A new year means new beginnings. Many take this an opportunity to start working towards new goals, be them big or small. For this Roundtable, we ask our writers: what are your K-pop Resolutions for 2019?
Zea: My resolution this year is to set aside time and listen to full albums rather than replay their title songs over and over, because as good as Mino‘s Fiance is, Qian’s review of XX promises me an even better album!
I also want to finish all the K-dramas I’ve ghosted or decided once and for all to drop them so I can start new ones without feeling bad. Hyun Bin enlisted, came back, and is currently starring in Memories of Alhambra, yet I still haven’t fully watched either Secret Garden (2010). Oops.
And finally, I want to attend more concerts! Artists finally know Toronto exists so this year I saw BTS and DPR live, but I still missed out on Amber, Crush, and Zion.T. I hope I can go to most if not all the concerts that come to Toronto next year without making my bank account cry.
Pat: In 2018, I explored more girl groups and have grown to appreciate groups that I normally wouldn’t have given any thought. This year, I want to explore more male groups. This is especially since VIXX is pretty much just a release a year and members will be going into military soon. Gotta keep myself entertained, and that, for me, is exploring more groups. Maybe I’ll even give iKon and post- NamTae leaving Winner another shot. Maybe.
I echo Zea, I also want to explore more K-dramas. The last drama that I watched was Page Turner, and the last full length was either King 2 Hearts or Reply 1997…whichever came last. That is how long since I’ve watched a drama. I’m waiting for Memories of Alhambra to finish so that I can binge-watch, and that’s mostly because the title intrigues me. I’m also planning on going through our EOY Drama to get further recommendations as well.
Janine: My 2018 listening habits were dominated by SM and indie artists that were doing interesting electronic things. This year I’m going to try to expand further into the indie k-electronica and rock scenes while keeping up with my
I am renewing my yearly commitment to stay out of fan situations that stress me out online. I have dedicated too much mental energy into getting upset about fan entitlement and weirdly possessive tweets so I’m reviewing my muted word lists and keeping my block hand strong.
I’m also allowing myself to miss things this year. I’m going to enjoy the music and dramas I have the time to see but no more feeling bad because I didn’t livetweet everything as it drops. The content is recorded for our convenience, I’ll get to it when it’s convenient damn it! I guess my overarching resolution will be to enjoy things at my own pace and rediscover the joy I first had when I got into Hallyu content.
Kaitlin: My biggest goal for 2019 is to learn a K-pop choreography every month. I sit (with terrible posture) at a desk all day and learning dances is a fun way to stay active. It’s a way to engage a different part of my brain and mute my worries for a bit while I try my darndest to look a fraction as cool as Chungha or Seulgi or Kai. It also helps me better appreciate a song. Choreography often calls attention to parts of the song you might not otherwise notice. And of course, it always gives me added respect for a performer. Even the cutesiest Twice dance is actually intricate and tiring! I’m definitely not a trained dancer, but there are so many great resources on YouTube from mirrored dance practices to step-by-step tutorials for most popular releases.
My other goal is to catch up on reality shows from my two biggest bias groups, Got7 and Seventeen. I first really got into these groups because of their personalities in their shows like Real Got7 and One Fine Day. When I first became their fans back in 2015-16, I consumed as much content of theirs as I could. After branching out and learning about many of the other amazing groups in the K-pop landscape, I fell behind in watching their latest content, even appearances on Weekly Idol, for the last year or so. I might not be an eager new fan anymore, but if I can find the time, I know some of these video series will bring me joy. Like Janine said, thankfully the content is there waiting and I can move at my own pace and not feel pressure to watch every single thing.
Tàssia: My K-pop resolution for 2019 is similar to Janine’s: learning how to not be so upset over fan behavior. Many of my concerns online have been met with
Before engaging in the endless scroll of social media absurdity, I plan to ask myself “Is this relevant now? Will this be relevant in 5 years?” and save my energy to write about things that actually matter for me.
Vivien: To be honest, I’m struggling to come up with any K-pop resolutions; if anything, I’d like to cut back my K-pop obsession and overall Internet usage to achieve a slightly healthier lifestyle. I’m already much less emotionally invested (i.e. unhealthily obsessed) than I was when I first got into K-pop, and I definitely feel better for it. I agree with Tássia; K-pop is great in terms of entertainment and sheer production quality, but its fan culture can get really toxic sometimes and it’s always good to take a step back.
