#literally one of my top 10 songs 2020 and 2021

[linghxr]

I watched all the Chinese idol survival shows so you don’t have to (but you should anyway)

About three years ago, I watched 创造101 Produce 101 China, and it kinda changed my life. Yes, really! This show dragged me down a rabbit hole that eventually led to me watching many more Chinese shows and listening to almost exclusively Chinese music. I’m even branching out to cdramas now. All under the guise of, um, improving my listening comprehension!

OK, so “all the Chinese idol survival shows” might be an exaggeration. I’ll be talking about these three classic idol group survival shows from the “golden age” period of 2018-2021:

>> 偶像练习生 Idol Producer/青春有你 Youth with You (iQiyi)

偶像练习生 Idol Producer

青春有你1 Youth with You 1

青春有你2 Youth with You 2

青春有你3 Youth with You 3

>> 创造101 Produce 101/创造营 Chuang (Tencent)

创造101 Produce 101 China

创造营2019 Produce Camp 2019

创造营2020 Chuang 2020

创造营2021 Chuang 2021

>> 以团之名 All For One/少年之名 We Are Young (Youku)

以团之名 All For One

少年之名 We Are Young

Here is the order I actually watched these 10 seasons in:

创造101 Produce 101 China

青春有你2 Youth with You 2

创造营2020 Chuang 2020

创造营2019 Produce Camp 2019

偶像练习生 Idol Producer

青春有你1 Youth with You 1

青春有你3 Youth with You 3

创造营2021 Chuang 2021

以团之名 All For One

少年之名 We Are Young

I started 创造101 Produce 101 China in late 2019/early 2020 and finished 少年之名 We Are Young on Christmas Day 2022. I was literally tearing up. Three franchises, ten seasons, something around 1000 contestants, and three years of my life.

In order to refresh my memory for this post, I rewatched almost all of the performance clips from these shows. I didn’t watch the initial evaluations or any practice room videos (it’s simply too much content). It was simultaneously fun and exhausting. I will go over why you should/shouldn’t watch each season and give any other notable remarks. Let’s get started!

*Please note that for any YouTube links below, there is a risk of muted sections, parts/entire episodes being unavailable, and missing/out of sync subtitles. For official links, whether or not a VIP subscription is needed may change in the future. Fansubbed content may have sections or entire episodes missing.

>> 偶像练习生 Idol Producer/青春有你 Youth with You (iQiyi)

iQiyi rebranded the series by changing its name from 偶像练习生 Idol Producer to 青春有你 Youth with You after the first season. However, they really didn’t change much about the format at all. From what I’ve heard, iQiyi doesn’t have as large a budget as Tencent, which you can see reflected in the show’s production quality. However, I’ve long felt that this franchise has a real charming quality that makes up for lack of flashy sets.

偶像练习生 Idol Producer

Watch on iQiyi (English subs, VIP needed) Watch via Idol Producer Subs (English fansubs, missing part of finale)

Why you should watch it: Though not China’s first idol survival show, this show was the first of a new era. It’s iconic! The theme song is a bop, 10/10. Also, I had heard of all of the winners before I watched this season, so there’s some real cultural relevance. I can’t believe it was nearly five years ago! The whole top 20 remains iconic to this day. In most seasons, there are at least one or two popular contestants who I don’t really like or don’t see the appeal of, but that wasn’t the case this season. This season is also a lot shorter than later seasons, so it’s easier for those who are new to survival shows.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: As I mentioned, there is a lack of flashy sets/stages here. The background of the stage often looks empty. There were some performances that were better than I remembered, but there were others that were...not. I’m pretty sure 黄明昊 Justin was 15 when the show began, which shocks me in a BAD way. And if you’re a Jackson Wang fan, I think he barely appeared in the second half of the show.

My picks: 郑锐彬 Zheng Ruibin, 周彦辰 Zhou Yanchen, 蔡徐坤 Cai Xukun, 王子异 Wang Ziyi, 朱星杰 Zhu Xingjie, 周锐 Zhou Rui

Favorite performance: PPAP A组 PPAP group A This was a powerhouse group. And it was hilarious to watch the boys’ reaction when they heard the whole song and realized the style was not at all what they had initially expected! They totally pulled it off though.

Iconic moments: 蔡徐坤 Cai Xukun’s outfit (and ego) in the initial evaluation, B-A-L-A-N-C-E, when we realized 朱星杰 Zhu Xingjie can sing too, 林彦俊 Lin Yanjun's platinum hair, one of the songs was called Mack Daddy which causes me great distress to this day, 周锐 Zhou Rui aka 周美锐 Zhou Meirui, I’m still laughing over 朱星杰 Zhu Xingjie’s resemblance to 胡巴 Huba.

Verdict: Though this was not my first idol survival show, I think it would be a great first foray for anyone. It’s iconic for a reason. You should watch it (and I might rewatch it). 

青春有你1 Youth with You 1

Watch on iQiyi (English subs, VIP needed) Watch via Qing Chun You Ni Subs (English fansubs)

Why you should watch it: This season is the forgotten child of the franchise, but it still had some great performances and a lot of talented contestants. The theme song is also probably my favorite out of all ten theme songs! It was love at first listen. Personally, I enjoyed this team of mentors more than the first season’s. I also feel that the vocal-based performances were stronger this season. For instance, there were great performances of 李荣浩 Li Ronghao songs.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: I feel that some of the magic of the first season was lost, and overall the contestants were not as memorable or charismatic in my opinion. There were also several contestants I found extremely irritating and some contestants who ranked much higher and last much longer on the show than I feel they should have based on their skill level...but I won’t name names.

My picks: 夏瀚宇 Xia Hanyu, 李振宁 Li Zhenning, 周士原 Zhou Shiyuan, 连淮伟 Li Huaiwei

Favorite performance: 隔壁泰山 A组 Neighboring Tarzan group A This is a very unusal song, but it’s so catchy and memorable. 夏瀚宇 Xia Hanyu really made this performance for me. And this song still gets stuck in my head months later!

Iconic moments: 冯俊杰 Feng Junjie and 夏瀚宇 Xia Hanyu trying to outdo each other, 胡春杨 Hu Chunyang looked angry 24/7 for no reason, they literally got 蔡依林! Jolin Tsai! as a mentor, 李汶翰 Li Wenhan was everyone’s older brother, their performance made me fall in love with the song 耳朵 Erduo, they kinda did a steampunk concept which I love.

Verdict: It’s not necessarily a must-watch, but I still enjoyed it. If you’ve fallen into the black hole of survival shows and want more, I think it’s worth your time.

青春有你2 Youth with You 2

Watch on iQiyi (English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (English subs) Watch on YouTube (no English subs, missing several parts/episodes)

Why you should watch it: As iQiyi’s first time with female contestants, this season was highly anticipated. iQiyi stepped it up with subtitles, got Lisa from BLACKPINK as a mentor (I saw people say they came for Lisa and stayed for the trainees), and made a lot of content available on YouTube. As a result, some of the performances from this season have millions of views. It’s well deserved—a lot of the contestants are overflowing with talent and charisma. And honestly, you should watch this for 蔡徐坤. He’s a great MC/mentor to the girls and was truly a highlight of the season for me.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: This is the only season that I watched week by week as it was airing. It was EXHAUSTING. iQiyi started pumping out two episodes a week, doubling the overall episode count. I was literally burnt out by the finale. So if you watch this, please take it slow. Also, I forgot how much they did that thing where they cut away from the performances to show other contestant/mentor reactions and then have to go rewind on the performance...it really drives me nuts. They overdid it for sure.

My picks: 刘雨昕 Liu Yuxin, 喻言 Yu Yan, 王承渲 Wang Chengxuan, 刘令姿 Liu Lingzi, 许馨文 Xu Xinwen

Favorite performance: 不奉陪 No Company This was a tough choice! I went with this performance because I actively sought it out for relistens. That’s so rare for 主题考核 theme evaluation songs for me. All the members got to shine yet they were a very cohesive team.

Iconic moments: Bad Guy was the ultimate dark horse, how no one knew the song 想见你想见你想见你 Miss You 3000, 王承渲 Wang Chengxuan defeated the evil quads, 乃万 Nineone basically replaced Jony J as rap mentor, seeing 刘雨昕 Liu Yuxin with a wig was terrifying, they let the girls wear shorts if they didn’t like skirts #feminism, I still think about 张钰 Zhang Yu and 王清 Wang Qing’s initial performance all the time.

Verdict: I don’t think I could rewatch this season due to its length, but if you can commit the time, I think you should watch it. I’m sad I’ll never get to see a second 青春有你 Youth with You female season.

青春有你3 Youth with You 3

Watch on iQiyi (English subs, no VIP needed) Watch on iQiyi (no English subs, no VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (no English subs, missing several parts/episodes)

Why you should watch it: This season was probably the one I felt most emotionally invested in. I feel like I got to know the boys and was in it together with them (parasocial relationships, I know). And the friendships between contestants were so touching. Like 青春有你2 Youth with You 2, this season was also extra long, but I watched this season after it aired, going at my own pace. There were so many charming contestants and memorable performances. The dancing especially shone, but we got some great vocal moments too. I think iQiyi did a really good job picking songs this season.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: Sadly, the finale never aired. Due to the infamous milk-wasting scandal, the show was cancelled (but a winning group still formed and debuted). Even though I knew this before watching the show, it was still quite sad to never see a conclusion. Additionally, I believe this show started with more like 120 contestants, and I felt that increased number. Lastly, there was some painful singing and lots of very uninspired rapping. I feel like the gap in skill between the contestants was larger, and some of the teams felt very unbalanced as a result.

My picks: 姜京佐 Jiang Jingzuo, 杨昊铭 Yang Haoming, 十七 Shiqi, 徐子未 Xu Ziwei, 张思源 Zhang Siyuan, 连淮伟 Lian Huaiwei

Favorite performance: 燕尾蝶 Wings of Love This performance was everything I could ever dream of. 徐子未 won the world over instantly. He has the voice of an angel. Love the song, love the concept, love everything about it.

Iconic moments: 罗一舟 Luo Yizhou and 余景天 Tony Yu Jingtians’s friendly rivalry, 徐子未 Xu Ziwei’s back-to-back victories, Yuta’s adorable accent, 王南钧 Wang Nanjun would not shut up about 竹 Bamboo, touch 梁森 Liang Sen’s head for good luck, 刘隽 Liu Jun dances like he’s possessed (in a good way), that 雨爱 Rainie Love stage was a trainwreck tbh.

Verdict: Despite the scandals and lack of a finale, it was worth the watch for me. I feel so fond thinking of this season. Truthfully, season three has surpassed season two for me.

>> 创造101 Produce 101/创造营 Chuang (Tencent)

I read somewhere that Tencent officially licensed the Produce 101 name from Mnet, making this franchise more “official.” For season two, they ended up changing the name to 创造营 Produce Camp. The Chinese name remained the same for seasons three and four, but the in English they started promoting the show under the name Chuang. I think they wanted to beat iQiyi in the contest to see who can have the most titles for the same show.

创造101 Produce 101 China

Watch on Tencent Video (English subs, no VIP needed) Watch on 腾讯视频 (no English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (no English subs) Watch on YouTube (no English subs, episode 7 here, episode 10 here) Watch via Produce 101 China Subs (English fansubs)

Why you should watch it: This is the only season I’ve seen twice, so that says something I guess! This season holds a special place in my heart as my first survival show, so I rewatched it earlier this year with some friends who hadn’t seen it previously. One thing that stood out to me about this season was that it felt like there were several dark horses who started to shine closer to the middle/end of the show. I liked this because it’s boring when the debut lineup is completely predictable! And if you’re not already a 孟美岐 Meng Meiqi fan, you will leave as a 孟美岐 Meng Meiqi fan, guaranteed.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: Not gonna lie, I was not a huge fan of this mentor team. I am fine with these people individually, but together it was not an ideal combo in my opinion. They collectively made some very odd decisions that I strongly disagree with. After my rewatch, I’m just kinda done with 黄子韬 Huang Zitao. I also realized there were a lot more instances of...rough singing than I remembered, so be warned.

My picks: 孟美岐 Meng Meiqi, Yamy, 刘��语 Liu Renyu, 许靖韵 Angela Xu Jingyun, 吴映香 Lucia Wu Yingxiang, 李紫婷 Mimi Li Ziting

Favorite performance: 别人家的小孩 Other People’s Kids This is one of the most iconic performances (and one of my favorites) ever from all of these shows! It’s so unique and really has everything you could want. It was truly a perfect collab performance.

