[Bonus] Girl Group Rapper Power Rankings (#20-#8)

Today, I wanted to start a “series” which would let me take a more statistical / opinionated approach to idols. I never really had “bias lists” because I figured they would be too much of a hassle, and would constantly need updating. Vocals would be too tricky a task, and dancers would be a topic I wouldn’t know too much on (not like I do anyway), so I picked the middle-ground: rapping. I’m just going to take a look at girl rappers and tier them into a pretty list on who I think the better or best rappers are, and who the not-so-better ones are. Call this a Power Ranking, if you will.

Some forward information: I only considered of groups and members I’m relatively well-versed in or more. There are certainly members I might place in the higher ranges but I haven’t studied or listened to the group’s music enough. Jucy and J-Da of EvoL really come to mind here. I will also restrict this ranking to idol group members only. Otherwise, Yoon Mirae would probably dominate and I’d have people like E.Via on the list (also sorry Hwayoung). Lastly, there has to be enough relevant excerpts / data for each person on the list. Sorry Minkyung, but I can’t add you off the brilliant rap from a concert clip I saw. Feature rapping for an obscure artist is legitimate, one-time rapping on a radio program is not.

Now we’ll look at the candidates / members I considered. Despite what I mentioned above, I didn’t pick every member in each group that met the requirements because that would be one hell of a Power Ranking. I chose 20 – because that’s a good number to work with – girls, and here they are in alphabetical (English) order.

* Candidates: Amber / Bora / CL / Erin / Eunji / Eunjung / Hana / Hyelim / Hyomin / Hyorin / Hyoyeon / Hyuna / Jia / Minzy / Miryo / Nicole / Woori / Yubin / Yura / Yuri

Finally, I’ll list and provide a brief description of the categories that I valued each member by. All five categories have a maximum 10 points, providing a potential perfect score of 50 – another good number to work with.

* Presence: How prevalent they are in their group’s music. Do these people come to mind when you think of either the group or good rapping? When they are rapping, do they draw attention?

* Execution: How they sound in the rapping, Are they fast? Sloppy? Do they have good flow, etc.

* Consistency: How the raps have progressed throughout releases. Do the raps from debut sound just as good as the raps in the present? Does the group’s music supplement the rapping, and / or vice versa?

* Charisma: How unique their rapping is. Does the member have the ability to project personality and style into their raps?

* Vocals: How good their singing voice is. Do they have vocal utility? Do they sing even if they don’t have rapping lines?

The categories are all interacting with each other. Rappers aren’t exactly known for their vocals, so it’s less important to see a good mark in that spot, but seeing how their charisma and presence work together is important for both the studio and stage variants. If some of their best work isn’t even within the group’s music, that may cost them in consistency, etc. etc. Now that that is all out of the way, let’s get started…with the bad!

[ D Tier ]

20. Hyelim (Wonder Girls)

Hyelim is one of my best examples of an idol who is a “jack of all trades, master of none”. Her role in the Wonder Girls (rest in peace) was very limited, given her being overshadowed by vocals, rapping, and overall presence. What chances she could shine with her dancing ability were very few and far. That said, Hyelim does have some good lights. She has an energetic voice as shown in “Act Cool (feat. San. E)” and is probably the only member on this entire list who would be able to rap in 4 languages (Korean, English, Mandarin, and Cantonese). That being said, her limited work (and the end of Wonder Girls) places her dead last.

19. Yura (Girl’s Day)

Yura is a tough individual given that she wasn’t originally a rapper and shifted into the role after Jihae’s departure. However, most if not all of her rapping since then has been very poor. The past aegyo concepts certainly didn’t help her in that regard, but even the forward movement into “Expectation” and “Female President” hasn’t provided any help. The raps come off as clustered, and her high voice (especially in “Female President”) makes everything worse. The thing is, Yura has a pretty low voice. There’s a husky quality that’s very evident whenever Yura sings, and she’s definitely got excellent transition / support vocals. Whereas most rappers fade into the background outside of their raps, Yura gets more spotlight with her husky support vocals. It’s a shame that none of her raps can deliver the same sound. I really do like Yura…just not as a rapper.

