Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that have particularly liked. This week I have chosen Heart Of Woman – Told U So.

Heart Of Woman took the bold step of debuting with a full length album, “Heart Byte Legacy”. After enjoying “Lost In Proof”, a title track with a pleasing older Kpop sound, I started listening to the album. “Told U So” immediately caught my attention. “Please let there be a performance video” I prayed, and this morning my prayer was answered. Will we be granted live performances in the coming weeks?

If you take pleasure in European Kpop connections, go to 1:11 and hear Liuyin, who was brought up by her Chinese family in Rome, sing in Italian.

Heart Of Woman – Told U So
https://youtu.be/5q_VlOUKUUI?si=a9N3hzVJt2hdbX_g
@kpop @[email protected]
#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #HeartOfWoman #ToldUSo #PerformanceVideo #Liuyin #Italy

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that I have particularly liked. This week I have chosen ITZY – Motto.

Melodic, full of bright energy, great chorus, proper bridge, and a couple of nice ad libs as the song nears its close...what’s not to like about this comeback?

Perhaps the MV, which I thought looked a bit of a mess; let’s not get into a discussion of the rights and wrongs of the here heavily used AI. I’m looking forward to the performance video.

ITZY – Motto
https://youtu.be/1jKnI_ib8c8?si=glIGGwg9oDRQ1R4U
@kpop @[email protected]
#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #ITZY #Motto

🧵 1/2

Although I've been tempted to list this as #KpopOfTheWeek, I will resist that temptation because it's still Jpop, even though heavily influenced by Kpop and featured at KCON Japan.

The use of strings and melody here appeals to my inner Christian Horse Girl.* I also enjoyed much of the "Quartet" album too. I like the direction the group have taken, as I did not much care for some their earlier stuff.

Both IS:SUE and ME:I, another Jpop group I quite like, emerged from PRODUCE 101 JAPAN THE GIRLS. It's not surprising they appeal to this Kpop fan.

If you're not familiar with "Christian Horse Girl Music"....

IS:SUE -- Quartet -- KCON JAPAN 2026
https://youtu.be/nSAeMOwSZpQ?si=qlhZN_QE8e5rp_CW

#Jpop #ISSUE #Quartet #Kpop #ChristianHorseGirl

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that have particularly liked. This week I have chosen SEEYA -- Stay.

This old Kpop group is new to me. I enjoyed their singing, was charmed by dancer /choreographer Aiki (is she famous?) combining the elegant and the humorous, and was refreshed by a song unburdened by the unmelodic.

SEEYA -- Stay
https://youtu.be/RMNcT5AqLGA?si=Ii5mnGsT6GF298zp

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #SEEYA #Stay #Aiki #Choreography
@kpop @[email protected]

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that have particularly liked. This week I have chosen Billlie – ZAP.

When I first heard ZAP, I did not really care for it because it has an aespa/Everglow girlcrush sound that does not usually appeal to me that much.

However, after playing the MV a number of times, I’ve found that ZAP has grown on me. Perhaps this change on my part illustrates what psychologists call the repeated exposure effect.

But why was I replaying the MV before the onset of that repeated exposure effect?

The visuals! Although long hair offers all sorts of styling and hairography opportunities and often looks beautiful, I am almost always thrilled to see idols with shorter hair. So I was delighted that the MV features both the auburn Siyoon and the dark haired Moon Sua with short hair.

In addition, the overall look of the MV appealed to me. The black and the red, the outfits, and the overall simplicity of the MV -- perhaps the beneficial consequence of a tight budget enforcing visual discipline – all provided me with visual pleasure.

Nothing Billie has done has ever impressed me as much as RING X RING , and ZAP has no chance of displacing that striking debut in my affections. In fact, it’s not even in the running for my Song Of The Year. Nevertheless, I’m happy I can answer “Yes!” to Haruna’s closing “Can you feel it?”

Billlie – ZAP
https://youtu.be/iqCx5RfI6Tw?si=ScpiwLHtqHnu5zTC

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #Billlie #ZAP #Hair
@kpop @[email protected]

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that I have particularly liked. This week I have chosen NMIXX – Crescendo.

I’ve played this a number of times and am still enjoying the quality and arrangement of the vocals and the delightful quirkiness provided by the pauses and instrumental. Oddly enough, I don’t hear a big crescendo here.

I don’t know enough about western pop to understand where NMIXX fit into the larger pop music landscape, but I do think JYP deserve credit for neither sticking rigidly to the group’s initial sound nor then having them conform to whatever happened to be the girl group style of the moment but instead allowing the group’s distinctive artistic identity to evolve.

NMIXX -- Crescendo
https://youtu.be/-SEKt_0pdHM?si=hi8iwhd1db8fbTKU

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #NMIXX #Crescendo #JYP
@kpop @[email protected]

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that I have particularly liked. This week I have chosen ifye -- Padam Padam.

Why was this not the title track rather than the uninspiring "Hazy (Daisy)"?

Perhaps the agency worried that the conservative broadcasters of Korea might find "Wanna do it with me? / Padam, padam /Padam-pa, boom, boom" overly suggestive.

Obviously any fear of that nature was groundless, as we can see from this Idol Unplugged stage.

ifeye -- PADAM PADAM
https://youtu.be/WVk5S9Dd3FM?si=mAsDdMZ0pNRdCOBz

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #ifeye #PadamPadam
@kpop @[email protected]

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that I have particularly liked. This week I have chosen RESCENE – Runaway -- Just Dance -- Genie .

One of the things I love about Kpop is its sheer abundance. Not only do lots of groups release lots of music with a frequency that makes the western pop industry look miserly, but most releases will have, on account of music show performances, dance practice videos , and so on, a multiplicity of versions.

So after my last week's posting of the RESCENE -- Runaway MV as #KpopOfTheWeek and midweek postings of music show stages, I come now to this wonderful video in which the simplicity of set and styling allow the group to engage us to the full through their dancing.

The original MV was one that I enjoyed because of its dream like blend of school story and fantasy. Yet I also like this performance video for the reason that I so often enjoy videos of this type; they allow me to pull away from the specifics of narrative and concept and be enchanted instead by the sight and sound of performance.

The outfits facilitate this enchantment, and I am relieved that this video shows the girls not to be under the heel of the #BigClumpyBoot lobby!

RESCENE -- Runaway -- Just Dance --Genie
https://youtu.be/l2SeGMZYCjE?si=qLRs-gOlSF9ierPw

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #RESCENE #Runaway #JustDance #Genie #PerformanceVideo #GirlGroups #KpopStyling #BigClumpyBoot #PV
@kpop @[email protected]

Every weekend I look back at the preceding week in Kpop and pick out a music video or performance that I have particularly liked. This week I have chosen RESCENE – Runaway.

Although this past week I have been enjoying Kpop from a number of groups, the song that stands out to me is the RESCENE comeback.

From the opening guitar and synthesizer, through the contrasting first and second choruses, to that emancipated dance break in the forest just before they head out to see the sun rise -- everything about this MV is magical!

RESCENE -- Runaway
https://youtu.be/rsZwrTNklos?si=TzU4DOJAjQfcPHSc

#Kpop #KpopOfTheWeek #RESCENE #Runaway #GirlGroups
@kpop @[email protected]