Musically New Jeans is the most accessible kpop group I've heard for regular folks, if it was released at a different time, their stuff would characterized as "radio friendly". It also appeals to people of all ages (I'm older and though I like kpop, I am used to about 30 years of how pop music sounded), a lot of kpop does not. Maybe only the all-english Cupid (twins) by Fifty Fifty or XG's last two songs (since their stuff is all english) I could more easily play to peers my age who are not accustomed to kpop (well pretty much any english version kpop song with acceptable accent, like the Twice or Chungha ones).
I agree that NewJeans is the most accessible K-pop group these days for normies. Back in the 90s and 2000s, you're right that it would have slotted in as a solid radio song. I do hear a lot of times how a lot of K-pop is blending in and how the songs don't stand out. Especially for us older folk, the newer songs do sound quite similar and has that teenage-sound to it. I do like Fifty Fifty's newest song and XG's last two songs myself as well. You hit on a good point though that if an older person likes a K-pop song, it's most likely easily accessible to music fans (not just K-pop fans) in general.
As someone who came of age during the late 90s and early 2000s, their music hits that nostalgia mark for me so well. Their music is intentional, well-crafted and focuses on what initially got me into kpop back in 2008 - it's fun, catchy, and easily accessible to everyone, something I haven't seen in kpop for a very long time. I also appreciate how NewJeans songs are comfortably in their range -- most girl group songs nowadays are so high pitched that idols are struggling to reach the high notes, but NewJeans' music is just a vibe. They can sing and dance comfortably and genuinely look like they're having fun, it makes such a difference as a fan.
You bring a good point how NewJeans' songs are comfortably in their range. With them singing and dancing comfortably and having fun, I definitely see the appeal of the group to even new K-pop listeners.
I think you need to hear more K-pop b sides if you haven't heard much accessible music, respectfully! I would recommend songs in other genres too, like 4 Walls
@@Asongfromme To be fair, most B-sides aren't promoted like their A-sides. A-sides have MVs and are the lead song on an album, so underrated B-sides are largely unnoticed to the casual K-pop fan or a newcomer to the genre. With that said, 4 Walls is a great banger that newcomers should listen to!
Great content as always! And being a fully-bilingual Korean, I didn't see any issues with the Korean lyrics in Cookie but definitely saw it in the English parts. It was an issue that was so easy to avoid. I also believe that MHJ won't make the same mistake again.
Thanks for watching! I'm always interesting in hearing what Koreans -- especially bilingual ones -- think about analyzing Korean songs. When I first listened to "Cookie," I also didn't see the suggestive connotations. But like you alluded to, the optics look bad and the suggestive lyrics could have been easily avoided. I agree that MHJ won't make that mistake again and continue to make bangers free of controversies.
And the NJ's impact is pretty immediate on other hits like FIFTY FIFTY's "Higher" or even "CUPID". The surprising underwhelming sales (like Kep1er's "GIDDY") also tells me that the trend is definitely where NJ is at.
Haha, thanks for the compliment! It's truly humbling that you watch my videos, as it's comments like this that inspire me to keep making videos on K-pop and J-pop :)
Dude this channel is so underappreciated I just can't. I mean through the years the content is really really good. And all kpop fans should watch it. Not sure why it's still not a million-subs-channel.
It's all good 😀 We got some major projects happening soon. Until then, we'll just be "the best kept secret in K-pop!" Always appreciate you watching my videos!
