#bighit predictions

[psychicreadsgirl]

Hello ! On the occasion of their feature announcement, can you please do a post about RM and Megan Thee Stallion's thoughts about each other as artists and as persons? Thank you ❤️❤️

Megan Thee Stallion thinks RM is quite talented, humble, and hardworking. She thinks he is charming--maybe not the most handsome guy out there but he has his charm. She finds him hard to approach/get to know on a personal level. She feels he sets boundaries very clearly.

RM thinks she has a strong presence and personality. He thinks she has her talents and is fierce and confident.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

I was a bit surprised to see that mhj specifically said that newjeans had approved the statement saying that belift had copied newjeans' concept with illit. I'm not the type of person that thinks that you're a bitch for asserting position or your value, so this isn't where I'm coming from, but, especially in an industry where it's so rare to see groups say anything negative about other groups, particular junior groups I would think, it was quite the strong, swift position to take. Do you foresee newjeans continuing to engage publicly with this scandal, and how would you think taking an active part in this would affect their brand?

*

Ask 2:

bp in your opinion is there any chance that in this Hybe/MHJ situation there's a buried kind of double-blind motivation?

Like the kind i've seen attributed to E|on Musk, where he creates a big scandal to provide cover when he's doing something much shadier (and then maybe it gets out of hand, like the TwiX thing lol)

You've said you're pretty familar with the corporate side machinations - could Hybe be purposefully airing all this, sure to stick it to MHJ, but also to temporarily drive down stock prices for idk easy shares-repurchasing? Or even allowing a mess they can blame for having to report lower numbers to shareholders for whatever reason: boycott actually impacting profit, hedging against lower-than-predicted bts returning numbers, etc.

Or is this too convoluted of conspiracy thinking and BPD/HYBE/MHJ, and by extension from your recent posts basically 'corporate kpop' entire, are really just that transparent and petty?

*

Ask 3:

Might be a stupid question because I honestly don't have any clue about corporate businesses and how they work. But in the light of this scandal and how BigHit/Hybe developed over the last years: would you say this is what you get when you become too greedy instead of concentrating on what you were good at?

*

Ask 4:

in your opinion, is mhj truly an indispensable part of newjeans creative output? Also, do you see any way that hybe would let newjeans leave with its name and discography if they try to break their contract to go with mhj like some people are saying?

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Ask 5:

I’m seeing a lot of discussion about whether newjeans will try to leave with mhj and break their contract with hybe, but I don’t see this as a realistic scenario, and I especially don’t see hybe letting them leave with their name and discography. You mentioned that there are a limited set of options now, but is this even one of them? In my mind, newjeans as a concept either stays at hybe, with or without mhj in whatever capacity, or can’t really exist legally

*

Ask 6:

Also this has given everyone (kpop stans, ARMYs, journalists) the go ahead to drag Newjeans in order to "defend" Illit, BTS, Riize, etc by throwing (again) dozens of plagiarism accusations and trying to discredit everything the group has done and achieved. And it was started by Hybe themselves... I have no words, bpp

***

I think these six asks capture most of the talking points in the asks I've received since yesterday, so I'll use these to answer your questions.

The sheer amount of spin happening in the media right now is ridiculous lmaoo. With the mention of BTS in the "escape files", ARMYs have predictably moved from shady bystanders to actively joining in the negative spin, spreading rumor articles and many are now attacking the girls themselves. But honestly, this is nothing less than what I expected. NewJeans is the most popular group in Korea, the 2nd most valuable IP only behind BTS, and Min Heejin is the brains behind the operation - an achievement she's insisted on taking full credit for since inception. Leaving the only option for whoever is masterminding this from within and outside HYBE, to destroy her reputation as an executive completely to diminish her value to outside investors, and weaken the fan support for NewJeans given how closely they are already associated with MHJ. And that's what is happening. It impacts every group at HYBE and nearly obliterates the viability of NewJeans.

For HYBE, it's a tolerable loss given there's only one year left before BTS returns and closes that earnings gap in mere months. Whoever took this action sees it simply as resulting in a numerical loss that can be soon corrected, but personally, I disagree, for the same reasons I objected to HYBE's acquisition of SM even though on paper it made numerical sense.

Anon in ask 1: I can understand your surprise but sad as it is to say, I expected that response from MHJ. She's a creative, not a PR exec or an MBA-credentialled suit. I'm not sure how familiar you are with ADOR's press releases in general, but anybody who reads them can tell there's almost no corporate doublespeak, no vague allusions, nothing that shows it's written by a typical media-trained PR person. Which is why most people, including you, take that statement to mean NewJeans agrees with MHJ that Illit copied them (it's a possibility), when in reality the language shows it could refer to them agreeing with MHJ's assertion that HYBE hasn't duly responded to her requests about inter-label discrimination, or other related matters. That's the kind of detail a trained PR person would be sure to include, to minimize the fallout to NJ, but just as with the press release on Cookie, the one on Minji's rival sasaeng, the response to Hyein's veneer rumours, and practically every press release ADOR has put out, the language is unsophisticated.

"Do you foresee newjeans continuing to engage publicly with this scandal, and how would you think taking an active part in this would affect their brand?"

NewJeans has so far not engaged publicly with this scandal. MHJ has mentioned them to signal any separation between them will likely be contested. It's leverage. If they do take an active part in this scandal, it will completely destroy their brand. Like, it's already on life support. Anything more and we might as well say their last rites.

