(Featuring Yuqi, Seulgi, Jihyo, Yuju, and Solar)

This time, I thought I would try something different on the blog. Instead of doing a deep dive into one group, I’m doing shallow dives into a bunch of soloists and their first mini albums, then comparing and contrasting. This time is female soloists, from TWICE to Mamamoo. So, let’s get into it!

(See all solo rankings here)

Artist #1: Yuqi of (G)I-DLE

I would say I know Yuqi pretty well, having been a Neverland (a (G)I-DLE fan) since 2021, and having watched both her previous solo ventures and a couple interviews of hers, including her and Minnie’s on Eric Nam’s Daebak Show, but I’m always happy to hear more of her unique voice.

Freak isn’t Yuqi’s first solo music release, but she’s only done a double single before, which, though good, wasn’t my style. In terms of Freak, though, the whole thing is just a lot of fun. I have some small qualms—I wish the chorus went a little further with its rock influences, where it really just dips its toes in—but overall I enjoyed myself too much to harp on any of those.The horror influences add another layer of interesting imagery and an off-kilter energy that’s a great fit for Yuqi. I’m pleasantly surprised that a song with such clearly queer lyrics was allowed to be performed, and it’s refreshing to see an idol so flippant about that. The little dedication at the end of “to all the freaks in the world” was a nice touch too.

From the album, YUQ1, I enjoyed the bubbly, encouraging My Way, the ultra-confident Red Rover, Minnie’s feature in Everytime, and the slice-of-life dreaminess of Could It Be. This is a great EP, and even more importantly, great for Yuqi. I’ll give Yuqi a 9 out of 10.

Artist #2: Seulgi of Red Velvet

Red Velvet was one of the first k-pop groups I was interested in, starting in 2018/19 when I stumbled across Russian Roulette and promptly became obsessed. I admit to not knowing as much about Seulgi as the other members, since she’s a little more reserved, but I watched a couple videos on her new YouTube channel to get a better idea of who she is.

28 Reasons, like Freak, has horror inspiration, but not a grin or a delightfully red wig in sight. Instead, its verses are terrifyingly blank, spotlighting her voice in a way that effectively builds tension. It’s not got quite enough substance to keep me riveted, and without a performer as charismatic as Seulgi, I don’t think it would work. The bridge is probably the best part, especially when she gets her high note and the final chorus has more instrumentation. The whistling hook too is unique. I’d say that this is a great example of a song that’s acing its objective, but still isn’t for me.

I first listened to the 28 Reasons EP when it came out in 2022, and I have to admit that while I liked it, I didn’t pay it much attention. Now, though, I have a newfound appreciation for its consistency and smoothness, from the moody psy-trance of Anywhere But Home to the trappy, creeping sound of Crown. And none of that takes into consideration the incredible, destined-for-the-stage villain song that is Dead Man Runnin’, which was actually written by Seulgi herself, and damn it, should’ve been the title. It’s just so good and so unlike anything in k-pop. Seulgi gets a 9.25 out of 10 from me.

Artist #3: Jihyo of TWICE

During my review of TWICE as a group, Jihyo’s voice really stood out to me due to its unique tone and somewhat lower register than is common for k-pop, and so in choosing soloists for this review, I figured that she’d be a good choice. I watched some BTS of her music videos too.

Killin’ Me Good feels like it announces its presence, instead of just starting, and part of that is that Jihyo is such an engaging performer, and really makes the song. While the hook is a bit simple, the track doesn’t leave it to flounder alone, instead backing it up with a weighty chorus that makes it feel more full. Also, it’s great to see Jihyo get her time in the spotlight, when she’s not often considered “pretty” by Korean standards, for whatever reason. Seeing her so confident in her body—without a forced whitewashed filter—is a really nice change of pace.

From the EP, Zone, I enjoyed the synthy, crying-on-the-dancefloor sound of Talkin’ About It (my hidden gem), the moody trop-pop of Don’t Wanna Go Back, and the ultra-dramatic delivery of Nightmare. This is a pretty strong release! Jihyo gets an 8.75 from me.

Artist #4: Yuju of Gfriend

Gfriend has been one of my favorite k-pop groups for a while now, though sadly I only became a fan after they disbanded. I loved Yuju’s voice in their songs, and I’m interested to see how it functions on its own without different registers to play off of.

Play falls into the category of songs where the artist is the one making it worthwhile; Yuju’s voice is really what’s doing the heavy lifting here, though, managing to be both heartbroken and self-assured and elevating a track that sometimes veers into simple. There’s so much potential here, and there’s several points where the song is close to going from good to great, especially in the bridge. It’s like a more elegant, more meaty version of Jisoo’s Flower, though it still suffers from a mainly instrumental chorus. I also appreciated that the song’s completely in Korean, which is a rarity in k-pop now, and the traditional strings add a deeper layer to what could be very simple.

From the EP, just called [REC.], I enjoyed the dramatic intro Bad Blood, which I wish was more incorporated into the single, and the sweeping vocals of The Killa. Yuju gets an 8.25 from me.

Artist #5: Solar of MAMAMOO

While I’ve always liked Mamamoo’s voices and appreciated their talents, I could never get into them as a group (for reasons discussed here). But, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t like their music, and so I wanted to give each of their solo work a fair shake too, starting with Solar, whose voice is probably my favorite.

As mentioned, I really like Solar’s voice, so I had high hopes for Honey, but it’s just…boring. It’s sad, because there’s good here, in Solar’s breathy performance, in the colorful set design, in the brassy interpolations, and in the verses’ build up. The post-choruses too are pretty solid, but the song wastes too much time getting to them, instead making the main hook an anti-drop that just kills the song’s energy. And far be it from me to encourage the music industry to make shorter songs, but I wish this part was taken out, because not only would the song be stronger without it but it just doesn’t feel like it fits in in the first place.

I didn’t have a hidden gem from the EP, but neither did I dislike any of the songs. I’ll give Solar a 7.5 out of 10.

Verdict: TL;DR

My Top EP was Seulgi’s 28 Reasons, with Yuqi’s YUQ1,

See you next time for the next part of the Day6 3-parter! Tschüss!