Do you agree with my amazing song choice for top title tracks? 17
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Yes, you cooked (9) 53%
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Hell no. Get out the kitchen (8) 47%
The following write-up has been peer reviewed by a panel of industry insiders and experts consisting of me, myself and I
I will now pick what I have determined to be the best songs, biggest bops, peak songs released by each of the top girl groups of 4th gen.
Of course, I'm only picking one song per group. I'll do the easiest one first.
NewJeans: Hype Boy
- This was super easy. I love all their songs, but Hype Boy is already one of the greatest K-Pop songs to ever be released. This song is so loved, that 200 other industry insiders like myself, chose it as the Song of 2023, even though it was released in July 2022. There are literally 0 seconds of this song I don't love. Timeless classic on release, and I'm afraid I will never actually get tired of it. The verses, the chorus, the instrumental, the choreo--I call this song Pop Perfection.
LE SSERAFIM: Antifragile
- Another easy pick for me. Antitititifragilefragile Antititifragile is still suck in my head even a year later. I thought Fearless was okay, but when Antifragile queues up on my playlist, I get an instant dopamine hit. I can already say with confidence that it will remain one of my favorite songs from this generation. That little reggaeton beat, especially in that epic Kazuha bridge, is too nice. This song compels you to shake your hips no matter how rhythmically challenged you are.
- Not a controversial or surprising pick, but the best one. IVE doesn't miss with their title tracks, but this was the biggest hit for a reason. When I was on my K-Pop hiatus, I still periodically checked the charts to see who was trending, and I always wondered who IVE was and why Love Dive was popping so much. Then I listened to it, and everything made sense. One of the best K-Pop choruses you'll ever hear. Yeah, I said it.
- Okay, maybe this isn't a title track, but I like it so much better than Girls and it charted better, so can it please count? Everyone likes a little yummy yummy yummy in their tummy tummy tummy, right? This is probably my most controversial choice, and there was a time where I liked Savage more, but Illusion has aged better in terms of listenability (if that's not a word I just made a new one) and has surged past it in total play count, I'm sure.
(G)I-DLE: Hann
- This is still their best song. Don't @ me. I love the messaging coded all throughout their most recent releases, from Tomboy to Queencard, but if I'm judging a song objectively on its enjoyable sonic qualities, Hann is still the best song they've released. Another rare song where I love every part equally--verses, chorus, bridge--it just hits.
--- Bonus Group ---
StayC: ASAP
- I really have nothing to say except I think it's a really cute and catch song. I had a phase where I liked RUN2U better, but kind of like what happened with Savage, ASAP is just an easier listen for me over time. This is the song that pops in my brain anytime I see the words "StayC"
--- Where did it all go wrong? Group ---
Fifty Fifty: Lovin Me
- Cupid is a very well made song, and I still enjoy it even with all the baggage it has due to external factors, but Lovin' Me is the song that made me pause and ponder if Fifty Fifty was about to become a really special group. To me, it is by far their best song and some days I wish it had gone viral (even though it's not the kind of song that would, compared to Cupid). And now, I will never hear it performed live in its original form. Tragic.
--- Did you forget about them? Group ---
Fromis_9: Love Bomb
- If you don't know, Fromis_9 released, in my esteemed opinion, the best girl group album of the year, Unlock my World, but uh, this song isn't on it and still ranks as their best entry in the K-Pop multiverse. They have a song called Fun, but this is the most fun song they've dropped in their extremely high quality and equally underrated discography
--- I'm totally not just shoving the JYP girl groups here because I forgot to include them Group ---
Itzy: DALLA DALLA
- Yep. One of those cases where the best song for me is the group's debut song. When this song dropped, even though I'm clearly not a huge Itzy fan, it stayed on my playlist the entire year. One of those songs that Itzy will probably always have on their setlist, no matter how many albums they drop
NMIXX: O.O
- The NMIXXPop experience launched with tremendous success, and O.O will be enshrined in K-Pop history as a legen--I can't do it anymore It's actually Love Me Like This and I don't even think it's close. No song from any girl group other than maybe aespa (on this list, I mean) comes close to the power vocals of LMLT, and it's easily the funkiest song on the list. Would love to hear it live one day
Okay, I'm done cooking. Let me know how I did and please leave a candid review. If there are different picks you would've made, feel free to share them. I will also poll this list, to see how people think I did