8. Mamamoo - Mr. Ambiguous
If you want to talk about an impressive year, look no further, because Mamamoo is about to blow you away. With a lineup of fresh new faces boasting incredible vocals (and a capable rapper), Mamamoo catches your attention right away with the classy smooth vibes of "Mr. Ambiguous." Seriously, Wheein, Solar, and Hwasa are nothing short of fantastic and show charisma, sass, and power in just a few minutes. Combining the fantastically smooth song with the stacked roster of cameos in the MV (Wheesung, K.Will, Baek Jiyoung to name a few), and Mamamoo made a statement that they're here to play. (Somehow "Mr. Ambiguous" photos don't exist, so I used "Piano Man," rest in peace consistency)
7. Girl's Day - Something
"Everyday is Girl's Day"? More like "2014 is Girl's Day." This year arguably couldn't have gone better for the girls. And they kicked off the year with the extremely mature and extremely classy "Something," The progression from "Expectation" and "Female President" to "Something" was really well done, and everything about "Something" shows that. The dresses, the choreography, the sensual vocals, and even the more serious tone of the music video are all welcome. When I first heard Minah, I wasn't as impressed with her as I thought I would be, but as Girl's Day kept releasing more songs with her carrying, I've really come to love her voice and the work she does for Girl's Day. Still, the support from Sojin, Yura, and Hyeri is solid, and the reason why Girl's Day has such a talented vocal lineup.
6. Jieun - Don't Look At Me Like That
Jieun, like Hana, suffers from a identity disorder where her group just can't decide what they want to be. That's why her solo work shows the best side of her, the side we often don't get to see. With "Don't Look At Me Like That," Jieun absolutely stuns with emotion and grace, and her clear voice really sells the message. This piece is easily Jieun's best to date, and shows just what kind of soloist she could really be if given the opportunity. If only Secret could play more to her strengths, "Don't Look At Me Like That" is the premier ballad of 2014, and I'm glad Jieun is the recipient of this award. Considering the competition with established veterans like TTS, and the vocal juggernauts of Hyorin and Ailee, Jieun did a damn good job with what she had.
5. Epik High - Born Hater
And now we move onto 2014's best rap track. "Born Hater" is awesome. Just straight up awesome. Combining all the various elements of rap: veterans Epik High, Verbal Jint, Beenzino, newbies Bobby and Mino, hilarious set and video capture, and strong lyrics make this a classic. The new kids are so impressive I didn't even know they were actually YG group members. Still, the lines from the previous generation (Beenzino especially) wouldn't get beat by a few young ones and the whole "Seven Deadly Sins" theme behind the video is excellent. Tukutz, in this season's most beautiful shade of orange, drops a sick beat and everything else is history. When they performed this live (most of them anyway) it was just as fun and hype as I imagined, and that's good. I imagine this will be a favourite rap track for a long time.
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