The best K-pop songs of 2021

ENHYPHEN has definitely given us some of the biggest surprises of 2021, starting the year off with "Drunk-Dazed," which amassed almost 60 million views on YouTube. But their stand-out was definitely the B-side track "Fever."

This is a rookie group giving us a sexy, sultry hit, complete with piercing vocals, and a video to match. The choreography to this track is thrilling; so smooth, giving each member their time in the spotlight.

It's intriguing for such a young group to be doing this and doing it so well.

Debuting during a global pandemic is uncharted waters, but ENHYPHEN has navigated it swimmingly. If this song is any indicator of how far the group has to grow, we're very excited to see what's next.

SEVENTEEN is back at it again with another certified bop. The 13-member group has been no stranger to a hit record. That's the magic of this group: they keep getting better each time. They invented the wheel and then continue to reinvent it with every release, resulting in their past five albums being "million-sellers."

They aren't referred to as the theater kids of K-pop for no reason. SEVENTEEN can blend into any environment and put on a show-stopping number.

This song, on a surface level, may be reminiscent of their 2019 song "Hit" but something's different this time. The lyrics "I wanna rock with you" pay homage to the backtrack, full of hard rock-esque electric guitars, heavy drums, and a prominent bass line, while their vocals are soft, pop-like, and fun.

It creates a dissonance — and a very pleasant one — as the two elements combine to create a hit.

BTS' second English single following 2020's "Dynamite," is all slick lyrics and cool charm.

With a chart-topping run that included 10 weeks atop Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart, an outstanding remix featuring Megan Thee Stallion, and a record-shattering YouTube debut, it's hard to overstate the impact "Butter" had in 2021.

Records and charts aside, "Butter" has "the right vibes," as Suga raps on the song's bridge. Driven by a bouncy bass and simple drum beat, the song explodes out of its verses into a synth-laden chorus that's pure serotonin.

While the song was, as Insider's music reporter Callie Ahlgrim wrote, snubbed out of a nomination for record of the year at the 2022 Grammys, that doesn't diminish its massive success nor its groove. "Butter" pushed the limits of its own fun.

It's been six years since Twice debuted in 2015, and their first English single "The Feels" somehow manages to encapsulate all sides of the group's musical identity over the past half-decade. It has all of the pop charm of their earliest Korean releases, and the intensity and self-assuredness of their latest ones.

Backed by a driving bass line, tight vocal stabs, and pure ear-candy ad-libs, "The Feels" brims with confidence, clarity, and even vulnerability.

At a time when more and more K-pop groups are releasing English tracks, or English versions of their Korean ones, "The Feels" is a stand-out.

"After School" was one of the biggest K-pop mainstays of 2021 on TikTok, where the song's free-wheeling chorus and addictive choreography racked up over 385,000 videos.

The song's lyrics speak to the anticipation of the end of a school day, racing out to catch the last rays of daylight while skateboarding and filming goofy videos of your friends. It's youthful whimsy at its finest, transitioning effortlessly from cheeky rap lines to playful, swung melodies.

Underlying the song's carefree nature is the lingering feeling of impermanence: "This moment will never come again," Monday sings in the song's second verse. Still, "After School" is squarely in the moment.

While the song's final post-chorus is full of reminders to pay attention to the camera and capture the present, it ends on a definitive note sung by member Zoa: "I feel so free."

"LILAC" is transcendent. Anchored by IU's soaring, breathy, and emotive vocals, "LILAC" tells the story of a perfect ending — one amid flower petals, pollen, and the first breaths of spring.

While it's possible to read "LILAC" as being about a romantic breakup, IU (whose birth name is Lee Ji-eun) told W Korea, per translations by Soompi, that the album's concept is both greeting and farewell — particularly, saying goodbye to her 20s, which she spent in the public eye as a singer.

It's no stretch to superimpose that broader meaning onto this track, as IU sings about a bittersweet ending and a blooming new beginning.

"How glorious it is," IU belts, carrying the song into a soaring post-chorus laced with strings, plucky guitar, and by the end, a riffing saxophone. She's right.

This song opens with a captivating piano melody. You suddenly get pulled in. This melody continues throughout the first verse and swells up to reach a beat drop, and this is where, when paired up with the visuals in the video, this song excels.

Taemin gets to exhibit his polished dance moves, as smooth as the melody and his vocals accompanying it. As one of the strongest dancers and vocalists in the industry, his talent is brought to the forefront as the hook of the song quickly approaches.

If you aren't spellbound quite yet, Taemin gets it with the lyrics "hey you," almost as if he's calling you to fall into this pre-chorus. He finishes it with a simple line: "you'll never get the keys to my lock." And by the time you reach the end, you're in. He locks you right in before taking you on a ride with the song's chorus.

From start to finish, "Advice" keeps you in its strong grasp with enchanting vocals and visuals to go with it. This track proves what we've known for a very long time: that Taemin is K-pop's brightest star.

Being a fan of aespa is an immersive experience. Following them and their music is like reading a comic book: They have AI counterparts and exist in another universe. There's a villain. And their songs tell that story.

"Next Level," is a building block to this universe and takes you on a trip to their other world, known as KWANGYA.

But "Next Level" goes to that next level when it interrupts its own melody and shifts genres on the bridge. The song evolves from its techno backbeat to a methodical, percussion-heavy cadence that almost sounds like a chant, giving the song exactly what it needed to be one of the most interesting K-pop tracks of 2021.

"Stereotype" leads with self-assuredness: "It's especially noticeable today / I can see everyone staring at me / the more I feel, the more confident I am," Sieun sings in the first verse. By the chorus, STAYC has stripped back that veneer, asking not to be regarded "with tinted glasses" despite how they may appear on the surface.

Strung together by trap-like hi-hats, the song frequently pulls itself back, layering the group's vocals over lush synths — done to the greatest effect when the bridge builds up to Isa singing the chorus alone.

Ultimately, "Stereotype" mixes confidence with vulnerability; charm with recalcitrance. And although, as producer Black Eyed Pilseung told MT Star News, it was written for the group before their debut, it feels perfectly timed. "Stereotype" reflects both the intensity of STAYC's debut single "SO BAD" and the playfulness of the group's sophomore single "ASAP."

This song marks a clear transition for the TXT boys and the music they make. They're shifting from happy-go-lucky boys full of charm to rebellious, angsty, teens. And they're expressing this angst in the purest way possible: through pop-punk.

Everything about the song bleeds nostalgia, bringing the listener back to a time when the airwaves played hits from the likes of Fall Out Boy and All Time Low.

K-indie rising star Seori's vocals may sound deceptively soft here, but the lyrics are anything but — breaking away from traditional K-pop fare. The group yearns for a lover while in a dark place: "No place for me in heaven / At the tips of my feet / Everything turned pitch black / My life before you was trash."

TOMORROW X TOGETHER took a risk here and it worked. "0X1=LOVESONG" proves that these boys won't be boxed into a specific type of genre. They're carving out a space for themselves in the K-pop world that's going to be memorable and long-lasting.