I didn’t expect to have a crazy schedule during the first week of class, so I’m gonna have to shorten my countdown from 10 to 7 sometimes. But if time (and will) permits, I’ll do a top 10 occasionally, just like this week.
Here are my top 10 songs of the week!
–
TOP 10 SONGS
1.) Fiction/On Rainy Days – B2ST (+3)*
Here’s the full audio for On Rainy Days:
–
2.) Ma Boy – Sistar19 (+1)*
–
3.) Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO (NEW)
–
4.) Alligator Sky – Owl City ft. Shawn Chrystopher (+1)
–
5.) Lonely – 2NE1 (-4)*
–
6.) Level 2000 – Jay Park (-4)*
–
7.) Starlight, Moonlight – SECRET (NEW)
–
8.) I (Who Have Nothing) / Bennie and the Jets – Haley Reinhart (NEW)
–
9.) Like This Or Like That – 5Dolls (NEW)
–
10.) Run The World (GIRLS) – Beyonce (NEW)
–
* – songs that have reached number 1
Out of the Top 10: Shampoo, Love Alone, The Lazy Song, Edge of Glory, Pinocchio
ANNOUNCEMENT: I won’t be doing my usual Top 7 US and K-Pop Songs anymore. I admit that it takes a while to finish a blog entry, and since school’s about to start I have less free time. I don’t know if I can keep updating this weekly entry, but I’ll do my best to share my favorite songs in my iPod for the week.
Here is my consolidated (Foreign, K-Pop, OPM) Top 10 for the week ending June 16, 2011!
We have a surprise winner in this week’s Kpop chart! Jay Park dominates the countdown with two songs fresh from his debut album Take a Deeper Look. Whew, you could almost feel the envy of his former label, JYP Entertainment
Everything else is pretty stagnant this week. There weren’t a lot of new American singles out, and yes, I was talking about the good ones.
TOP 7 US SONGS
1.) Price Tag – Jessie J feat. B.o.B.
Previous Position: #2
Jessie J makes another run for the top spot as she spends her fourth non-consecutive week at number one.
2.) Count On Me / The Lazy Song – Bruno Mars
Previous Position: #3
Here’s a cool lyric video for Bruno Mars’ Count on Me
3.) Make A Movie – Twista feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: #1
4.) Roll Up – Wiz Khalifa
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #4
5.) Rolling In The Deep – Adele
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
6.) Judas – Lady Gaga
Previous Position: #7
7.) Move Your Body – Beyonce
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Out of The Top 7
Moment 4 Life
Can’t Be Friends
TOP 7 K-POP SONGS
Music Video for Abandoned
Music Video for Tonight
1. Abandoned / Tonight – Jay Park
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Jay Park in the HAUZ! He just knocked Big Bang out on my most replayed list. His album is probably the best of the year so far for me. The songs aren’t that epic, but the overall feel and sound of the whole album was outstanding!
2.) Love Song – Big Bang
Previous Position: #1
3.) Cafe – Big Bang
Previous Position: #2
Two Big Bang songs drop a notch each this week
4.) Shampoo – After School
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
A good example of a Korean pop song. This is a ballad turned dance hit!
5.) Pinocchio – f(x)
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Another new entry is this one by f(x), whose label-mates range from TVXQ, Girls’ Generation, Super Junior, SHINee and BoA.
6.) Twinkle Twinkle – Girl’s Day
Previous Position: #7
7.) Mr. Taxi – Girls’ Generation
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Hoping to advance further to the Japanese market, SNSD releases this single, which features the 9 ladies wearing taxi-themed short shorts and hot leather tops. Yowzah! I’ll give you the video next week if you’re interested….pervert!
I apologize because my countdown’s a little late this week. I’ve been quite busy this summer (classes), but good thing I have 2 days of rest before I get tortured again. It’s my sister’s birthday so I’m waiting for the clock to strike 12 so I might as well just write my countdown now.
Same old, same old this week as Chris Brown and Big Bang dominated the replay button on my iPod. These two artists have been neck and neck for weeks now. Good thing I separate my top 7 US and K-pop songs, because it would be very hard for me to choose who among them I listened to the most this week.
Here’s the rest of the top 7
TOP 7 US SONGS
Twista and Chris Brown
1.) Make A Movie – Twista and Chris Brown
Previous Position: #2
Probably the most underrated among new Chris Brown collaborations is this song. It’s actually one of the best songs that shows CB’s fantastic vocals.