Iconic moments: When they had to tap 杨超越 Yang Chaoyue so she wouldn’t miss the beat, 王一博 Wang Yibo’s blue hair was gorgeous, Triple A group reunion, Look What You Made Me Do with creepy marionettes was perfect, when 陈嘉桦 Ella went barefoot on stage, 黄子韬 Huang Zitao literally screamed at them all, I’ll never forget the iconic 乐华 Yuehua performance.

Verdict: Even the second time, this was a season filled with surprises. It’s not perfect, but I think it will manage to charm you anyway. There are some real hidden gems here.

创造营2019 Produce Camp 2019

Watch on Tencent Video (English subs, VIP needed) Watch on 腾讯视频 (no English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (no English subs)

Why you should watch it: This was the first ever male season I watched, and I remember being apprehensive. I ended up having a lot of fun! This season really tugged at my heartstrings with the touching friendships between the boys and the intense 导师推荐生 mentor recommendees segments. I felt like I went through the wringer with them as they were forced to repack all their belongings, endure the brutal F班 demotions, hike across the beach, and more. There were countless hilarious moments too. If I were to rewatch, it would be for 周震南 Zhou Zhennan AKA 南南 Nannan. He just dominates the stage (despite his short stature)!

Why you shouldn’t watch it: I’ll admit, this season probably has the greatest number of contestants that annoy me. Sometimes it’s for no good reason...I just look at them and go ugh. The first round especially has some pretty painful singing, so be warned of that as well. Also, my rewatch made me realize I remembered very few performances from this season, which probably isn’t a good sign. Also, a lot of the performances were very short, sub-three minutes, which personally bothers me.

My picks: 周震南 Zhou Zhennan, 高嘉朗 Gao Jialang, 姚琛 Yao Chen, 陆思恒 Lu Siheng, 李鑫一 Li Xinyi, 贺俊雄 He Junxiong

Favorite performance: 开门见山 Kaimenjianshan I’ll admit that this performance was not as good as I remembered it being (probably because now I’ve heard the original by A-Mei many times), but I picked it anyway to acknowledge the amazing 高嘉朗 Gao Jialang.

Iconic moments: 张颜齐 Zhang Yanqi giving away jars of 老干妈 Lao Gan Ma, we never saw 王晨艺 Wang Chenyi again, 姚琛来了~ (Yao Chen is coming), when 周震南 Zhou Zhennan had his hoodie on but his ears were sticking out omg, try saying 李昀锐 Li Yunrui's name ten times fast, they had 30+ year old men here, this was the OG 乘风破浪 chengfengpolang.

Verdict: Among so many seasons, I don’t think this season stands out that much, but I still remember it fondly. If you want a good laugh and some fun, check it out.

创造营2020 Chuang 2020

Watch on Tencent Video (English subs, VIP needed) Watch on 腾讯视频 (no English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (English subs, missing episode 3) Watch on YouTube (English subs, missing episode 3) Watch on Viki (English subs, no Viki Pass needed)

Why you should watch it: They went all out on the sets, the location, the accommodations, everything. The performance setup was that the seats were in the middle and various stages were located around the perimeter. The seats would rotate to face the stages!! Some of the stages were stunning. I also want to mention that there were some great vocalists this season and I feel like they got to shine, which always makes me happy. The best round by far was the second round (专业方向). We got some beautiful vocal performances and intense dance performances.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: This season felt messy to me. I think they tried to mix things up, but not everything landed. The beautiful sets almost got distracting…they were more interesting than some of the performances. Several very talented and promising contestants never even made it past the first round. And since the final group only had seven people, the finale was just a frustrating experience. I never want to hear that 小摩托 xiao motuo song or 夏天的风 Summer Wind again. I don’t feel this season lived up to 创造101 Produce 101 China (unless you wanted MORE comments about weight/thinness).

My picks: 王柯 Wang Ke, 华承妍 Hua Chengyan, 刘些宁 Liu Xiening, 苏芮琪 Su Ruiqi, 朱主爱, Joyce Zhu Zhu’ai, 王一桥 Wang Yiqiao

Favorite performance: Manta There were a lot of performances I liked, but I really struggled to pick a favorite. I ultimately went with this because it’s one of the most memorable dance performances I’ve seen on these shows.

Iconic moments: That thin waist contest was simply the worst, they were in a literal castle, we all went crazy for the band and 王柯 Wang Ke, 朱主爱 Joyce Zhu Zhu’ai won the collab stage, wtf stop filming 姜贞羽 Jiang Zhenyu, I want to ride that cute train up the mountain, 毛不易 Mao Buyi did not want to talk, pretend that 吴亦凡 Wu Yifan wasn’t there.

Verdict: This season was competing against 青春有你2 Youth with You 2, and I chose to prioritize 青春有你2 Youth with You 2. I would make the same choice now. If you decide to watch, just be warned it may be a frustrating experience.

创造营2021 Chuang 2021

Watch on Tencent Video (English subs, VIP needed) Watch on 腾讯视频 (no English subs, VIP needed)

Why you should watch it: I wasn’t sure I was going to watch this season because of its international theme. Having foreigners is nothing new, but such a large number was certainly going to alter the show’s dynamic. Well, I watched it anyway. Overall, I’m glad I did. There were some talented and lovable contestants that made this season all worth it. The mentor squad (mostly 宁静 Ning Jing, 邓超 Deng Chao, and 周深 Zhou Shen) were so entertaining. Lastly, compared to the 2019 season, there were more popular vocalists this season, which I 100% support. I’ll be honest, I didn’t remember a lot of the performances from this season, but I ended up pleasantly surprised by how many great ones there were!

Why you shouldn’t watch it: It felt like there was so much focus on Nine and Patrick, Santa and Riki, the Intersection boys, and eventually Lelush as well. The other foreign contestants honestly had very little impact. This didn’t ruin the show or anything, but sometimes I got a little sick of the Santa and Mika show, you know? Also, none of my favorites made it into the winning group unfortunately. While I acknowledge the talent of the winning members, for whatever reason I wasn’t really that invested in most of them.

My picks: 俞更寅 Yu Gengying, 井胧 Jing Long, 林墨 Lin Mo, 奥斯卡 Oscar, 张星特 Zhang Xingte

Favorite performance: Lover Boy 88 This performance was simply infectious! I even made my friends watch to it. 林墨 Lin Mo is so charming. And 张腾 Zhang Teng and 张星特 Zhang Xingte’s vocals were perfect. Just wish it had been longer!

Iconic moments: Mika and 曾涵江 Zeng Hanjiang = my last two brain cells trying to communicate, I still can’t believe Lelush went viral worldwide, 刘宇 Liu Yu broke the Produce curse, Nine and Patrick only learned Chinese for how long???, Caelan kinda does look like Leonardo DiCaprio, Oscar AKA 熊熊 Xiongxiong, the 网红 wanghong group was so talented actually.

Verdict: I think this season got more international attention than 青春有你3 Youth with You 3, and while I prefer 青春有你3 Youth with You 3, this season is worth a watch for its uniqueness and improvements over the previous year.

>> 以团之名 All For One/少年之名 We Are Young (Youku)

I watched both seasons of Youku’s shorter-lived franchise in 2022 only after (and only because) I had finished the other two franchises. I think Youku had a smaller budget and thus tried to stand out by shaking up the traditional survival show formula. I think they made some poor choices and some good choices. I don’t know the story behind the name change between seasons, but the seasons are so different from each other that it makes sense.

以团之名 All For One

Watch on Youku (no English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (no English subs)

Why you should watch it: I’m going to say a lot of negative stuff below, but I wanted to add at least a few positive words. During the finale, the remaining contestants sang S.H.E’s 你曾是少年 Wings Of My Words, and I don’t think I’ve ever gotten so emotional over a performance ever. 任家萱 Selina was a delight throughout. I also really grew to appreciate 奶茶 Naicha and what a great and thoughtful leader he was.

Why you shouldn’t watch it: As I mentioned, this show had some unique features that made it stand out. The contestants formed ten groups of eight, and the composition of the groups remained unchanged throughout. Entire groups got eliminated together. This created a dynamic where some really talented contestants went home too soon due to their group. It also meant that some groups were popular really just due to having one popular member. In the end, one group won...but I guess they realized this was a bad idea, so they formed a second winning group of the most popular contestants from the non-winning groups. I didn’t like this format and felt is really negatively impacted my viewing. Personally, seeing new team lineups form is one of my favorite parts of survival shows. And because the leaders were constant, they had there was too much focus on them. Also, the mentors were so harsh all the time. Maybe it was deserved, but it really bummed me out to watch them constantly talk about how disappointed they were.

My picks: 奶茶 Naicha, 田书臣 Tian Shuchen, 龙泓昊 Long Honghao, 赖煜哲 AJ Lai Yuzhe, 热亚提 Reyati, 赵品霖 Zhao Pinlin

Favorite performance: 饕餮 Taotie This was not one of the performances that stood out in my memory, but it stood out to me when I did my rewatch. I feel like they really nailed every element, and I don’t think the other teams could have pulled off this song.

Iconic moments: 何展成 Jonathan Ha gave up on speaking Chinese and 袁娅维 Tia Ray had to translate for him, the 王霏霏 Wang Feifei and 孟佳 Meng Jia reunion, 龙泓昊 Long Honghao’s beautiful dance to a Shawn Mendes song, I’m not sure why 奶茶 Naicha chose milk tea as stage name, AJ vs. the hidden snacks, they made 周艺轩 Zhou Yixuan perform a UNIQ song.

Verdict: Maybe you can skip this one. I definitely didn’t devote my full attention while I was watching it. And it felt like the show and the mentors were being mean to the boys all the time.

少年之名 We Are Young

Watch on Youku (no English subs, VIP needed) Watch on YouTube (no English subs) Watch via We Are Young Subs (English fansubs)

Why you should watch it: They improved on basically all the issues I had with the first season, and I was pleasantly surprised. Also, this is basically a 青春有你1 Youth with You 1 mini reunion with a few 偶像练习生 Idol Producer alums plus some future 青春有你3 You with You 3 contestants. It was so wonderful to see how the contestants I already knew had grown, and I loved seeing them get new opportunities to shine. There was surprisingly a lot of good raps/rappers on this show! Also, there were some truly incredible performances this season that aren’t like anything I’ve seen on other idol survival shows. And I enjoyed almost every performance—there were only a few that I disliked or thought were, um, not good. The mentors did not always agree...but I don’t care!

Why you shouldn’t watch it: Because they have to be different, when doing the initial evaluations, only about 50 contestants advanced to the next round. This was nice because it meant fewer names/faces, but wow, it felt so mean. Sometimes I wished they had stuck to a more traditional format. Besides that, I don’t have much else negative to say!

My picks: 郭震 Guo Zhen, 寇聪 Kuo Cong, 胡文煊 Hu Wenxuan, 左林杰 Zuo Linjie, 李希侃 Li Xikan, 崔少鹏 Cui Shaopeng, 杨超文 Yang Chaowen

Favorite performance: Don’t Start Now I don’t think I’ve ever seen this exact concept on one of these shows before. This performance was instantly a standout for me, especially because it had some of my favorite contestants!

Iconic moments: They literally had a corgi, 林 (Lin) MUA, everyone shipping 薛恩 Xue En and 程潇 Cheng Xiao, 胡文煊 Hu Wenxuan in a CROP TOP, 胡彦斌 Hu Yanbin told 寇聪 Kou Cong to wear less to show off his body what, 崔少鹏 Cui Shaopeng’s entrance through the pink smoke, 左林杰 Zuo Linjie really bungee jumped with his eyes closed, how 郭震 Guo Zhen, 左叶 Zuo Ye, and 胡文煊 Hu Wenxuan were in the same group four times without anyone noticing.

Verdict: This season ended up being better than it had any right to be! I think it’s worth checking out, especially if you are missing the boys from the 偶像练习生 Idol Producer/青春有你 Youth with You series.

>> Conclusion

If you actually read this entire post, I’m thoroughly impressed. If you, like me, have spent way too much time watching these shows, feel free to send me a message because I need someone to commiserate with. 

I honestly have this weird feeling that a chapter of my life is over. I have so many treasured memories from watching these shows—moments of laughter, tears, shock, pride, and more. They’ve provided a way to ground my language studies and engage with Chinese pop culture. They made me feel less alone during earlier COVID times.

