Posts by HyperionZero

Well, to start... AI means Artificial Intelligence. Meaning, "the ability of a digital computer or computer-controlled robot to perform tasks commonly associated with intelligent beings." This would imply that even the voices aren't real, that the Mave members are simply computer programs with a mind of their own, and that's not what Mave is. And it's important to make that distinction because there's a difference between being an AI group and what they actually are.

Mave is a group where instead of you seeing the real singers, you're seeing a CGI model in their place. Everything else comes from a human being. It's the exact same as a VTuber who sings, only Mave has a MUCH higher budget than your average Vtuber. Think of Aespa, but imagine if instead of them having the four members plus the Ae-Member concept, it's only the Ae-Members BUT Ningning, Winter, Karina and Giselle are providing the voices and motion capture. Or KDA, but unrelated to any previous media and you don't know the faces behind the CGI models.

As for people being skeptical... I wouldn't write it off so quickly. After all, Vocaloid has been around for YEARS, and Vocaloid is a series vocal banks that producers can use to create their own songs. People have been making Miku songs from at least as early as 2008. I think this was inevitable with how technology is becoming even more ambitious, the pandemic just made it come quicker. Will it replace human creativity? I certainly don't think so. At least -- not yet. I think we're still a ways off. But, this could be a way for companies to debut singers that may not have the right "looks" to succeed but have the skills that are too good to waste. Or for those who have anxiety, but still want to be an idol. They can use it to cut costs for certain things such as transportation, there's way less risk of scandals occurring between the members, and if a member needs to go on hiatus/leaves the group, they can find a replacement easier compared to how risky of a situation that'd be for a typical idol group.

People liked KDA. Whether it's because of League or because of the amazing notable voices behind the characters, what made people stay is the music. In the end, that's all that matters. If the music is incredible, people WILL tune in, even if the concept is something they're not used to. But they have to nail the execution and going off what I'm seeing, I think they know what they're doing. It's not going to replace human idols, and that's not the intention. With this, you now have the option of having both Virtual AND Real idols. But will it be a successful idea? We'll have to see.

I'm not sure, I guess when the music stops being interesting to me. I've never been the type to have a stan account or anything like that, I'm more of a "listen to the music and peep the interviews" kind of fan. And occasionally check out the fan-related meme content if I'm really into a group. Kpop is a pretty youthful genre and I'm in the same age group as the 3rd Gen groups now. It doesn't mean I can't or won't listen to newer stuff, though.

Although if life takes me into a direction where I get to write and produce for newer and active groups, of course, I'll probably be around indefinitely.

Quote from Lulu_Key

khiphop =/= hip hop

I dont think it will ever be considered that

Also just as Koreans associate a certain type of visuals with idols, Americans associate a specific type of visuals with hiphop/swag.

BP doesnt fit the visual standard of main stream Hip hop just as western artists wont fit the korean idol visual standard.

Display More

To go deeper on your point, another factor into this is that when people refer to "swag" from a Western rapper, what they're basically trying to describe is essence and authenticity of that rapper in particular. Western rappers (for the most part, to a certain degree) are who they say they are. The charisma and confidence is coming from a real place, it's not something where they're doing a "badass concept" and then they're super sweet and shy off stage -- that wouldn't fly at all here. Many rappers come from a very rough and dangerous environment. So when they finally succeed and are able to buy things they've always wanted, they flex and celebrate the wins. Of course, not every rapper came from poverty. But it never feels like they're playing a "role".

This is why in Hip Hop while there are some exceptions, it's generally frowned upon to not write your own lyrics. The mastery in rap is in the writing, the lyrical ability, the perspective and voice that you have. Not everyone has to be a Kendrick or Eminem, but as a rapper, you're expected to be rapping the lyrics you wrote, even if it's not the most compelling message out there (whether that's content-wise or in the execution). Authenticity is king when it comes to Hip Hop, even if people know that rappers aren't literally gunning people down left and right, there's still a certain element to the life they've previously lived that validates what they're saying to the listener.

This doesn't mean that Kpop won't succeed in the West, because there's obviously many people who do listen and enjoy it a lot (myself included). But Blackpink isn't going to be considered Hip Hop at all, nor is that their intention to be seen as such. They are a pop group with two rappers, and there's nothing wrong with that at all. There are so many different factors at play.

Quote from KpopJop

weird amount of shade in this thread for the People that Blackpink's sound comes from

Yeah, some of these comments are sounding very questionable.

Plus Blackpink is a Kpop group. Megan and Cardi are rappers who put out mostly rap songs, and their image couldn't be any more opposite than Blackpink's. There's just so many fundamental differences at play, it makes no sense to compare them at all.

Most of all, have they even tried going for an American hit song? And if so, did YG Entertainment ever do the proper groundwork to actually get those songs to American radio stations so they can be played frequently?

