonjun plays this troublemaker, arrogant, punk character so well that some might think this is his real personality but it actually couldn’t be further from it 😂 It fits him perfectly though!
P1Harmony Sad Song album
I’ve been following P1Harmony pretty closely since their debut and even though I love their music and love the members even more, most of the time I was cheering them on from the sidelines. I already have too many groups to stan! The last comeback, Killin’ It, started to change my mind though since it was one of my favorite songs and albums of 2023. And they’re genuinely one of the funniest groups around! The Sad Song comeback didn’t help my case at all. I think I’m ready to go all in!
They have been consistently getting more and more popular but I think Sad Song is their true breakthrough song. I’m only judging based on the fact that suddenly everyone on my Instagram is talking about them and the tickets for their European tour next year sold out in seconds (I didn’t even try 😣). It’s an incredibly well-made song, it has an addictive beat and chorus, it’s danceable, and the entire song sounds like it’s on x2 speed which I think fits our short attention span world 😆
The B-sides are all amazing, my favorites are summery It’s Alright, powerful Welcome To, and the hip-hop subunit (consisting of Intak and Jeongseob) song WASP.
Favorites of the two months
BOYNEXTDOOR 19.99 album
I keep being impressed by everything BOYNEXTDOOR does and this comeback is no exception. It will be really hard to choose at the end of the year, whether I like Earth, Wind, and Fire or Nice Guy more! What a great problem to have.
In the pre-release track Dangerous they show that they're really Zico's sons. Their rap skills and swagger are sublime, and the lyrics are so funny! Jaehyun and Taesan really really impressed me with their rap in this (Taesan’s is probably my favorite flow I've heard this year), but Leehan's whispery deep rap was memorable too.
And Nice Guy is just brilliant, one of my favorite songs this year. It has everything I like: lyrics that are a little boastful but flirty, a groovy beat, retro instrumentation, and their usual jumpy and dynamic choreo. It has the most entertaining formations I remember seeing recently—I linked the one-take version from Music Bank above but here’s another one where you can see the formations better. I am also addicted to the way they perform it, with so much ease and elegance as if they’ve been on the stage for 20 years. I already said it but they always act like industry veterans when they just barely left their teenage years behind (as the album title also signals).
Out of the B-sides, I warmly recommend 20, a chill but profound song about aging that I think anyone can relate to, not just those turning twenty. For anyone curious, here’s a lyric video.
I had this vague suspicion during the last comeback that I'd never seen them lipsync. Since then they’ve started openly talking about how they've never not sung live since their debut and I was blown away. Their live singing is majestic!
To look at the bigger picture, I like how they build on Block B's legacy (without the problematic elements) and older Western pop. I can tell that the members genuinely like American music from the 50s through the 90s, and since they're self-producing, those influences resurface in their own tracks.
I'm so honored to witness this group's rise to fame, they truly deserve everything good coming their way.
Key Pleasure Shop album
Pleasure Shop once again verified my belief that Key is the master of concepts! This time, the album has a mostly electronic vibe which fits the cyborg aesthetic he has going on.
It's like Key lives inside my brain (which is a funny parallel if you watch the MV above) because he and I are so in sync when it comes to musical, conceptual, and aesthetic preferences! We're both sci-fi enthusiasts (especially into AI, robots, and virtual reality), love retrofuturism (especially from the 70s and 80s), are fans of synth and dance music, and love the aesthetic of games (especially old arcade games).
Pleasure Shop has all that but on top of it all, it’s quite the unconventional title track. It doesn’t have a bombastic arch, an explosive energy, and it’s pretty repetitive. I’ve noticed that recently more and more title tracks defy these conventions by either using a completely unexpected structure (Gold by ITZY or Get Loud by Kiss of Life) or they are just pure dance tracks like it’s the case with this song and for example, with Impossible by RIIZE or Deserved by ONE PACT. This is a trend I’d be totally on board with!
I linked so many performance videos because I was really mesmerized by his stages, even more than usual. I wish I could link even more though, all of them had amazing outfits and the stage design was outstanding for each of them.
By the way, I love every single B-side on this album just as much as the title track so there’s no point naming favorites. I’m not too critical when it comes to kpop but it’s still not too often that I encounter albums where ALL the songs fit my taste. This is one of those rare ones 😌
Even though he's famous for knowing basically every kpop choreo in existence, I don't think Key gets talked about enough as the spectacular, flamboyant dancer he is. He's very light on his feet but his combination of speed and power is rare for someone of his slight body type. He's so freaking hot too, especially in the Music Bank Pleasure Shop outfit, his waist is magical 😍
I'm always in awe of people like him who have been idols for 17 years (20, counting trainee years) and still going strong. He said he wanted to be an idol until his last breath and you can see that in his eyes when you watch him perform. People like him are just made from a different material as the rest of us.
As always, thank you for reading, if you got this far, I love and appreciate you 💜
Let me know in the comments what your August and September favorites were or if you discovered anything new through this post!