*

Anon in ask 2: I'd say that's not a conspiracy exactly but it is kinda pushing it. Anytime there's a stock dip it's a buying opportunity, and HYBE is always guaranteed to be a Buy so long as BTS is slated to return within 12 months of the stock event. But we simply don't have any clear indications that's the case now given the timing doesn't quite line up. If anything, that is more like the 4th order side-effect.

And yeah, people on the corporate side, not just in k-pop, are many times just that petty. But it's also true this case has been sensationalized in particular ways to appeal to k-pop stans specifically.

*

Anons in ask 4 & 5: The options available are:

MHJ leaves HYBE and NewJeans stays in HYBE

MHJ leaves HYBE and NewJeans leaves with her

MHJ stays in HYBE but is demoted from her exec role and NewJeans stays in HYBE

MHJ stays in HYBE and keeps her exec role and NewJeans stays in HYBE

None of these options are good, but the worst of these evils is option 2. If the members attempt to leave with her, there's no pretty way to say this, but they'll be done. I'm not even going to waste time writing all the ways HYBE and k-pop stans as a whole will rip them to shreds, all I'll say is that whoever is attached to these girls should consider taking a 6 months sabbatical away from k-pop entirely once that news breaks. The law is not on their side and public opinion, especially after all the 'leaks' and spin from HYBE in the last 72 hours, certainly isn't on their side either. It would be career suicide.

"in your opinion, is mhj truly an indispensable part of newjeans creative output?"

Personally, I think yes. Every label at HYBE had similar initial monetary investment as NewJeans and ADOR had, and other groups from the Big 3 have had even bigger investments and resources at their disposal. There isn't a single group, both within HYBE and outside HYBE, that has yielded the same results as NewJeans in the same period of time. Illit comes close, but even with their achievements they haven't reached the same (positive) notoriety as NewJeans did at debut. All HYBE groups have access to HYBE's youtube channel, connections and resources, and yet the achievements of BOYNEXTDOOR, LE SSERAFIM, ENHYPEN, and even ILLIT, are nowhere near comparable to that of NewJeans. And I agree with MHJ that she's the primary reason why. Having access to resources is only one part of the equation. How you allocate those resources and what you do with it is far more important, and this is where MHJ and ADOR excels relative to other sub-labels.

NewJeans without MHJ will not be nearly as threatening to everyone else in k-pop, and I suspect this is one reason there have been calls for her to be removed from managing the group since their debut.

*

Anons in ask 3 & 6: Yeah there's a fair bit of greed on show here. Generally, for a lot of people in this industry, greed is good... unless the greedy person is a woman. Because the only thing more central to nasty corporate tussles like this, more than greed, is ego.

I'm not trying to play the gender card, but sometimes I do wonder why there are no articles like this about people like Jaden Jeong and Simon Jakob given the reputation those men have in corporate circles, where top officials (in this case, within HYBE) are saying they cannot possibly work with MHJ because she is "overly and excessively opinionated". I'm highlighting this article because despite the initial paragraphs of spin, that bit is the only thing consistent with MHJ's claim that this attack from HYBE started because she'd filed a whistleblowing report on toxic inter-label competition and followed up an email that said quote:

"..is this deliberate obtuseness and unapologetic behaviour consistent with HYBE's founding philosophy of rebelling against unfair practices in the entertainment industry?"

I mean... in corporate Korea, I can see how they were sick of her shit and it was only a matter of time before she got the boot.

The insidious thing about spin is that it mixes the truth with lies, making it easy for people to accept it wholly. It's entirely possible that MHJ wants more compensation, more autonomy and independence, feels that Belift and other companies borrowed her ideas without full credit, and that she was unsupported by HYBE HQ. It's entirely possible that she took actions such as monitoring fan feedback of the group(s) she suspects and filing a whistleblowing report to build a case - according to both MHJ and others at HYBE, these are complaints she's apparently had since last year, but none of those things would justify HYBE's response nor is it enough to turn people against her.

What I find particularly interesting about this case, is that everything that decisively incriminates her of the more sensational and sinister allegations, comes from the person of VP L or CEO A - a person who only joined ADOR in January 2024, shortly after which HYBE received their first tip-off that MHJ was planning to escape. It's VP L who titles documents with the equivalent of "TOP SECRET DO NOT TOUCH" on company computers... the same guy that's supposedly a double agent working in favour of MHJ and ADOR but is situated within ADOR, not HYBE, where simple logic shows he'd be most useful. Unless he's situated right where he's supposed to be.

Anyway...

HYBE has requested for a shareholder meeting on April 30th where they'll likely table the motion for MHJ to resign regardless of what's found in the audit. Far as I know, she's completed the audit questionnaire but not surrendered her laptop as HYBE has requested. Given the play is for HYBE to kick her out while continuing to manage NJ, I can see how she'd rather die than surrender her laptop and hand over her ideas (and potentially incriminating info) to HYBE on a silver platter for them to use in her wake.

Every way this shakes out is bad news for HYBE groups IMO. So long as NewJeans keeps quiet and sides with HYBE, they'll be somewhat okay. But regardless of the fallout from HYBE cannibalizing itself, all HYBE groups have no choice but to take it on the chin and bide their time until BTS comes back to capture the attention back to them.

I hope I answered all your questions. IMO there's really no point talking more about this until there's a firm conclusion.

[dearweirdme]

Hi Rain, thank you so much for your detailed and helpful answer to my question about Jikook's early years! I really appreciate it and what you said makes a lot of sense. 💜

I was wondering if I could ask another question? Could I ask what you think Tae's relationship and JK's relationship with Hybe/BigHit are like?