Speaking as a black person who's a fan of this genre... The situation with Giselle absolutely warranted criticism. The thing is though: she apologized. Whether she meant it or not, who knows. If she never makes that kind of mistake again, then it's safe to say that her apology is genuine. However, I don't think it should've went to the degree that it ended up becoming though, I think a lot of factors were at play.

She had the nepotism rumors, people felt her dance skills weren't up to par at all (and you can catch a LOT of hate for this alone which is what I think is really what people are harping on, look at Itzy's Lia to see just how mean people can be) and the whole "party girl" phase rumors (which I don't know if it ever was confirmed, but even if it was... So?). Put that together with her singing a SZA song a little TOO accurately, and well...

Lisa's case is murkier because she's been given raps by someone who's known to have a questionable past, and said rapper has given her raps that put her under scrutiny every time the topic of Blackpink and lyricism comes up. Had an actual black rapper been in the studio writing lyrics for her, Lisa wouldn't be a consistent target for stuff like that.

But the observation that the outrage isn't consistent across the board is a sentiment I've seen now and again.

Quote from Blue2012

They don't do well on the charts, but they sell a lot of albums and sell out a lot of big concert venues. As long as they do that, they'll make a lot of money and continue to have a long career.

Doing well on a dying chart like Melon with its dwindling users is not the measure of success. Success in Kpop isn't really about what Koreans listen to anymore. This isn't 2015 and no one is getting 1 million ULs in the first 24 hours on Melon anymore, because Koreans don't use it.

No one cares what the specific 4 million Koreans that are still using Melon are listening to.

Using Spotify as a gauge isn't wise either. It's just zombie streaming, except for ifans. It's fandoms streaming over and over. Plus Spotify doesn't have the reach YouTube does. Kpop was always a visual genre of music anyways.

Anyway success in Kpop is defined by selling out tours and selling albums and making lots of money by doing that.

The days of roof hits on Melon being of any relevance are gone. They've been gone.

Display More

I agree, people will do bulk streaming parties to break records all the time, but if the concert sales aren't congruent and album sales are questionable, something in the milk ain't clean. They JUST received the Billboard Breakthrough Artist Award like two weeks ago and last year they went on a highly successful US tour (which I think actually sold out). But let some people tell it, and they're one flop away from singing old hits in a subway station.

Obviously any artist would love to have their songs chart really high. But if they don't, it's not the end of the world. Despite the panic that some Onces might be feeling, Twice isn't in trouble at all. One weak charting song isn't a sign that they're all washed up. People are very fickle, one undeniable hit, and all of this disappears. Plus performance-wise, Twice hasn't fallen off at all. They're still every bit as sharp as they were before, if not better.

They'll be fine. I'm sure seeing the articles floating around is going to be hurtful, on top of some K-Onces being upset about the US promotion run coming first. But if they can overcome that whole run of bad luck they had from 2019-2020, this is nothing in comparison.

Quote from killingtime1934

And when Hybe molde her to fit all of Korean beauty standards even more and give her benefits actual mistreated female idols never had like solo deals, music show wins, expensive mvs ect

If she wanted to be this woke outspoken artist she would have no go to/or accept Hybe in the first place

This is a fair point, but if she had done exactly that, she might've been one more nameless singer posting songs on YouTube or SoundCloud unless she really wanted to take it further. If memory serves, she had pretty much gave up the idol thing until they ended up calling her after she went back to America. The only reason why people tune into it is because she's signed to one of the biggest record labels in Korea.

Obviously this post is bait because who's seriously thinking that Yunjin, a brand new idol in a brand new group that hasn't even hit a year old yet, is doing "more" than the clearly legendary and influential group Blackpink? Especially when there's a good chance that Yunjin herself wouldn't dare think something like that, even in a room by herself. Even someone like Soyeon, who wears many hats when it comes to G-Idle, still has to answer to Cube at the end of the day. Sometimes change happens internally.

But opinions like OP only serve to set Yunjin up because of course people are going to be skeptical. It's one thing to say it, another thing to actually be able to do it, and it also depends on what kind of change she's wanting to implement... Which will obviously take time.

Quote from gamma

Set me Free is very clearly title worthy. It would have been perfect with an epic melodic bridge and the rap could have been changed and put in the second verse instead maybe

I think what they also could've done is kept the bass line and drums that's in the song mostly instead of switching it up with trap drums. Or, they mix it up completely and split up the three rap verses and put them in different places. The rappers tend to have their verses near the end of the song, so that's another way to approach it differently.

The biggest criticism I've seen people have for the song is that they find it boring, so I'm wondering if it's a line distribution thing or if it's actually the production that people aren't really feeling.

Quote from QueenMaknae27

Longer than my homework

Hopefully it's easier to deal with, too.

