K-Pop Appeciation Thread

[Cheap21]

The guy next to Luhan is D.O. Probably my second favorite in EXO-K after Suho and yes he's in my avatar. The boy can sing. And yes thats Sehun. The boy had some crazy hair last year around that time

LOL at that cast photo and yes it was no help. Sehun and Luhan do look the same there. I used to get confused with Lay and Tao as well. Kai was always the easiest for me as he has the most distinctive look

Glad you like them. GD changes his hair color more than EXO! He's had every color in the rainbow. He is very talented and has alot of range. While his base is primarily hip hop, he also sings, has rock influences and has even done country. Here is the video for his song Crooked, which he shot in London last year

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I love the various shots they were able to capture.

not to overwhelm you, but I cant talk about K-Pop without recommending the girls of 2NE1. They've been described as a female BigBang and thats not too surprising since they are on the same record label. This song/video for I Am the Best is everything! Still remains one of my favorite K-Pop song

[Cat]

Finally! An Asian girl group I can get behind. I have kind of been avoiding them because of all the underage schoolgirl/subserviant little pixie undertones that seem to appeal to 45-year old Japanese salarymen. 2NE1 look like they are more fun than that. Love the girl in the Crazy Vest! BTW, have you seen this? 2NE1's Gotta Be You promos? http://omonatheydidnt.livejournal.com/13258767.html

As a London resident, I love that GD came over here to shoot a MV and he fits right inn with that whole East End vibe of that MV. I like that he mixes genres, too. This guy must appreciate all kinds of music and has the musical ear/judgment to put together unexpected combinations.

I am going to have to ask you why Suho is your fave and D.O. your #2. Obviously I can see why D.O. is high on your list -- the singing, the swagger. Suho is the one who does the hoppity bunny move in the middle of Growl, right? BTW, did you say earlier that Kris was your favorite?

I think I have nominated Pink Hair as my current fave because of that shrug/head flick/finger snap in Growl. Sehun, Kai, D.O., Lay, Tai and Kris are all close behind, though. OK, I am going to stop now because you must be tired of responding to all my random, "beginner K-Pop" posts, lol.

[Cheap21]

They most definetly are NOT the high pitched schoolgirl types.

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And no I havent seen those Gotta Be You promos! I didnt even know they were releasing a new MV. I thought they were done promoting this latest album

I definetly thought of you I love watching he and BigBang perform live. I have several of their live concerts saved to my PC and I love watching them. I need to attend a show one day

Yeah Suho is the one with the bunny ho move. I dont know why I like him, but I do. He's the leader of the group so he's the most vocal. When they win awards, he is the one that accepts and the one that talks when giving interviews and such. I find him really cute as well. Kris is my favorite in EXO-M, Suho for EXO-K and probably the overall group.

And no Im definetly NOT tired of responding. I love the discussion and as you can see its been light around here so I welcome it

[Cat]

It is going to be a long weekend here so I cannot wait to watch these ! I keep hearing about Crush, it must be a big song for the group. And yes, Omonanotheydidnt is a great place to check out if you like K Pop... Fans tend to post new stuff almost as soon as it comes out. I have to say, though, I am not crazy about 2NE1's "Minnesota Sweater" theme in some of these promo pics. Unless it's irony!

The cool thing about that GD MV in London is how little out of place GD looked in it. In fact, he looked like he fit right in with the city! Sometimes these J Pop or K Pop groups do a MV in a foreign country (NYC seems to be popular), and they look a little awkward and out of place. The only ones that didn't IMO where Japanese dance group World Order where the whole thing is tongue in cheek and playing on Japanese stereotypes.

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So I watched the first episode of EXO Showtime on YouTube and I think I can see why you like Suho! He is hilarious and definitely has a lot of authority in the group and works overtime to make everybody laugh and in good spirits. He is probably trying to make up for the fact the Kris is withdrawn and aloof. Watching the episode in hindsight was very revealing because Kris definitely put up a wall between himself and the group, and it is clear how unhappy he was with the whole idea of being a K Pop "idol." He does eventually warm up towards the end of the episode, though, and even laughs at himself, which was reassuring because at first he seemed cold and standoffish. However, he doesn't seem to share the same closeness with anybody the way Suho and D.O. do, or Tao and Kai.

