From tracks by idol groups like TXT and SEVENTEEN to tracks by soloists like SHINee Key and Sunmi, The Ringer chose the tunes that they consider as the best K-pop songs of 2021.
Keep on reading to know which songs are included in the list.
SHINee Key's "Bad Love" Selected as the Best K-pop Song of 2021
Released on Sept. 27, the retro-themed mini-album "Bad Love" marked SHINee Key's first solo comeback in two years since the release of his repackaged album "I Wanna Be" in 2019.
According to The Ringer, the main point of Key's "Bad Love" is its "funky choreography" and the chorus with powerful synth sounds. They pointed out how Key isn't the main vocalist nor the main dancer of SHINee but he managed to showcase his skills as if he holds those positions.
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Through "Bad Love," SHINee Key proved to be one of the top male soloists in the K-pop industry by ranking first on iTunes Albums charts in a total of 32 countries around the world including the United States, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Taiwan, Argentina and more.
"Bad Love" even topped China's QQ Music Digital Album Sales chart, Japan's Rechochoku Music Chart, and the music streaming site VIBE.
Other than that, SHINee Key achieved his new career-high in terms of first-week sales with "Bad Love." The mini-album sold 65,072 copies - almost doubling his previous record of 34,122 copies sold by his first full album "Face."
Weeekly's "After School" Selected as One of the Best K-pop Songs of 2021
Weeekly is the only fourth-generation female K-pop artist to be included in the list, and they managed to do with their latest hit "After School."
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Featuring reggae and trap beats, Weeekly's "After School" has a catchy melody that can get stuck to anyone's mind once you listen to it. In fact, the song has become a popular song on TikTok, with over 15,000 videos using the track as background music have been uploaded to date.
Moreover, "After School" has become so popular that it became the rookie girl group's first music video to hit 100 million views on YouTube.
SEVENTEEN's "Anyone" and AKMU's "EVEREST" are the B-sides Chosen as among the Best K-pop Songs of 2021
Apart from title tracks, The Ringer's "Best K-pop Songs of 2021" list also included two K-pop B-sides.
First, SEVENTEEN's "Anyone" is the B-side from the boy group's recent album "Your Choice." Members Woozi and S.Coups co-wrote the song and Woozi also participated in the composition.
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"Anyone" gained the same level of love and attention as the album's title track "Ready to Love" received, with some fans saying it's one of their favorite SEVENTEEN songs.
Another B-side on the list is AKMU's "EVEREST" from their collaboration album "Next Episode." This song features the Korean-American male soloist Sam Kim.
Here are the Best K-pop Songs of 2021, according to The Ringer:
- SHINee Key "Bad Love"
- Weeekly "After School"
- Sunmi "Tail"
- CIX "Cinema"
- Epik High "Rosario" (featuring CL and Zico)
- SHINee Taemin "Advice"
- TXT "0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You) feat. Seori
- AKMU "EVEREST" featuring Sam Kim
- SEVENTEEN "Anyone"
- Lee Hi "Savior" featuring B.I.
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Written by Mhaliya Scott