I believe the fun thing about New Jeans lore/concept is that it is lowkey anti-kpop fan that may end (if hasn't already) in a very rude awakening for many fans out there. I started just a week late getting into New Jeans bc i was suckered into the IG story/TikTok trends, so i was lured in by word of mouth and had to check them out for myself; and immediately caught my "Attention" - pun intended. But, it wasn't until DITTO when i realized, there's something hidden in their intentions with this group. The plot twist of Ditto was a representation of how an overly obsessed female kpop fan is with loving their girl groups. In OMG, the song is about a girl who has a secret lover boy that everyone is so curious about... but to me, i think the lyrics pertained to a female kpop fan who is overly obsessed with her favorite male kpop idol. "He's the one that's living in my system, baby" was a dead giveaway to me that it was a kpop idol she's in love with. "...I was really hopin' that he will come through (her phone so that he can be with her, for her to show off to the rest of her friends)." Then, the rest of the lyrics explain her dilusions. Then, i had to think back of the purposes for each of the debut songs: Attention was mainly to grab everyone's attention. Hype Boy was how a female kpop fan loves their male kpop idols Cookie was a trap! (will get back to that one) Hurt's main repetitive chorus "I'm not gonna be the one to get hurt" is the main message to all the kpop fans when they all get exploited by New Jeans' master-mind; and it's repeated like so to drill that into your minds. Back to Cookie, what you explained in the vid was spot on and what I heard rumors and articles about. Sexualizing idols, i believe, is soley the fault of kpop fans alone. Yeah, some major companies sometimes dress artists in short skimpy skirts on rare occassions, but generally, attires are very conservative; but it falls on the fan on what they think. Half the group would think, oh, it's just a cute outfit and nothing else, but the others may think it's sexy and provocative. It all boils down to self-interpretation: you think sexy and provocative, then that's how you perceive it, but not necessarily how it was supposed to be received as and not what others think....YOU THINK THAT WAY! Cookie is a trap to exploit those fans who sexualize idols. When listening to the song, it did seem kind of off to me, but then checking the lyrics, i found nothing wrong about it. Then watching PD's (Form of Therapy) reaction, PD wasn't bothered by the lyrics nor didn't mention anything about Cookie having any double meaning at all. Then i read the article about how ADOR explained what Cookie was really about and that it wasn't intended to be sexual at all..... and from THAT i knew... just what ADOR was getting at 😅 and so I believe New Jeans' concept is actually supposed to be anti-kpop fan and will soon expose all of the wrongs that fans do to idols/artists and even to their own lives, such as idolizing over someone's life over their own........and I'm all for it 😂 New Jeans is definitely set to change the minds of many kpop fans and will alter the kpop fandom with some New Genes.
You hit on so many good points, I had to think about my response to this yesterday. I can see that NewJeans' concept of being lowkey anti-Kpop may hit a lot of fans out there. It's catchy music with a hidden message of "don't be a toxic fan because this is what idols go through." Like yourself, when I saw "Ditto," I was thinking, "wait, are they calling out toxic fans and showing the reality of an idol's career?" For "Hurt," that's a good interpretation of the song. It's scary that there's so many hidden messages within NewJeans' songs. With "Cookie," it's one of those traps, as you say. When I first listened to "Cookie," I didn't think anything was wrong. Many Koreans I talked to also agreed and said there was nothing wrong. It was only when I turned on the English subtitles, I can see how foreigners would think "oooohh, these lyrics could be taken as very suggestive." I can't blame overseas fans for thinking this way. When I listened to Min Hee-jin's explanation, it makes sense. I don't think she maliciously tried to write suggestive lyrics. It's just has bad optics to have lyrics that skirts the line. It would have been much better to keep the lyrics a lot cleaner and lean towards baking cookies for a friend, bf, family, etc. instead. Maybe Min Hee-jin also wrote "Cookie" to call out toxic K-pop fans as well. It's an interesting take, for sure. It's exciting to see NewJeans' shake up the industry and call out the K-pop fandom at the same time.
A great piece of work as always. There's always a fine line between lyrics and image when dealing with minors especially as kpop is global. Being unaware of other countries sensitivities isn't an excuse. All song releases are global releases these days. Hopefully the girls will be better looked after by Ador, but with a seasoned industry veteran as CEO, you can see that she's setting the standards when it comes to idol care. Perhaps another Hybe label could learn a thing or two about managing girl groups.... Lastly the Popsori cover of the Cookie lyrics was interesting! 😮
The Popsori cover of the lyrics could lead to my "second career" as a rapper =P But seriously, I can see why many int'l fans called out ADOR and Min Hee-jin for "Cookie's" lyrics. It really skirts the line. Even with Min's best intentions, I think it's a lot better to play it safe, especially with minors involved. As for the other Hybe label about managing girl groups, I take it you're referring to Source Music. I think Le Sserafim is doing well, but hopefully, they can become even bigger this year.
