When artists write their songs, they tend to draw inspiration from a variety of things. And in case of these artists, they drew their inspiration from other idols.
These are 10 K-Pop songs that are dedicated to their fellow K-pop stars.
1. IU - "Peach"
"Peach" was released in 2012 as a CD singled titled "Spring of a Twenty Year Old". It was released as a digital single before it was released physically and later became a double A-side single. It was a success in Korean music charts.
The song was written about late singer and actress Sulli from f(x). The lyrics are meant to convey the emotions a male lover feels as they look at their lover. She paid special attention to one verse about a male thinking about a pretty girl and she had used Sulli as her reference. Following Sulli's passing, the song re-entered the Korean charts.
2. SHINee - "You & I"
SHINee had released "You & I" in 2018, their first comeback as a group following member Jonghyun's passing. Key had penned the lyrics for the song.
The song talks about grieving and how despite people saying that they were not grieving enough in public, they still have not fully gotten over the passing nor have they forgotten about what happened so quickly. They are hurting, mourning, but also healing.
3. WINNER - "HAVE A GOOD DAY"
"HAVE A GOOD DAY" was released in 2018 in their Japanese album "OUR TWENTY FOR", but the song has a Korean version. The lyrics were written by Mino.
Mino had written the song for Ladies Code's Eunbi, who passed away in a tragic car accident. The two were high school friends and had remained close. Following her death, he wrote the song in her memory. One of the lyrics that references her is "I'll remember those two kisses and that dark rainy night." At that time, Ladies Code was in the middle of promoting "KISS KISS", and the car accident had happened at night.
4. 2NE1's - "GOODBYE"
"GOODBYE" was released in January 2017 as the girl's final track following the news of their disbandment. The song was written by leader CL.
Though the song was released as a goodbye to fans, CL had actually written the song when Minzy first departed the group in 2016. The singer had written it as a letter to the former member. When they were to release it as their last track, CL adjusted the lyrics as a goodbye to the fans and Minzy, who was not able to join the group for "GOODBYE".
5. Orange Caramel - "Shanghai Romance"
"Shanghai Romance" was released in 2011 by the group Orange Caramel, a sub-unit of After School. Super Junior's Heechul helped write the lyrics.
It has been speculated that he had written the song for former Super Junior member Hangeng. Hangeng had debuted with Super Junior in 2005 but left the group in 2009 after filing a lawsuit against SM Entertainment to nullify his contract. Heechul and Hangeng were known to be close and due to the lyrics, it is believe that Heechul wrote the song with Hangeng in mind.
6. Sunmi - "Secret Tape"
"Secret Tape" was released in 2018 by the soloist as a b-side track to "HEROINE" from her album "WARNING". She had also written the lyrics.
Sunmi wrote the song for Seulgi after the duo appeared on "Secret Unnie". She had already started writing the song before she met Seulgi, but she was able to finish it after creating special memories with the idol. Sunmi had even told Seulgi that she wanted to create a song to commemorate their friendship while they were on the show and though it was just in its beginning stages at the time, she knew that she wanted to utilize the word "Secret" in the title.
7. WINNER - "Fool"
WINNER released "Fool" in 2016 for their first single album "Fate Number For". Member Yoon had written the lyrics for the song.
As the group's first comeback without former member "Fool", Yoon had written the song for him. This was confirmed in an interview by Yoon himself, who said that the motif of the song was the vacancy of him. He revealed that he felt apologetic that he couldn't help him while he was having a hard time.
8. Stray Kids - "4419"
"4419" was released in 2019 in the group's mixtape. The lyrics were written by Bang Chan.
Bang Chan had written the song for a fellow JYP Entertainment artist, GOT7's Bambam. It's titled "4419" as a reference to the bus Bang Chan and Bambam used to take while they were trainees. The song talks about their friendship, how lonely he felt after Bambam debuted, and being thankful for having him as a friend.
Coincidentally, Stray Kids won their first music show win on April 4, 2019, or 4/14/19!
9. CNBLUE - "Love Light"
"Love Light" was released in 2010 as part of their "Bluelove" album. Member Yonghwa helped write the lyrics.
Yonghwa had admitted to Girls' Generation's Seohyun that the song "Love Light" was written while he was thinking of her. The song was made while the two were filming "We Got Married" and were the show's husband and wife. For the rap part, he drew inspiration from Girls' Generation's "Genie", which is how the lyrics "I'm genie for you, girl" came about.
The two later sang "Love Light" together at a special stage during the Incheon Korean Music Wave in August of 2010.
10. Jamie Park - "PUTP (feat. KINO, WOODZ, Nathan)"
Jamie Park, who also goes by Jimin Park or Park Jimin, released "PUTP" in 2018. It's from her album "jiminxjamie" and is the last album she released under JYP Entertainment. She wrote the lyrics.
The most lighthearted song on this list, "PUTP," was written with her M.O.L.A crew and features Kino from PENTAGON, WOODZ (also known as Cho Seungyeon, who previously debuted in X1), and Nathan. The song is about how members Kino and WOODZ don't answer the phone, making it hard for the group to make plans together. The song ends with them promising to answer their phones next time!