Drake's had his comments locked for years now after the whole Pusha T beef happened, if memory serves. Kendrick and Cole don't even use social media like that. Many of the bigger artists don't have their accounts open to comments/DMs and have their teams handling their social medias. And you know what, I would do the same.

People tend to forget that just because a person has notoriety and a very large wallet, it doesn't mean that they aren't human too and don't see the nasty things that people say about them. Celebrities aren't living in some ivory tower in the sky, above it all. No, they're on the internet just like us, and there's been plenty of instances in which kpop idols in particular have lurked and seen fan content on social media.

It's wild because those same people who spend their time spreading negativity would fold immediately if they received 1/10th of the hate they project. And it weakens the connection between an artist/content creator and a fan base, because now that person has to put even MORE boundaries up. Some people don't know how to act and lack basic home training. But what else can the celebrity do, make themselves vulnerable and put their mental (and sometimes even physical) health at risk?

I often think about Blackpink in particular and just how much slander they get, to the point where even people in their own fan base attack the other members. The solo stan phenomenon regarding Blackpink is interesting, and I think there's many reasons as to why they in particular have so many solo stans compared to other groups -- although that's for another topic. And it also doesn't mean being a solo stan = automatically toxic either. But man, if all of them decided to permanently lock their IG comments (Jennie especially), I'd understand completely.

For Kpop, the reason it probably doesn't happen often (if I were to guess) is because of how massive the focus on para-social relationships are. You have so much content the companies provide, and you even have specialized platforms where you can send messages directly to them (for a fee). Fans will generate more fan-related content, which brings in even more fans. In the west, particularly for rappers, you almost never see that happening. Western artists tend to have a different approach when dealing with fans, with some exceptions of course. But every industry has its flaws, and every celebrity without exception is subjected to criticism (warranted or not).

In the end, people should understand that being a celebrity is a job, and that boundaries exist to protect BOTH sides. It's a beautiful thing to connect with the people who support your work, but sometimes, some distance is necessary -- and it's not always a bad thing.

I'd react the same way, I've been listening to Cole since high school. His three mixtapes were on rotation frequently, and I remember picking up his debut album at Walmart on day one. Same with Born Sinner. And when 2014 Forest Hills Drive dropped, that was a HUGE moment because it had went platinum with no featured artists on there. It's still one of his most popular projects to date, and to me, it's more reminiscent of The Warm Up.

Friday Night Lights is still incredible though, I understand why he wanted to sell that as an album, but I just know the sample clearances would've been a headache.

I became a fan of Twice in 2021, shortly after Taste of Love released and Perfect World was what made me stick around. I Can't Stop Me is probably my favorite title track from them, Good At Love might be my favorite B-Side (but it's hard to say definitively because they have so many top tier songs). I turned 30 in December. I like their older songs a lot too, Likey especially, but their recent stuff is great to me. I think if anything, their artistry's grown a LOT stronger as they've come more and more (no pun intended) into the songwriting lane. Their projects feel more cohesive and thematic, more consistent, and I think that's a reflection on how they've grown throughout the years.

For example, people may not like Scientist as a title track but thematically and musically in terms of soundscapes and genre choices, it's what Formula of Love is all about. Same with The Feels, within the context of the album and what it's going for, it fits right in. But the album isn't boxed in with one kind of genre, they try out different styles, and it works. It's a strong body of work that you can listen to from start to finish, and the concept isn't lost on you at all.

Same with Between 1&2, Jeongyeon herself says:

There are total seven tracks in this album, and all tracks sound different from each other. We are exploring different genres such as pop, dance, ballad, and rock, so you can expect a variety of styles in this album. We have incorporated retro vibes into the album, since one of the concepts of the album is Y2K. The tracks that embody the retro concept the most are “Talk that Talk” and “Brave.” Even though the styles are different, the tracks are connected under the theme of “the conversation between ONCE and TWICE,” like how the album title BETWEEN 1&2 implies.

—JEONGYEON via Grammy

Going off what she's saying, it seems that they're thinking of the overall concept in mind a lot when putting a project together, and Talk That Talk is a perfect representation of the theme regarding B1&2.

So now, arriving at Ready To Be, Jihyo says:

“Our title track ‘SET ME FREE’ holds the meaning of ‘Let’s break away from everything that binds us and love freely, to our heart’s content.’ I figure that many people will be able to feel another kind of TWICE’s charms. I hope people listen to our song and watch our performance enjoyably.”

Nayeon in another interview says:

"This album is different from “Talk That Talk”, we tried to focus on delivering the performance to encompass this new style so we hope our fans notice this difference in our album preparation."

