With Christmas and Kwanzaa right around the corner, and Hanukkah ending recently, we’re all feeling all kinds of cheery and warm inside. So for this week’s playlist, we’re listing all the holiday songs we love — or at least the ones we can stomach — by our favorite Korean artists. GOT7’s formula for releasing singles […]
Memory loss is a pretty common K-drama trope that has been used many times over the years. It’s used to create some emotional angst for the drama’s plot, but it’s also been widely recognised as a very cliché and boring plot device, resulting in its lessened use in the past few years. Memory loss is […]
With Christmas and Kwanzaa right around the corner, and Hanukkah ending recently, we’re all feeling all kinds of cheery and warm inside. So for this week’s playlist, we’re listing all the holiday songs we love — or at least the ones we can stomach — by our favorite Korean artists. GOT7’s formula for releasing singles […]
Memory loss is a pretty common K-drama trope that has been used many times over the years. It’s used to create some emotional angst for the drama’s plot, but it’s also been widely recognised as a very cliché and boring plot device, resulting in its lessened use in the past few years. Memory loss is […]
With Christmas and Kwanzaa right around the corner, and Hanukkah ending recently, we’re all feeling all kinds of cheery and warm inside. So for this week’s playlist, we’re listing all the holiday songs we love — or at least the ones we can stomach — by our favorite Korean artists.
GOT7’s formula for releasing singles since debut seems to be to release a powerful dance song, followed by cute and playful one. So after the release of their manly single “If You Do,” it’s time for the cute one. And since tis the season, the boys put out a Christmas song, “Confession Song.” The cool thing about it is that it’s not another lame holiday song about Santa and reindeer and all that nonsense. Instead, they take the non-Christian Korean concept of Christmas, a day to spend with your significant other, and give us a sweet song about writing a love confession to the person of their interest. But to still keep that Christmas cheer, bells ring throughout the track. In true GOT7 fashion, “Confession Song” is just the right amount of cute and cheesy that never taps into the ridiculous. It’s just a cute song that will make you feel like a middle schooler again.
— Alexis
Taetiseo made a relatively low key comeback recently with Dear Santa and still managed to make one of the best K-pop Christmas songs. In fairness, there’s not a lot of competition for this crown but Girls’ Generation’s subgroup TTS stuck to what they’re best at and slayed the concept. The opening harmonies are some of the best vocals they have ever done, and offer us something different to the saccharine that is to come. It is almost sickeningly sweet but this is Girls’ Generation meets Christmas. It had to be like this. There’s sleigh bells jingling, plenty of piano, and vocals that are as fun as Mariah Carey’s to belt out on Christmas day. In keeping with the more western version of Christmas they are portraying here, TTS also released an English version of the song, to make sure we don’t mess up the lyrics. How thoughtful.
Usually I don’t expect much of K-pop holiday songs. Because, let’s face it, they all follow the same boring, slow ballad formula that it has become quite the science. But INFINITE’s “Lately” is the only exception to this. If it were not for the nutcrackers in the music video and the bells in the instrumentals, it probably could pass for any old K-pop track. The festive tune retains the same classic INFINITE sound, what with its guitars, chic raps, and warbly vocals, that it’s unmistakable who it belongs to.The rise and fall of the harmony gives the song actual contour, as opposed to the one flat mess of a song that is common nowadays. The video itself is also very endearing and warm, as it avoids the “let’s pretend we are having a blast around the Christmas tree and yule log” bit. I want to believe that the members actually exchanged gifts over a company dinner. I want to believe all the interactions in the streets with the civilians are genuine. Its low production cost is exactly what makes everything seem so much more relatable. Since its release in 2011, there has really been no other K-pop holiday song that has done it as well as INFINITE’s “Lately” has.
–Shelley
Being that there will never be a K-pop song for Chanukkah, picking my favorite K-pop holiday song is like picking a pair of shoes I’ll never wear. They’re all good, but I’m not personally invested. But Nell never disappoints, and their “White Night” reminds me of the winter holiday season (and not only for the title!) The romantic, building rock ballad depicts the perfect picture of this time of year. The twinkling, tapping sounds remind me of snow, and the lyrics describing someone you want to be around is just like every holiday film about not spending the season alone. It may not be conventional, but Nell’s ardent expression of being with the person they love, even if it means trying to turn back time, is something I just adore and listen to each December.
