The 100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of All Time: Number 1

Readers, over the past two months, I have worked to create a list of my favorite K-Pop Songs of All Time. For over ten years, I have enjoyed K-Pop, seeing it blossom into a global genre with millions and millions of adoring fans. I have found K-Pop songs I love, made friends over the genre, and seen legacies built over the years. Some of the songs that have made me feel the most are from K-Pop. Given all I have felt and seen, I thought it was finally time to create a ranking of my favorite K-Pop songs of all time.

I don't claim this ranking is perfect, no ranking of this can be perfect. I can only claim that I did my best to provide my personal opinion, with my personal biases, from my years of enjoying Korean music. There are many more boy band songs than girl group (I just prefer their general soundscape), and many songs come from the second generation (2005-2013).

In a way, K-Pop is a bit of a misnomer here. I have included Korean songs outside of the idol sphere, and songs released nearly a century ago. The end result is a list full of songs that left their mark on me. I hope you, the reader, enjoy this list. You may (and almost certainly won't) agree with my ranking, but that is what makes a personal list like this so wonderful.

With that said, let us enter the rules and regulations for what has been qualified as K-Pop for this list.

• Any musical piece released in South Korea, or any of its direct predecessor states, AND/OR is predominantly in the Korean language, Jejuan, or any of their dialects.
• The musical piece must be lyrical in nature.
• Any song, single, or b-side, is eligible.
• This list is MY personal opinion.
• Song rankings may have changed since previous lists and/or reviews.
• The criterion for "the greatest" is a mix of my personal experience, the overall songwriting (lyrically, compositionally, and performance-wise), and the influence of the track in question.
• A song refers to a particular recording of the track and not the basic composition.
• Only one entry per composition.

With all this said. The list will begin tomorrow. For songs 100-11, they will be grouped into daily posts of 10 (100-91, 90-81, etc.). For the top 10, however, each song would get a post of its own.

I hope all of you enjoy this list over the days! Please give your thoughts in the comments, and I will gladly reply when free.

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Previously:

Honorable Mentions

100-91

90-81

80-71

70-61

60-51

50-41

40-31

30-21

20-11

Number 10

Number 9

Number 8

Number 7

Number 6

Number 5

Number 4

Number 3

Number 2

1. TVXQ - Rising Sun (2005)

Lyrics: Yoo Young-Jin

Composition: Yoo Young-Jin

It all leads up to here. After weeks, the greatest K-Pop song of all time (as per this list) is TVXQ's Rising Sun. A stunning triumph at all departments, Rising Sun is what happens when you get together a collection of legendary performers and a legendary composer, all at their very prime. Rising Sun is grand, its vision is vast. It stands not only as the peak of the SMP sound of the early 2000s in Korea, but a stunning triumph of experimental song-structure. Its musical and lyrical structure is pure avant-garde, but remains accessible for one and all while rewarding deeper listens.

In September 2005, TVXQ had not been in the music industry for even two years. Nonetheless, they had formed a startling belt of classics already (three songs in the top 100, one in the honorable mentions), and had revitalized the Korean music industry, which was still lagging behind after an economic recession in the late '90s completely obliterated its commercial prospects. What is more, is that they were once again taking the Hallyu wave global. They had formed niche fandoms across Asia, one that eventually grow to them topping charts in Japan (where they remain legends, and arguably the most successful foreign artists ever), and Taiwan, in addition to their native South Korea. Needless to say, expectations were sky-high for their second full-length album, especially its lead single.

The only one who could not only tackle these expectations but surpass them beyond any reasonable measure was Yoo Young-Jin. The principal songwriter and composer for K-Pop, and the visionary behind nearly all of Korea's biggest acts from 1996 up till 2007 (see Don't Don, #4), Yoo Young-Jin was at his absolute prime in 2005, releasing instant classic after instant classic, only competing with himself to top national charts. If one pairing could create the greatest K-Pop song of all time, it would be TVXQ and Yoo Young-Jin in 2005.

In the original MV, Rising Sun's intro was a great audial introduction to the themes of the song, with dramatic taiko drums and church choirs. Unfortunately, it was removed when the MV was remastered, but can still be seen in fan uploads.