I've been hearing lots of speculation that Tae may decide to leave Hybe for his solo career. If that were the case, do you think JK might also leave Hybe for his solo career? I'm thinking that would be a possibility, but I also worry that Hybe won't let him go easily since he's their most lucrative soloist. They can't prevent him from leaving though right? I personally hope they both leave after how they've been treated by the company over the years, but at the end of the day, the most important thing is they make the decision that's best for them. Thank you so much!

Hi anon!

I think their relationship with Hybe is complicated. I think in the past they felt loyalty and gratitude, but while growing up I think they recognize what role Hybe played in the issues they have had. When they were young rookies, they probably believed that what they went through was normal (and for idols it probably was). They felt like they were granted this opportunity and they owed the company for that. I feel that when they grew older and learned to understand themselves better, and learned how companies work.. they started to recognize the unfairness. I think Tae especially does not want to fit in the Hybe box anymore. If they are indeed a couple most likely their longterm plans will be something they discuss, but I don’t think they have to sign with the same company for that to be possible. I can see Tae sign somewhere else than Jk eventually.

This is a tough question. I think, when talking about this, we should consider their options outside of signing with Hybe. Looking at how huge both Tae and Jk are, I’d expect them to sign with a bigger company. I think they’d need to sign with a bigger company for two reasons, budget and protection from Hybe.

When a BTS member does not resign with Hybe, I am pretty sure Hybe will retaliate. Let’s say Tae doesn’t resign his solo contract, it will damage Hybe’s reputation and we know what happens in that case. Tae will need a company if equal pull as Hybe to protect him. In Sk that would come down to YG, Jyp, or Sm. I don’t get the impression that those companies are better than Hybe, and on top of that Tae won’t have the standing there he now has with Hybe.

It’s possible for him to choose a smaller company, and maybe that’s more feasible than I imagine it to be. But having a smaller company with less budget will have an effect on his promotions and projects. If he’s happy with that then ofcourse I want him to do that.. I imagine it will lead to a lot of complaints from fans who expect to see promotions like they are used to from BTS though.

These are things members consider when resigning or when signing with a new company.

Hybe can’t keep them from leaving. If his contract is up, he will be able to sign somewhere else. I don’t think BTS as a whole can sign somewhere else, I expect Hybe to have the rights to their name at least. I think it’s in Hybe’s best interest to keep all of them, I think it gives members leverage and I hope they will use that to make good deals for themselves.

What I would love to see (no clue whether this is something they consider or want or are able to do) is to see them, or one of them, start their own label. It would give them so much freedom and I trust BTS members with themselves.

I’m not really making predictions on this, I rather adjust my thoughts when something does happen. I think it is really hard for fans to speak on these things because most of us have too little knowledge about contracts and what goes on behind these scenes.

[solarwynd]

Regardless of the results I hope pjms can objectively self-assess following this release. I think there'll be some positive and negative. The truth is we're jimin's driving force as an artist and now more than ever members will be relying a lot more on their solo fanbases for success. Obviously company support plays a big part too but having a solid fanbase as artists even more so as idols is important. Tbf I think jimin has one of, if not the strongest solo fanbase among k-soloists right now but we have room for improvement. I hope this doesn't sound like I'm treating stanning like a job cause it's def not one and the priority should always be enjoying the music first. We all try our best to support jimin and help him reach new career highs because he's that amazing and that's what matters most.

All members will be seeing drops from the results they saw in their debut because a lot of armys aren't tuning in as much. The initial hype from solo debut is gone and now it relies on dedicated fans (armys / solos) to carry. Even with who and muse I know jimin will gain new fans and continue standing out as an outstanding soloist and that's best part to see him reach more people with his talent. Since face there are parts where we improved like streams it's fair to say pjms really learned to stream well and that's a strength but we still rely a lot on free streams as opposed to premium. We're starting to take AM a lot more seriously though so I'm happy about that since it's crucial for charting and longevity. If we keep improving there along with adding youtube and Spotify premium it'll be great. In terms of buying though we're definitely lacking and it's an issue we'll have to address eventually bc it was already obvious with the drop in sales from ctt to sgmb. I think people are so concerned about filtering now they don't buy as much. Now we finally got a lot of tools from bighit for muse and for who so I'll be looking forward to see if we can do good with that. Early predictions for bb 200 show our sales still kinda low but I'm assuming they didn't include the new tools we got. We also tend to not know how to focus on both single and album. For worldwide sales I'm not surprised it's much lower bc jimin doesn't have a bar that helps with buying his albums and truthfully I think that number doesn't matter as much. I know it's a big one in Kpop but in the streaming era no one except Taylor Swift is pulling millions of sales like that and most Kpop groups only do so because of inflated numbers due to never ending versions. I think jimin doesn't have to be limited to Kpop standards for achievements when he gets so much more.

On a more positive note it seems UK fans will be giving jimin his highest charting single there so that's another place where there's been growth.

I'm curious about what's your assessment.

I agree with all of this, don’t have anything to add tbh.

[7a-updates]

my theory for trainee a’s sudden disbandment

Summary of Trainee A’s story:

Trainee A was formed under BigHit and the public was made aware of them in 2021 when the trainees started promoting themselves online

BigHit heavily implied that the boys will debut in 2022. Even kpop prediction sites that use information gathered from kpop companies themselves predicted BigHit to debut a boy group in 2022

However by December 2022, all of Trainee A’s social medias were shut down and the group was disbanded. One by one the trainees save for Jihoon and possibly James all left Hybe as trainees

Now in 2024, Ador’s CEO Min Hee Jin has been asked to resign by Hybe and they have started an investigation on her and her Vice President for allegedly leaking company secrets, idols and trainees private info and a bunch of other things.

