Posts by Ouija

Don't get me started on these things. We have a large field so we would get wolf spiders pretty frequently until we started spraying regularly. I don't mind orb weavers though, for the most part. They're pretty, their webs are pretty, and they tend to stay put. But the ones that run really fast have no chill. 😂

At times, I take into consideration the total efforts of the artists. With both After Life and Antifragile, you have a team that made a song for a group and the group performs it. There's not really a strong message and any message is dampened by the ones who penned it. Music doesn't always need a strong message but Nxde delivered and it is iconic.

With Nxde, while most of Soyeon's parts annoy me (and I like her so this is not a shade), she is the executive producer and wrote the lyrics. She came up and presented this entire idea by herself to Cube (before Tomboy) and fought for months to get it pushed. She had an entirely separate backup song just in case one of the members didn't want to do this concept.

And then you get to the references in the MV...

You get the Yeppi Yeppi line by Minnie in a scene similar to Marilyn Monroe's Gentlemen Prefer Blondes where Marilyn is a pretty face yet so much more than that. But to men, she is only that. So when Minnie says "Hello, my name is Pretty Pretty" (with honorofics), she's introducing herself the way men have a tendency to see women (as only a pretty face or body). That's why she says it in a cute/sexy way. Because she's playing her role. And then Yuqi comes in with a totally different vibe to say "Even if you give me a diamond tiara, I won't smile/laugh. Yeah right. Yeah right." It's a modernization of the Marilyn movie where she does accept gifts (because women couldn't hold bank accounts in their names or have autonomy over their money). Yuqi being able to say "yeah right" or "as if" shows the small social progress both in the song and MV. Also dressed in pants and wearing black. There was a time when women were frowned upon for even wearing pants.

And that's just one reference.

Then you have Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman, which was very controversial in its day for not following the same style of "proper" writing and for discussing "immoral" things like s*x. "The book was highly controversial during its time for its explicit sexual imagery, and Whitman was subject to derision by many contemporary critics. Over time, however, the collection has infiltrated popular culture and became recognized as one of the central works of American poetry." And which Marilyn read yet no one believed her or believed she could understand it...

Every painting behind Yuqi also ties into this concept. You have "The Archetype of the Masculine King", which represents toxic masculinity. As well as a painting of Daniel and the Lion's Den where Daniel is trapped and surrounded by all male lions (or alpha males), furthering the point.

The image in Soyeon's dressing room where she's reading The Daily News (which features actual clippings from Marilyn Monroe's time), titled YES I AM A NUDE. (Because they're using Nude as a noun and not as an adjective -which relates to all of the members' center stage as art pieces). The picture on Soyeon's vanity is from a time when women started showing cleavage. A step in social progression though still heavily criticized hundreds of years later. The pin-up and flapper style also reminiscing this.

The money under the tickets for the show (where Soyeon says "If you thought this was a lewd show, refunds are thataway" features "The Birth of Venus" on the $100 bill, which was "the first full female nude of a non-biblical character." Surrounding Shuhua are statues of Venus au bain (Venus at her bath). Everything ties into the concept and lyrics.

And to even start on the lyrics... Soyeon references the name 'Lorelei' which originates from the mythical being siren. And we know what sirens are famous for. It's also a reference to Marilyn Monroe's character in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes".

So Soyeon went extra nasally and could have given parts to other members (the song would have sounded A LOT better imo), but I still rate this as my first because of the thought that went into every line and the overall concept. AND the extreme hate that feminism is receiving in South Korea, the issues with molka and non-consensual videos being taken and shared of women - and the lack of justice for victims (mostly women and girls).

Also, note that NXDE cleaned the searches in Korea by hiding "nxde ch*ld, nxde female" since that is how GIDLE name translates. So anytime someone searches for such gross things (or tries to search for a specific IDLE member nxde), they are met with this song and the opening "Why you think that bout nude? Cause your views so rude." And then ends with "I'm born nude. YOU'RE the pervert." The MV translates it to "You have a dirty mind."

This is a POWERFUL song and that's why I chose it as my #1.

After Like, then Antifragile if I'm putting them in order though I don't really listen to the last one.

I have a few times. Once I forgot and ^{slept through it} since I didn't set an alarm and there was no VOD so that was a waste of money.

Streaming: Fandom, casual fans listen. Casual fans will also add songs into other kpop lists and play them repeatedly if they like it. Even the fandom will repeat songs if they like them. But some songs are hard to stream because one's head can only hear it so many times.

Album sales: Dedicated fans, fanbases, some casual fans.

I am new to this discourse but the very little I know makes me think that they have dedicated fanbases. Their music is experimental and acquired taste so it's possible not a lot of streaming will happen casually. One user suggested that concerts would be a way to tell a group's popularity in various countries and I agree.

People should also realize that NCT is promoted like mad. They have several channels with full production, sponsors, deals, etc. They are part of SM, which carries the weight of its own brand in name. Visuals, talent, etc. They also debuted in 2016 and has been SM focal boy group since that time. We're going on 7 YEARS of focus and promotions for this group. There is every reason to believe they have a strong fanbase and a strong fanbase would = sales, streams (with the latter greater supported by casual listeners).

My question is, since many people have said this is brought up often, what are people trying to suggest with the supposed discrepancy in sales vs streams?