Rising Sun's musical segment opens with a falsetto scream of "rise up!" over gritty staccato electronic percussive beats. Every single percussional element here plays off the other, until at 0:53 (in the Music Video), a low electronic bass grunt calls in strings to perform a beautiful choir over a once again chanted "rise up!" The brilliant contrast between the jagged and unpolished percussion and the heavenly symphonic strings is a perfect setup for Rising Sun's lyrical themes of a seemingly unachievable search for perfection, while also teasing the muddy rock opera that will soon explode.

And explode it does. What follows next is a fantastic musical segment. The production here will later become the backing instrumental of the chorus, but for now, serves as the centerpiece in its own right. The choir of strings glides from one key to the next, descending and ascending with a degree of emotional uncertainty and weight. At the same time, jagged, rough, and unfinished percussional elements stab into the song at a breakneck pace. At the same time, various string flourishes add all the more life to the building instrumental.

It is only then that the main melody of Rising Sun begins. Now-disgraced rapper Yoochun opens with one of his best raps. The dramatic "Now, I cry, under my skin," three years before the phrase would be associated with TVXQ in K-Pop, is a wonderful introduction to a wonderful verse. Yoochun raps poetically about his sadness and worry, "My tears went up to the sky and created the rain, falling onto the Earth." Yoo Young-Jin strikes a thin balance between dramatic and earnest. The instrumental, which paused after the introduction, slowly builds through Yoochun's verse before we are catapulted into the next segment.

As the instrumental soars to its grandest, quasi-symphonic metal peak, Changmin lets loose a painful scream. Changmin has always been one of the world's greatest vocalists, with a thundering voice that would thrive in both screamo metal and pop. He has always been TVXQ's secret asset, and his performance in Rising Sun is his very peak. Between Changmin's screams of "No!" Yunho raps a response to Changmin's call with a speedy flow. Instead of sadness, as Yoochun, Yunho's rap is filled with wrath, he prays for forgiveness for his sins but notes how he keeps coming back to them.

All this drama is instantly paused then for Rising Sun's first fantastic transition. Instead, we get melodic '80s synth harmonizers before Junsu comes in. He sings that despite his determination, each one of his days eventually ends up collapsing. Meanwhile, as the days collapse around Junsu, the instrumental begins to crackle back to life, assisted by the percolating percussion and icy synths that enclose the entirety of Rising Sun.

It is after all of this, with the instrumental fully revved up, do we finally get main vocalist Jaejoong. From sadness, to wrath, to depression, Jaejoong brings forward the transition toward optimism. Jaejoong's vocal belts showcase a layer of sadness and genuineness. Perhaps this was assisted by the massive injury he suffered while preparing for the comeback. At the end of his line, he sings with pathos, "Are they searching for me, left in eternity?"

With that, the song unveils its greatest trick, a massive chorus. Despite his experimental songwriting, Yoo Young-Jin has always been a master of creating a fantastic refrain. The gritty, percolating instrumental production from Rising Sun's introduction becomes the instrumental of the chorus, assisted by the massive block of vocalists that was TVXQ at their very prime. Each vocal timbre is more than distinct, but they form a sixth vocalist together, pulling through each other's voice to create something massive. The refrain rises and surges, with each hook building off the other. Every bit of the emotional drama seen through Rising Sun's verses is here, amplified to its very limit. The most impressive bit is the final high note

While Young-Jin's skills as a lyricist are commonly questioned, Rising Sun's chorus is a wonderfully succinct summary of the themes of the song. The members sing that despite their emotional trials, their heart resembles them, still with its innocence. "Let the flame burn on and blaze," they say, "like the most radiant ending of sunset, waiting for the rising sun." What makes these lyrics even more impactful is the cause of the singer's struggle is never described, but their effects are almost universal. The quest to seek a better version of oneself is universal. It is poetic and ultimately prophetic, and beautiful.

Before the ever-iconic post-chorus comes crashing in, Young-Jin throws in another rap verse. Yoochun's rap may have some grammatically incorrect English, but its message is clear: Be the truest form of yourself for the sun to rise. From Yoochun's rock-tinged delivery, Yunho performs with a more classy hip-hop sound that shows his strength as a rapper. Paired with their performance is a seismic, crashing grunge riff, constantly building in intensity.