Well, I’m off to find something to fill the survival show-size hole in my heart...maybe I’ll just rewatch 偶像练习生 Idol Producer.

[bisexualmothman-br]

Would you look at that, time for another personal top 10, today being for the 2022 contest.

Disclaimer: As i share my takes on my top 10s it should be obvious i only rank years based on the studio version of the entries (it's always the version i listen to everyday, rarely will the live performance of a song affect its placing to me).

10th 🇲🇪 Vladana - Breathe: Georgia 2023 took notes from this one, but damn did Montenegro return for a one-time bop and immediately withdraw again. Lyrics are simple so they're fun to sing along to, but girl really got herself an english dictionary (the italian bridge and chorus on the live was unnecessary but that's irrelevant for now).

9th 🇨🇭 Marius Bear - Boys Do Cry: Listen listen, i have a soft spot in my heart for calm male swiss ballads (Watergun is my 12th this year and the 2020 and 2021 top 10s will let you know my opinion on Gjon wink wink), and as much as Marius is unlikeable, i can't deny his entry fits that model and i love its message.

8th 🇦🇱 Ronela Hajati - Sekret: I have to admit 2022 was my 2nd time following a contest and with Albania revealing their entry that early i kinda have a soft spot for Sekret. It is a banger (pre-revamp, as i almost always rank albanian entries) and definitely a girlbop. Ronela our sammarinese albanian crybaby, please change your ways, i love your entry.

7th 🇱🇻 Citi Zēni - Eat Your Salad: I used to hate that song but then the more i listened the more i got its hype, i love Latvia's 2016-2023 streak so far and, as much as i wasnt expecting a qualification, it kinda stung a bit not seeing it go to the final.

6th 🇵🇹 Maro - Saudade, Saudade: We stan a portuguese sadgirl, and even the english parts were great, just overall a very good chill entry with portuguese bias added of course.

5th 🇷🇸 Konstrakta - In Corpore Sano: biti zdrava, biti zdrava, biti zdrava, biti biti biti biti zdrava, biti zdrava, biti zdrava, može može može

4th 🇲🇰 Andrea - Circles: Underrated entry alert, this definitely deserved to qualify, her voice is so strong and her song is so catchy, girl tested her limits but europe didn't listen.

3rd 🇫🇷 Alvan & Ahez - Fulenn: Diwanit Bugale pales in comparison to this, the studio version is so good and breton is such an interesting language (god help anyone who wants to learn any celtic language). Too bad the live was so jarring, that entry had so much potential but now France may be reluctant on sending more entries in languages like breton or corsican after seeing the result (even though it is such a banger).

2nd 🇱🇹 Monika Liu - Sentimentai: Lithuania and Slovenia are the only countries i didn't change at all in my first and latest 2022 rankings (Austria went from 3rd to 21st lmao) and deservedly so, i'm a sucker for the more unused languages in ESC (please Azerbaijan, send azeri already) and lithuanian was certainly top of the list to do a comeback. Sentimentai is such a classy entry and Monika is hella charismatic, 13th in the final is good by Lithuania's standards but cmon, we all know this should've been their new best result, they need a better "best result".

1st 🇸🇮 LPS - Disko: Already expressed my love for this entry on my blog but long story short THAT'S MY FAVORITE ESC ENTRY EVER I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT AND WHY THE FUCK DID IT GET LAST I LITERALLY CANT SEE WHAT WAS SO WRONG ABOUT IT TO DO WORSE THAN PIA MARIA'S VOCAL "PERFORMANCE". Cahem, yeah, we stan those boys.

[junotrait]

that make a sim based on a song trend except i go way overboard

[d-criss-news]

20 Questions With Darren Criss: How Acting Has Helped Him Make New Music

While Darren Criss has graced our TV screens with a range of characters, from high schooler Blaine Anderson on Glee to serial killer Andrew Cunanan on The Assassination of Gianni Versace, he was last spotted just being himself, on our For You Page on TikTok. “I’m walking to rehearsal with a guitar on my back with a Trader Joe’s bag ... I did not bring an umbrella because I forgot that it was raining. I’m rocking that NYC musician life,” the Glee alum explained in the hilarious clip posted three days ago.

While Criss’ acting work has earned him acclaim and stardom, he leaned into making music during the pandemic. On Aug. 20, he dropped a new EP, Masquerade, featuring five new tracks that Criss says were inspired by the different characters Criss has embraced throughout his career. After Criss wrote songs for his musical comedy web series Royalties and Apple TV+’s animated sitcom Central Park before the pandemic struck the United States, he then used those experiences as a precursor to his new EP. As Criss continues to promote his new music, he answered 20 of Billboard's questions – giving us a peek into how his new EP came together, and how growing up in San Fransisco shaped him as an actor, singer and all-around artist.

1. What inspired your latest project, Masquerade?

Although I would have preferred that it come at a far less grim cost, I finally had the time. Before the pandemic, I had written 10 new songs for my show Royalties -- along with an original song for Disney and another for Apple’s Central Park. These were all assignments in which I was writing for a certain scenario and character. Go figure. It was the most music I had ever written in a calendar year. This really emboldened me to rethink how I made my own music— to start putting a focus on “character creation” in my songs, rather than personal reflection. The latter was not proving to be as productive. The alchemy of having this time and having set a new intention with my own songwriting and producing made me put on a few of my favorite masques and throw myself a Masquerade.

2. How do you think your background as an actor complements your music?

They are one and the same to me. I treat acting roles like musical pieces— dialogue is like scoring a melody; there’s pace, dynamics, cadence, tone. Physical characterization is like producing -- zeroing in on the bass line, deciding on the kick pattern. Vocal characterization is like choosing the right sonic experience, choosing the most effective snare sound, and mixing the high end or low end. It goes without saying that it works in the complete opposite direction. Making each song is taking on a different role literally and employing the use of different masques to maximize the effectiveness of the particular story being told.

3. On Instagram  you wrote that “Masquerade is a small collection of the variety of musical masques that have always inspired me.” Which track do you identify with most in your real life?

Everybody absorbs songs differently. Some key into the lyrics, some into the melody, some the production, some into vocal performance. When I listen to songs, I consider all of their value on totally different scales. So it’s hard to say if there’s any track I “identify” with more than any others, since I -- by nature -- identify with all of them. I think I just identify with certain aspects more than others. If it helps for a more interesting answer, I will say I enjoy the slightly more classical, playful -- dare I say -- more Broadway-leaning wordplay of “Walk of Shame,” but that’s just talking about lyricism. I enjoy the attitude of “F*kn Around,” the batsh--t musicality of “I Can’t Dance,” the relentless grooves of “Let’s” and “For A Night Like This.” All have different ingredients I really enjoy having an excuse to dive into.

4. What’s the first piece of music that you bought for yourself, and what was the medium?

Beatles audio cassettes: “Help” and “Hard Day’s Night.” I just listened on repeat on a tape-playing Walkman until my brother and I got a stereo for our room with a CD player in it, which was  when I just bought the same two albums again, but this time as compact discs.

5. What was the first concert you saw?It’s hard to say, because my parents took us to a lot of classical concerts when we were small. But I guess this question usually refers to what was the first concert you went to on your own volition, and that my friend, was definitely Warped Tour ’01. My brother and I went on our own— two teenagers going to their first music festival, in the golden age of that particular genre and culture. It was f--king incredible.

6. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid?

My dad was in private banking and advised really, really wealthy people on how to handle their money. My mom was, by choice, a stay-at-home mom, but in reality, she was my dad’s consigliere. They discussed absolutely everything together. They were a real team, and I saw that every single day in the house. They both had a background in finance (That’s how they met in the first place.) and were incredibly skilled at all the hardcore adulting things that I absolutely suck at. They were total finance wizards together. So of course, instead of becoming an accountant, I picked up playing the guitar and ran as far I could with it. Luckily, they were all about it.

7. What was your favorite homecooked meal growing up?

My dad was an incredible chef. For special occasions, I’d request his crab cakes. They were unreal. I’ve never had a crab cake anywhere in the world that was good as my dad’s.

8. Who made you realize you could be an artist full-time?

I don’t know if I’ve actually realized that yet.

9. What’s at the top of your professional bucket list?

The specifics change every day, but the core idea at the top is to continue being consistently inconsistent with my choices, and to keep getting audiences to constantly reconsider their consideration of me. But I mean, sure, what performer doesn’t want to play Coachella? What songwriter doesn’t want to have Adele sing one of their songs? What actor doesn’t want to be in a Wes Anderson film?

10.  How did your hometown/city shape who you are?

San Francisco. I mean, come on. I was really lucky. The older I get, the more grateful I am for just being born and raised there. It’s an incredibly diverse, culturally rich, colorful, inclusive, vibrant city. By the time I was born, it had served as a beacon for millions of creative, out-of-the-box thinkers to gather and thrive. I grew up around that. The combination of that with having parents, who were unbelievably supportive of the arts themselves, laid an incredibly fortunate foundation to consider the life of an artist as a legitimately viable option. It’s a foundation that I am supremely aware is not the case for millions of young artists around the world. I was absurdly lucky.

11.  What’s the last song you listened to?

I mean probably one of mine, but not by choice. I know, lame. But I’m promoting a new EP, what’d you expect? But if you wanna know what I’ve been listening to, as far as new s--t is concerned: a lot of Lizzy McAlpine, Remi Wolf, and Charlie Burg.

12.  If you could see any artist in concert, dead or alive, who would it be?

The Beatles is an obvious "yeah, duh." Sammy Davis, Mel Tormé, or of course, Nat King Cole. I would’ve loved to see Howard Ashman give a lecture on his creative process and his body of work.

13. What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen happen in the crowd of one of your sets?

I feel like just having a crowd at all, at any one of my sets, is pretty wild enough.

14. What’s your karaoke go-to?

The real answer to this I’ll write into a book one day, because I have a lot to say about karaoke etiquette. I have two options here: I can either name a song that I like to sing for me, for fun, or I can name a song that really gets the group going. The answer depends on what kind of karaoke night we’re dealing with here. So I will say, after I’ve selected a ton of songs that services a decent enough party vibe for everyone else, then I would do one for me, and that would be the Beatles’ “Oh! Darling.”

15. What’s one thing your most devoted fans don’t know about you?

What I have up my sleeve.

16. What TV show did you binge-watch over the past year?

Dave is a stroke of genius. There are episodes that I believe are bona fide masterpieces. Also, My Brilliant Friend is a masterclass in cinematic television.

17. What movie, or song, always makes you cry?

It’s A Wonderful Life.

18. What’s one piece of advice you would give to your younger self?

Get used to sharing everything about yourself and your life now, or more astutely, to the idea that you don’t necessarily get to control how your life is shared. I know it’s not really your thing, but you’re gonna have to get used to it, so start building up those calluses now. And don’t worry, all the stuff you love now will be cool again in your mid-thirties, so keep some of those clothes because you’ll be a full-blown fashion icon if you just keep wearing exactly what you’re wearing. Oh nd also, put money into Apple and Facebook.

19.  What new hobby did you take on in the last year?

I’ve always been a linguaphile. My idea of leisure time is getting to study or review other languages. This past year, I took the time to finally dive into learning how to read, write, and speak Japanese. Other than making music, it was one of the biggest components of my 2020-2021.

20. What do you hope to accomplish or experience by the end of 2021?

I hope I get to play live shows again.

[nautiscarader]

2020 in animation - recap

So, 2020. 

Yeah, I have to say I’m not entirely satisfied. Would not recommend, 1 star. 

But I would be willing to bump it to 1.5, if only because of one factor: the animation. 

Because I have to say, this was the best animated end of the world so far! And if there was something that kept our spirits up, it was the cartoon industry!

Just like last year, I should preface this by saying that this is highly subjective selection. Even when one is confined to their Hobbit holes for better part of the year because of *waves hands* everything around, 

day still only has 24 hours, so I have missed a few shows. (I should also apologise for omitting a few major ones last year, like Milo Murphy’s Law S2, Ducktales, or She-Ra. This is why I started keeping a track this year). I’m sure I will catch up with those I missed this year some time in the future, but for now, let’s see what this year has gifted us with.

And right from the start, January opens the race with very interesting propositions. We were still riding on an incredibly high wave from last year, with Infinity Train season 2.

