Bunni Pop's March favourites: Featuring Jimin, Kai, Seventeen's Caratland and 'The Glory: Part 2'
Spring has arrived and 2023 is already going by too quickly...
March is quickly coming to a close, so it’s time for Bunni Pop’s monthly favourites! Here, I’ll break down some of the songs, shows and movies I’ve been consuming in the month of March.
Music
J-Hope - ‘on the street (with J.Cole)’
It’s a full circle moment for BTS member J-Hope, as he gets to collaborate with his longtime hero J.Cole for his single “on the street.” J-Hope has long idolized the American rapper since the beginning of his career, even covering Cole's track "Born Sinner" in 2013. "Born Singer" was then officially released in 2022 in BTS's anthology album Proof. “on the street” is a lo-fi hip hop track details J-Hope’s journey as an artist and the evolution of his craft. However, it’s extra meaningful for fans to hear as it’s his last music release before he officially begins his mandatory military service.
Kai - ‘Rover’
No song has had a grip on me this month like Kai’s “Rover”. The song is just about everywhere on social media, with the EXO singer dancing to his song with fellow idols like ATEEZ’s San and Seonghwa, TWICE’s Momo, NMIXX’s Kyujin and even Physical 100 contestant Yun Sungbin. It’s wild to think “Rover” is actually a remake of Bulgarian singer DARA’s “Mr. Rover.” Kai has managed to make it sound like his very own with his seductive and sexy flair. I’ve had it on repeat ever since I heard it for the first time.
Onew - ‘O (Circle)’
This is the type of song that really allows SHINee’s Onew’s vocals shine. While over-production is often a criticism in many K-pop songs these days, there’s something really minimal about “O (Circle)”. The ballad grows on you with every listen. The song orchestral tracking is so dreamy, and I love when the track reaches its climax as a choir of voices get louder as they join Onew’s gorgeous vocals. This single is much slower in pace to the types of songs you’d hear from his SHINee members Taemin and Key. But I can see myself playing this on repeat after a long and tiring day.
Huh Yunjin - ‘love you twice’
Yunjin is quickly becoming one of my favourite female singers in K-pop these days. As part of the rookie girl group LE SSERAFIM, she has proven to be an excellent dancer and vocalist. Now she’s showing off her songwriting skills in a fan-dedicated track called “love you twice.”
This is the perfect song to listen to as you study or work on a late night project. It’s also Yunjin’s third self-composed solo song, following the release of ‘I ≠ DOLL’ this January and ‘Raise y_our glass’ in August 2022. In addition to her solo songs, she has also co-written a number of tracks for LE SSERAFIM, including “Blue Flame”, “Fearless”, “Impurities”, “No Celestial” and “Good Parts”. Yunjin is seriously made to be an idol!
Twice - ‘Set Me Free’
JYP certainly works hard, because the girls from Twice are here delivering yet another certified banger. “Set me Free” is a disco track that takes a neo-futuristic approach, with elements of synth and bass line. I listen to this song as I try to get away from the misery that is ticketing. After all, it was absolute fail for me to even attempt to buy tickets to Twice’s upcoming concerts in Toronto. I was one of the many thousands waitlisted once again for presale. Now I shall wait for my next steps on how to get a seat in that arena.
As I type this, it is days after Chaeyoung’s apology for wearing a certain T-shirt. It’s undoubtedly wrong and she and her stylists should have known better. But it has me thinking a lot about how a lot of Asian cultures wear shirts with English words and symbols without knowing the true meaning of them. It further proves why cultural awareness is so important. I have been curious to know how this affects Twice’s promotions and ticket sales, but it seems to have not made a big difference. Much smarter people have already shared their perspective on this matter, so I will link a few threads/articles here.
Jimin - Face (album)
I have always been so curious about the kind of music Jimin would release when it was time for him to make his solo debut. And boy, am I ever impressed.
Sure, I might be biased, considering that BTS has been my ultimate group for a while now. Though unlike RM, Suga or J-Hope, I had absolutely no idea what kind of sound Jimin would pursue. Would it be more Latin-inspired, like his solo song “Filter”? Or more melodic and chill, like “Promise”? Turns out Jimin is going the ‘80s synth pop route with “Like Crazy,” which just gets better and better with each listening experience.