18. Hyuna (4minute)

How the “mighty” have fallen. Previously highlighted in the “Best Of Pioneers” article, 4minute and “I My Me Mine” were excellent years ago, but since there hasn’t been anything I’ve really enjoyed. Hyuna and her rapping has never really impressed, either. Solo work in “Change” and arguably “HuH” were her best pieces, and those are quite dated. Tracks from the Trouble Maker project have bettered in quality, but as for music from 4minute, it’s just been disappointment. Hyuna definitely can be a good rapper, like the previous highlights suggest, but she’s overused by Cube in the wrong aspects. When Hyuna gets some more respectable lines, I’ll be willing to place her farther up. But until then, she and 4minute continue on a downward spiral.

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[ C Tier ]

17. Hyoyeon (Girls’ Generation)

While Girls’ Generation and rapping shouldn’t really be thought of in the same sentence, Hyoyeon is someone that has to come to mind given the recent showings in the last year or so. “Maxstep” is what people will usually think of when it comes to Hyoyeon’s rapping. Shame she’s already underutilized in her dancing skills, since her rapping honestly isn’t bad and is just another potential outlet for her to stand out more in Soshi. Most of the other members can’t come close to her, especially if you look at the shared rapping in “I Got A Boy”. Hyoyeon appears to have the drive and talent for this, it’s just a matter of whether or not S.M. will produce and market good raps for her…similar to another resident labelmate female rapper.

16. Yuri (Girls’ Generation)

No, we weren’t talking about Yuri with the previous line. Anyways, Yuri is hands down the most underrated member of Soshi. If you want a “jack of all trades, master of none” that happens to be very balanced, Kwon Yuri is your woman. An excellent dancer with soothing vocals and a solid enough ability to rap. However, “balanced” does not mean “standout”, and while she excels at the basic skills, I find her lacking in presence. She’s obviously shown more than say Hyoyeon, but when you consider the strength of Soshi is the vocals, and that Yuri is given a backseat to the other vocalists, the opportunities to flaunt her talent is rare. Yuri also has the same dissonance problem that Yura has, in that her rapping voice is usually higher than her singing voice, which is on the low end. Consider Yuri “below average”, much like the others in this bracket.

15. Nicole (KARA)

When KARA came out with “Lupin”, Nicole’s opening was so addicting I had that playing for hours, just constantly going back to the rapping. That’s just about as good as it gets for Nicole, though. “Pandora” was good and likewise for “Damaged Lady”, but since the days of “Lupin” most of the rapping has been shared between her, Hara, and Jiyoung. The latter two are mediocre at best, and Nicole spearheads her (previous) teammates. That said, having to share the already limited lines of average songs doesn’t help. It’ll certainly be interesting to see whether Nicole’s future has any rapping in store for her, and if any will ever match the quality of “Lupin”.

14. Eunji (9MUSES)

Eunji is the secondary rapper of 9MUSES. While she’s pretty much relegated to this role since there are so many other members with excellent voices, she’s got the only other rapping spot on lock. That being said, Eunji has tended to be hit or miss. Her support work in “Dolls” and “Wild” were extremely solid, good enough to be on equal level with Erin, but lines in “Glue” were disappointing, and in songs with minimal rapping she (understandably) takes a backseat to Erin. Still, she’s pretty consistent otherwise, and definitely so compared to the members ranking below her.

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[ B Tier ]

13. Eunjung (T-Ara)

Hmm. Eunjung is the third or fourth person here that I’d classify as talented in the main aspects of vocals, dance, and rapping (and visual). This is very much so utilized throughout T-Ara’s music, as her role is as diverse as her talents. Honestly, her vocals are definitely more solid than her rapping, which is evident in her “singer voice”. Nonetheless Eunjung possesses solid rapping qualities, and is the true “baseline” or “average” standard for rappers. T-Ara, through all the trials and tribulations regarding kicking out certain rappers though, has kept rapping on the low side lately. “Number Nine” had a rather atrocious opening sequence for the rap bridge, but we’ll get to that later.