@Popsori I was referring to Pledis, I keep wondering about the very wasted potential of Pristin and the way After School fizzled out. Source and its group Glam was a situation that was partly outside of management control. Though the lack of closure with Gfriend isn't exactly endearing. And thanks for your comments. It's always good to think beyond the superficial stuff.
Ahhhh, the stories of Pristin and After School are quite sad indeed. I always thought those two groups had serious potential to make it big in 3rd generation K-pop. Also agree with the lack of closure with GFriend was also lackluster. I'm glad three members formed VIVIZ to carry on the GFriend legacy. Thanks once again Kurz for your comments as well!
It's all good! They're one of the newer groups that debuted in mid-2022 out of nowhere. They quickly exploded and now one of the biggest female K-pop groups in under a year.
@@Popsori I see. They debuted running. Just watched their music videos today and... not bad. I think "Attention" was the only track that caught my, well, attention. Ha. "Cookie" was odd but I didn't get the inappropriate vibes as much as I expected from watching this video. Their retro sound certainly is interesting. Reminds me of the City Pop sound that K-Pop touched on recently (looking at you YUKIKA). Though this group is far too young, I plan to keep at eye on them. NewJeans could be a big group with some longevity.
@@ty_sylicus You actually hit on a good pain point in legit "K-pop artist popularity" trackers. There's not really an official go-to, but here's three good ones below: ►ruclips.net/video/aVQ3MzSwgxI/видео.html ►kpop.daisuki.com.br/kpop_statistics.html ►www.statista.com/statistics/1300863/south-korea-most-followed-kpop-acts-on-twitter-by-followers These are great for stats and sales. Yet, they don't track who's trending outside of those numbers (like what fans talk about). Since there's no official app or channel to track who's trending, the best way (and most time-consuming) is keeping up with K-pop and what K-pop fans say. Or... continue to follow this channel :) (Shameless plug, I know!)
Yeah, when I first listened to "Cookie" in just Korean, I thought it was fine. It was only when I turned on English subs and looked at it from an American viewpoint where I'm like "ahhh, I see what they mean." I think the optics of the song's meaning looks bad in English with teens singing the song with the possible innuendos. Add to the fact of Min Hee-jin's past decisions and I understand American fans. But I also understand the Korean side of things as well, since just looking at the lyrics at face value seemed fine. With that said, I'm glad there's non-Americans that can see the other side.
Ador's Cookie explanation is BS and do they think that international fans are gullible? They knew what they're doing as it happened to Like a Virgin, Baby One More Time, and Ice Cream to name a few.
There are a lot of fans that think the lyrics were highly questionable and suggestive, for sure. I will give Min Hee-jin the benefit of the doubt, yet think she should have chose better lyrics and played it safe. The optics of "Cookie's" lyrics paired with minors looks really bad.
Musically New Jeans is the most accessible kpop group I've heard for regular folks, if it was released at a different time, their stuff would characterized as "radio friendly". It also appeals to people of all ages (I'm older and though I like kpop, I am used to about 30 years of how pop music sounded), a lot of kpop does not. Maybe only the all-english Cupid (twins) by Fifty Fifty or XG's last two songs (since their stuff is all english) I could more easily play to peers my age who are not accustomed to kpop (well pretty much any english version kpop song with acceptable accent, like the Twice or Chungha ones).
I agree that NewJeans is the most accessible K-pop group these days for normies. Back in the 90s and 2000s, you're right that it would have slotted in as a solid radio song.