As for the others, Kai seems to be the recipient of many a boy-crush within the band, lol. He must be considered one of the better dancers, too. And Tao appears much shyer than I expected. Finally, Sehun is fast becoming a joint favorite with Luhan for me. Not sure why. He just exuuuuuuuuudes cool IMO. So there you go -- favorite EXO-K member: Sehun. Fave EXO-M member: Luhan.

Edited May 22, 2014 by Cat

[Cheap21]

Speaking of which....

Beast did the MV for their song Beautiful Night, in NYC....lol

Ive never seen Showtime or any of the K-Pop reality shows. Beast is currently starring in it. I should check out YT for that sometime

As for Tao, this was such an AWWWW moment. The group won Song of the Year and during his acceptance speech, he started crying. Love how the others came to comfort him. He's one of my faves along with Suho, Sehun, Kris (), Chen, D.O.

Edited May 22, 2014 by Cheap21

[Cat]

Awwww little Tao! He certainly took Kris's leaving to heart -- he went all out on Instagram/Facebook. He does seem sensitive (and you forget how young these kids really are when you watch the MVs). Maybe because he's living in Korea, away from home, and still learning Korean -- in some of the Showtime stuff, he seems to lean on Suho for support. He kind of hero worships him. It's funny because from his angular face, I just assumed he was diva-ish but not so much, maybe.

I wouldn't watch EXO Showtime religiously unless you are a major, major fan of the group (which I am prob on the way to becoming at this rate) and just cannot get enough of them. It was cute but obviously very controlled in that what you see is what SME want you to see. Still, the first episode was helpful in that it helped me with facial recognition, lol. Like, now I can recognize Suho, Xiumin and Chen in addition to my lovely Sehun/Kai/Tao/Luhan (it's harder when he's not Sparkly Princessing himself up)/Kris (not that it matters anymore).

... Speaking of Beast, Cheap, here is Adrenaline in Japanese:

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And here are Omonatheydidnt!'s thoughts on the MV (if you want a laugh):

http://omonatheydidnt.livejournal.com/13255077.html

[Cheap21]

Awww that sounds supercute.

"Not enough Junhyung" LMAO, aint that the truth. I saw this video earlier and thought I had posted but thanks for doing so. I dont care if the dancing is a bit cheesy, I think its fun. I love that there is so much Dujun as he quickly became one of my faves with their last album. I REALLY love the blonde looks they are sporting

[Cat]

Junhyung? Dujun? I need an EXO style face-sheet for this group. And for ShiNEE and Super Juniors too. All these K Pop groups yet to discover!

It's crazy how good some of these guys look with platinum hair *looks at Exo's Kai/Sehun* OTOH I watched the MV Wolf (by guess who) and couldn't warm to the song. The chorus line, holy [!@#$%^&*]. "Ahoo Ulf Ahoo!" Plus Kai has dreadlocks and it looks so... not right.

[Cheap21]

Here you go. Theres some variations in the spelling and I think that might come from Japanese versions of their Korean names

From left to right:

Doojoon/Dujun

Junhyung

Hyunseung

Yoseob/Yoseop

Kikwang/Gi-Kwang

Dongwoon

I felt the same way about Wolf at first but it eventually grew on me. Kai's hair threw me through a loop. He looks much older with it.

IA with you and the blonde hair. One of my faves was T.O.P from BigBang. His hair was so fly

[Cat]

Oh so that's Dujun. He was very watchable in the Adrenaline MV. And too bad about Junhyung because he is clearly very good-looking!

T.O.P's hair is SO amazeballs! It has got to the point where I would seriously consider getting a cut like that for me (don't know if you are familiar with UK girl group The Saturdays, but Frankie's asymetrical short hair with long front fringe has always fascinated me). However, what looks hot on guys and Frankie may not work on other women. I saw a Japanese criticism on a website recently over one of their idol's new short hair and look: "She looks like a middle-aged housewife who is tired of life" lol.

I haven't seen many Korean women in K Pop with shorter hair. Most love long and the hyper girly look.