Korean media is now looking into her history with hybe and how this whole mess started in the first place.

here’s the summary:

Min Hee Jin joins Hybe in 2019 and they announce she will be making her own girl group in collaboration with Source Music. Allegedly her and Source’s CEO had creative differences and she wanted to be in charge of her own agency.

Hybe created Ador for her and she took Source’s staffs and trainees with her over to Ador allegedly leaving Source to pay off all of their trainees’ debt

Apparently Bang PD and BigHit decided to help out Source and transferred a lot of their employees over to Source to help them get back on their feet. This includes managers, creative directors, etc.

This all happened around 2021 which is when Trainee A just got revealed to the public. At the same time as BigHit was training TA, Bang PD and Source started scouting for a new source music girl group

My theory is that due to BigHit suddenly loosing staff they did not have enough employees to handle BTS, TXT and Trainee A all at the same time. Plus with Bang PD being busy helping Source out with their new group he couldn’t focus his attention on TA and their debut

This is most likely why Trainee A was disbanded so suddenly. BigHit did not expect Hee Jin to pull such a stunt. TA had a huge hiatus before BigHit decided to end the project. The hiatus was most likely due to BigHit reorganizing their staff and in the end they decided that they could not afford to debut TA

Sources:

https://x.com/pimdoongie/status/1782952531527942473?s=46

https://x.com/pimdoongie/status/1782735141535928697?s=46

[cocamalfeta]

Tae supports Min Heejin

He supports her. Because of this pic he uploaded a few days after NewJeans Emergency live, and a bit before Jk posted his support message. This was a personal pic of a private moment she uploaded on her insta, a moment that wasn't official promo or anything. It was a short clip of Tae crossing that street while doing a silly dance, and you could heard her laughing while filming him.

Also, Tae with Min Hee Jin last summer.

I was doing some research and came across several things that still were new for me as I just started following his solo career at that time so I missed some things, like this pic that Tae uploaded last summer in Majorca while he was getting ready to film "Love Me Again" and "For Us". I thought I'll post it here since you haven't likely seen this pic before and you won't see it either, since everyone is trying that bad habit of erasing uncomfortable truths from their minds.

I thought I'd highlight this other thing too, from this report speculating Hybe would be punishing Tae's achievements due to him working with MHJ for his first solo album.

When it was announced that BTS’s V would be releasing a solo album, many were surprised to learn Min Hee Jin would work with the idol. Min Hee Jin was said to have led the project, working on elements such as the music, choreography and promotion style.

For those who keep insisting that MHj just gave some "visual" directions or any of this restricted description. Actually, she had a "producer" role for "Layover", as you can check from his MVs credits, whose director was also a close collaborator of hers too. BigHit was included in the credits as well.

For comparison, she had the role of "executive producer" for NewJeans, and funnily enough BSH also had an "executive producer" role for LeSserafim too (I don't know if he still kept that role).

But how surprising thing was to learn that also for "Layover" choreography, which was based around freestyle dancing, she had a hand in there too. NewJeans also had freestyle influences on their "How Sweet" choreo, i.e. they had freedom to improvise hand or arms movements in certain moments of their choreo. This is better explained in this video by a Korean dancer, you can just check around min. 12 or in particular 21:42.

I could post more things that revealed her influence over his work but as usual I lost the original sources, but for instance, the choice to showcase his natural deep voice and making multiple MVs for each of his songs, were typical traits of her work that were predicted, as soon as his solo collab was anounced, by fans already familiar with her work. Maybe I'll update this later.

[hie-iss]

Poor Bang PD he really thinks that he can make Kpop mainstream in the West. Bless his heart. In stead of capitalizing on the love for Kpop in Asia , Latin America and other emerging markets which in a decade will account for the majority of the world's youngest population if not already; he is still obsessed with the US.

Also I know that the bts members are all adults and each one of them can make their own choice and direct their own lives but I couldn't help but feel pity for JK today after watching Bang PD's interview.

It is now clear that there was no vision in his song releases and the coming album beside proving the point that hybe hiring Scooter was not a disastrous investment strategy.

I expect no artistic growth from him coming out of this album as Scooter will do all it takes to prove that he can get the numbers he wants. But a what cost? Will JK ever feel ready to realise something of his own after this album which will break records thanks to Scooter?

Hybe/bighit has really decided to sacrifice one of their artist with a lot of potential in the name of proving a point to investors and salvaging Scooter's and Bang PD's ego.

The issue is that the moment they fail with JK at breaking into the US market they will toss him on the side only to repeat the same experiment with a newest hottest and youngest hybe artist

Also I am mad at the fandom. Your obsession with the 2025 reunion is partly the reason why I feel JK felt like he was running out of time and decided to partner with scooter. Bang PD mentioned that JK was not inspired and was not thinking of releasing an album all together. But my take on this is, if he knew that he was not enlisting soon he would have had time to pull himself out of the creative slamber he was in and taken the time to create a more meaningful album.

Don't get me wrong I do not beleive that every single song an artist performs and sings should be produced or written by him. But at least a debuting album should somehow showcase the artist's identity.

Unfortunately the fandom is blindly celebrating the 2025 reunion forgetting what the implications are. One of them being sending the youngest 3 members away at their prime when they don't have to.

This 2025 reunion is just not it at all and the members themselves will realise it but it will be too late. Thinking that a group can prosper at the expense of individual members is not it. Only when each member prospers on its own can the group be healthy and have longevity.