I do hear a lot of times how a lot of K-pop is blending in and how the songs don't stand out. Especially for us older folk, the newer songs do sound quite similar and has that teenage-sound to it. I do like Fifty Fifty's newest song and XG's last two songs myself as well.
You hit on a good point though that if an older person likes a K-pop song, it's most likely easily accessible to music fans (not just K-pop fans) in general.
As someone who came of age during the late 90s and early 2000s, their music hits that nostalgia mark for me so well. Their music is intentional, well-crafted and focuses on what initially got me into kpop back in 2008 - it's fun, catchy, and easily accessible to everyone, something I haven't seen in kpop for a very long time. I also appreciate how NewJeans songs are comfortably in their range -- most girl group songs nowadays are so high pitched that idols are struggling to reach the high notes, but NewJeans' music is just a vibe. They can sing and dance comfortably and genuinely look like they're having fun, it makes such a difference as a fan.
You bring a good point how NewJeans' songs are comfortably in their range. With them singing and dancing comfortably and having fun, I definitely see the appeal of the group to even new K-pop listeners.
I think you need to hear more K-pop b sides if you haven't heard much accessible music, respectfully! I would recommend songs in other genres too, like 4 Walls
@@Asongfromme To be fair, most B-sides aren't promoted like their A-sides. A-sides have MVs and are the lead song on an album, so underrated B-sides are largely unnoticed to the casual K-pop fan or a newcomer to the genre.
With that said, 4 Walls is a great banger that newcomers should listen to!
They totally slayed with the 90s concept! I would LOVE to look forward to them! Love you, Jason! ♥️
Great content as always! And being a fully-bilingual Korean, I didn't see any issues with the Korean lyrics in Cookie but definitely saw it in the English parts. It was an issue that was so easy to avoid. I also believe that MHJ won't make the same mistake again.
Thanks for watching! I'm always interesting in hearing what Koreans -- especially bilingual ones -- think about analyzing Korean songs. When I first listened to "Cookie," I also didn't see the suggestive connotations. But like you alluded to, the optics look bad and the suggestive lyrics could have been easily avoided.
I agree that MHJ won't make that mistake again and continue to make bangers free of controversies.
And the NJ's impact is pretty immediate on other hits like FIFTY FIFTY's "Higher" or even "CUPID". The surprising underwhelming sales (like Kep1er's "GIDDY") also tells me that the trend is definitely where NJ is at.
True
By the way, you look so cute! I’ve fallen in love with you and your channel ever since I discovered your videos on K-pop and J-pop
Haha, thanks for the compliment! It's truly humbling that you watch my videos, as it's comments like this that inspire me to keep making videos on K-pop and J-pop :)
@@Popsori OMG You’re very welcome 💗
Dude this channel is so underappreciated I just can't. I mean through the years the content is really really good. And all kpop fans should watch it. Not sure why it's still not a million-subs-channel.
It's all good 😀 We got some major projects happening soon.
Until then, we'll just be "the best kept secret in K-pop!"
Always appreciate you watching my videos!
I believe the fun thing about New Jeans lore/concept is that it is lowkey anti-kpop fan that may end (if hasn't already) in a very rude awakening for many fans out there. I started just a week late getting into New Jeans bc i was suckered into the IG story/TikTok trends, so i was lured in by word of mouth and had to check them out for myself; and immediately caught my "Attention" - pun intended.
But, it wasn't until DITTO when i realized, there's something hidden in their intentions with this group. The plot twist of Ditto was a representation of how an overly obsessed female kpop fan is with loving their girl groups.
In OMG, the song is about a girl who has a secret lover boy that everyone is so curious about... but to me, i think the lyrics pertained to a female kpop fan who is overly obsessed with her favorite male kpop idol. "He's the one that's living in my system, baby" was a dead giveaway to me that it was a kpop idol she's in love with. "...I was really hopin' that he will come through (her phone so that he can be with her, for her to show off to the rest of her friends)." Then, the rest of the lyrics explain her dilusions.