12. Hyomin (T-Ara)

Actually we’ll get to that right now with Hyomin at #12. Hyomin, compared to Eunjung has the better voice for rapping. It’s lower in range, and tends to be sassier, too. You’ll see in the scores that they really are pretty much dead even. For what Hyomin is worth, she’s nearly as diverse as Eunjung, with slightly better rapping traits and slightly weaker singing traits. But that’s what makes this pair formidable: they compliment each other very well. Side note: Yuri and Hyoyeon of Soshi were ranked right next to each other, and the same is for Eunjung and Hyomin. That’s cute.

11. Hyorin (Sistar)

Prior to her solo debut, Hyorin’s rapping was a rare sighting, whether from appearances on shows or short highlights. However, even in those small windows, Hyorin is a really consistent and solid rapper. The husky lower range of her voice contributes to her success, and she has pacing, good for various tempo of rap. The rap break in “One Way Love” was ridiculously fierce and sassy. Like, goddamn. That and other breaks prove she could easily take Bora’s place for Sistar raps, or be the extremely potent solo artist she already is. When you think about Hyorin, it’s really quite unfair that a lead vocalist, and one of the top vocalists ever at that, is this high up on a rankings specifically for rappers.

10. Hana (Secret)

Hana, Zinger, whatever the alias may be, Hana is a more staple rapper and a crowd favourite, apparently. Hana has the sass, power, and ferocity to back up the fans, and is always used for delivering the rap breaks. I’d argue she also has one of the better voices in Secret (I understand there’s only 4 of them). The largest problem that I have with Hana is that just like how her group suffers from a serious identity crisis, so too do her raps, as a direct result of the constant switching of the styles. When the concepts are aegyo and cute, Hana’s rap makes me cringe. When Secret’s music plays to the more mature style, Hana is one of the fiercest of all. There’s some serious potential behind Hana, but until Secret figures out what they want to do, she’ll remain mixed.

9. Woori (Rainbow)

Speaking of girl groups with identity issues. Here’s Rainbow’s resident rapper in Woori. Rainbow not only has issues with bouncing back and forth between concepts, the releases over the past years have been pretty disappointing since the days of “A” and “Mach”. Sort of like a combination between 4minute’s downward / unimpressive releases and Secret’s indecisive choice of style. Woori, however, is way more consistent across the switching between cute and sexy, such as the sass in “Tell Me Tell Me”, and the solid work in “Last Word”, and the quality of her better raps is above other rappers in this group like Hana.

8. Bora (Sistar)

Bora is often criticized for not projecting enough personality into her raps, but I actually think that her darker demeanor shown in the raps is very much so characteristic of having a style / personality, especially given that she is such the bubbly girl outside of the studio. A huskier, deeper voice which really contrasts the bright and lively persona she has on variety shows and the like is really appealing. While her raps never air on the bad side, she suffers from some horrid misrepresentation, without any singing lines despite her group only having 4 members. This is most evident in Sistar19’s work. Truth is, Bora has a pretty solid singing voice. It’s nothing special, but it is average. That alone should’ve been reason to have her earn more lines in SIstar’s music, but for whatever reasons, that just isn’t the case. Bora is really consistent and solid all around, and is the lead into the foray of “top tier” rappers.

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Final Glance

Large: http://i.imgur.com/LHbLXPs.png

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Happy Chinese New Year’s everyone! Hope you enjoyed this so far, we’ll conclude with the “Top 7” which is A Tier and S Tier next.

[Review] Girl's Day - Something

Hello 2014. We’ve already kicked off the year with even more dating rumors, except they’re not rumors at all. Yoona and Sooyoung really do “got a boy” this time around. Anyways, I wanted to strt off this year strong on reviews, and by that I meant on a good note. So with that said, I’m going to go ahead and review the “Something” that didn’t have me cringing, although I was first concerned on how Girl’s Day and TVXQ would be releasing a lead track with the same title. I’m pretty sure Girl’s Day is the first group to have pieces reviewed for a third time, which is impressive given I only discovered them last year.