I hope my pessimistic outlook of the JK x Bang PD x Scooter collaboration is proven wrong. Otherwise I predict somber days ahead 😔

[mirageofficial]

𖤐 ⤸ ₊ ִ ˚ ࣪ ˖ MIRAGE is a group that consists of five members that is managed under KQ ENTERTAINMENT. the quintet is well-known for being kq’s first ever girl group, and the company’s first act since the debut of the boy group, ATEEZ. the company initially planned for the group to be rap-centric, but many potential candidates for the final lineup showed that this would be hard to accomplish. so, with their final debut in february 2020, the lineup ended up featuring nari ,, eunae ,, xepher ,, nako ,, and arin as a k-pop act with no officially confirmed positions — only ones given by fans. the group’s debut mini album, LUCID DREAMING : LEVEL1, was a viral success online due to the group’s catchy choreography and intricate visage thanks to the video direction of the tracks, BLACK MAMBA, LUCID DREAM, & NEXT LEVEL. as their name + lore suggests, their concept explores illusions, time traveling, & also displays a battle of resisting temptation with a sound that never remains in the same genre per comeback.

⩇﹒⺌ more below the cut﹒﹗﹒

mirage was originally meant to be managed under DOOMSDAY RECORDS, a new subsidiary label from kq that would be launched with the group’s debut. but, the new label was scrapped in order to ensure the new group had enough funding to present eye-catching content in the future. aside from 3/5 being main lyricists, the group is 85% fluent in english, and often add not only english versions of title tracks but also original songs for international fans. they’ve been releasing english songs since their second comeback, presenting listeners with the b-side RE-LAPSE + english versions of their songs WANNA-BE and A LITTLE DIFFERENT. other english songs (both variants and originals) include STARLIGHT ,, TIPTOE ,, LOCO ,, LOVE ME / LEAVE ME ,, & THE HAPPIEST GIRL. due to their popularity around the world, there’s speculation that the group will release an english project before a japanese one.

the group is known for a unique lineup for a multitude of reasons, but the biggest one of all is due to their third youngest member (1999) being the group leader — this is because the oldest member and los angeles-born, nari, was born in 1996 & is also one of the oldest artists under kq. xepher was crowned leader not for her training time, but for being the company’s first female trainee with leadership qualities. when counting the longest training time, former PLEDIS ENTERTAINMENT trainee + maknae, arin, started in early 2013 and was on produce 48 prior to joining kq in 2017.

the members were revealed without further announcements in age order, they were called the KQ GIRLZ (the female version of KQ FELLAZ, a traditional pre-debut project) before their official name was confirmed. the lineup caused a lot of commotion, as it included eunae, the younger sister of former PENTAGON member, jihun, and the former TOMORROW X TOGETHER member, SOUL. before txt, soul was one of the original kq trainees that were supposed to debut in ateez, but ended up getting signed by BIGHIT ENTERTAINMENT. she participated in only a handful of promotions for THE DREAM CHAPTER: STAR before dispatch exposed her newfound relationship with yuto from pentagon. she was already heavily disliked by most from the very start due to being the only female, and multiple sources predicted that after the downfall of GLAM many would try to sabotage her career before it had even begun. though bighit is rumored to cover up potential scandals of other artists before the public finds out, soul’s was not one of them. it certainly did ruin everything ahead, it would completely destroy her reputation + relationship with bighit — so she left both the group & company, disappearing from the public eye from may 2019 until february 2020. desperate to complete mirage and solidify a lineup, soul was signed back into kq despite her scandal & re-debuted under her birth name, nako. since returning right after eunae completed her training, both girls would become the final additions to the group’s roster.

today, mirage has become an example of a group becoming popular outside the big three companies, they are very vocal about trying to grow up, mature from past mistakes, and their strange yet close bond. with four EPs, a single album, and two full LPs, mirage is becoming a force to be reckoned with — and seemingly, very used to adapting to whatever life throws in front of them.

GROUP NAME ╱ mirage (신기루)

DEBUT DATE ╱ february 7, 2020

DEBUT RELEASE ╱ LUCID DREAMING : LEVEL1 (EP)

COMPANY ╱ KQ ENTERTAINMENT

MEMBER COUNT ╱ 5

FANDOM NAME ╱ promise

GREETING ╱ “looking for a miracle? hello, we are mirage!”

COLOR PALETTE ╱ quick silver (#9BA79D) + english lavender (#C17896)

DISCOGRAPHY ╱

— LUCID DREAMING : LEVEL1 [2020, mini album]

— TREASURE MAP : LEVEL2 [2020, mini album]

— THE QUEEN’S JEWELS : FINAL ROUND [2020, mini album]

— WE NEED LOVE [2021, single album]

— FESTIVAL [2021, first album]

— ONEIRIC [2022, mini album]

— THIS IS A MIRAGE [2022, second album]

— REBIRTH [2023, mini album]

— SUCKER PUNCH! [2023, first english album]

[1996 ; kim jiwon ; NARI] ╱ main dancer, lead vocalist, lead rapper, writer

[1998 ; jeon taryn ; EUNAE] ╱ main vocalist, lead dancer, sub-rapper, visual

[1999 ; shin ailee ; XEPHER] ╱ leader, main rapper, main dancer, sub-vocalist, writer, face of the group (performance)

[1999 ; kang nako ; NAKO] ╱ main rapper, lead vocalist, writer, face of the group (acting)

[2000 ; park arin ; ARIN] ╱ maknae, main vocalist, sub-rapper, main visual, face of the group (modeling)

SOUL'S OLD TAGLIST: @skzfairies @m00niesk7 (let me know if you’d like to remain on the taglist! or if you’re new, to just join!)