Then, i had to think back of the purposes for each of the debut songs:
Attention was mainly to grab everyone's attention.
Hype Boy was how a female kpop fan loves their male kpop idols
Cookie was a trap! (will get back to that one)
Hurt's main repetitive chorus "I'm not gonna be the one to get hurt" is the main message to all the kpop fans when they all get exploited by New Jeans' master-mind; and it's repeated like so to drill that into your minds.
Back to Cookie, what you explained in the vid was spot on and what I heard rumors and articles about. Sexualizing idols, i believe, is soley the fault of kpop fans alone. Yeah, some major companies sometimes dress artists in short skimpy skirts on rare occassions, but generally, attires are very conservative; but it falls on the fan on what they think. Half the group would think, oh, it's just a cute outfit and nothing else, but the others may think it's sexy and provocative. It all boils down to self-interpretation: you think sexy and provocative, then that's how you perceive it, but not necessarily how it was supposed to be received as and not what others think....YOU THINK THAT WAY!
Cookie is a trap to exploit those fans who sexualize idols. When listening to the song, it did seem kind of off to me, but then checking the lyrics, i found nothing wrong about it. Then watching PD's (Form of Therapy) reaction, PD wasn't bothered by the lyrics nor didn't mention anything about Cookie having any double meaning at all. Then i read the article about how ADOR explained what Cookie was really about and that it wasn't intended to be sexual at all..... and from THAT i knew... just what ADOR was getting at 😅 and so I believe New Jeans' concept is actually supposed to be anti-kpop fan and will soon expose all of the wrongs that fans do to idols/artists and even to their own lives, such as idolizing over someone's life over their own........and I'm all for it 😂
New Jeans is definitely set to change the minds of many kpop fans and will alter the kpop fandom with some New Genes.
if this is true i HATE to say it but... MHJ is a genius
You hit on so many good points, I had to think about my response to this yesterday.
I can see that NewJeans' concept of being lowkey anti-Kpop may hit a lot of fans out there. It's catchy music with a hidden message of "don't be a toxic fan because this is what idols go through."
Like yourself, when I saw "Ditto," I was thinking, "wait, are they calling out toxic fans and showing the reality of an idol's career?"
For "Hurt," that's a good interpretation of the song. It's scary that there's so many hidden messages within NewJeans' songs.
With "Cookie," it's one of those traps, as you say. When I first listened to "Cookie," I didn't think anything was wrong. Many Koreans I talked to also agreed and said there was nothing wrong. It was only when I turned on the English subtitles, I can see how foreigners would think "oooohh, these lyrics could be taken as very suggestive." I can't blame overseas fans for thinking this way.
When I listened to Min Hee-jin's explanation, it makes sense. I don't think she maliciously tried to write suggestive lyrics.
It's just has bad optics to have lyrics that skirts the line. It would have been much better to keep the lyrics a lot cleaner and lean towards baking cookies for a friend, bf, family, etc. instead. Maybe Min Hee-jin also wrote "Cookie" to call out toxic K-pop fans as well. It's an interesting take, for sure.
It's exciting to see NewJeans' shake up the industry and call out the K-pop fandom at the same time.
Wait this is a very interesting theory
A great piece of work as always. There's always a fine line between lyrics and image when dealing with minors especially as kpop is global. Being unaware of other countries sensitivities isn't an excuse. All song releases are global releases these days.
Hopefully the girls will be better looked after by Ador, but with a seasoned industry veteran as CEO, you can see that she's setting the standards when it comes to idol care.
Perhaps another Hybe label could learn a thing or two about managing girl groups....
Lastly the Popsori cover of the Cookie lyrics was interesting! 😮
The Popsori cover of the lyrics could lead to my "second career" as a rapper =P
But seriously, I can see why many int'l fans called out ADOR and Min Hee-jin for "Cookie's" lyrics. It really skirts the line.
Even with Min's best intentions, I think it's a lot better to play it safe, especially with minors involved.