This one focused on Tulip’s mirror, and pushed the season towards a much darker and complex story, diving deep into one’s personal journey and identity. There were tears, math, deer, and cops being murdered. Brutally. 

t was followed by two newcomers: The Owl House and first season of Kipo and The Age of the Wonderbeast. Both of them would dominate first half of the year, with The Owl House’s traditional, week-to-week airings, and Kipo's seasons appearing in  June and October.

The Owl House, a strong contender in "What will be the Next Gravity Falls?" contest, invited us to a world full of magic, mystery, elongated owl demons and some dark secrets. It has also created a milestone for Disney, introducing an LGBT couple with characters of bisexual Luz Noceda and lesbian Amity Blight. Their Grom dance has risen to the top of my animates scenes, polling very closely to the unforgettable Kataango.

On the other hand, Kipo has taken us to the post-apocalyptic world filled with mutant animals, revealing that despite the end of the world, our old vices and animosities have survived in underground burrows, and we have infected the overworld of giant doggos and suit-wearing frogs with them. 

Kipo did not pull any punches regarding commentary about our society, at the same time giving us hope in the form of the main protagonist, who was able to spread friendship and understanding amongst the mutes, as well as the humans that had to survive. And in the world that we have found ourselves in, it was a pretty darn good lesson.

February would bring end to two seasons of airing cartoons, Big Hero Six season 2 and Miraculous season 3, as well as another newcomer that won the hearts of fans: Glitch Techs, with its "second" season arriving in August. And while in my opinion he show wasn't as good as the other two new titles, I am clearly in minority, as the show about Ghostbuters-like team of game console technicians gained huge popularity... though not enough to keep the show afloat. As of writing this, it is currently in limbo, which is a shame, as the second set of 10 episodes finally added some much needed ongoing story.  

in March, another show from last year ended - Steven Universe Future. As we have expected, it tackled slightly more mature themes, showing how much Steven needed that therapy we have wished him, telling an important tale of finding one's worth and one's self. its ending might not have been as explosive as those of the original show, or the movie, but it left Steven’s story as open as an open road, and deep in our hearts, we all knew it would look like this.   

March was also the time when majority of western world caught the coronavirus, and that caused quite a turmoil with the movie and animation industry. One of the first victim of changed schedule was Disney's Onward, which was released on-line on Disney+ quickly after its theatrical release.

I have mixed feelings towards “Onward”. For such interesting promise, I think it made a few questionable and down right boring turns, though the unorthodox message at the end of it was its strongest point, and it was one I haven’t seen in a while, so it was worth watching just for that.  

April was relatively quiet (aside from more end of the world stuff); brought us third season of Ducktales that spread throughout the year, while May gave us final, fifth season of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. 

To my eternal shame, I missed on this show when it premiered, and due to the lockdown, I binge-watched the previous four right in time for powerful and explosive season 5. And even though Catra and Adora finally gave us exactly what we needed, some fans felt slightly unsatisfied, calling for a movie, like the Steven Universe one to be made. And I’d be all for it, the rest of universe needs saving from the Horde! Also, cats in space - hilarious. 

May also revealed a new player on the streaming field: HBO Max, who surprised us with new Looney Tunes Cartoons, much more in the spirit of the legendary originals than the often-criticised Looney Tunes Show from 2011-2014. And in my opinion, it did; one could feel the same fluidity in animation, dedication to slapstick, and synchronisation with music than in the very first cartoons with Bugs and Daffy.

HBO Max would, however, return in June with first of series of Adventure Time original movies called "Distant Lands". The first centred around BMO, with second one - Obsidian giving us a glimpse into Bonnibel and Marceline's lives.

Distant Lands allowed people to revisit the odd, odd world of Ooo and learn about its colourful inhabitants, taking turns to seeing their past and the future, an, as usual, showing us that post-apocalyptic world can teach us valuable and meaningful lessons.   

Just in time for full lockdown in our burrows, aforementioned Kipo season 2 premiered in June, together with another cartoon movie, this time featuring We Bare Bears. While their movie wasn't anything to write songs about, it was exactly like the show, providing some wholesome content right when we needed it.

And just in case you needed more wholesome adventures, Craig of the Creek's second season ended, and its third season began, reminding us of HOW COOL LIFE WAS WHEN OUTERNET WASN’T SCARY AND WE COULD STILL WALK OUTSIDE FOR FUN AND NOT TO HUNT TOILET PAPER.

Just like last year, July was not dogs' days, but frogs'. Amphibia season 2 started raining on our heads, but unlike last year, its schedule wasn't a daily one, spreading the episodes throughout the Summer and early Autumn, with its second part arriving in February of 2021. There were more roadtrips, more mysteries and MORE MARCY.

August was equally strong: aforementioned Glitch Techs "season 2" premiered, offering better and more plot-heavy episodes than the first ten episodes. Unfortunately, the show's future is unclear; the uneven divide of plot between the seasons probably contributed to the show not being renewed. 10 new episodes apparently are written, but await in sleep mode, until Nickelodeon remembers about it.

HBO MAX picked up Infinity Train for its third season, after being derailed by Cartoon Network. And if you thought that killing a mirror cop was shocking... then this season has pushed the limit of what can be shown in modern children's cartoon to a frightening degree. The schedule was once again, weirder, with first five episodes airing on the day of the premiere, ending with a cliffhanger (literally) that only contributed to the shock factor and made us wait anxiously for its conclusion. It was bold, it was dark, it was memorable. 

And just like Glitch Techs, Infinity Train waits on a side track, unsure if it will be picked up, or will it be abandoned and left as a canvas for graffiti artists.

However, to end the Summer, a truly amazing TV movie has arrived on Disney Plus, where we came back to good, old Danville and could witness Candace against the universe. The new Phineas and Ferb movie brought back the glorious memories of this fantastic show, with the same humour, writing, abundance of catchy songs and a surprisingly deep moral.

In September we have seen the start of Big Hero 6 season 3 and a odd change of format. Instead of standalone 22-minute episodes, the show now consists of two 11-minute segments. In opinion of many, this weakened the stories, forcing them to be more comedy-oriented, and shortening the potential emotional drama. Still, it gave us funny, short stories, but they did clash with the two previous season, not to mention the movie.

However, if that wasn't up to your taste, Ducktales season 3 also started airing, and continued its first part up until December with more action- and plot-driven episodes, including the Darkwing Duck crossover, serving as a pilot of the spin-off. 

Later in December fans have learned that Season 3 will be its last, which broke the hearts of many duck fans; however, it seems that the season has been written as the last one in mind, and the news of the ending was known to the creators, which gives us hope for a kick-ass finale somewhere in 2021.

Miraculous New York, telling arguably one of the most mature storylines, opened the "Heroez" world to some new characters and new opportunities, with two more specials, taking place in Shanghai and Brazil, meant to air somewhere next year. AND I DO HOPE WE WILL SEE MORE LOCAL FOOD VENDOR SUPERHEROES LIKE HOT DOG DAN. 

October was the month of two season 3's: Carmen Sandiego and Kipo. In case of Carmen, as it is usual with Netflix, the "season" was only a half-one, with just a handful standalone episodes, and just a dash of more ongoing plot. 

For Kipo, however, season 3 was the end, and what a glorious one it was. Fans were saddened to learn of it, but Kipo was always imagined as a 3-part story, and it showed. The finale proved more than satisfying ending to the plot, elevating Kipo to one of the smartest cartoon characters we should all try to aspire to.

In November, Distant Lands: Obsidian aired, focusing on everyone’s favourite candy/vampire couple, and the long and complicated love between Bonnibel and Marceline. And as usual, it showed us that relationships are not always as straightforward as we would like them to be, but with enough music and teamwork, no enemy is big enough. 

For the next new show, I’ve waited with the most amount of excitement and anxiety. Because while I was completely fine with other reboots and re-imaginings to take creative takes, new Animaniacs, (airing on Hulu) had to be perfect and had to be the lightning that struck twice. 

And sadly... it wasn’t. It was still good, but some people criticised (incorrectly imho) the amount of political topics, while I mourned almost total cast-ration of additional characters, aside from Pinky and the Brain. This truly weakened the possibilities it could have had. It was still very good, but you can feel that some of the original charm was lost, due to these odd, odd limitations. 

December brought us a new original Apple TV movie, Wolfwalkers. A beautifully animated folk tale of friendship and social divides, and how short-sight can cause the collapse of both arguing sides, reminding me very much of the intelligence and heart of original “How to Train Your Dragon”.  

We’ve had to wait two years for the return of arguably one of the most wholesome shows out there: Hilda. Second season dived into deeper mysteries that permeate the rich and colourful troll-ridden land, we saw the return of some familiar characters, and introduced a whole new storyline, that ended with a surprising cliffhanger. Still as wholesome, but now with a tiny bit of Police incompetence. Also Twig, lots of Twig.   

Just like Onward, Pixar’s highly anticipated Soul aired on Disney+, telling a very mature story about finding one’s purpose in life, what that purpose actually means, and whether it exists at all. Beautifully animated, with fantastic soundtrack, it was a stunning tribute to creativity, and it never dumbed down its profound, open message about following your dream.   

And just if you thought that Soul was going to be 2020′s last note (pun very much intended), right before the year ended, DC Super Hero Girls concluded its first season on a rather anti-climactic two-parter. That being said, the season, running from March of last year, was packed with short, bite-sized, funny stories, taking interesting spins on existing comic book characters. For a comic book noob like me, it was perfectly fine, and I can’t wait for the second season next year. 

And so, we have reached the series finale of humanity. 

2020 ends in just under a day. What will 2021 bring us? I do not know, and if the animated shows of this year have taught me anything, is that the future is an always open book, full of worries and challenges, but also opportunities and possibilities. 

...

And in reality I was too lazy to check any news sites about upcoming projects.

[prettyboybuckley]

question tag game

got tagged by @rogerzsteven 💕 thank youuu

Name: gary

Star Sign: virgo

Height: 173/5'8"

Time: 6.26pm

Birthday: september 9th (fun fact: this is the most common birthday on the planet. my mom really spend over 30 hours in labor just for me to have literally the most average birthday)

Favorite bands/artists: bleachers, the happy fits, the wrecks, racoon

Last Movie: the hating game

Last Show: roswell new mexico (new obsession!)

When did I create this blog: 2021! wanted a fresh start and an empty blog

What I post: reblogging mostly 9-1-1, shit posts and a few other fandoms, as for my original posts: mostly fics, perhaps one day i will make a gifset again.

Last Thing I Googled: *laughs nervously* i needed fic titles so my last search is "songs about car sex" 👀

Other blogs: my old blog is still floating around somewhere but that's top secret

Do I get asks: occasionally

Following: 291

Average hours of sleep: anywhere between 5 and 10 really

Instruments: none 😔

What I’m wearing: a ten year old mickey and minnie mouse kissing t-shirt and red shorts

Dream job: becoming an author! but i'll take the journalism job at my old internship as a close second, lol

Dream trip: idk if it's my dream trip, but I was supposed to go to Malta for two weeks in june 2020 for school and, well, you can guess what happened... anyway, still wanna go there some day

Nationality: dutch

Favorite songs: ehhh my brain is blank, anything by the favorite bands/artists i named i guess

Last book I’ve read: bold of you to assume i read books

Top 3 fictional universes I’d like to live in: hmmm i mean i am a 9-1-1 blog after all so that one, legends of tomorrow (time travel, hellooo??) and I have no idea for the third lol

tagging @holdmygum @adventuresofprettyboyandthekid @morganofthefairies @evanbukley 💕

[wickymicky]

wickymicky’s Top Ten Kpop Songs of 2021

9: Cherry Bullet - Love So Sweet

I gotta say, I’m a little bit surprised that this made my top ten list, but I’m really really glad that it did. I’ve never really stanned Cherry Bullet in a major way, though I really liked their song Hands Up last year. This is a group who I’ve known about for a long time, of course. They debuted only a month or so before I got into kpop, I believe, so they were a little bit of a hot topic among some of the first kpop people I followed, haha. I didn’t really get into them until Hands Up in early 2020 though, and I’ve been steadily getting more into them over time. During Girls Planet 999, I got to see a lot more from Jiwon, May, and Bora, the last of which was already my top candidate for bias, I think, and she’s definitely my bias now. I was already considering Love So Sweet one of the best songs of the year, but spending that time watching and rooting for the Cherry Bullet members made me appreciate them as a group a lot more, and made me want to promote Love So Sweet even more too haha. People need to know how good this song is.