[Cheap21]

I never really thought of it, but you are right in that alot dont tend to have short hair

BTW, EXO had their first concert this weekend. Looks like it was fun

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[AllMyDaysatGH]

Oh I love seeing our resident cool queen Cat up in here! Your commentary & back and forth with Cheap has just been refreshing to read. Now where you at YRBB? ;'-)

I'm still listening to the same artists as I did before, really have nothing to add as I haven't been able to catch up w/the latest happenings. UGH, just can't seem to get into EXO or any'uhthem yet. I'm still ALL about 2NE1, BEAST, BIGBANG, GD&TOP, etc...the usuals for me. I listen to the same tunes over and over and spread word to my friends. I'm still waiting for another SEUNGRI single. Basically I need something huge from one of my faves to happen to spark my Kpop excitement again. Or I need to take a much needed break in life and try to get into some new groups...

Love y'all!

[Cat]

AllMy Days!! I am so pleased you are back on this thread! I am only a K Pop newbie and want to learn more about all other worthwhile acts. EXO just happens to have grabbed my attention the most but I don't want to be the dumbass who incessantly fangirls one group only. Forgive me if I post a lot about them for now while I also find out more about GD, BEAST, 2NE1 and others. I still have so much to soak up!

[Cat]

At the risk of being EXOcentric...

TY for posting this! I was worried that after the Krisis, EXO would quit major promotional work in a bid to regroup, but this gives me hope that they intend to continue as a unit of 11.

Chen is growing on me. I haven't noticed him as much because Suho, Kai, Luhan and others get a fair amount of the spotlight, but he has a sweet smile.

Suho has such charisma, no wonder he is leader. But lol at that fangirl screaming in the vid. Your #1 fan, Suho!

Sehun, swooooooon. It is SO wrong the bias I have for this guy. I just adore him.

Edited May 26, 2014 by Cat

[Cheap21]

I thought it would be fun to list the people I listen to. Funny that I got into all of this bc of Psy and Gangnum Style and I dont even follow him

Boy Groups


1. Beast - they will always hold a special place for me bc they were my first. They have more of a pop influence to their sound


2.BIGBANG- they slowly crept on me but once I got into them I was hooked. I go back and forth them nad Beast as to which is my favorite. Their sound has been all over the place with a hip hop base but clear influences from rock, r&b and pop


3. 2PM - it took me a long time to get into them besides liking a few songs but I started listening to more of their material and became obssessed. They have an older more mature r&b sound


4. BTOB - Beast's little brother! These boys are on the same record label and I beleive were an attempt at recreating Beast's success with a new younger audience. Their sounds are very similar. While relatively new and without new material, I do like what they have put out.


5. EXO - I dont need to describe EXO...LOL

Girl Groups


1. 2NE1 - described as a female BIGBANG, these girls rock and are very versatile and ever evolving with their sound


2. 4minute- I prefer their older material as they used to be more mature and sexy. More of their recent stuff has been delving into the cutesy pop type of stuff. If you ever look them up, check out "Volume Up". That song and MV is FIERCE. I wish they were still like that

Solo Artists


1. Jay Park- I love this guy. He switches back and forth from singing to rapping with no effort and he's very good at both. I wish he'd put out more music but he seems to be doing his own thing at his own space so good for him


2. Gray - Actually he would be more of K-rap than Pop. He's a new artist who just debuted last fall. His debut song, "Dangerous" featuring Jay Park is hot though and is a preview of good things to come


3-7. GD, T.O.P, Seungri, Taeyang, and Daesung- pretty much all the BIGBANG members have solo careers and are great on their own. GD and T.O.P are primarily rap with some rock influence, Seungri has been pop and Taeyang has been R&B but has been dabbling with rap which will be featured on his upcoming album. Daesung has such a different style from the rest as his is more ballad type of music but he has a very powerful voice


8 & 9. Junhyung and Yoseob from Beast- My 2 favorite members. Yoseob being the main vocalist and Junhyung being the lead rapper


10. Junho (from 2PM) - This guy is adorable and has such a great personality. He is one of the main singers from 2PM and is amazing on his own.

Check this out

If it gets delayed again, I will f--king kill someone....LOL

Oh and Id definetly try getting into some new material. Its what I did bc one can only listen to the same 3 groups so many times. Its why I eventually branched out into 2PM, EXO and BTOB, despite not wanting to get new obsessions. Its why Im hesitant to try new material but Im glad I did with them

Edited May 26, 2014 by Cheap21