As for the other Hybe label about managing girl groups, I take it you're referring to Source Music. I think Le Sserafim is doing well, but hopefully, they can become even bigger this year.
@Popsori I was referring to Pledis, I keep wondering about the very wasted potential of Pristin and the way After School fizzled out.
Source and its group Glam was a situation that was partly outside of management control. Though the lack of closure with Gfriend isn't exactly endearing.
And thanks for your comments. It's always good to think beyond the superficial stuff.
Ahhhh, the stories of Pristin and After School are quite sad indeed. I always thought those two groups had serious potential to make it big in 3rd generation K-pop.
Also agree with the lack of closure with GFriend was also lackluster. I'm glad three members formed VIVIZ to carry on the GFriend legacy.
Thanks once again Kurz for your comments as well!
New jeans sound like the first Kpop group to be free of the, uh - Nicki Minaj/Madonna/M.I.A colab era.
Oh this video is gonna be a banger???!
I sure hope so!
It will! 🤘🏾
I haven't even heard of this group. Gotta check em out.
It's all good! They're one of the newer groups that debuted in mid-2022 out of nowhere. They quickly exploded and now one of the biggest female K-pop groups in under a year.
@@Popsori
I see. They debuted running.
Just watched their music videos today and... not bad. I think "Attention" was the only track that caught my, well, attention. Ha.
"Cookie" was odd but I didn't get the inappropriate vibes as much as I expected from watching this video.
Their retro sound certainly is interesting. Reminds me of the City Pop sound that K-Pop touched on recently (looking at you YUKIKA).
Though this group is far too young, I plan to keep at eye on them. NewJeans could be a big group with some longevity.
@@Popsori
On a side note, what is a good resource for looking at artists popularity at a glance?
@@ty_sylicus You actually hit on a good pain point in legit "K-pop artist popularity" trackers. There's not really an official go-to, but here's three good ones below:
►ruclips.net/video/aVQ3MzSwgxI/видео.html
►kpop.daisuki.com.br/kpop_statistics.html
►www.statista.com/statistics/1300863/south-korea-most-followed-kpop-acts-on-twitter-by-followers
These are great for stats and sales. Yet, they don't track who's trending outside of those numbers (like what fans talk about). Since there's no official app or channel to track who's trending, the best way (and most time-consuming) is keeping up with K-pop and what K-pop fans say.
Or... continue to follow this channel :) (Shameless plug, I know!)
@@Popsori
Thanks for the info.
Oh? Haha. No worries there mate. Been here since the beginning. 😎
Hi Jason, can you make a video about XG... How Simon has prepared talented singers from Japan in Korea to make a global band. Thanks
You read my mind! I may or may not make a future video about XG :)
@@Popsori aight, eager to watch it. Have a nice day!
Cookies are @#$& ?? American kpop fans just think too much 😂
Yeah, when I first listened to "Cookie" in just Korean, I thought it was fine.
It was only when I turned on English subs and looked at it from an American viewpoint where I'm like "ahhh, I see what they mean."
I think the optics of the song's meaning looks bad in English with teens singing the song with the possible innuendos. Add to the fact of Min Hee-jin's past decisions and I understand American fans.
But I also understand the Korean side of things as well, since just looking at the lyrics at face value seemed fine.
With that said, I'm glad there's non-Americans that can see the other side.
Ador's Cookie explanation is BS and do they think that international fans are gullible? They knew what they're doing as it happened to Like a Virgin, Baby One More Time, and Ice Cream to name a few.
Make sure we the first K-pop group they interested me. I hope they pull through thug thing going on w the label or whatever
I think that the ADOR's explanation of Cookie is BS and the song is in fact a song with sexual connotations performed by these young ladies.
There are a lot of fans that think the lyrics were highly questionable and suggestive, for sure. I will give Min Hee-jin the benefit of the doubt, yet think she should have chose better lyrics and played it safe. The optics of "Cookie's" lyrics paired with minors looks really bad.