[ NOTE ] nako, formerly known as soul & is now a revamped oc, was originally going to be a standalone addition to TXT. as time went on, i felt like she would have more potential in a girl group!

[namchyoon]

Yoongi: today is really really really last show

Bighit at midnight: so we have 5 more tour dates tickets go on sale in 5 minutes good luck

yo anon can u predict my future next

[mysmorgasbordoffantabulosa]

what do u think abt the theory that hybe is pushing more bangpink interactions because of their relationship with yg and their future merging plans hence why tae is being used in a rumor and jk showed up at jn’s ck party/coachella

Well, I've often wondered if HYBE/YG might merge (or more likely HYBE takeover/acquire a large stake in YG), I've even mentioned it in a couple of times in my not so serious yearly predictions...

I do think it's more likely as time progress that we may get some further formalised business arrangement that basically means HYBE/YG are part of the same company.

All these connections between mostly BTS/BigBang/Blackpink, could be indicators of this. However, for me the bigger indicator is SM and HYBE's "takeover" attempt. In retrospect that was clearly HYBE not in any way wanting SM but to merely nix it and its new parent company Kakao, why because we now know that both are having major issues with regulators and their artists.

Since that attempt HYBE is now flying high with its share price, and oddly just this year do is YG, but I feel that won't last and HYBE could step in to invest as a minority shareholder, particularly if Yang Hyun-suk continues to play a role in the company as he's sure to bring some scandal with him in the future.

[ask-serendipity-sky]

You know what makes all this upsetting? Like Crazy CDs haven't been restocked until now. I checked the Hot100 predictions and the predicted number 1 (it's not JK) did not even manage to beat Jimin's sales record (so far). If only Bighit is restocking CDs, Jimin's record has more chances to be unbeatable and secure his BBMAs nominations. I want Jimin to take home awards because he deserves it.

Hi anon,

Omg. I totally misread your ask and understood that Like Crazy had been restocked so I ran to the website to order some.

The trauma is real 😭😭😭😭😭

What you are saying is true. If we compare the stats of when Jimin released Like Crazy to the stats of things now, Like Crazy would still get no.1.

Like Crazy, my queen!!!

At this point I have no idea who is the possible no.1 on the Top 100. Another racist came out of nowhere 2 days ago and pulled 200,000 sales:

Still lower than Jimin's, which were 234,000.

Everything sucks. Jimin's album deserves awards. It really does.

Thanks for stopping by.

[psychicreadsgirl]

BTS JHope's Struggles in Life

As this week is about readings for BTS/TXT members, I'm just doing random readings that come to my mind about them. People are free to make requests but if you're anon, you have to follow certain rules on the pinned post. If you don't then I will just ignore your question.

JHope (Jung Hoseok) struggles a lot with money and luxuries. He has a lot of trouble managing his finances. He often spends far more than he makes and he doesn't budget. He can be kind of cheap to others but when he's in the mood, he can be the one saying he'll pay for all the drinks/meals etc. Money seems to escape his pockets in a blink of an eye.

Hoseok also struggles a lot with his mental health. It's very hard for him to take negative comments and even constructive criticism. He can feel easily defeated at times. He also feels compelled to show only his "happy" side to the public, so he struggles quite a bit with his identity and his emotions. He's used to just "smiling" to cover up his emotions. There can be a lot of frustration and pent up rage/unhappiness within him that it can all erupt at some time. Once it erupts, it can be very difficult for him to control what he says/does. To cope with these sort of struggles, he can often rely on other things or people that aren't necessarily good for him.

He also struggles with friendships. A lot of his friendships turn out to be betrayals. They are mostly shallow and often he feels that he is the one giving more to the friendship. A lot of his "friends" are only trying to leech off of him and he only realizes this after being hurt by them.

Oddly he can treat those that mean well to him harshly and can also take advantage of them. The problem with Hoseok is that he likes a lot of praise and he can't really take someone who doesn't agree with his approach/mentality, so when his "true" friends give him genuine advice that perhaps may be harsh/negative in Hoseok's mind, Hoseok will then push those friends away and think they are just jealous of him. Those genuine friends then end up leaving him be because they feel like they've tried or they feel like he doesn't appreciate them.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Bpp I'm dying to know your song rankings in chapter 2 now they've all debuted. What are your top picks this year? I miss your writing and hope I can coax you back with 'a fun ask'

***

Okay. :)

Since you asked...

Top 10 Non-BTS K-pop Songs in 2023

10 - Watch It - The Boyz (this song just dropped and it's already in my top ten, yes)

9 - Seoul - H1-key

8 - Ay-Yo - NCT 127

7 - Sweet Venom - ENHYPEN

6 - Neverland Farewell - TXT (Say whatever you like about BigHit, they know how to make good music. Soobin sounds incredible on this song. Beomgyu too. Really, they all do.)

5 - Cool With You - NewJeans

NewJeans isn't going anywhere, so everyone else really should get comfortable with the idea of seeing them at the top. That's all there is to say.

*

4 - Crying - BOYNEXTDOOR

I don't know where my head was at when I ranked this the worst song on the album. Clearly, I was wrong. This song was a pleasant companion during the autumn months, and I can't wait to see what else they come out with.