After this brief interlude, the post-chorus enters, and it is glorious. Changmin belts out a question, before the group responds with the phrase of "Somebody talks," before Jaejoong and Junsu respond with indefinite uncertainty. The vocal layering here is immaculate, with Changmin making small changes and twists in his voice to express and drain every bit of emotion possible. The existential dread expressed through the wonderings of when this chaos and suffering will end, paired with the unfortunately factual "no one knows" answers in the response, and wonderfully atmospheric. The grunge riffs, the industrial percussion, and the icy, tracing synths, every element of Rising Sun's production comes together for a fantastic little post-chorus.

Following this the production surges, with the violins, in particular, while Junsu and Jaejoong return. They describe life as an endless quest to complete the missing pieces of the puzzle. Every little piece of the track comes together here, preparing us for the chorus once again...

... That is, if this was any other song. Rather than the chorus, Changmin provides the high note, perhaps the greatest in musical history. His "(Do) you know why?" is vast, over ten seconds in length, and reaches for the stars. What makes it all the more impressive is that Changmin doesn't just let the high note peak at its highest point, but slowly descends back to the very beginning. This giant elliptical structure tells a story within itself. The surging violins that assist it continue for a little longer, helping the production's descending bass.

So far, Rising Sun has more than shown its experimental roots. However, it is with this upcoming transition that it should derail all casual listeners left, and even scare away some fans of experimental composition. Instead, it is galvanizing and interesting, with loads of charm and energy. After a deep voice asks both the singer/storyteller and composer to "slow down," the song does exactly that. We are thrown into a groovy segment, with bhangra influences and sinister versions of the icy synths. This style is both extremely different, yet a perfect continuation of what has already happened.

Over this groovy and sinister beat, Yoochun opens by saying "This time shall pass away, I know so well that it won't come back. Don't ever leave your days with regrets, swallow anger born from solitude." From this point onwards, the rap lyrics preach the message of the song, of living each day without regrets, doing your best, and reaching for the eternally distant rising sun. Following Yoochun is Changmin, whose stylish interlude shows the legendary vocalist's skill as a rapper, which would be later seen in Keep Your Head Down (#55). Yunho then finishes the rap segment strongly, asking the listeners to believe in happiness and live every day as it is new. His flow is twisted and yet, melodic.

At this moment, the rap ends with a new high note from Changmin. This one, however, is conceptually different. Instead of questioning and worrying, it is determined and hopeful. Through this scream, Changmin showcased more emotion than many legendary artists have in their whole careers, and it isn't even the best of his in the song! Below his voice, the synth brew bubbles and sputters back to life just in time for a shout of "Rise up!" to lead us into the chorus.

Enter once again the chorus, the greatest in K-Pop history. The refrain, under the new context, rises and roars like no other. Every little moment of the song comes together once again. It is hard to add anything to what has already been said, other than the sheer glory of the chorus coming once again.

This time, we go straight to the post-chorus. Once again, Changmin questions if despair is the sketch of happiness and when the chaos will end, once again the answers are indeterminant. However, this time, something feels different. Be it Changmin's grin in the music video or his more determined vocals, the questions feel less important, as if the singer knows that continuing will inevitably give the answers. Rising Sun doesn't pretend to have the answers, but it does claim to have the method. The repeat of Junsu's final answer, "Only time has the answer," further supports Rising Sun's thesis.

Rising Sun ends on a high note, with the strings coming to the forefront over the jagged percussion, creating something both epic and instantly recognizable. Yunho once again shouts for the audience to "Rise up!" But this time, it no longer is a question, a call of the despaired. It is a standard-bearing march, a call to arms for those who are lost, a call to rise above the storm. Every element of Rising Sun, down to its last second, is perfect.

Over the years, Rising Sun has enjoyed its status as a mega-hit beloved by the masses, and as a critically-acclaimed cult classic. Its fans go beyond nations, with the song becoming a massive cultural phenomenon in South Korea and Japan, making TVXQ Asia's biggest musical act, and bringing the Hallyu wave internationally. It has spawned numerous covers and copycat tracks, but none have ever had quite the magic that the original combination of Yoo Young-Jin's compositional and lyrical skills, as well as TVXQ's sheer drive as performers, both at the height of their golden age.

But beyond its status as a classic, beyond its influence, Rising Sun is just a fantastic song, pushing the boundaries of popular music far beyond what could ever be expected. It is a magnum opus to perseverance, grit, and hope. Its music touches the skies and seeks to go beyond. Rising Sun is immaculate, and is the greatest K-Pop song of all time.

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