In a global musical landscape that often follows the same syncopated structure, “Next Level” is an electrifying punch to the gut. For some, the song is an acquired taste - too disjointed, too nonsensical (“that’s my naevis, it’s my naevis”), too odd - but that’s what makes it so perfect. Perhaps my biggest flex of 2021 is that I knew aespa’s “Next Level” was going to be a hit the first time I heard it. This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
There is no doubt that IU is a master of her craft and a one-of-a-kind talent, but “Lilac” sure has a special place in our hearts, if only for the bittersweet aftertaste it leaves on our tongues. Yes, one day, as we grow old and gray, our memories of “the faces and scents of today” might fade, but there will never be any regrets about how it all played out. She compares her time in her 20s to a relationship, with this goodbye being a perfect farewell that she’ll treasure forever. That, precisely, is the tear-inducing beauty of “Lilac” – there has never been a more “perfect” and “glorious” goodbye. It would have been a sad moment too, had IU not stomped her feet and declared that the goodbye to an era of her life would not be anything less than celebratory and perfect. Somewhere between her spectacular high notes on “Good Day” and the twisting tragedy of “Love Poem,” we all grew up. Maybe it’s just us, but knowing that IU turned 30 this year came with some heartache - a lot of us realized just how much time had passed for us as well. IU Captures an “Ivory-Colored Spring Climax’ to Her 20s in ”Lilac" While there's no perfect solution to the genre problem, we hope this list serves as a reminder of the breadth of what “K-pop” can sound like: noisy, precise, poppy, powerful, minimalist, maximalist, smooth, beautiful, memorable. The music on this list encompasses pop, hip-hop, alternative, indie, R&B, mostly by Korean or Korean American artists, or Asian performers who were shaped by the K-pop industry.
Last year, we wrote about the complexity of calling K-pop a genre: "Can K-pop be considered a ‘genre’ in the traditional sense? Is it a way of pinning household name artists in? Or is it a way of bolstering a rising tide?" Those questions hold true this year, too, and it's part of the reason we decided to celebrate the songs that shaped us in 2021, rather than more general moments. In this often bleak, tumultuous time, the best K-pop songs of 2021 gave us a rare light: Energy! Chaos! New words! Meanwhile, the artists who created them continued to outdo themselves with one immaculate performance after another. For Teen Vogue's second annual Best K-pop list, we decided to focus on the music we loved this year.
0 kommentar(er)