I really think this song is a superb example of something that I think was a big theme of this year’s girl group releases, which is very focused, minimalist, no-excess-fluff songs, with simple and extremely catchy songwriting. The songwriters knew exactly what they wanted to do with this song, and they did it. They had a good idea, the hook, and they built the song around it. They didn’t just slap a song together in order to get a paycheck, this is clearly an example of someone having a really strong vision for what they wanted this song to be, and they only added stuff to the song that fit their vision. Every part of the song works towards that goal, there’s nothing that feels out of place. There were a number of songs like this in 2021, and you’ll see a few more later on in this list, but obviously this one was the first, since it came out right at the beginning of the year, in January. 

I can’t really describe it any better than saying that this song knows exactly how catchy it is, and every thing it throws at you in the verses, chorus, and instrumental is there to accentuate that and reinforce that. There’s nothing that distracts from that, in my opinion. Everything only adds to it. It’s simple, it’s minimalist, but there’s still a lot going on. It’s not trying to be too much or to do too much though, it’s just exactly what it needs to be, and nothing more, and it’s soooo much better because of that. 

To be honest, the only reason this isn’t higher is that I still wouldn’t say that I stan Cherry Bullet like that. I don’t think I would call myself a Lullet (their fandom name). If I did, I have no doubt that this would be a top 5 song, easily. But as it stands, while the song quality is there, part of what goes into my rankings in this list is, well... bias. I didn’t listen to this song as much as most of the others on this list, but every time I did listen to it, I thought to myself “I should DEFINITELY listen to this more” haha. I’m getting more and more into Cherry Bullet every year at this point, so it’s not out of the question that I will actually stan them by this point next year. I wouldn’t be surprised, to be honest. I’m a bit worried for them though, because this was their only comeback this year and obviously its anniversary is only a month away... but hopefully FNC gives them a good start to 2022 and capitalizes on their GP999 popularity? We’ll see... I don’t trust that company very much, but we’ll see. In any case, this song had to be here on this list. It’s only 9th, I know, but tbh just being in my top ten at all means that I love it to death. I’m super impressed by this song. I find it hard to think of literally anything negative to say about it at all.

links to the rest of the list: 10 - After School (Weeekly) 9 - Love So Sweet (Cherry Bullet) 8 - Odd Eye (Dreamcatcher) 7 - Eleven (IVE) 6 - Rub-a-Dum (TRI.BE) 5 - Holiday Party (Weeekly) 4 - Ring x Ring (Billlie) 3 - Zombie (Purple Kiss) 2 - ASAP (STAYC) 1 - First (Everglow)

[foreignswaggersession]

Best of K-Pop 2021 - 10-1

All of these are SOTY material in my book...

10. Oneus - LUNA. I've been rooting for Oneus every since Bing Bing nearly topped my best of 2019 list. 2021 gave me two excellent title tracks from Oneus (and one awful one but we're gonna ignore). As with 2019's Lit, Oneus mixes traditional and contemporary music to great effect, but this time it's 80s pop so you know I ate it up. The way each version of Luna's chorus has different beat drops keeps it fresh throughout. Also, they had the great sense to leave the dance break off the album.

09. SHINee - Atlantis. Y’all can have View, but Atlantis is the summer sea epic that I deserve. Shinee picked up where Ateez left off, satisfying my previously unknown need for conceptual songs about the ocean. I can't tell you what SM was thinking with Don't Call Me, but they remembered who Shinee was for the repackage. Atlantis also has the best Minho rap in a title track since Lucifer - him saying “Atlantis” with 4 syllables is iconic.

08. aespa - YEPPI YEPPI. You know what, girl crush is great actually. I’m impressed but not surprised that SM figured out to elevate this generation of girl group k-pop – unlike their title track of the same name, Yeppix2 is actually the next level of the girl-crush genre. I love a confidence anthem, and this is the best one since Dalla Dalla. Nonstop hyperpop energy that adds 10 years to my life. Ok aespa, I see y'all.

07. Seventeen - Heaven's Cloud. Winner of my go-to serotonin booster award of 2021. Heaven's Cloud instantly became my favorite Seventeen song. The synths are literal heaven - boy groups, this is what happiness sounds like! Woozi was in his bag in 2021 I can't deny. Gimme your gimme your gimme your love love cloud.

06. SHINee - I Really Want You. Shinee being Shinee, we love to hear it. My favorite and most played song for most of the year. I literally cannot feel bad listening to this. Loud, brassy, shimmering funk music with Shinee’s undefeatable vocals. It's up there with Married to the Music and Dream Girl (should have been the title track, fu SM).

05. Seventeen - To You. I really didn't expect Seventeen to top Heaven's Cloud. And then I heard the teaser for Attaca, and I knew they were going to give me everything I wanted in 2021. To You hits all the beats of Heaven's Cloud but with a stronger beat, making it an intense and uplifting synth banger.

04. Golden Child - Spell. Sonic crack 😜. I don't know how else to describe how I feel when Spell comes on - I have to set a limit on how many times I can repeat this song so that my play metrics don't get screwed. The homies stole WJSN's music to great effect for Spell. Just pure glittery adrenaline, my boys are at their best when at 100% energy. Full8loom can’t miss - when Golden Child gets a Full8loom title track it's over for your favs I promise.

03. Key (SHINee) - Bad Love. Leave it to Shinee to outdo Shinee. I’ve been sleeping on Key’s solo potential – this blew every other solo out of the water. I'm genuinely surprised Key got better music that Kai or Taemin. Look at SM giving a sh** about the singers. Pounding 80’s beats are always welcome in my k-pop, and Key’s vocals make the song soar (the ending!!!). Everyone says this is copying the Weeknd, but I don't listen to the radio or go to the mall, so I don't know what y'all are talking about! Song must slap though, if it led to this!

02. Dreamcatcher - Poison Love. The only song to stay in my top 3 since January. I love edm dance tracks from the girlies (see Lovelyz's Temptation, f*cking love it), and Dreamcatcher has some of my favorite dark and bass-heavy edm b-sides (Sleepwalking and Silent Night are 👑). Poison Love is their best one yet - sleek, dramatic, and angsty. My previous best of year pics for 2019 (Woohyun - Just Look at Me) and 2020 (Pentagon - Asteroid) were synth edm tracks, so Poison Love was most poised to take the number 1 spot, at least until Shinee came back. But then...

01. Seventeen - Rock With You. I really thought Shinee would sweep my end of the year list, but I can't deny the hold Rock With You has on me. Seventeen has been giving all of their good songs to Japan ever since 2018's phenomenal Call Call Call. Not a bad decision, but as a result, I haven’t cared about a Seventeen Korean comeback since Thanks. Hit and Fear were good for like a week but had zero staying power, and I couldn't be bothered to buy or stream their 2020 K-releases. And in 2021, Heaven's Cloud was so good I completely forgot about Ready to Love. HOWEVER, with Attaca, Seventeen decided to give Korea the good sh** this time! Rock With You is now my favorite Seventeen song in a year that gave me my three favorite Seventeen songs ever. It's also their strongest comeback since Aju Nice (the good old days when Seventeen was fun). There's not a single flaw I can find in this comeback. The song is full of energy with hooks all over the place, the choreo is 10/10, everyone looks great (especially Jeonghan). Even though Shinee didn't take the top spot, I feel like Shinee is still responsible for this comeback - their return to k-pop encouraged Woozi and Hoshi and the rest of them to not flop in front of their favs. Seventeen is out here showing all these Super Junior clones with too many boys how it's done!

[apparentlyaswarmofbees]

Late Top 10 Posts of 2020!

I have fun seeing my posts rise and fall on the Top Posts list, I kind of forgot to do this before but since I have way too much time right now I decided I might as well give it a go with a bit of comentary!

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#10- Pact Marks

This one was literaly made at a moment of epiphany, I really enjoy the concept. I should mention I also really enjoyed the Unconventional Pact Marks made by @/astaroth1357, you guys should go check it out lololol

#9- Papa Mammon's Feathery Babies

This one was also an epiphany I wrote after watching videos of crows being cute, for a long while this one post was actually the second top post of all time! It still gets some rises in notes from time to time when new people find it and reblog it! And again, a huge thanks and all the love to @/hhhany82 for their great fanart made inspired on this post of mine, I was over the moon and I still am everytime I think about it ♡♡♡♡♡

#8- A Compilation of Accidents

After reading many headcanons of people using the concept of accident for agnst purposes (which are great ngl), I decided that no, accidents can make you laugh too, and so I wrote this inspired in my own personal accidents in life l o l.

#7- In What Way You Will Match With Them

After a long ass while opening dozens of tabs on my computer of matching things, writing this was hella fun. With some I had trouble deciding on what to match but in the end it was worth it uvu.

#6- MORE Small Things to Imagine

Oh man I remember exactly how I felt then. Many many times I made a small draft in an attempt to make a somewhat continuation to Small Things to Imagine but it never felt quite right. The reopening of requests at that time was really the catalyst of my inspiration. It is the shortest of the series of Small Things to Imagine but I consider it an important warm up for the reopening of requests and a weight being lifted off my shoulders!

#5- Leviathan 'Despair' Fanart

Oh my god drawing that was a pain, I did draft after draft and I was in so much agony coloring his table. But the song was so good my inspiration was on fire the entire time. You guys won't believe how happy I still am from the amount of feedback I recieved out of it. It's a simple fanart, but I felt I managed to send the exact feelings I felt from the lyrics and imagining Levi to all of you, and that makes me really proud no matter the imperfections ♡

#4- While You're Not Looking

The ammount of attention this one recieved in just one single day of being posted was NOT expected. It was again, just a moment of epiphany, and then I had many people screaming and crying in my notifications and all I could think was "oh god I broke them are you guys okay what the fuck is happening". All I had in mind while writting was literally just what they do when you're not looking, and only after some people comented on tags about the yearning this post reeked of that I realized what I wrote 😂. It skyrocketed in notes and it still has me dumbfounded lololol.

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-Honorary Mentions-

#Mammon Red String Fanart

This one is one of my absoluse prides after Belphie's 'Bad Ideas' Fanart. I was just so filled with love and soft feelings due to all the feedback I was recieving in this platform, all my insecurities and anxieties being crushed and thrown out the window. This fanart was made with pure overflowing happiness and gratefulness to all of you.

#No Thoughts, Just Demons

One of my first posts in this blog, it has been on top 3 for a good while before dropping down. It was incredibly fun to draw seeing it was literally a warmup from me staying months without drawing. I still feel sorry for the original artist of the base I used because it literally scaped my mind to credit, specially seeing I cropped the thing without paying attention to any signatures, and I also had no idea the original artist was on tumblr either, though I also didn't bother to search. The moment I accidentally found about the original artist I immediatelly went to put proper credits, but still, sorry.

#'Ho Ho Homicide' Satan Claus Fanart

Oh am I proud of this one. It took so much trouble but it was so satisfying to see it becoming it's final form. But I got so impatient I posted a literal month before christmas 😂. It's one of my favorite fanarts of all time 😏.

#Breakfast In Bed

This fucking shitpost lolololol. This was literally inspired by the fact I don't see breakfast in bed as romantic at all. Although it can be good if you can't get off the bed per example, on circunstances where you can get off the bed it's nothing short of inconvenient. But still, it's endearing to have someone go for the unnecessary trouble to have you eat breakfast in bed, and so this post was born lololololol.

#'Compilation of Flustered Sweet Stuff' Making The Brothers Flustered

Another moment of epiphany where I was high on the blushing faces of the brothers. Lucifer's frown with blushy cheeks that Satan also does, Mammon's and Beel's blushy smiles that make me go (=♡=) everytime, Levi's and Asmo's blush that just make me h o r n y, Belphie's blush that makes me want to s q u e e z e him in a hug. If I could I would make a shrine for each blushy expression from all the brothers.

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And now for the top 3!

#3- EVEN MORE Small Things To Imagine

Oh boy I was PUMPED while making that one. I was listening to the song mentioned on it the entire time and until today I still get so happy while listening to it. I consider this one the ultimate part of the Small Things to Imagine series because it's not only the longest it was also made with a lot more happy feelings than the first part, and it's even higher on top than MORE Small Things to imagine, and I am proud of it 😌

#2- Photos The Brothers Would Have of You

Literally inspired by the shitshow that is the photos both me and my brother take. My brother makes sure all pics he ever takes can become memes, while I always search to take pictures from people at their most natural, even if it means a blurry pic of them laughing in an awkward position, and so I merged mine and my brother's tendencies and this post was born! And honestly I don't think anyone should be ashamed of drolling in their sleep, it's normal lololol, and I do from time to time too!