Ready To Be is an album that's more mature in its execution of topics they've touched on in the past. You see that in full effect with Moonlight Sunrise, and Set Me Free as per tradition further leans into the more bold and confident expression of how they feel. They're no longer the shy cutesy young girls who are too nervous to make a move -- They're grown women that are unafraid to go after what they want, and according to Moonlight Sunrise, they "guarantee they got ya". It's Twice at their most confident.

With lyrics like "Cause you bring out the best of me/All the things I'm ready to be/Yeah, gonna set me, set me, set me free" and references to their previous work, I interpret it as them starting to enter a new phase of their career now. It doesn't mean they'll abandon the things that makes them Twice, but moreso an acknowledgement that they're all much older than when they first started out. Things are naturally going to change. And you can see that's kinda what Nayeon and Jihyo are saying when they're talking about "another kind of Twice's charms" or "encompassing this new style".

All in all though, I think in terms of artists, they've become even better. After all of the trials and tribulations they've gone through and the life experiences they've learned from, it's manifested into what we're seeing now. They still have their cute charms, but it's expressed differently, with more wisdom, confidence and insight compared to before. And I think that's what makes them so compelling.

Quote from allfandomssuck

honestly the fact that they did barely any promo, have not done any ot4 lives/engaged with fans is fuelling these rumours much more.

But them "barely getting along" though? I don't buy it. Even during the 2 year break, we still saw them supporting each other and hanging out. And that's just the stuff that the girls themselves post or is shown in behind the scenes footage and whatnot. So unless something explosive happened recently and it's bad vibes all around... I don't see that being a reason if they weren't planning to sign another contract with YG.

Honestly it's hard to say because there's so much that won't be made public and people were SO convinced that some of the Twice members weren't going to renew, and lo and behold, all of them did.

It's always the ones that know the least that have the most to say lmao.

Quote from Slayurfaves

you have to be naive to think they didn't have more songs lol they are constantly recording

Typically artists will record tons of songs when working on an album, and the obvious reasons why they don't make it on an album is that some songs remain unfinished, other songs just aren't good, some are good but you have another song of the same content that's better, or... It just doesn't fit the tone or concept of an album. Not to mention if you've recorded 60+ songs, you obviously can't put them all on a project. So it absolutely goes without saying that they have more songs in the vault.

Now, why they didn't add more songs to Born Pink? Who knows. But although some people might find Ryan Tedder's frustration unprofessional, I get it 100%. Because it was most likely YG that contacted him in the first place to work with the girls, and they spent all that time working on songs, only for it to not see the light of day. And to his credit, he even says it in the IG story, it happens sometimes, but it's still gotta suck when it does.

But that's the music industry. It really do be like that sometimes, there's not much you can do. It is what it is.

Their music has been getting even better and better (and they've always been great), more critically acclaimed, and they all seem to really be taking a more hands-on approach to their music in this new chapter for them. But if all that matters is charting positions, then people shouldn't complain if companies from now on start making groups put out songs with the same exact formula of their previous hit singles.

People make it sound like they're one low-charting comeback away from being forced to work graveyard shifts at McDonalds. No musical act is going to be #1 forever, times change, especially in a genre like kpop where new groups debut all the time. But they're still super successful regardless. I'd be more concerned if the music quality started declining.

Quote from 134340Moonchild

From what have observed. There seems to be a gang of people that go around attacking one person as a group and they can never have a civil debate or discussion. All this misdirected anger makes AKP unwelcoming and pointless for any kind of a discussion. I hope this changes because it is no wonder new people never come back.

And this is why it's bigger than Twitter. The problem is the mentality that's a common theme among many fans that listen to the genre. That's why no matter where you go, the same type of behavior and language is present. The exact type of trolling and provoking I've seen on here, I've seen on Twitter. The only difference is, this is a place where if you get too outta pocket, you're gone. On Twitter, you just report the account and hope somebody there has the sense to do what's right.

People tend to take things super personally when it comes to the artists and groups that they love, and that's why discussions that have good intentions in the beginning can easily turn chaotic. People are WAY too eager to get into a fight, and then you also have people "reciprocating energy" on top of that, so now there's just a never-ending cycle of toxicity being thrown around. So what can you do? The only option is to walk away from it, but I can't blame people either for feeling upset over someone (or somebodies) being nasty to an artist they're dedicated to. It's messy.

This just means we need Metro Boomin and Timbaland to drop some heat in kpop.

Idunno, Blackpink did their military enlistment in PUBG, so they're ready for war. But Twice has a Hulk Dahyun, and that's gonna be tough to beat. This might be closer than we think.

Quote from paradis

All she needs to do is show Em any material from the rap line - solo or group, he will be floored!!

I mean the rap god's daughter is a fan for a reason!!!

And with Hobi meeting J. Cole and Big Sean shouting him out, there's no doubt that Em knows about the rap line to some degree. Especially after the Wu Tang Clan sample on his Hobi's album, I'm sure that caught the attention of a lot of people.