*

3 - Chaconne - ENHYPEN

Do you know what a chaconne is? That's not a rhetorical question btw. No shade either, I'm just curious. For those who don't know, a chaconne is a rhythmical and harmonic motif over a pronounced bass-line. That's my leftover understanding from music classes taken a lifetime ago. According to google, a chaconne is also "a slow, solemn dance in 3/4 time, of Spanish or Moorish origin, similar to the passacaglia." For a non-k-pop example, I recommend Hilary's rendition of Bach's chaconne (more leftover knowledge from a lifetime ago).

Anyway, this likely isn't important context. The use of "chaconne" in the song probably has more to do with how it sounds in the song, than what it means. In any case, Enhypen earned a gold star from me with this pantydropper anthem.

*

2 - Criminal Love - ENHYPEN

I'm not sure how many of you were here when Heartbeat and Dream Glow were released. What I remember was shock, pure incredulity that BigHit would release songs of that quality for game OSTs. From ARMYs and k-pop stans alike, this was the sentiment. It was like a flex that BTS had such a peerless discography they could make songs like this for a side gig.

That's immediately what I was reminded of when I first heard Criminal Love, released as the OST for Enhypen's webtoon. It's moody, vampy, seduction in a song. That's what that song is. Sad too, when you hear the lyrics. Watching the live performance only drives it home.

*

1 - Blind - ENHYPEN

This song has given me one of the best auditory experiences I've ever had in k-pop. Which is a bit odd because yes a lot happens in the production, but the switches are so subtle you almost don't notice it.

Heeseung, Ni-ki, Jay, Sunoo, Sunghoon, Jake, and Jungwon - all outdid themselves on this song. Vocally, they sound incredible. The writing, (again) is top notch. This is one of the only songs released this year that I genuinely struggle not to loop.

*

Top 5 BTS Solo Songs

5 - Yes or No - Jung Kook

This is one song I'm praying and begging that we get thousands of remixes of. HYBE, please work your magic and give us 10 remixes of Yes or No. I need it. This is the perfect pop song in that it makes you crave more. I know it's got a predictable, common almost, chord progression in VI -> V -> I -> IV, but it's perfect in that it's impossible to get sick of it. It just worms itself into your head and all you can think of is all the ways to sing all over those chords.

Jung Kook's vocal work on that song is irreproachable. He's really set himself apart with this album and I'm glad he did it.

*

4 - Snooze - AGUST D, ft. Ryuichi Sakamoto & Woosung

HUH?! should be here, as should Amygdala so consider this a triple entry: HUH + Snooze + Amygdala. The reason why is self-evident (I hope).

Anyway... I want to talk a bit about Snooze.

Yoongi loves using the piano. He likes the sound of it, and you can tell in songs like Snooze. He has such a profound love and respect for that musical instrument that it only makes sense a man like Ryuichi acknowledged Yoongi before he passed.

With everything that happened this year, remembering Moonbin, and knowing that Yoongi made this song for his juniors... the first time I heard this song it completely destroyed me. Anyone who hasn't paid attention to the lyrics yet should check it.

When I casually listen in to TXT, SVT, Enhypen, BoyNextDoor, and see the work they're doing, putting out easily some of the best music and performances in their generations, I hope and pray they develop a support system that genuinely values them, soon. I hope they survive this industry, and thrive in it.

*

3 - All Day - RM ft Tablo

Not to be that person (since he's canceled for reasons and it actually makes sense why), but when I first saw the song title All Day, I immediately remembered All Day by Kanye West - one of the sauciest and meanest songs he's ever made. I was worried, given the tone of the album to that point, that Namjoon was going to give us his take on Ye's original. Joon is more than capable of dropping a track just as mean if not more. I didn't put it past him to pay homage to the Kanye joint by taking a spin on it. But, thankfully, All Day is nothing like Kanye's song, and it's my favourite song on Indigo because it's the best.

Joon's diction on this track is *chef's kiss*. His voice.... that outro, and thank goodness, Tablo came through. He actually has a presence on the track and made it even more worth the listen.

It kills me that we don't even have a visualizer for this masterpiece.

*

2 - Set Me Free Pt 2 - Jimin

Thank you for giving me another chance to talk about Set Me Free Pt 2.

One reason all the anxiety and fear-mongering around Jimin seems insane to me is because Jimin dropped this song and ended k-pop in 2023. He literally has no real competition. He came in, showed out, and left. That song is the sexiest joint out of Korea this year. It's so nasty. He's absolutely disgusting on this song in how brutally he makes rubbish of everything beneath him. Like, he literally has people bowing down to him in the choreography. Bobbing their heads like Funko Pops, while he sings to be set free. I'm going on a bit of a tangent here, but I want to say something. There's a cruelty in the way Jimin speaks. Whether to someone else or to himself. It's often (somewhat) restrained, born of the way he sees the world I think, and it was especially brutal in their early days, but he's toned it down significantly since 2016. It's virtually non-existent in his speech patterns and word choice now. Jimin of the last few years communicates gently, directly, tactfully, and at worst, bluntly. A lot of that cruelty is toned down but he unleashes a whisper of it on SMF Pt 2. Just listen to what he's saying on that song. That autotune effect on his voice was for our benefit and safety. Nothing can convince me otherwise. And we haven't even yet gotten into the full symbolism of the MV and his lyricism...

The moment I heard this song I knew I would bias Jimin. He's a man who knows what he's doing.

Jimin is a one of a kind wonder. Real magic in a person. An artist. He proves it on Set Me Free Pt 2. Kudos to PDogg too - the GOAT.