And finally...

#1- Small Things To Imagine

The number 1 top post that never lost it's position not even once ever since first posted. Not only was it one of my first posts of this blog it is also my most popular to the point it appears on the top posts of the Obey Me Headcanons tag. I am extremelly proud of this post, thank you everyone for their feedback on it and all the love sent to me, it really boosted my energy at the time ♡♡♡♡♡

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Thank you everyone for all the love I recieved in this short 3/4 months of activity! May 2021 give us a break!!

[foemantic]

9 first time watches in 2021

i don’t know if these are necessarily my ‘top’ 9 but these are like the only 9 i can remember watching because the entirety of 2021 has been like [tv static] so here we go???

the handmaiden (2016) - one of those things i’ve seen gifs of for god knows how long like “i need to watch this” and then i just didn’t? until early 2021? and then i did, and it was very good? i wouldn’t recommend it to just anyone it was also very dark and fucked up with some very triggering themes but the symbolism was great the execution of the plot/twists was great the last scene in the library was so cathartic 

princess mononoke (1997) - i was raised very sheltered and very religious and we did not have anything but pbs on the tv so... i have not seen as many ghibli movies as i should have and i’ve been slowly catching up over the years? i put this one off for a while because i was told the tone was really different and dark and yeah it was but it’s my favorite now? “still we find reasons to keep living” 

his house (2020) - ok this one i really really liked it’s like a distant relative of the babadook if you liked that one you might like this one it’s about sudanese refugees trying to make a life in london with a very similar key theme that boils down to “the demons are Yours and to survive you’re going to have to somehow make your peace with them” which i am very into whenever it pops up so this was probably in my top 3 horror movies of the year

candyman (2021) - loved this one? love jordan peele horrors and their themes, love that it was a remake that was really just a sequel, love it when the situation is one of those “you can’t talk about it you can’t think about it and if you have it’s already too late” things because that is so effectively scary to me and the candyman is the best supernatural slasher can’t change my mind where’s that post about the others being crusty and him rocking up in his fur coat b/c... yeah. yeah

the green knight (2021) - this was definitely my favorite movie of the year i am absolutely obsessed with visually-appealing high fantasy (even if it passionately makes me want to play dnd right now immediately on days when i cannot just play dnd) and the artsy a24 cinematic style and arthurian legend? dev patel as gawain? the themes? the tragedy? everything i could possibly have wanted 10/10 i’m still thinking about the imagery especially in the green chapel 

moulin rouge (2001) - one of those things i watched because it’s so culturally-embedded (elephant love medeley? el tango de roxanne?) and when people found out i hadn’t they were like ????? as a first-time viewer who didn’t have nostalgia goggles on and isn’t usually into jukebox musicals it’s aged very well in some ways and uhhhh really has not in certain others but it’s a good musical it was converted to a movie well i enjoyed it black swan (2010) - see above that is why i watched this one also? going in all i knew about swan lake was the barbie movie (i loved that odette doll so much) and mostly the cast was great... i got very into analyzing/talking about it... i learned some interesting stuff

encanto (2021) - this was so sweet honestly and i love the music a lot? like a lot... i’ve gone back to a couple of the songs more than once since i saw it and even more than the movie itself i’ve really loved seeing how pleased people have been to see a little of themselves in something like this???  single all the way (2021) - ok this one is just literally every single home for the holidays bad christmas romcom you’ve ever seen in your entire life? but it’s gay? so like... it wasn’t good, and i do not care even a little bit, the straight ones aren’t either!!  tagged by - @mrbingley :) ty this was fun! tagging - @dogsideye​? @quirkydetectives​ ? no pressure! and like @everyone do it! tag me! 

[ghupload]

The 18 Best Nigerian Songs of 2021 So Far - OkayAfrica

It's been another great year so far for Nigerian music with outstanding releases from the country's well-cemented stars making it far and reaching ears across the globe. 2021 has also seen the quick rise of new names to keep an eye out for in the highly-competitive Nigerian music scene. Check out our picks for The Best Nigerian Songs of 2021 So Far below. Follow our NAIJA HITS playlist on Spotify here and Apple Music here. Wizkid 'Essence' ft. Tems While "Essence" technically dropped in 2020 as part of Wizkid's Made In Lagos album, the new year has seen the song catapult into massive levels, even making it into the U.S. Apple Music Top 50 charts. Kicked off by outstanding vocals from Tems, "Essence" sees both Nigerian stars riding an undulating synth piano riff — crafted by producers Legendury Beatz and P2J — into the perfect breezy summer track. It's no wonder celebs like Kevin Hart, Khloe Kardashian, Kylie Jenner have been posting of videos of themselves jamming to the track as the weather turns warm in the Northern hemisphere. Olamide 'Rock' Olamide shared "Rock," a mellow and flirtatious little number, as the lead single from his new 10-track album, UY Scuti, titled after one of the largest known red stars. "Rock" is a smooth jam you'll have repeating over and over again. "The song is saying my lady doesn't have to do too much to impress me — I love you already," Olamide mentions. Ruger 'Bounce' With his pink hair and eye-patch Ruger has become one of the new breakout artists coming out of the highly-competitive and saturated Nigerian music scene in 2021. "Bounce," the highlight from his Pandemic EP, has been rising in the Nigerian charts and, with just one listen, it's easy to tell why this sugary and addictive track is a hit. "Bounce" actually peaked at number one last week on Nigeria's Apple Music charts. Adekunle Gold 'It Is What It Is' Adekunle Gold dropped the single and music video for "It Is What It Is," a song about acceptance and remaining calm and centered in the face of life's adversities. "The truth about freedom is it is only found in clarity of self," Adekunle mentions. "I believe this song is about letting yourself be free from every other voice but the one guiding you internally." Keep your peace people. Ayra Starr 'Away' New Mavin Records signee Ayra Starr came fresh out of the gate and got people talking with "Away," the lead single from the 19-year-old's self-titled debut EP. Born in Benin and raised between Cotonou and Lagos, Nigeria, Starr's sound allows her versatility and distinctive styles to take center stage. The introductory "Away" is a pulsating, hip-grinding track that re-explores what typically makes up a break-up song. Joeboy 'Focus' Afropop star Joeboy dropped his long-awaited debut album Somewhere Between Beauty & Magic in February. The 14-track project is the official follow-up to the young artist's debut Love & Light EP which dropped in 2019. While no additional artists feature on the album, it is nonetheless an impressive body of work with several bangers to have stuck on repeat. Burna Boy 'Kilometre' Burna Boy came through with the brand new single, "Kilometre." The Chopstix-produced song sees the superstar singing about the distance he's traveled, literally and figuratively, to reach his current level as one of the top African artists in the world. "Kilometre" is an energetic track built on a repetitive refrain that will get stuck in people's heads and soundtrack many a dance floor to come. Rema 'Bounce' Rema shared the eye-grabbing new music video and single "Bounce." In the new clip, the Mavin Records star takes us to a place that can only best described as Mad Max-meets-Burning Man as he celebrates, well, "booty bounce." It's a wild post-apocalyptic affair that matches the fast-paced freneticism of the single and its Don Jazzy-produced beat. Jazzy also appears in the video. Mr Eazi 'The Don' Mr Eazi's "The Don" and its accompanying short film, were shared as the lead bits from his latest EP Something Else. While Mr Eazi describes the project as "the calm before the storm", the multi-talented musician did not disappoint. With production credits to Killertunes and E Kelly, "The Dn is an operatic, 'afro-trap' ballad of note, "The Don" gives fans a glimpse into Eazi's bountiful bag o' tricks and treats, as well as teasing the highly anticipated EP to come. Lojay x Sarz 'Tonongo' Up-and-coming Nigerian artist Lojay connected with producer Sarz for this highly-addictive single "Tonongo," a song which is about Sarz's experience of falling in love with a stripper. "'Tonongo' is about expressing the depth of emotion that lies beyond the surface," Lojay mentions. "The single was inspired by the atmosphere of a strip club - moody and dark — a fitting ode to the dancer the song was written about. I enjoy the duality of the song. It ended up making itself and that's the beauty of it, the beauty of music. It's so spiritual. I'm just a vessel. I hope people relate to it and find beauty in it." Seyi Shay & Yemi Alade 'Pempe' Seyi Shay and Yemi Alade teamed up for an explosive collaboration titled "Pempe," a vibrant and mid-paced number that exemplifies a quintessential afrobeats song and everything that makes it infectious. Mixed and mastered by Kel P, this one is a seamless and fun collaboration between the two Nigerian artists. YUNG L 'Yaadman (Intro)' Yung L delivered the single and music video for "Yaadman," an addictive and energetic dancehall track built on slick guitars and heavy beats. It came paired with the striking visuals directed by TG Omori. "Yaadman (Intro)" is the first track on Yung L's album, Yaadman Kingsize. Bankulli & Not3s 'Foreign' Afropop manager-turned-singer Bankulli came through with a fire track and accompanying visuals featuring Not3s. On his latest go at being center stage, Bankulli (who got a Grammy nod for his work on Beyoncé's Lion King: The Gift) recruited British-Nigerian Afroswing crooner Not3s to add his golden touch to the track. The snappy "Foreign" is sure to appease fans with it's stylish and catchy vibe, and equally as pleasant visuals to match. Femi Kuti 'As We Struggle Everyday' Femi Kuti's "As We Struggle Everyday" was the lead song from his double album Legacy +, a joint endeavor with his son Made Kuti. The single is a politically-charged afrobeat tune about people having the voting power to hold their 'leaders' accountable, but often failing to do so. Throughout the song, Femi sings "As we struggle everyday We try to find a better way See these leaders wey suppose jail Na him my people dem dey hail." Teni 'For You' ft. Davido Singer and songwriter Teni shines in the music video "For You" featuring fellow Nigerian star Davido. "For You", which is centered on a prison escape, sees Davido and Teni teaming up for a thrilling visual escapade.The music video starts of with Teni behind bars and comically relays the love story that lead to her re-arrest. "For You" is a standout from Teni's Wondaland album. Laycon 'Fall for Me' feat. YKB Nigerian rapper Laycon dropped his debut album, Shall We Begin, which features appearances from the likes of Mayorkun, Joeboy, Teni, and Terri across its 12 songs. The album's lead single "Fall For Me," featuring YKB," is a highly-infectious affair paired with a trippy music video. Read our recent interview with Laycon. Tekno 'Enjoy (Remix)' ft. Mafikizolo Tekno dropped the remix to his upbeat and electric single "Enjoy" which was released towards the end of last year. The Nigerian artist enlisted South African Afropop duo, Mafikizolo, who have added their signature flair to both the remix itself and the accompanying visuals. Rema 'Soundgasm' Another banger from Rema on makes it on this list because of his impressive consistency. In "Soundgasm," Rema adds country-style guitars to his ever impressive bag of tricks. The London-produced track showcases the Nigerian star's vocal range as he goes from a high-pitched refrain to rap-sung verse melodies seamlessly. The music video follows Rema to a house in Nashville where he's joined by a female companion. "Dimension," another noteworthy Rema feature from this year alongside JAE5 and Skepta should also be on your rotation. https://www.ghupload.com/the-best-nigerian-songs-of-2021-so-far/?_unique_id=61c0699b46cb3

[muqiing]

tagged by @leonzhng​ thanks for making me dig through my most embarrassing crushes 😭✋

i’ll tag @highwarlockkareena​ @yibobibo​ @lan-xichens​ @purplexedhuman​ @aheartfullofjolllly​ @lanzhansmiles​ @nyx4​ i feel like i tag you guys in everything i am so sorry please ignore this if u don’t wanna do it !!