2.) Price Tag – Jessie J ft. B.o.B.
Previous Position: #1
After being number 1 by default, Jessie J trades places with Twista and Chris Brown
3.) Count On Me / The Lazy Song – Bruno Mars
Previous Position: #5
4.) Roll Up – Wiz Khalifa
Previous Position: #3
This is the only Wiz Khalifa song I like; and frankly, it’s a nice song!
5.) Moment 4 Life – Nicki Minaj ft. Drake
Previous Position: #4
6.) Can’t Be Friends – Trey Songs
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #6
7.) Judas – Lady Gaga
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Lady Gaga returns with Judas, though in my opinion her 2 latest songs aren’t as good as the ones in her first album. Even the unreleased song sung by Haley Reinhart on American Idol wasn’t that good.
Out of the Top 7:
Best Love Song
TOP 7 K-POP SONGS
From the left: Daesung, Taeyang, T.O.P., G-Dragon, Seungri
1.) Love Song – Big Bang
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #1
2.) Cafe – Big Bang
Previous Position: #3
3.) Before U Go – TVXQ
Previous Position: #2
After taking the crown two weeks ago, TVXQ is steadily stepping down from the top
4.) Bangkok City – Orange Caramel
Previous Position: #7
5.) Going Crazy – Song Ji Eun
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #5
6.) 0330 – U-Kiss
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
U-Kiss was among the very first groups that I hated. Months later, they’re in my countdown. Who would’ve thought?
It’s been a year since I started listening to K-pop, and looking back I can’t believe it’s only been that long. I regularly check my daily k-pop news provider allkpopand read about 15-30 articles a day. So yes, you can say that I’m quiteaddicted (or obsessed) to K-pop right now.
But the question I think you guys would want to know is, why and how the hell did I love K-pop? A friend recently told me that he couldn’t understand why people like listening to K-pop, since some don’t even understand the Korean language (including me); but I don’t have anything against him. Why? Simply because K-pop is a very polarizing subject and isn’t something that can be loved by everyone.
K-Pop is a choice and a preference, much like different genres of music. Someone in this world loves classical music and hates rap music, while another person thinks exactly the opposite. It depends on the people’s ears whether they like a genre or not, so you can’t force anyone to love songs that he doesn’t want to hear.
I digress. Instead of giving you longer a lecture about K-pop, I’m just gonna tell you how I happened to love it. However, I’m telling you, it’s not gonna be easy for me to explain.
1.) Sisters’ (and cousin’s) Influence
When I graduated from high school in Koronadal City, I moved to Metro Manila to start my college life. After being alone with my parents for three years, I finally had a chance to live together with my two sisters and away from my parents, and that’s when it all started. They kept on telling me about these artists who not only sang but danced well. I kept what they said in my mind, but I wasn’t totally hooked by the topic then.
2.) I hated K-pop first before I loved it
Before I got to Quezon City, I despised those Korean groups flooding the nation’s music countdowns. I hated the fact that they were in groups of 7, 9, (and even 13!). I even dissed my sisters when they kept bugging me to watch it. Eventually, I started to check them out on Youtube. I liked some of the music videos, but it took a while before they convinced me to check out some more artists. The first groups I hated then loved were Super Junior and Girls’ Generation (SNSD), while the group I truly hated then was U-Kiss (because initially I got annoyed with their repetitive “Bingeul Bingeul”, but I like them now).
Super JuniorGirls' Generation (SNSD)
3.) The Songs
I’ll admit that not every K-pop song is great, but there are definitely some stand-outs that are very good. The songs are catchy, they have different genres of music, and they have a musical style which is unique and contemporary. The Korean music industry is one of the biggest in the world! And take note that they’re only a small country with a population only half as much as the Philippines!
Some examples:
Before U Go – TVXQ
Lupin – KARA
Wedding Dress – Taeyang
4.) Disappointing American Artists’ Debuts and Comebacks
The latest songs of the biggest musicians aren’t as great as they used to be, at least in my opinion (Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna, Akon, Britney Spears, the list goes on and on). Even the new artists don’t have anything great to offer. Instead, they just stick with those repetitive pop songs and add some auto-tune in their music, remaking old music without a lot of creativity (Ke$ha, I’m talking to you). There are still bright spots here and there (Katy Perry, B.o.B., Justin Bieber [yikes!]), but the lack of better and innovative songs created a void that left me hungry for better music.