*

1 - On The Street - j-hope ft J. Cole

When it comes to song construction, I have to give credit where credit is due and the fact is Hoseok outdid himself with this song. It is perfect, my top pick for a k-pop song in 2023. Jermaine did good on it too. But, you know... Hoseok.

The whistle melody he came up with, the beat, the vocal layering, the mixing, the MV direction - all of it is perfect. If we were giving scores based on separate components, OTS would get 10s in every category.

Honestly, Hoseok coming out at number 1 is kind of expected of him lol.

[dearweirdme]

Hello! If they ask you why you believe in taekook, what would you say? And on the other hand, what do you think happened to Bogum and Tae's friendship?

Hi anon!

This might get long, because it seems insufficient to simply state ‘ít's their bodylanguage". Let me first state that I don't think it's possible for anyone to be absolutely sure that Taehyung and Jungkook are together. We see so little of their actual lives, it's impossible for anyone to be 100 percent sure of this. Having said that, I do believe it's possible for us to be fairly sure that they are a couple.

I wouldn't be able to explain my believe in Taekook in just one sentence or by just one situation that's shown their connection. BTS as a group are very close. Some of the members are also physically comfortable with each other. The way it's normal for men to show skinship in South Korea is a thing that has made me question whether I was misunderstanding Tae and Jk's relationship a lot in the beginning. It was confusing to me because on the one hand being queer isn't much accepted in South Korea, but on the other hand it isn't weird for men to hold hands or be touchy in general. So it took me some time. I went through a lot of footage and I payed a lot of attention to how Jk and Tae interacted, but also to the way they interact with the other members. And... it's just different. For instance, we all know this moment:

Can you imagine this happening with any of the other members? I cannot, not even with Jimin who both Tae and Jk are very comfortable with. There's just a sense of safety they have with each other. No touch seems unwanted or too much. You can also just tell that their touches are calming (except those that are not calming at all ;) ) to both of them. It seems cliche, but they really are each other's safe place. To explain this to others is so difficult, because it always comes down to perception. And for every moment I could use as 'proof' someone else could come up with a debunk. To me it's just the amount of instances I've seen with Tae and Jk. It's consistent, it's almost something predictable at this point... I just know that whenever we see Tae and Jk together, they'll be drifting towards each other.

As I said at the start of this reply, simply stating "bodylanguage" isn't enough. An understanding of context is also very important. Understanding that South Korea is not a safe place for queer people and that therefore Tae and Jk's relationship has to actively be hidden. They cannot show the extent of their feelings to the public. So if they seem awkward or dismissive, the reason for that will probably be feeling unsafe as opposed to them not loving each other. BigHit has tried very hard to make it seem like Tae and Jk aren't close and if someone were to not pay attention to how they actually interact, that person might believe what BigHit tried to convey. To me one of the biggest 'weird' things is the way they went so hard on Tae and Jimin being soulmates, while never adressing the close (to my eyes closer than Jimin and Tae's bond) bond Tae and Jk obviously have. These days especcialy it's so obvious that Tae and Jk spend heeps of time together, while Jimin is hardly ever mentioned even. Not to take away from Jimin being important to them, he obviously is, just... Tae and Jk are more important to each other.

To kinda conclude... because I could go on and on and on about this... To me Taehyung and Jk just react to each other differently than any of the other members. Their eye contact is more intense, with a way longer duration than just 'normal' eyecontact. Their touches linger and never seem to be enough, while with other members they might also touch and cuddle, but it's always for shorter periods and with a definite ending. When they're not touching, they're looking. They are always checking out the way the other responds to things. They take care of each other's well being to an extend none of the other members do. Aside from all this... there are so many instances on camera that show clear desire, attraction, jealousy, hurt (never underestimate the 'only love can hurt like this'). It's continued patterns in their relationship that make me quite convinced that they are together romantically.

As to Park Bogum and Taehyung.. I'm not really sure what you're asking. You mean do I think they were together?

[solarwynd]

With hybe girl groups, I like them. I think their music is objectively good and well made. Nothing ground breaking, yet very cute and listenable. I think it’s a change of sound from the girl groups from the years prior, but this habit of making all their tracks barely 2 minutes long is starting to make them all look real gimmicky. Couple that with all their new girl groups being created during the tiktok boom, it just looks like they’re more intent on making them “blow up.” through those means. And not saying they’re not talented cause they are from what I’ve seen, but I wish it was more than people who can sing and/or dance with the occasional writing credit. Like hybe isn’t really interested in cultivating “artists” anymore. Just trendy groups that will hopefully keep interest long enough before they churn out the next one with a similar aesthetic.

They’ve really fallen into that typical kpop industry timeline format and it’s such a stark difference to what Bighit initially was. I’ve yet to see another “BTS type” group where they try to hone in on craft and input come out of there. (Which is why they’ll always be the outlier from that company) And it’s not like I’m disappointed in hybe or anything. I honestly dgaf about the future of that company. Plus with the way Bang has been moving in recent years, it was already written on the walls. It’s really just my own observation on how the kpop industry will never get out of its own boring predictability.

[94erz]

Promo for Indigo already seems to be over but like, what the fuck? No way. Where’s the making film or behind the scenes of the Rolling Hall concert? Like aren’t we still missing content, there’s no way it’s over yet! 

Not to mention why is it ending early when it started late? I know I literally called this but I’d like to be proven wrong sometimes BigHit. It’s getting too predictable and boring to call your bullshit.

Unless the reason content is being withheld is the same reason JITB content was and a Disney+ documentary detailing the making of Indigo is also gonna come out next year. Plus where’s the vinyl pre-orders? Stop messing with us already, I’m too tired.