Vocals: 10 / 10

When I reviewed “Expectation”, I pinpointed that while Minah was revered as the group’s lead vocalist, I was way more impressed by Sojin and the group’s general synchronized sound. This time though with “Something”, I can very easily see Minah as the standout and the others providing the excellent support vocals. Sojin and Yura do a really good job being the “glue” of the vocals between the choruses. Yura especially got plenty of love, and since this song didn’t have a rap (thank everything for that) she got more than her usual share in line distribution, but on the other hand Hyeri certainly seemed to have less than previous releases, and she’s already overshadowed by her groupmates to begin with. While that was worrisome, it’s a really perfect showing from Girl’s Day, spearheaded by Minah’s fantastic work in the chorus and belts at the end. Minah’s English is also rather top-notch, as her opening is flawless and she was the only member who could pronounce “something” correctly (an understandably tough task).

Appearance: 8 / 10

Goddammit Hyeri please grow your hair back out. I’ve mentioned that I enjoy seeing consistency within a group, and that preference has no distinction over how large or small the group is. Sojin, Minah, and Yura are breathtaking, and even moreso with the long locks. But Hyeri’s short cut isn’t helping her, and her eyes are still giving awkward looks at certain angles. Back to the good. Sojin. Sojin. Sojin. Seems like she had been waiting for Girl’s Day to crawl out of the aegyo shell and into this style. Girl’s Day still has space to work through given that Sistar has a monopoly on this theme.

Dance: 9 / 10

Looking back on my previous Girl’s Day reviews, I had a response of “Really?” in the first line. There isn’t one this time around, although I very seriously want to put one anywhere I could. This dance just screams “Sistar” which is good and bad. Good in the idea that a sexy classy song is coupled with an equally sexy and classy dance. Bad in the idea that this group singing and dancing is not Sistar but Girl’s Day. However, given that previous choreographies in “Expectation” and “Female President” were passable and awful, respectively, “Something” certainly earns the best amongst them. The positioning was pleasant on the eyes, which is uncommon in a group with such small numbers. Loved the extra with Sojin pretending to play the piano during the second verse by the way. That was well done.

Music Video: 8 / 10

This score would’ve been better if there was a boy in the MV somewhere, but I can’t fault Girl’s Day too much if you take into account the lyrics. The video is all sorts of fanservice but I was reminded of some sort of mixture between Sistar (the sexy classy sound), Dal Shabet (the dresses), and Sistar19 (the specific colour scheme). Something of note though, is like how Hyeri got the low end of vocal distribution, she also seemingly got a lot less screentime. Which again, is worrying for a member that has the least vocal presence and can’t rap (though I’m not saying Yura can).

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Overall: 88 / 100

To really take advantage of the openings, Girl’s Day needed to come out strong and that’s precisely what they did with “Something”. The vocals are the best I’ve seen from them ever, and Minah really leads the team into the limelight. Sojin and Yura (!) do a flawless job of bridging the verses to the chorus, and the dance and MV are flashy, sexy, but not obnoxiously so. “Something” sounds very good from start to finish, and everything melds together into quite the lovely song. Girl’s Day should feel proud, since “Something” has a sound that is infinitely better than TVXQ’s pathetic “variant”.

[Bonus] Best Of 2013 (#4-#1)

4, Girl’s Day - Expectation

Girl’s Day made a sexy splash this year with leading titles “Expectation” and “Female President”, and “Expectation” is certainly the better of many. The “overalls” choreography turned heads and the vocal work out of Minah and especially Sojin really caught my attention. Minah had been praised for her voice but I was really attracted to Sojin’s lines throughout the song. The support vocals from Hyeri and Yura were also rather impressive, again, considering that all I had heard out of Girl’s Day’s vocals prior to this was how Minah was the “star singer”. The vocals certainly make this song, giving “Expectation” that “sexy but classy” theme that’s becoming ever more popular. The rather atrocious rap bridge however, should be nothing more than a bad memory. If Yura had a more solid rap, I’d have been more considerate in possibly placing Girl’s Day in the top 3. This song definitely exceeded expectations for Girl’s Day, and helped catapault them forward into the upper echelons of girl groups.

