Welcome back to another edition of Best of Weekly Music Shows! The first week of March was packed full with comebacks from Fiestar, Super Junior D&E, Eric Nam, Lovelyz, and Boyfriend, to name a few. The comeback stages weren’t the only highlight of the week though as many artists and groups continued to give outstanding performances. This week featured a wide variety of memorable performances, from emotional ballads to silly covers. In the end, the boys of VIXX swept this week’s music shows with the playful “Love Equation.”
In case you missed it, take a look at some of my picks for the highlights of this week’s music show circuit:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts8sGsY1O8s]Eric Nam, “I’m Okay,” MBC, The Show! Music Core, March 7th, 2015
First things first, Eric Nam’s comeback track “I’m Okay” is a beautiful composition that suits his voice perfectly. Eric’s performance on this week’s Music Core was overflowing with sentiment — I’d even venture so far as to say that this live performance out shined the studio version.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDxi8ZhEt7g]Super Junior D&E, “Growing Pains,” MBC The Show! Music Core, March 7th, 2015
The Super Junior sub-unit, comprised of Donghae and Eunhyuk, made their comeback this week with the reflective “Growing Pains.” I’m loving the change of pace that came with the The Beat Goes On album release. While the song is a bit on the sombre side, it’s a pleasure to watch the two friends perform together on stage.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0RhSerYKwA]VIXX, “Love Equation,” KBS Music Bank, March 6th, 2015
After a series of darker comebacks, VIXX has returned with a boys next door concept that is both playful and adorable. It’s no surprise VIXX swept this week’s music shows with their very enthusiastic performances of “Love Equation.” The track and choreography make it impossible to not smile along with VIXX as they hop around the stage, and Ravi does his best attempt at aegyo — I think I even saw Leo smile.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIHBNU3NEVY]Ailee and Amber, “Uptown Funk,” KBS Yu Hui-yeol’s Sketchbook, March 6th, 2015
Ailee and Amber are a K-pop dream combination. Since news of Amber’s solo debut, I’d been anxiously anticipating a collaboration between the two performers. Their rendition of “Uptown Funk,” was fun but also vocally impressive. While Ailee handled the power notes, Amber kept the rap portions entertaining and even showed off her vocal prowess more than once during the performance. With the ladies clearly having such a great time on stage, it’s a mystery why the audience wasn’t dancing along with them.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RETBqVtZeGw]Ulala Session, “I Heard a Rumor,” (Ham Jung-ah cover) KBS Immortal Song 2, March 7, 2015
Veteran Immortal Song 2 champions, Ulala Session, are known for their ability to completely embody whatever song they perform. This week was no exception as the musicians donned neon suits, fake mustaches and even hair rollers to perform the 80’s classic, “I Heard a Rumor.” The group put their own spin on it, even sampling “Uptown Funk,” with their own chant of “Ulala funk you up.” This performance is the kind of silly fun I love to watch go down on Immortal Song every week.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huBRP2cfPB8]Sonnet Son, “The Student Boarder” (Choi Hee-joon cover), KBS Immortal Song 2, March 07, 20
All Sonnet Son — Son Seung-yeon from The Voice Korea — has to do is open her mouth to sing, and it’s an instant favorite for me. Her vocal talent never ceases to impress and her performance on this week’s Immortal Song was especially stand-out. The rising diva turned a classic lounge song into a beautiful gospel-jazz hybrid ballad, complete with an accompanying choir.