5.) Lack of Interest With OPM
Even our OPM songs aren’t getting any better. It was 2006 when I stared discovering some major rock bands like Sponge Cola, Bamboo, Rivermaya, Eraserheads, Kjwan, Imago, Sandwich, Callalily and many more. Most of them have disbanded or in a hiatus right now, and we could probably blame ourselves for that (piracy sucks big time). Without a lot of good bands remaining, there was an opportunity for K-pop to fill in the gap.
6.) Lyrics Ain’t Everythin’, fo’ shizzle!
Lots of people say a good song requires good lyrics that can make people connect to the song, but in my opinion, lyrics aren’t everything. I’m not saying lyrics doesn’t matter, of course it does, but there’s more to music than just words. R n’ B, rap and hip-hop music are good examples. Sometimes the words don’t even make sense, but people like it because it sounds good and it’s catchy. And for people who don’t understand Korean, it’s exactly the same. And even if everyone understood the language, I bet some of the songs’ lyrics won’t make any sense either. (P.S. choreography makes up for the lyrics)
7.) High Quality
The biggest K-pop artists like 2NE1 and Big Bang had their songs produced by famous American producers (Teddy). Their music videos have a production cost between $100K-$1M each, and they have raked in tens of millions of dollars in Korea alone. Talk about high quality music. The videos are shot using state-of-the-art video cameras and they have different costumes in every live performances. Entertainment companies spend millions of dollars for theirtrainees and they discipline their artists by making them work hard for about 3-8 years before they finally have a chance to debut. Yep, it almost seems like they’re the new America.
8.) The Artists
The most popular groups get the most attention and the members get a chance to be in the spotlight in interviews, photo shoots, live performances or cameos in different shows. Eventually you’ll get hooked to the artists and end up being bigger fans of their groups because they’re just fun to watch. My favorites so far are Goo Hara (Kara), Jiyeon (T-ara), everyone from Big Bang (Daesung, Taeyang, Seungri, G-Dragon, TOP), Yuri (Girls’ Generation), Seohyun (Girls’ Generation), Lizzy (After School), Eunjung (T-ara), and many others. See, I got hooked!
P.S. Don’t mention plastic surgery, it’s normal in Korea, and I don’t have anything against it.
Goo HaraJiyeonFrom the left: TOP, Seungri, Taeyang, Daesung, G-DragonYuriLizzy
9.) Korean TV Shows
K-pop is more than just MUSIC! That may sound crazy, but k-pop artists are trained to be versatile artists. They can sing, act and even host an event. One of the biggest reasons why I began loving K-pop is the Korean TV Shows, and I’m not talking Korean Dramas (I discovered them late), I’m talking about their variety shows! They have the funniest shows on earth! I have a 200 GB collection of shows like Family Outing, Running Man, We Got Married, etc. that not only showcases singers, but also Korean actors, gag men, models, and even Korea itself! (NOTE: Tell me if you want a copy of these shows, I’d be more than happy to give them to you). And it’s even more fun when you already know the singers involved in these shows.
AND FINALLY…
10.) THEY’RE KOREAN!
They’re KOREANS! They’re the same country who lagged behind us (economics-wise) 50 years ago, having the same problem as ours today! We were even told by many that we would become the next Japan, a powerhouse of Asia. I’m not saying that Koreans are better than us. I believe were just as good as them, but there are just a lot of things that are pulling us backwards and are preventing us from further progressing. I don’t know about you, but I blame a lot of our problems to Ferdinand Marcos. The recent problems our country is having don’t even match the vile corruption he’s done, but we don’t need to dwell on our past. We just simply need to become better citizens and pray to God that everything’s going to be okay.
So that’s it. That’s why I love K-pop and why I probably will keep loving it for the next 5 to 50 years. If you tried but you still don’t like it, I don’t blame you because it’s your choice, not mine. I’ll even admire you for trying. If you hate it, it’s okay for me either. I’m not gonna say that you’re deaf or that you have a bad taste in music or say that you’re missing half of your life. There are lots of other people I could talk to about K-pop, and I also tend to distance my guilty pleasure from my school life. There’s a time and place for everything, and I’m not gonna die if I don’t talk about K-pop. Everybody has flaws*. 🙂
Thanks for reading this, and I hope, just hope, that all of you start liking (or hating) K-pop!
You guys know what time it is! It’s time to showcase my top 7 songs for the week! I’m kinda disappointed with the new releases of American artists this week. None of them even entered my iPod after I listened to the once. Wanna know what songs I’m talking about? Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Britney Spears, Ke$ha, Rihanna.