3. Ailee - U&I

While I classify the list by fours for aesthetics, the final 3 songs are in a tier of their own on this setlist. Ever since the earliest drafts, I had these 3 standing together at the very top and for good reason. Ailee will start us off with powerful vocals and a main focus in choreography, the latter of which is something we just don’t usually see out of Ailee, but excellent nonetheless. Regarding the vocals, what more is there to say about this girl? Ailee has already established herself as one of the most powerful and versatile voices in Kpop, and “U&I” certainly brought her absolute strongest points into the light. As a supplement, the music video is full of colour and bling, but what makes the MV is Ailee’s acting and charisma coupled with her sassy use of English. “U&I” helped lead off a very successful “A’s Doll House” album.

2. SPICA - Tonight

There are few groups who can boast having a talented vocal roster all around, and SPICA is one of them. Not many other than SPICA could pull off “Tonight” into the extremely impressive track like they did. No other song (or group, for that matter) can take the opening and build up into the explosive chorus quite like how “Tonight” and SPICA did. That alone is incredibly impressive but the hype doesn’t stop there, as each member takes part in keeping the energy and momentum to the very last line. The surprise rapping is used as a good transition between more high energy vocals and has a solid rhyme scheme / addicting aura around it (mysteriously akin to the rapping in EXO’s “Baby Don’t Cry”). The execution in “Tonight” is perfect bar none, and even the muffled “Hey hey hey” during the chorus doesn’t make me cringe or put this song away.

1. 9MUSES - Wild

You’ll notice a recurring theme in the final 3 songs on this list. And that theme revolves around the power, energy, and execution of the vocals. 9MUSES were extremely busy this year, and the catalyst for their success and growth in popularity was the mid-year release of “Wild”, There are plethora of reasons why I believe this song is the best this year. “Wild” has extremely exciting vocals from start to finish, from the high energy singing all around to the tricky bridge that jumps into the final chorus. The instrumental for this track is one of the best, with aggression and a sound which compliments and augments the high level vocals and fast-paced rapping. Speaking of, Erin easily takes the title of “Best Rapper 2013” with the break in “Wild”, and teammate Eunji doesn’t disappoint with her part, either. Lastly, the fanservice is off the charts. The lip shots were extremely odd, but everything else got “Wild” banned by MOGEF faster than haters could even say anything about. With the best long-range energetic vocals, incredible execution, beast rap breaks, aggressive instrumentals, and uncontrollable fanservice, “Wild” pushes 9MUSES into the #1 song of 2013.
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The list this year, in my opinion, isn’t as impressive at the set from 2012, but the finesse of the upper half or upper third really steps up and way above. Unlike last year’s ballad overflow, this year’s music has much more power and energy while still being vocal-centric. 2014 is gonna be quite the exciting year, since groups like Girls’ Generation and Dal Shabet are making comebacks, and with the departure of the contemporary KARA and Wonder Girls, rising groups like 9MUSES, Girl’s Day, and Sistar are really going to grow and establish themselves. Next month (in less than a week, actually), I’ll be going to Hong Kong for school, so there may be a lull in some early January reviews pending on if I can get some bonus writings out and pre-publish them on Tumblr.

Above all, Merry Christmas, and keep on Kpoppin’.

[Bonus] Best Of 2013 (#8-#5)

8. Dynamic Duo - Hot Wings (feat. Hyorin)

Unlike last year, there isn’t much presence from the males on this list. But Dynamic Duo is here to help us a little. “Hot Wings” is excellent showing of the rapping off Choiza and Gaeko, and along with LeeSSang’s “Tears” these two songs have pioneered the hip-hop realm this year. The medium paced song is ridiculously catchy as far as the chorus goes, and with the charisma and talent of Dynamic Duo, the song is just pleasant from start to finish. Speaking of, Hyorin’s guest appearance is incredible, with her sultry high voice making the highlight of the second half of the song.