EXO came back recently with their winter special album “Sing For You” and while all the tracks on the album are amazing, their title song of the same name was the one which really touched me. It’s a ballad, which may seem typical of this season but with the soothing guitar instrumental and the wonderful voices of all the EXO members the song stands out and becomes something special. It’s a song about being in love and wanting to confess but always missing the chance to do so. The lyrics speak of regret and reflection, a feeling we’re all prone to experiencing at this time of the year, even amidst all the bright lights and hearty Christmas celebrations.
–Anna
What’s your favorite holiday themed K-pop song? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
Memory loss is a pretty common K-drama trope that has been used many times over the years. It’s used to create some emotional angst for the drama’s plot, but it’s also been widely recognised as a very cliché and boring plot device, resulting in its lessened use in the past few years. Memory loss is slowly making its way back into dramas nowadays however, as evidenced by a few dramas that are currently airing in Korea, namely the new SBS drama “Remember – War Of The Son” and tvN’s melodrama “Bubblegum,” albeit in a different manner than it was normally used in the past. Instead of having a main character suffer amnesia to create a star-crossed romance, Alzheimer’s Disease is the medical condition that the drama characters are diagnosed with.
As the most common form of dementia, many people suffer this condition as they grow older. In fact, in 2012, around 9 percent of Koreans over the age of 65 were found to be suffering from this disease. Since then, Korea has been taking active action to counter this problem, with measures such as training children to recognise dementia symptoms and to learn how to take care of the afflicted elderly. Yes characters having Alzheimer’s would make for really good drama conflict and angst, but if there was a greater purpose for the use of this disease I believe that these K-dramas are possibly being used as tools to spread awareness about Alzheimer’s. But first, let us take a look at how it is being shown in the dramas.
In “Remember,” this memory loss is a matter of life and death. The main conflict of the drama thus far has been about Seo Jin Woo’s (Yoo Seung Ho) struggle to save his father, Seo Jae Hyuk (Jun Kwang Ryul) who has been falsely accused of murder. To make things worse, Seo Jae Hyuk has gradually lost his memory due to him having Alzheimer’s and he is no longer able to remember whether or not he actually committed the crime, let alone be able to defend himself. As a lawyer with a perfect memory, Jin Woo took on the task of defending his father but it is an uphill battle, with rotten villains such as Nam Gyu Man (Nam Goong Min) placing obstacles in his way at every juncture.
While the premise of the drama is interesting, as a viewer, I was more drawn to the tragic relationship between Jin Woo and his father. From the start, they were a duo that I rooted for because of how much they loved each other, and it shattered my heart to pieces when four years down the road Jae Hyuk no longer remembered the face of his own son. This is perhaps the most common symptom of Alzheimer’s, a sign that shows that a patient is at a moderate stage of the disease. This is because there is greater damage occurring in the areas of the brain that control a person’s reasoning and conscious thought, affecting their ability to recognise even their closest friends and family.
On the other hand, the loss of memory in “Bubblegum” doesn’t cause anyone to be at risk of losing their lives, but it is no less impactful and devastating. What used to be a drama about a sweet romance between childhood friends morphed into a realistic portrayal of how life changes when a loved one is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Park Ri Hwan’s (Lee Dong Wook) mother Park Sun Young (Bae Jong Ok) suffered early onset Alzheimer’s Disease and started to lose her memory progressively in the drama. From forgetting to put the yoghurt in her smoothie to wandering around and getting lost, Sun Young showcased the various stages of Alzheimer’s throughout the show. In a particularly heart-wrenching scene, she woke up from a sleep and even forgot that she ever had a son, despite the fact that she shared a very close bond with Ri Hwan.
I’ve never had experience dealing with patients who have Alzheimer’s, so I don’t know for a fact that this is a realistic portrayal. But in any case, it helps viewers to get an idea of what goes on in the patients’ heads and how their memories are lost or distorted. The physical and emotional pain that the family members go through is also poignantly displayed through these dramas. While it is something scary to think about, both dramas definitely empathize the value of our memories and how they are the basis for our identity. For now, it’s an interesting trend for K-dramas to take on, and I’m excited to see how these dramas will turn out, especially in a country with a rapidly aging population.
Have you watched any of these dramas? What are your thoughts on K-dramas using Alzheimer’s as a plot device? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.
