10 Favorite Choreographies Of 2016

If you ask my mother what she finds the most entertaining about K-pop she will immediately reply "The dancing". Whenever I show her a MV or performance she almost always exclusively comments about the dancing and how impressive it is, and I guess for someone that isn't into K-pop that must be even more striking. Western artists and groups rarely have choreography and when they do it's very simple, so to watch groups with sometimes as many as 13 members dance in perfect synchronization is quite astonishing. I do feel myself getting more used to the high quality choreographies and taking them almost for granted which is sad, however it means that the ones that I do like are ones I find extremely impressive. Below you'll find my personal favorite choreographies of 2016.

Astro - Hide & Seek


New boy group Astro jumped onto the scene in early 2016 with, what I thought, was a great debut. I liked the song too but the choreography was definitely what drew me in. It's energetic and fast-paced and only watching it leaves you feeling exhausted.


BTS - Fire

Not going to lie; it was really difficult deciding which BTS choreograpy would make it onto the list. Although I loved the routine for "Save Me" and "Blood Sweat & Tears" watching the boys perform "Fire" is so much fun and seeing it live at Kcon definitely sealed the deal.

Oh My Girl - Liar Liar

As with the case of BTS the ladies of Oh My Girl also had several great dance routines in 2016. Ultimately though I went for "Liar Liar", which is lively and cute but also powerful and energetic. I love the creativity, especially with the formations, and the variation between the different choruses.

GFriend - Rough

The choreography for "Rough" remains flawless to this day, and the fact that they've already won two major awards for it only proves my sentiment. It's, as one would expect, complex and powerful but also has huge emotional depth which I absolutely love.

Taemin - Drip Drop

I know I don't gush about Taemin that much on this blog because, well, I have other SHINee favorites, but I truly adore this young man and his talents. His dancing is really on a whole other level and this choreography shows exactly why he's one of the very best.

Seventeen - Very Nice

I did grow to love the choreo for "Pretty U" after seeing the dance practice videos, and while it is a very creative routine with plenty of originality it can't beat the riot that is "Very Nice". It's fun, playful, energetic and the boys look like they're having the time of their lives performing it.

NCT U - The Seventh Sense

If I had to choose one choreography as my ultimate favorite this year it would have to be this one. Whoever made this piece must be a genius, honestly. It's smooth yet extremely sharp and has amazing formations and transitions (especially that one move at 01:35, just wow).

Taeyeon - Why

Although Taeyeon might not be the best dancer in SNSD and as of today has mostly released ballads and other tracks that don't require choreography; she can, with the right routine, excel. This routine made me think of something BoA would do, and that's a huge compliment if anything.

I.O.I - Whatta Man

Not only was this a drastic change in concept, but the choreography in itself held so much more personality and character compared to I.O.I's bland debut. Member Chungha had part in creating it and it resulted in a fierce, powerful routine well-matched with the song.

Red Velvet - Russian Roulette

Last but not least comes the ladies of Red Velvet, whom now that I think about it wasn't included last year with "Dumb Dumb" for some strange reason (2015-me was clearly not in their right mind). For 2016 however there's no mistaking in that they deserve a spot on this list. I might love the song more but the choreography is still pretty darn awesome.

Honorable mentions:

Seventeen - Pretty U
SHINee - 1 of 1
Oh My Girl - Step By Step
BTS - Blood Sweat & Tears, Save Me
Infinite - The Eye
Monsta X - Fighter

15 Favorite Title Tracks Of 2016

It dawned on me as I was making this list just how many good songs were released this year. I never had the thought that 2016 would be such a good year musically as the year was passing, however in hindsight I can definitely say there's been many great releases. Additionally I did notice that compared to my "K-pop 2015" playlist there are many more tracks on this years', which also tells me that 2016 did deliver in that aspect. Like last year I'm going to make a separate post for title tracks and b-sides, just because it would be too difficult to cram the two into one ranking, as well as expanding the list to 15 tracks instead of 10. I listen to way too much music, basically. Let's go!


Red Velvet - Russian Roulette

Funnily enough I wasn't much into the song at all when I first listened to it, but after hearing it a few times I couldn't get it out of my head. I love the electronica-infused bubblegum-pop sound and the chorus is incredibly infectious.

NCT U - Without You

Every once in a while a song comes along that at first listen has an impact big enough for you to feel your life slightly changing. That was what happened with this track as it from the beginning made me feel something completely new and different, truly feeling every note deep inside my heart.

Produce 101 - In The Same Place

Out of all the songs B1A4's Jinyoung has produced for girl groups this year (and you will see many more, I promise) this one is my absolute favorite. It's sweet and feminine but at the same time mature, heartfelt and absolutely stunning.

Luna - Free Somebody

When a group member goes solo you always wonder what direction they will go musically, and boy am I happy that Luna didn't go down the ballad route but instead chose to show off her vocals in this dance track. Such a good song.