7. Sistar - Give It To Me

Last year, Sistar made rank #10 off “Alone” and the classy sexiness. This time, with “Give It To Me”, the song is a straight upgrade from “Alone”. Bora’s rap is upgraded, the vocal work between Soyu, Dasom, and Hyorin are upgraded, the sexiness is upgrades, and the pace and MV are also upgraded. While the chorus may have been on the bland side for a Sistar release, the fluid breathy verses from Hyorin and Soyu more than make up for things. With the prominence of Sistar this year, and the most likely departures of Wonder Girls and KARA, Sistar has even more room to thrive for the upcoming 2014 year.

6. EXO - Baby Don’t Cry

EXO finally released the official track “Baby Don’t Cry” even though the teasers came out over 2 years ago, and it’s just as glorious as was teased. Jongdae is impressive, and the support vocalists from Baekhyun and Lay especially, were very strong. The chorus is one of the best out of ballads this year. The song itself is very consistent, and while Chanyeol and Tao’s raps came seemingly out of nowhere, the rap was very soft and kept with the rest of the song, making the rap breaks one of the better ones seen this year. There’s no MV or choreography, so EXO would earn near full marks on the impressive vocals and complimentary rapping.

5. Younha - Not There

How do I describe Younha’s “Not There”. It’s so…different in sound and structure than what I’m used to. While I would never classify this song as “indie”, compared to what Younha usually releases this certainly feels “indie”. While I did appreciate the variant with Eluphant’s multiple rapping sequences which were very good, the version in the music video with heavier strings instrumentals was much cleaner and I appreciated the softer background noise paired with Younha’s precious vocals. I preferred the clean voice accompanied by the various instruments than the rapping support with a more electronic sound. Younha’s 2013 year was very productive, and while none of her songs made the very top, she’s comfortably placed two songs in the best of the best.

[Bonus] Best Of 2013 (#12-#9)

I would characterize the 2013 year as a year ripe with drama. Dating exposure was crazy, and relationships were discovered everywhere. This year also saw and might mark the “end” of some veteran staple groups potentially losing members like KARA, inactivity from TVXQ, and future army enlistment in Big Bang. However, there was some damn good music this year from January to December, so we’ll be covering my top 12 best of this year.
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12. Davichi - Be Warmed (feat. Verbal Jint)

Davichi has been steadily progressing throughout the years, and “Be Warmed” is something moving that I haven’t seen since the likes of “Don’t Say Goodbye”. The instrumental at the opening is pretty, leading into the strong vocals. The chorus has had me hooked since the release, and it’s rare a ballad has the quality of making me sing along every time. Verbal Jint is a solid rapper and his appearance is more than welcome, but his lines seemed lackluster compared to the power vocals from Minkyung and Haeri. Nonetheless, Davichi’s powerful and emotional vocals push past the mediocrity from Verbal Jint into 12th place.

11. JeA - Days & Nights (feat. Eric Benet)

Funnily enough, the other song that was competing with JeA for this placing was M&N’s “Tonight”. Nonetheless, some variant of Brown Eyed Girls earns a spot on the list. The emotional and soulful sound from JeA and Eric Benet work wonders throughout the song, and the pronunciation was excellent all around from JeA’s English to Eric’s Korean. Both of the exchanges were really surprising and impressive. The chorus gets caught in a loop for a while, with a good bridge in crescendo, and the harmonization work between the two can be equally addicting.

10. Younha - The Reason We Broke Up

Younha at first glance, took a fall from her spot last year at #2 with her placing here at #10 with “The Reason We Broke Up” but don’t worry. “The Reason We Broke Up” is much softer and less complex, but the beauty lies in the simplicity and beauty of Younha’s vocals. There’s plenty of variance and a delightful mixture of emotions, consistency, and power. It’s friendly, moving, and met with a artistically crafted music video.

9. Davichi - Because I’m Missing You Today

Oh hi Davichi, I didn’t expect to see you so soon. But here we are. “Because I’m Missing You Today” is full of bright and lively emotion as long as the song’s title (in both English and Korean). Compared to the darker more intense sounds of “Be Warmed”, “Because I’m Missing You Today” keeps the same tempo and paces very strongly (since there is no awkward rap break) and is matched by Minkyung and Haeri’s serious tones that carry a tint of cheer in them. My only complaint is that the belts during the second chorus and on are so quiet and restricted, and I do love me some Davichi belts.