putting this under a read more for reasons

MEN 2010 – 2016

literally nothing more embarrassing than falling on the same type of white man over and over again (with the exception of minho from shinee bless his heart)

tommy joe ratliff → he was the bass player for adam lambert during his glamnation era (think of songs like for your entertainment and if i had you) idk why exactly i liked him so much but i just did.... however i searched him up again quite recently and found out he’s one of those republicans that says the dumbest shit on twitter so Big Yikes

harry styles → “baby you light up my world like nobody else, the way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed, and when you smile at the ground it ain’t hard to tell...” and BOOM 13-year-old me was sold for well over two years

louis tomlinson → basically i liked harry most until around 2013 when for some reason i started to like him a little less, and i got more focused on louis tomlinson, and although i didn’t like one direction anymore louis tomlinson always had a special place in my heart

ashton irwin → so ashton is 5sos’ drummer, i discovered 5sos through one direction & i stanned them until late 2014

harries twins → the harries twins (jack & finn) are basically the reason i started spending a lot of time on youtube, they were funny and pretty and they just had good videos in general, so for almost two years i’d watch their content regularly

choi minho → my first steps into kpop happened bc i was watching videos on youtube (most probably the harries twins) and suddenly i saw the sherlock mv in my recommended videos so i clicked on it and then 14-year-old me proceeded to fall for minho like an idiot

brooks twins → still youtubers, the brooks twins were 3/5 of the janoskians (jai & luke brooks, beau brooks, daniel sahyounie, & james yammouni), an australian youtube comedy group that was active from 2011-2018 though i was only around from 2012-2014 (when jai brooks was dating ariana grande)

jc caylen → surprise! another youtuber! jc caylen was part of o2l (our2ndlife) a youtube collaboration channel on which each of the 6 members posted videos on a certain day in the week (mondays with connor, tuesdays with ricky, wednesdays with sam, thursdays with jc, fridays with trevi (my 2nd favorite member bc she participated on the x factor), saturdays with ricardo, and then they had surprise sundays every week) and i remember how much joy jc & the others always brought me with their silly videos

misha collins → up next, you might know him as the gay angel that was sent to superhell after confessing his love to the homophobic hunter on supernatural, it’s misha collins! basically misha was a huge source of comfort for me, and i even went around calling myself emmisha for almost two full years (cringe)

henrik holm → he played even bech naesheim in skam and my crush on him reached that level of ridiculousness where i actually tried my hand at learning norwegian (i can only remember how to introduce myself and some curse words i would make a great first impression on him)

MEN 2016 – 2021

min yoongi → okay so my baby steps into kpop happened through shinee’s sherlock, but i only got really invested when yoongi dropped agust d 1 because Holy Fuck y’know??

kim namjoon → oh man i remember thinking namjoon was cute and a very good leader and then BAM he dressed like THAT at the 2016 mma’s and i fell in love. hard

park seojoon → i started liking park seojoon whilst i was watching hwarang (you guessed it, i watched it bc of taehyung), although he wasn’t my favorite character by far, but he was very silly off camera & i liked that (i’m not that into him anymore tho </3)

kim seokjin → OH BOY LET ME TELL U i liked seokjin from the very beginning (i got to know bts in late 2014) and i always liked seeing him perform and be himself and god once i realized i had a crush on him it just hit me like a mf truck, and he’s still one of my favorite people to this day

jung hoseok → god fake love era hoseok really hits different.... also yes i know i have all of bts’ hyung line on my list BUT bts was a really big part of my life for almost 6 years soooo honestly they deserve it i still think they’re great guys

choi san → when ateez made their debut in 2018 i immediately fell in love with san, he was such an amazing dancer and he captivated me right from the very beginning, to this day he’s still my bias in ateez uwu

xiao zhan → AND THEN, OCTOBER OF 2019 HAPPENS AND I WATCH CQL AND... i fall in love with xiao zhan, something i’d never expected would happen bc when i watched cql for the first time i wasn’t as invested in the story, but i really really really liked xiao zhan and one thing led to another and now here i am as a xfx

wang yibo → the thing is, i’ve known yibo since eoeo except i didn’t know cql yibo was uniq yibo (bc i’d forgotten his name) and when i looked it up i can tell you my jaw dropped to the floor bc holy shit????? also he is very silly and i love him loads ok

lee minho → ah, the man who has been my skz bias since 2018, not only is minho my bias i also kin him (there’s a lot of aspects of myself that i see in minho and vice versa) and he’s very comforting to me

bang chan → honestly, it was only a matter of time before i’d fall for bang chan, i knew the moment i got into skz again that i’d start biasing him and, well, here i am, double biasing chan & minho

WOMEN

this list is shorter bc i’ve in general always had less crushes on women than on men??? blame society forcing me into thinking i was straight for a LONG time

ariana grande → remember the 2011 layout of twitter?? where u could not only have an icon and a header, but also a background and ur twitter page was smack in the center of ur screen with the big ugly menu bar at the top??? yeah ariana grande was always my background for my l*rr* st*l*n*s*n layouts

perrie edwards → this was right around the time she was dating zayn & little mix was breaking out into the spotlight, yeah i just really loved her

andrea russett → okay so remember o2l?? andrea russett was kian’s girlfriend for a pretty long time and they always did videos together and i always thought she was super pretty

lily collins → maybe i don’t like clary in tmi all that much but i sure liked the way lily collins looked

alona tal → MY BISEXUAL AWAKENING, it’s only when i saw alona tal in spn that i realized, fuck i might be gay

park jihyo → i discovered twice (my 2nd jype group after day6) through the like ooh-ahh mv and red-haired jihyo really did something to my heart (i just rewatched it and god zombie bang chan is so mf cute)

kim jisoo → when bp made their square two comeback i was immediately smitten for red-haired jisoo in playing with fire, it’s also when i realized she was my bias out of the four members

shin ryujin → the reason that i have blue hair is partially bc of ryujin and her amazing intro in wannabe :D

xuan lu → her portrayal of jiang yanli was SO ON POINT and she’s just such a kindhearted wonderful person wow i want her hand in marriage

lee yoobin → god i’ve known dreamcatcher from back when they were still called minx and ever since i’ve always looked at dami that bit more than the rest, i was also able to see dreamcatcher live in october of 2019 and the whole experience was just so amazing !!

FICTIONAL CHARACTERS

there’s a whole lot more than just these 10 but i wanted to fit the evolution into one (1) slide as best as i could lmao

peter pan → this movie came out in 2003 (?) and he’s honestly the first fictional character i remember ever having a crush on

legolas → i was really doubting between placing haldir or legolas here but i only really got a vague haldir obsession when i was like 14

zuko → LOOK. ZUKO IN ATLA? HOT. ZUKO IN LOK? HOT EVEN IF HE’S AN OLD MAN.

will turner → man was annoying sometimes but i really liked him and his relationship with elizabeth was cute

jo harvelle → gosh i can’t believe she’s the only female character in here???? yeah she was one of my two spn faves and i’ll never forgive the screenwriters for the way they killed her off

castiel → does your fave ever get sent to super hell for being gay? no? well. mine did

kili → fili and kili’s storyline tore my heart out, spit on it, and then laughed straight in my face, KILI WAS LITERALLY MY FAVORITE DWARF

howl → i only watched this movie for the first time in 2020 so i kinda fucked up the tl cause i watched cql in 2019 but shh, anyways howl with his blonde hair was good looking but howl with his black hair just hits differently. i want a howl

lan jingyi → MY BABY BOY, TINIE LITTLE BABIE WHOMST I MUST PROTECT ok no but seriously this kid. i love him a lot

mu qing → BARK BARK. that’s all (that’s not all i love him a whole lot and it hurts me to see so many people misunderstand his character and only see the bad parts of him when they can forgive others for fucking up (eg. xie lian himself & feng xin) but bc mu qing doesn’t deal well with emotions suddenly he’s the bad guy??? i s2g if ppl are gonna do to him what they did to jiang cheng in the tgcf la i will RIOT)

[latetaektalk]

tag games

tagging : @cosmoguk ​ @jtrbluv @yeojaa @opaljm @sleepyjhs @gyukult @jentwt @cafemiya​ @masterninjacow ​​ @gamerkooks ​ and everyone else that has tagged me

tag game one : fic writers ask game

tagged by : @luvdsc​ thanks cat! this is super fun ✨

Which new trope would you like to try writing?

ex-friends-to-lovers!! in general i love any ex type of tropes!! a heist! au would be fun too

Which trope do you want to write again?

exes! like, i genuinely love that trope so much and feel like theres not enough out there!

Which draft are you most excited to post?

i dont write multiple stories at the same time, so the newest chapter of love to hate you

Is there any new genre you want to explore?

hm i guess fluff? i kinda write angst by default because i think fluff is kinda... boring and not dramatic enough, so i guess i wanna try out fluff!

Do you have a favorite line in any of your drafts up to now?

“Can’t you at least pretend like you think I’m funny?”

“Yeah, that costs extra.”

“And you scolded Jisoo for exploiting me,” Jungkook bit back.

“Well, you said you’re all mine to exploit, didn’t you?” you hummed, scrunching your nose. “You are my boyfriend after all, right?”

Jungkook stared at you, blinked three times before tilted his head to the side and tongued his cheek, defeat.

“Touché.”

Have you decided on any creative goals for 2021?

not really! i just try to write, have fun and improve honestly!

Describe your journey on this blog last year in three words! And three more words for what you hope for 2021!

2020: growth, friendships, fun

2021: growth, friendships, fun (dont really wanna change anything! im having fun!)

tag game two : 10 songs, 10 people

rules : you can tell a lot about a person from the type of music they listen to. put your favorite playlist on shuffle and list the first ten songs. then tag ten people. no skipping!

playlist chosen : love to hate you

kiss me - sixpence none the richer

anything you want - jawny

can i call you tonight? - dayglow

heartbreak in a box - juice

daydreaming - marc wavy

lover boy - phum viphurit

let’s fall in love for tonight - finneas

dontmakemefallinlove - cuco

strangers in a dream - phum viphurit

afterglow - taylor swift

tag game three : interview

rules : answer questions and tag 20 blogs you are contractually obligated to know better!

tagged by : @lcksndkys thank you so much! these are a ton of fun ✨

name/nickname : linh 

pronouns : she/her

star sign :  scorpio 

height : around 170 cm or 5′7 

time currently : 10:30 pm

when is your birthday : nov 9th

favorite band/groups : exo, red velvet, bts, nct, superm, blackpink, twice

favorite solo artist : taylor swift, olivia rodrigo, harry styles, finneas

song stuck in your head : gone by rose

last movie you watched : get smart, i think

last show you binged : taskmaster

when you created your (main) blog : like april 2019 maybe?  

last thing you googled : how many seconds in a year

other blogs : this and my recs blog

why i chose my url : like late night talk, so i turned the night into taek because of taehyung, baekhyun and taeyong afdfsa

how many people are you following : 305

how many followers do you have : around 1.7k

average hours of sleep : uh not much? idk online class is kinda killing my sleep schedule

lucky number : 7

instruments : piano

dream job : dont know, but something that i enjoy and make good money at?

dream trip : vietnam, china, south korea, japan, england, france, netherlands

favorite food : potatoes, salmon, dim sum 

nationality : chinese 

favorite song : cruel summer by taylor swift,, its literally my most played song of 2020

top three fictional universes you’d like to live in : marvel, atla, we bare bears

tag game four : this or that 

indoor plants or gardens // cloud-watching or star-gazing // water or fire // paperback or hardcover // running or hiking // sleeping with socks or without socks // fruit or vegetables // hanging plants or succulents // dark wood or light wood // handwritten or typed // instagram or pinterest // braids or pigtails // dc or marvel // books or movies // oceans or meadows // forests or fields // sweet or salty // ice cream or chocolate // hoodies or sweaters // long hair or short hair // piercings or tattoos // summer or winter // boots or sneakers // cars or motorcycles // curls or straight hair // castles or cottages // sunny days or storms // reptiles or birds // disney or nickelodeon // strawberries or watermelon // essays or posters // phones or laptops // glass or stone // dark or light // photos or paintings // circuses or theatres // reading or writing // dogs or cats // poetry or novels // monsters or ghosts // thrift shops or libraries // fiction or non-fiction

tag game five : ten biases tag

rules : write down your top 10 biases and answer the following questions

seulgi

baekhyun

taehyung

joohyun

jungkook

jennie

chaeyoung

nayeon

mark

jongin

1. between 1 and 4 who would you rather kiss?

uhm cant i just kiss both? i could never choose between the two sadfsd

2. between 2 and 7 who would be your best friend?

chaeyoung because she speaks english but also because i feel like she and i would hit it off better

3. between 5 and 10 who has the better voice?

love jongin and his voice, but yeah jungkook 

4. between 1 and 8 who is the funniest?

ohh thats hard, but i think its nayeon adsfas 

5. between 6 and 9 who would you date?

jennie. if i have the chance to date kim fucking jennie, im dating kim fucking jennie. bye mark im not even sorry

6. between 9 and 10, who would you do a collaboration with?

mark! i feel like working with him would be so funny because he just talks and talks and talks asdfdas

7. between 4 and 8 who is the best dancer?

joohyun! 

