In the vast landscape of Korean entertainment, sometimes it’s the little things that bring us joy (or disappointment) and make our fan girl/boy/folk hearts beat a little faster.
Each month, we ask our writers to share: Among the many Hallyu things vying for your attention, what’s caught your eye, is on your mind, or has made your heart skip a beat?
The Unfulfilled Potential of Purple Kiss
— Sabrina
In August, RBW announced that Purple Kiss would end their group activities in November. As sad as that announcement was, they at least had three months to say goodbye, with a single, “Doremi,” an English album, and a North American tour. In October, I went to their tour stop in my city, sitting with an acquaintance who didn’t know Purple Kiss beforehand. She quickly noticed their strong vocal talent and distinct, somewhat eerie sound in songs like “Sweet Juice.” She also asked me if Swan’s solo song, “Be My Everything,” performed in her unique cursive style, was a hit. I replied, “It should have been.”
“Should have been a hit” is a sentiment that I feel about a lot of Purple Kiss’ discography. Seeing their concert confirmed that the group is stacked with talent and can pull off any genre. I was happy their setlist included groovy R&B (“Toy Boy”), upbeat pop (“Agit”), and anthemic pop rock (“Voyager”) in addition to some of my quirky-horror favorites like “Nerdy” and “Pretty Psycho.” The group also included appealing subunit stages with covers that showed their abilities in a new way: Yuki, Dosie, and Ireh, for example, brought the right amount of swagger to Jennie’s “ExtraL,” with Yuki capably covering the first half of Doechii’s verse.
However, despite their strengths, the group never seemed to gain traction in an overcrowded industry. In some ways their versatility worked against them. They often changed up the genres of their title tracks from signature sound, but these changes weren’t timed well to be ahead of trends.
Still, I am hopeful that at least some members will continue in the music industry, whether as songwriters (particularly Chaein and Na Goeun) or singers. The K-pop landscape seems to be welcoming more soloists and subunits from disbanded or inactive groups, with songs like “Body”” from WJSN’s Dayoung finding unexpected success lately. I look forward to the individual paths the Purple Kiss members will take, and will treasure the music from their time as a group.
Izna Continue to be B-Side Queens
— Siena
Izna‘s latest comeback cycle kicked off inauspiciously with the announcement of member Jiyoon‘s departure (not necessarily a surprise after her long hiatus, but still a bummer given her fun energy and stellar singing skills). Title track “Mamma Mia” is also… something. But continuing their run of b-sides that eclipse mid title tracks (here’s looking at you, “Timebomb”) I’ve been totally hooked on b-side “Racecar.”
A fairly simple pop song, “Racecar” nevertheless soars thanks to a perfect balance of momentum-filled electronic production and robust, emotive vocals. I also love the choreography, which perfectly captures the soft/hard contrast of the song itself.
Izna hit their stride when they make sentimental pop with a kick (ala breakout singles “Sign” and “Beep”). Hopefully, in future comebacks they’ll put that front and center. But it’s still fun to watch them continue to develop and stretch what is fast-becoming their signature sound.
(YouTube[1][2][3][4][5]. Images via the Black Label, RBW Entertainment, WakeOne.)