As an example, my automatic habit whenever I watch a YouTube video is to scroll down to the comments, as soon as it starts; nowadays though, I don’t know why I bother because I almost always feel worse for it. So I guess my goal is to break the habit of always looking at fan comments, at least for YouTube! Otherwise, I might steal some of your resolutions and try to listen to more full albums and learn more choreographies; I’ve always wanted to learn how to dance and this might be the year that it happens (then again, I’ve said that for a few years now)!
Qing: Zea, don’t feel bad about Secret Garden. I left things off in a most unhappening scene in episode 13 (the female lead was shopping with her teammates) and never looked back. So many other dramas await!
Between churning out my master’s thesis, job-hunting, and a
Secondly, I’d like to get back into reading articles by our team. I used to read Seoulbeats daily, but I’ve fallen behind this habit in the past year. I’m also hoping to try a new category for the Mid-Year or End-of-Year Reviews; I’ve only ever done MVs, albums, and debuts, so I’d like to go for comebacks or dramas for a change.
Last on my list is kick-starting my self studying for Korean. I already had my materials ready last year, but I never managed to set aside time for it. It’s something I enjoy greatly, so I’d like to commit to it again.
Nisha: In 2019 I’d like to branch out more into artists that I’m unfamiliar with. I sometimes find it daunting writing a piece about new artists because I’m a perfectionist and feel like I need to know everything about a group before I’m qualified to write about them. So I think actively seeking out new artists will help!
I’d also like to follow a group from debut (TXT is a promising candidate). Since getting into K-pop, the older, more established groups have made the biggest impression on me. I want to give some newbies a chance and follow them as they grow and improve :)
It’s the opposite for me in K-
Finally, I start my Level 2 Korean class this month and I’m pretty nervous… I’m keen to focus and dedicate a chunk of my time to learning it well. I’m visiting my Korean friend in Seoul in a couple of months so hopefully will get to practice!
Lonnie: My K-pop resolution is similar to everyone here! I want to pick up self-studying Korean and to give newer groups a chance.
I was dedicated to learning Korean over the summer, and didn’t follow up on it after that. I really want to get back to learning it on a more regular basis. I want to get through my workbook, my apps, and hopefully take another course. Like Lonnie, I’d like to be able to understand K-dramas and K-pop lyrics without translations.
I also want to write more for Seoulbeats. It’s been a problem for me these days to turn out articles as fast as I’d like. I want to train myself to write faster and therefore write more articles for the site. I also like to tackle different topics like K-pop news.
Lastly, I’d like to dedicate myself more to my social media pages. I want to create a Twitter and Instagram dedicated to all the K-pop concerts and events I attend over the year. I have about thousands of pictures from events and concerts that I never post and just stay on my drive.
Zea: Okay guys I abandon my resolution to attend more K-Pop concerts; ever since I made it, WINNER, AOMG, Red Velvet, Tiffany, and now Sunmi have announced world tour stops in Canada with Blackpink possibly announcing a world tour in the summer. While I’d love to go to all of them, why must they visit Canada within a few weeks of each other? My wallet and I are crying
Celina: I was dedicated to learning Korean over the summer, and didn’t follow up on it after that. I really want to get back to learning it on a more regular basis. I want to get through my workbook, my apps, and
I also want to write more for Seoulbeats. It’s been a problem for me these days to turn out articles as fast as I’d like. I want to train myself to write faster and therefore write more articles for the site. I also like to tackle different topics like K-pop news.
Lastly, I’d like to dedicate myself more to my social media pages.I want to create a Twitter and Instagram dedicated to all the K-pop concerts and events I attend over the year. I have about thousands of pictures from events and concerts that I never post and just stay on my drive.
Cy: I only have one K-pop (related) resolution: Find closure. There are many things I need to do this for when it comes to Korean music in general, K-pop in particular. This year will be the year I work toward actually doing it.
What about you, readers? What are your K-pop resolutions for the year? We’d love to hear them below!
(Images via Big Hit Entertainment, YG Entertainment, Blockberry Creative, WM Entertainment, MNH Entertainment, Plan A Entertainment, MakeUs Entertainment, SM Entertainment, Allure, 1st Look)