8. between 3 and 5 who would you most likely marry?

uhm uhm uhm- i think im gonna go with taehyung? mainly because of yeontan asdadsf

9. between 1 and 7 who would you nurse when they are sick?

seulgi no fucking question asdfsd like sorry, bestie chaeyoung, but seulgi just owns my heart :((

10. between 2 and 3 who has the better smile?

i dont think this is fair at all?? because both have such gorgeous smiles?? im not choosing asdfs

11. between 6 and 8 who would you vacation with?

jennie! feel llike she would pay for everything and kinda spoil me,, also feel like she would want to do the craziest shit

[cockworkangels]

I posted 22,793 times in 2021

1434 posts created (6%)

21359 posts reblogged (94%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 14.9 posts.

I added 9,371 tags in 2021

#art - 3874 posts

#q - 2017 posts

#spn - 716 posts

#supernatural - 634 posts

#vid - 424 posts

#jensen ackles - 419 posts

#misha collins - 359 posts

#personal - 342 posts

#dean winchester - 325 posts

#castiel - 261 posts

Longest Tag: 103 characters

#kiss 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭😮😮😮😮

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

but like it makes me so insane to think that when the empty took cas after his love confession to dean that was the only moment in time when free will and peace coexcisted.

1758 notes • Posted 2021-04-25 09:19:46 GMT

#4

all good things must come to an end and that’s why supernatural won’t die

1945 notes • Posted 2021-10-05 07:39:13 GMT

#3

it’s genuinely so funny when people are talking about ruining the integrity of supernatural. like Girl. what integrity? they literally have dedicated an entire season to dick jokes, established that dean’s like super into tentacles, satan uses puppy play as a form of torture and they shot god with a gun. to start with. What Integrity?

2500 notes • Posted 2021-04-04 17:17:08 GMT

#2

Here’s a recap of the Mark Sheppard panel (i might have missed things though)

Mark talking about how it was difficult to work with all the different writers interpretations of Crowley and still keep it Crowley

Mark’s been sober 31 years but 2020 made him want to drink or shoot heroin

Mark loved the season 8 finale and crowley being injected with human blood. he thinks the finale’s one of the best thing they’ve done.

Mark said that the ’polite anwer’ to the question what is the thing that he wanted Crowley to do but never made it to the show, is that in the end of s12 he made a t-shirt of it and raised a lot of money to charity

He liked that Crowley was the smartest character in the show

He admired Crowley’s percistance

He loved when the made Crowley’s ring tone baby got back and dean’s caller id not moose

He doesn’t know what he learnt from crowley

Rowena is not Crowley’s mom but Fergus’ mom ’make of that what you will’

The most difficult scene to shoot was the one where Jensen had to say the zorro mask line and kept breaking

The Dean thing was ’a weird bromance’.

Sam thing was always an antagonist thing

He spent most time with Misha and he found the realtionship between Cas adn Crowley was interesting. It was interesting (said twice lol). And he wonders how he learnt nothing during all those years.

Mark thinks everybody associates Crowley with the song mister crowley thanks to Robb

He likes fanart and thinks it’s lovely

Villains are characters with a slightly different moral compass

When somebody tells him to describe spn in five words he always gos with ’a baby in a trenchcoat’ because of Misha

His favourite scene with Crowley and Rowena was the bus station scene

Favourite Crowley line: ’where’s your moose?’

He was supposed to do one episode and 8 years later he was still there

He didnt like crowley in s11 and 12 when asked what was his favourite change in crowley. s12 was ’pointless’

He thinks Chuck didn’t write Crowley’s death.

If Crowley had lived would he have been able to find love? He can’t answer but REALLY likes the question

S8 his favourite. Wow he really likes s8. It was the best stuff they ever did together. it’s the best example of ’what Supernatural really is.’

The most painful thing is to work with people with horrible fake accents.

And man he was speeding through those questions.

4851 notes • Posted 2021-03-06 19:46:51 GMT

#1

can you imagine that in like 50 years we’ll have grandchildren or whatever and they’ll be asking ”grandma what did you do during the years of the pandemic?” and i’ll have to face the fact that grandma literally spent all her time thinking about a gay angel and a repressed kansas man from a cw show.

5356 notes • Posted 2021-08-03 01:55:40 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[everswift]

I posted 971 times in 2021

261 posts created (27%)

710 posts reblogged (73%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 2.7 posts.

I added 168 tags in 2021

#taylor swift - 85 posts

#anonymous - 32 posts

#ask - 22 posts

#yumi lives in delusion - 6 posts

#red tour - 5 posts

#red (taylor’s version) - 5 posts

#mood - 4 posts

#from the vault - 3 posts

#my text post - 3 posts

#taylor's version - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#but thinness…….. literally who care if it’s half a cm thinner. if i need a laptop to be portable it’s bc i carry it around not bc i’m like.

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

taylor swift stop breaking all of taylor swift’s records, let her keep some of them ffs

96 notes • Posted 2021-01-10 23:50:47 GMT

#4

re: the discussion about The One Thing, this is a picture from taylor’s bedroom from circa 2008 (source)

so she changed the title for some reason or it could be an entirely different song

264 notes • Posted 2021-04-02 23:28:57 GMT

#3

reblog this with the era you became a fan of taylor and your favorite songs from folklore/evermore

610 notes • Posted 2021-01-19 01:43:04 GMT

#2

(original leaked audio from the vault)

1347 notes • Posted 2021-03-24 13:18:40 GMT

#1

“my child is fine” your child has only listened to two albums since july 24, 2020

1378 notes • Posted 2021-01-06 02:53:10 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[residentraccoon]

Fave 2021 national finals songs

Since I don't have anything better to do with my life at the moment I decided to ramble about stuff. Okay, here are my thoughts about my fave songs from the national finals of 2021, in no particular order!

Norsk Melodi Grand Prix

• Monument was my absolute favourite and I still can't believe to this day that it didn't win :( Keiino are fking fantastic and they killed the stage (though I kind of preffered the black outfits from the 1st heat over the final ones, they suited the song's athmosphere better). I cried real tears when I saw they lost, for real. Heartbreak 💔

• Hero was such a nice throwback to 80s music style, the staging was also really neat. Would love to see Raylee come back next year in the selection, she has a cool stage presence

• Okay but Vi er Norge was a banger and I'm still listening to this one, a real shame it didn't even qualify nor win the 2nd chance round. As you already knew before, I have a weakness for violins because yes. The performance was so energetic and fun, should have def qualified. Underrated.

• Ut av mørket/Fallen angel was really good too. I wanted it to be kept in norwegian for esc but oh well. The stage show was just a tad messy but memorable.

• I can't escape was something I'd hear from Roxen ngl, the style matches her perfectly, even her cursive singing, everything. Either way I loved this one too, this song feels like a hug.

• Pages was so magical, I'm glad we got another joik song, sadly this didn't qualify 😥

• World on fire was kind of generic but puts me in a good mood everytime I listen to it, it's really catchy.

• Let loose is so g r o o v y and cool, it was my fave from the 1st heat when I got to listen to the songs. I'm lowkey happy it advanced to the final instead of Elevate, I'm sorry but I saw everyone praising that one in youtube comments, I never saw the hype, it was too regular and plain for me.

• Own yourself was so cute and funky, loved how it showed her ethnic background a lil with that disco sound.

• Witch woods...ehhh...While it's funny and unique, I think it's suited more for a witch Disney musical than Eurovision. But I like it anyway.

• Faith Bloody Faith oh yes I needed a rock song in this nf. Relieved it won the 2nd chance. Oh and I just realized, the superfinalists in mgp were literally the ones from the 1st heat. Crazy huh?

• Nordlyset is something I'd listen to near a fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate in hands watching the snow fall in my cottage located in a forest far away from civillization. So soothing and beautiful <3

• Eyes wide open was epic just like his 2020 viking schlager song (i prefer his 2020 song over this one but that's another story)

Melodifestivalen

• Little tot was amazing but def not as good as Bulletproof. It's still catchy asf and one of my favs from this selection.

• Dandi Dansa aka a banger, again another catchy song.

• Every minute sounds like a summer hit, it's awesome. It's also the spawner of all those haha eric on a kitchen tile memes I've seen around during that time.

• The world and especially Sweden wasn't ready for the masterpiece called Rena Rama Ding Dong. They should tone down their preference for safe pop songs and choose meme worthy songs like this one in the future tbh. They didn't even qualify, Sweden = coward.

• One Touch is a fun club track, I can see this as a summer hit as well. But her stage show...go girl give us nothing

• In the middle, once again The Mamas delivered.

• And finally Voices, which its nf staging was superior to the esc one. We are so sorry Tusse 😔

Festivali i Këngës

• Zjarri Im a total banger, it wasn't even in the top 5 ffs Era Rusi queen.

• Njësoj has such a nice party vibe, should have qualified.

• Haven't paid any attention to Karma until it won, then I said hey this isn't so bad, it's traditional and ethnic, I can actually see Albania in the final with this.

Dora

• Rijeka was the only one I thought it will win by a landslide and I was surprised it didn't. The staging was a bit too over the top, though

• Tick Tock grew on me after it won and quickly became one of my faves of this year's esc. I'm still sad it didn't qualify 😔

• She's like a dream is super uplifting and also sounds like an 80s song.

• Colors is something I heard a million times before but for some reason I'm jamming to this? Also I heard she's blind, is it true?

Eesti Laul

• Took me a while to have a fave from this nf but after some listens Magus Melanhoolia stole my heart 🧡 it's so different from the others and the staging looked so proffesional.

• Lost in a dance had me d a n c i n, I noticed we had a lot of 80s throwbacks in this nf season, this included. The live was so dissapointing though 😔

• Not so keen on 6 at first but now I absolutely love it, she has such a nice style and the song's athmosphere is so magical.

• Time was amazing, surprised it came 2nd!

• I actually liked The lucky one lmao, I found it much better than his previous entry.

• Heaven's not that far tonight was the party 80s bop we didn't knew we needed

Dansk Melodi Grand Prix

• Probably my biggest letdown of this nf season but I actually managed to like Står lige her, digging the electro 80s (again) sound

• I also liked Øve os på hinanden as well, this one really feels like a legit 80s track rather than a throwback.

• Silver Bullet was interesting as well, it was the early frontrunner when the songs first came out from what I remember.

Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu

• I love you is so wacky and catchy, and in finnish! I'd hear this as a soundtrack in an old video game.

• Dark Side was the definite winner ever since I heard it, and they even got a top 10 finish for Finland for the first time in years! Couldn't be more proud 😭

• Hurt was also one of my favs, Aksel needs to come back to esc, maybe in 2022 methinks 🤔

• Wait what is Laura Põldvere, an estonian singer tm doing in finnish nf? While I liked Play, I knew it wasn't strong enough to win, and she even came last. Do you get any flashbacks from another estonian entry with the same name that came last? 👀

C'est vous qui decidez

• Voila was the clear winner and that's about it, she deserved the win, it's just too beautiful for this world 😭

• Alleluia was an interesting sound of afrobeat, too bad their chances were killed because of messy staging :(

• Amour fou was so catchy and I loved the horse head thing lmao

Pabandom iš naujo

• Discoteque all day any day. The Roop world domination 💛

• Where'd you wanna go is so calming. I listen to this when I'm stressed and it works wonders, this was really beautiful.

• Open is so unique and soothing, a total contrast from her 2014 entry.

• Never fall for you again is a total earworm, even now as I'm writing this...even if I haven't listened to it since February.

Sanremo

• Zitti e Buoni was my instant fave, it simply stood out from the others by a lot.

Festival da Canção

• Por um triz is a beautiful ballad, was my fave.

• Saudade was the early favourite, reminds me of Telemoveis with its weird but artsy style.

Israel NF

• ...I really only liked Set me free tbh.

• La la love had a good potential but I can't not cringe at the corona reference like...ugh. Such a fun party song killed by one lyric, such a shame.

Russia's NF

• Just Russian Woman was the only one who deserved to win.

Spain's NF

• Yeah, they were both good but I liked Voy a Quedarme more.