Itzy comes back with "Born To Be"

Trends are such a funny thing in KPop. It's so self-evident that rigid concepts sweep through the industry as producers keep finding the next new thing that resonates with consumers, but fans and idols alike will passionately deny it, claiming that THEIR group is unique and that it's all about the music.

OK. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But doesn't the vibe of this video conflict with their recent themes? Itzy started very strong with Dalla and Loco and Swipe. Very quirky with strong individuality among the members and the aesthetics of what Koreans call "HiTeen"...for Americans, think Lisa Frank meets High School Musical with some anime thrown in for flavor.

But now? We are back into "Weapon" territory with darker themes, lava, and that urban Tomb Raider look that BlackPink started with "Kill This Love". Dreamcatcher's "OOTD' and even Viviz's "Untie" have that non-gritty dark thing happening.

But people, there is nothing wrong with this. If groups and companies didn't riff off of each others' ideas, there would be no such thing as a "trend". This is a great direction for Itzy as they age out of cute/quirky. JYP is extremely observant and experimental. I think, with Itzy, he's trying to "age" the group along with their audience. This is something some groups have done organically, but often, because of the 7 year expiration of most contracts, companies are not really thinking "lifetime value" for their properties, but I guess we'll see. "Sneakers" started a set of comebacks that had me thinking that, as an adult man, I may no longer be able to enjoy Itzy. But this is much more mature. I've always had a soft spot for this group, and I hope Lia is OK.

How Red Velvet Films Their Stages

 SM posted a video yesterday as a treat to fans seeing a very lightly-edited take of their performance at Inkigayo of "Chill Kill". It's really amazing how much content is created from a single even in KPop...their creatives are at the absolute top when it comes to being able to get every bit of value from every frame, pixel, or second of content. And yet, still no dance practice or performance video of their best song, "Wildside". :)

Charlie Puth Reacts to Left Right

 

Kpop fans absolutely love when their biases are noticed by Western artists, and Charlie is one of those stars that bridge the gap between Pop and Kpop fans. I know underneath all of this is crass commercialism, but XG becoming more noticed can only be a good thing. There's no reason why they could not be as big as BlackPink.

Insomnicsy finally met Dreamcatcher

 

Well, it finally happened.

If you are a Somnia, you are undoubtedly aware of the YouTuber Insomnicsy. Her content is exclusively comprised of Dreamcatcher videos. Her editing and production choices are remarkable, and her intro guides and "This is" series (updated annually) are extremely well thought-out.

And she's been doing this for years. On occasion, Dreamcatcher will mention her videos, but I've never heard them mention the channel specifically. I don't usually comment on videos, but I've mentioned a few times on her videos that I really think the Dreamcatcher company should coordinate with her. She is a true influencer in the best meaning of the word. She's also extremely kind and wholesome without being cringy. This is very rare in the Kpop fandom.

And now we see that she has met them in person! I was a LITTLE disappointed that they didn't know more about her, but she got warm receptions across the board. I hope it was everything Insomicsy wanted the encounter to be.

How many other YouTubers are this dedicated to a group? I've seen some Twice channels, but suggest some more, although I bet it will be hard to find channels that are THIS dedicated AND have the eye for editing and content.

You can check out Insomnicsy's channel HERE.