Well, good thing I discovered K-pop! Basically, the only reason I listen to K-pop is because I find American music quite boring and stagnant or disappointing at times. So when there’s a void, K-pop fills it for me.
This week, Jessie J keeps the crown for the third week in a row, while Big Bang’s newest single finally becomes the most played track in my iPod.
TOP 7 US SONGS
1.) Price Tag – Jessie J feat. B.o.B.
Previous Position: 3 Weeks at #1
2.) Make A Movie – Twista feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: #4
This song is actually one of the best Chris Brown collaboration I’ve heard in a long while, so if you have time you can check out the embedded video above.
It’s time to for my top 7 countdown once again and I could say that I’m pretty much overloaded with regards to music this week. It took me the whole morning just to listen to new songs and I’ve hardly replayed the songs I discovered in the past 2 weeks!
Jessie J solidifies the crown once again, while TVXQ snatches the victory in the K-pop list. However, Big Bang is once again becoming a candidate for number 1!
TOP 7 US SONGS
Jessie J - Who You Are
1.) Price Tag – Jessie J
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #1
2.) Moment 4 Life – Nicki Minaj feat. Drake
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #2
3.) Best Love Song – T-Pain feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: #4
4.) Make A Movie – Twista feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: #6
5.) Roll Up – Wiz Khalifa
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
6.) Count on Me/The Lazy Song
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
The first time I heard Count on Me I instantly got hooked to it.
7.) Can’t Be Friends – Trey Songz
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Booted out of the Top 7:
Look At Me Now
6 Foot, 7 Foot
Champion
TOP 7 K-Pop Songs
Yunho and Changmin (TVXQ)
1.) Before U Go – TVXQ
Previous Position: #4
TVXQ seals another win after their smash hit Keep Your Head Down earlier this year. I’m posting the music video here so that you could witness a great video that includes arguably the best vocals I’ve ever heard for a K-pop artist
2.) Twinkle Twinkle – Girl’s Day
Previous Position: #1
After snatching the crown last week, Girl’s Day drops to number two.
3.) Cafe – Big Bang
Previous Position: #2
Listen to this eargasmic track by Big Bang and you’ll sure love the song even if you’re not actually a k-pop fan
4.) Love Song – Big Bang
Previous Position: #6
5.) Intuition – CNBlue
Previous Position: 3 Weeks at #5
6.) Going Crazy – Song Ji Eun
Previous Position: #3
7.) Bangkok City – Orange Caramel
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
The group that brought you the overly cute A~ing!<3 last January is back with a less-bubbly, disco track that lets you dance with delight.
I’m here once again to introduce to you my favorite songs for the week. This one’s for K-pop and non-K-pop lovers alike. So you could check both charts depending on your preference.
Guess what? I had too much Chris Brown last week that I decided to give another artist a chance on me iPod. In the K-pop section, a girl group narrowly beats Big Bang.
TOP 7 US SONGS
1. Price Tag – Jessie J
Previous Position: #2
2. Moment 4 Life – Nicki Minaj feat. Drake
Previous Position: #3
3. Look At Me Now – Chris Brown feat. Busta Rhymes and Lil’ Wayne
Previous Position: #1
After 5 weeks at the top, CB finally relinquished the top spot. But that insanely fast rap will remain in my head forever
4. Best Love Song – T-Pain feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #4
5. 6 Foot, 7 Foot – Lil’ Wayne
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Here’s a new entry, Lil’ Wayne’s Six Foot Seven Foot. I normally don’t enjoy rap, but the voices of some rappers are nice to hear sometimes, especially when their songs are catchy
6. Make A Movie – Twista feat. Chris Brown
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
7. Champion – Chris Brown feat. Chipmunk
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Well, whaddaya know? Chris Brown has four songs in my top 7. No wonder I wanted someone else to take the crown this week! These songs are actually good.
Booted out of the Top 7:
Next To You – Chris Brown ft. Justin Bieber
Candles – Hey Monday
The Show Goes On – Lupe Fiasco
TOP 7 K-POP SONGS
Girl's Day
1. Twinkle Twinkle – Girl’s Day
Previous Position: #2
I admit, I guess I’m just into cute stuff. These girls even beat my faves, Big Bang. If you ever consider trying K-pop, or listening to these girls’ songs, maybe you could start by watching the music video for this song. (You can find it at my April 8-10 article)
2. Cafe – Big Bang
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Not so much a new-entry, just a new song that didn’t have a music video. This is probably the most eargasmic song on their latest album (FYI, it’s their 4th album)
3. Going Crazy – Song Ji Eun
Previous Position: #1
Ji Eun drops to third place after a massive push by other artists. Only listened to it twice this week.