Taeyeon - Why

I didn't exactly love this at first either but after a while it did become my favorite song of the summer, with it's EDM-influences and dance-friendly sound. It's a new genre for Taeyeon and she pulls it off just as flawlessly as one would expect.

Block B - Toy

Another song that might have flown slightly under the radar this year is Block B's "Toy", and it almost did to me too had I not heard it live at Kcon. It's a really chill track with great rapping (as one would expect), great lyrics and heartfelt vocals sung to a beautiful melody.

BTS - Blood, Sweat & Tears

You wouldn't expect a BTS song not to be here, right? It's almost as if everything they touch turn to gold, which was proven once again with their comeback this past October. It does have a different sound from their past work but they pull it off amazingly.

I.O.I - Whatta Man

I know that this song was sampled and thus isn't exactly a new, original song, but the arrangement of "Whatta Man" did kind of blow me out of the water. The power, attitude and fierceness is real with this track and I love every bit of it.

GFriend - Rough

It was difficult to chose between this song and "Navillera" as both were great tracks, but I think that at first listen I liked "Rough" a tiny bit better. It's a song that's very "GFriend-esque" but showcased a slightly more mature sound to round up their successful schoolgirl trilogy.

B.A.P - Skydive

"Skydive" provided me with the kind of content I've been wanting to see from B.A.P since like 2013, and that's not an exaggeration. I absolutely love the song and its raw power and force, with great rapping, vocals and a chorus that gets to me every listen.

EXO - Monster

Here as well I found it hard to pick between "Monster" and their other fantastic title track "Lucky One". However this one came out on top due to it being slightly more powerful, with a chorus that hits so hard it's impossible to forget.

Monsta X - Fighter

With Monsta X I once again had to choose between the two great title tracks they've released this year, but as much as I loved "All In" as a comeback I actually liked and listened to "Fighter" more, at least when looking at my top hits of 2016 on Spotify.

WJSN - Secret

This comeback did kind of come out of nowhere in the sense that I didn't expect it to be of such high quality. The title "Secret" isn't groundbreaking or without flaw but it still stuck on me and I have been listening to it countless times since it came out.

Boa & Beenzino - No Matter What

SM's "Station" project did provide some great material throughout 2016, but my absolute favorite has to be this electro-pop track by BoA and Beenzino. It has a very fresh and modern sound that I could definitely see being popular even in the US and Europe.

Dal Shabet - Someone Like U

Last but not least we have arguably the most underappreciated jam of 2016; Dal Shabet's "Someone Like U". It's a great 80's influenced pop track with a catchy melody and vocals. I do wish they would've gained some more fame with it because the song is that awesome.

Honorable mentions:

GFriend - Navillera

EXO - Lucky one
Taemin - Drip Drop
K.A.R.D - Oh NaNa

I.O.I - Very very very

Day6 - Letting go

Berry Good - Don't believe 

SHINee - Tell me what to do

BTS - Fire
Monsta X - All In

Glorious Photoshoots - September

Jonghyun for GQ. 



Chaeyeon for Céci.



Sunmi for Star1.



Nam Joo Hyuk for Céci.



Nana for Elle.



Ahn So Hee for Marie Claire. 



Suga for Grazia. 



Min Hyo Rin for Cosmopolitan. 



Suzy for Elle.



Lee Jong Suk for W. 



Sulli for High Cut. 



Lee Je Hoon for Céci. 



GFriend for Céci. 



Taeyeon for Beauty+. 



Han Seung Yeon for Harper's Bazaar. 



Mino for Arena Homme+.




Hyuna for Allure. 



Spica for The Celebrity. 



Fei for Arena Homme+. 

Taeyeon Serves A Summer Hit With "Why"

I was actually planning on not writing anything for Taeyeon's first comeback as a soloist because although I like her voice and her in general I'm not a huge fan and I don't really keep up with her various promotions, however I was quickly swayed over with "Why" and had to make at least a short post about it. After her first release last year with "I" and a mini album made up almost entirely of ballads I was actually quite surprised that she went for a house-inspired dance track this time around, but so far it's become one of my favorite songs of this summer.

Song of the Week #51

Taeyeon - Stress


"Stress" is by far my favorite song on Taeyeon's debut solo album "I", which I by the way liked despite it being mainly dominated by ballads. This song however is more of an upbeat track, and I really, really like it. Taeyeon sounds great, the melody and dynamics of the song are awesome and it also kind of amuses me how she's singing about smoking cigarettes, being a female idol and all.

New Zealand Is Beautiful, And So Is Taeyeon's "I"

It's honestly a bit strange how it long it has taken for one Girls' Generation member to release a solo album. I mean, even groups with a shorter lifespan have members with solo releases, and none of them are as influential as SNSD anyway. However if there was one member of this group that was meant to have an album of their own it is Taeyeon, for obvious reasons. Not only did she vocally carry eight other members for years before others such as Jessica, Tiffany and Seohyun could catch up, but she's by far the most skilled out of all of them. With a voice like that she truly deserved music of her own to perform, and now she finally does.