This week’s Artist You Should Already Know comes from the East, the very FAR East. The wonder group 2NE1 sings to us from Korea and is super mega famous in their homeland. If you are open minded and can get past the fact that you won’t understand the lyrics, you are in for some great music.
Some of their hooks are in English, like on Come Back Home. They do have some words that you can relate to like “Come and get it, I kill”.
The aforementioned track is the single off the album Crush and has a dope reggae-esque sound paired with the groups great voices. When the beat drops the track is flipped upside down and goes from Kpop to Ktrap. Their ability to juggle being singing babes and crotch grabbing thugs is why they have my heart.
So not understanding them doesn’t hold back the fact that they make some catchy amazing music. And if you are a real fan of any foreign art form, you know that the dubbed version is always less interesting. The Track Scream showcases their ability to make a great party song. Seoul is currently my personal fashion mecca, and the reasoning shows through this group of boss women.
Their album Crush dropped in February of 2014, and ever since it has not stopped coming through my headphones. The production is so clean and is reminiscent of a time where R&B and singing groups had the music game on lock. The best way to break down this project is, its like Britney Spears pop if she got on stage with flamethrowers and a chainsaw. If you do choreography, or pretend you can when you’re alone, this album is perfect to dance to.
The group consists of Sandara Park, Park Bom, Minzy, and CL (totes the Beyoncé of the group). CL raps on the tracks and handles it all while serving intricate dance moves and sick fashion. She has already begun making waves in America by becoming good friends with Jeremy Scott and has collab’d with Diplo. Her solo track on the album MTBD is a BANGER. It has the bass and beat that could get any club jumping. Pair that with her flow and it makes for a perfect track that more people need to have coming out of their cars.
The pure R&B that comes through on Good To You is proof music has no boundaries and hits home no matter where you are in the world or what language you understand best. You don’t need words to know something went wrong in love and they sing their hearts out about it. No worries if you feel a little weird at first listen, somewhere in Korea a girl has a Lil Kim poster on her wall. Clueless towards her words, but receiving her message loud and clear.