4. Before U Go – TVXQ
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #4
I personally believe that TVXQ has the best vocals in the current K-pop industry in terms of “idol” status. Wanna check? Here’s the song.
5. Intuition – CNBlue
Previous Position: 2 Weeks at #5
I dub them as the Jonas Brothers of Korea. I don’t exactly treat them as a “rock band”, but their songs are more than enough to please my instrumental tastes.
6. Love Song/Stupid Liar – Big Bang
Previous Position: NEW ENTRY
Tonight may have already exited the top 7, but Big Bang is back with a double-track return for their EP, Big Bang 4.5. Honestly, there are better songs in the track, but you can’t argue that the song is beautifully made and shows the hardwork of the producers. If this goes up I’ll post a video.
After surviving the nadir of his young career (Graffiti), Chris Brown is back with another album. His fans are slowly accepting his music ever since the Rihanna incident. You could tell by checking how his latest songs are doing at the Billboard hot 100. Thanks to his controversial stint in Good Morning America, he just had his first number 1 album of his career. Of course, don’t forget the fact that his album is actually nice.
The album is different and similar at the same time with respect to his other albums. Different because Brown has managed to step out of his comfort zone and experiment on different genres. Nevertheless, you could still feel that the album is typical Chris Brown. Why? Well, because once again his album is a mixture of great, weird, experimental and horrible.
Another issue that became a stopped me from loving the album completely is the noticeable auto-tune. Yeah, not all of the songs here are auto-tuned, but CB can already sing. I just thought that some parts of his songs didn’t need auto-tune.
Best Tracks:
Deuces featuring Tyga and Kevin MC
The first single, Deuces, is the album’s promotional track for a reason. It shows how Chris Brown has evolved. He wants to show the world how much he matured as an artist by doing something different. This song is actually the best one he has made since Forever in my opinion.
Look At Me Now featuring Busta Rhymes and Lil’ Wayne
This one is one of my favorites in the album. Not because it’s a good song per se, in fact, the song is horrible if you take into account the instruments they used in the background (except the sick bass). The thing that wowed me in this song was the speed of their raps, particularly Busta Rhymes. Chris Brown also proved the he could actually rap (which people doubted before).
Yeah 3X
You won’t appreciate the song much if you only listen to it. Check it out on Youtube if you wanna see CB’s sick dance moves. He’s still MJ’s protege if you ask me. The song, well, it’s nice and catchy, but it’s not something I’d like to hear a hundred times a day.
Next To You ft. Justin Bieber
Who would’ve thought hearing Chris Brown and Justin Bieber in a single song? I most certainly didn’t. This one is a special surprise. Not only did they blend well, both of them actually sounded great, even Bieber! This puppy-love inspired single will help CB reach out to the teens.
She Ain’t You
This special tribute to Michael Jackson includes an intro from his song “Human Nature”. Chris Brown might have worked extra hard on this song because it has the same energy that MJ had with his song.
Should’ve Kissed You
Should’ve kissed you is almost like the continuation of She Ain’t You. This song is among the few tracks in this album that truly showed his singing abilities. This also had a great chorus and an awesome bridge
Champion (bonus track)
The last song in the deluxe album (which I almost missed) is Champion featuring Chipmunk. Chris Brown offers his amazing vocal ability in this track, and it’s also one of the most catchy songs in the album.
Other songs like No Bullshit, Wet The Bed, Say It With Me, Up 2 You Bomb, Alll Back, Beautiful People, Beg For It and Love The Girls, and Paper Scissors and Rock reminds us that Chris Brown isn’t the same anymore. He definitely is old enough to make songs like these, but it doesn’t make him any less different from other hip-hop groups like Wiz Khalifa or Lil’ Wayne. One thing I love about CB’s old songs was the lack of explicit content. Well, I guess you don’t always get what you want, right? The songs listed in this paragraph ranged from okay to forgettable, and I hoped that some of those could’ve been improved more or deleted from the album.
Overall, CB’s new album is waaaaay better than Graffiti, but is still a tad behind his smash hits Exlcusive and Forever Deluxe. There were some tracks that could’ve been omitted from the list that made the album much better, but there are a lot more great tracks than the okay and the mediocre ones.
Topacity 