Amongst my group of friends, “Like Crazy” seems to have gotten a far better reception than Jimin’s pre-release single “Set Me Free Pt. 2”. A lot of my peers did not seem to like the autotune in the latter and felt it was overproduced. I actually didn’t mind it so much, as it served as an effect to the song’s already intense nature. Congratulations Jimin on a successful solo debut!
Television
On top of everything that has been going on with work and projects, I unfortunately have not been watching a ton of new television. Feel free to ask me about the latest season of Ted Lasso, though! It is the show that brightens up my Wednesdays these days.
I did however, catch up on the second part of The Glory, which has Song Hye-kyo’s character carrying out her vengeance against her school bullies. I will not spoil the show for those who are not caught up, but I was pleased to see how most of its storylines were tied together neatly. The only thing I wasn’t really a fan of was her character’s love story with Lee Do-hyun. I just couldn’t buy their romantic chemistry, and it felt very forced. They could have just kept it platonic and I would have been happy. That said, I love Lee Do-hyun and I find him super charming! I hope he gets more meaty roles in the future.
Concerts
From Kang Daniel, keshi to Epik High, March was officially the start of another year of concerts! I wrote more comprehensive pieces on Kang Daniel and Keshi on this newsletter this month, so please do check them out!
And while we are on this note of concerts, I also got to watch Seventeen’s annual fan meeting Caratland in the wee hours of the morning earlier this month.
It looked like so much fun, and I am now even more determined to attend one of these fan meetings in person one day. Seventeen is such a special and talented group, and I love how they keep us on our toes by having the performance, hip-hop and vocal sub-units perform songs outside of their element.
My highlight was seeing the hip-hop unit (a group of rappers!!!) sing a song like “Imperfect Love” and absolutely BODY IT!!! And who can deny the swag of performance unit covering a hip-hop song like “Back it Up?” NO ONE! Jun is out here bias wrecking me once again.
In other news
Jungkook partners with Calvin Klein
These days, I feel a bit silly being all sad about BTS’s hiatus announcement last summer because Chapter 2 is looking great for the boys. More maturity! PG-rated photographs and saucier clothing campaigns! Calvin Klein recently teased that they are working with Jungkook and the photos are already looking quite steamy.
FIFTY FIFTY debuts on the Billboard Hot 100
On Monday, Billboard announced K-pop rookie girl group FIFTY FIFTY has made their Billboard Hot 100 debut at #100 with their hit single, “Cupid.” FIFTY FIFTY now joins Wonder Girls, BLACKPINK, TWICE, and NewJeans as the only five K-pop girl groups in history to enter the Hot 100, and only the sixth K-pop group overall (with the addition of BTS).
This charming song is an absolute earworm. I didn’t discover it until a month after its release, and it’s quickly crept up to being one of my favourites of the year!
And if you loved the Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha soundtrack…see Car, the garden on tour!
K-pop musician Car, the garden has just announced his North American tour, with stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Toronto. Since 2015, K-pop singer Car, the garden has won the hearts of many fans thanks to his husky voice and sarcastic humour. The singer has been in a number of K-drama OSTs including Alchemy of Souls Part 1. And his charming “Romantic Sunday” was famously featured in the series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha.
See me elsewhere
I recently had a chance to speak with Epik High’s Tablo for our national paper. While Canada has a long way to go in embracing Asian entertainment and culture, I am excited they took a chance on this interview. There was much that I wish I could have included, so I intend to post a few other highlights that didn't make it in on my newsletter in the coming days. I did another more comprehensive interview last year for Complex Canada. Read it here.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Accountability is important to me, so please address corrections and concerns by sending me an email at bunnipopnewsletter@gmail.com. Continue the conversation by following Bunni Pop on Instagram and Twitter.
Love these types of posts!! Gosh, there are seriously so many exciting things happening right now! I was most looking forward to Caratland and Jimin's release. JK x CK completely caught me off guard - like EXCUSE ME?!!! Insanity!
I appreciate you highlighting new artists and individual idols from groups. Le Sserafim's Yunjin is my bias - if you haven't, please watch her episode of LeeMujin Service on YouTube. I checked out Car, the garden yesterday after seeing your post on IG. I wish he was touring closer to me.