BABYMONSTER called “BLACKPINK 2.0” by netizens, “Little Jennie” Draws Attention
“Sheesh”, the latest title track of YG girl group BABYMONSTER, has attracted a lot of attention from Kpop fans - albeit not all positive.
Recently, BABYMONSTER officially made a comeback with their debut mini album and the title track MV “Sheesh”. The MV marks the first appearance of BABYMONSTER with 7 members and is the debut stage for “ace” Ahyeon.
With a relatively short duration – only 2 minutes 55 seconds, “Sheesh” makes many fans curious about how the singing time is divided among the 7 girls. As a Hip-hop mix, Sheesh leans towards rap lines and is boosted by segments showcasing internal vocal displays.
Through the “Sheesh” MV, the dominance of member Ahyeon is most noticeable. In particular, the “little Jennie” got many individual scenes and stands in the center multiple times. Ahyeon was also tasked with many highlighted segments, being the only member who both raps and showcases high notes. However, Ahyeon’s total parts falls behind Pharita with 19.7 seconds, while the Thai member sings the most, ranking #1 in total line distribution with 23.1 seconds.
At the same time, line distribution between BABYMONSTER members in “Sheesh” is pretty even, with main vocalist Rami having the 3rd most lines and standing out with impressive vocal segments. The youngest Chiquita handles the chorus, ranking #4 in lines with 17.9 seconds. The Japanese duo Ruka and Asa evenly handle rap lines, with approximately 13~16 seconds. Finally, Rora ranks last with 11.6 seconds.
Mixed reaction from netizens, “flop” on Korean charts?
After more than half a day on air, BABYMONSTER is making waves with skyrocketing YouTube views. The “Sheesh” MV reached 2 million views within the first hour and surpassed 15 million views after 15 hours of release. With this speed, the YG rookie is expected to set a record for views in the first 24 hours during their generation.
However, the group “flops” on domestic music charts. As of 1:00 PM on April 1st (Korean time), “Sheesh” only ranked #150 on Genie and #100 on Bugs, not at all appearing in the MelOn Top 100 chart.
Once again, digital Korean charts prove to be a “fatal weakness” of the YG rookie.
Overall, BABYMONSTER’s debut E.P. is criticized for being rather niche, with the title track in the familiar hip-hop genre yet boasting old-fashioned and disjointed arrangements with little breakthroughs.
At the same time, many regret that YG did not choose “Like That” – a song by Charlie Puth as the title track. This is also the track rated as the best on the E.P, while “Sheesh” will likely find it difficult to climb the charts, especially in the current music trend. With the current performance, BABYMONSTER appears dull when facing off against HYBE’s latest rooke group ILLIT – who is doing extremely well with their debut song “Magnetic”.
Regarding the MV, many netizens lamented that YG needs to stop trying to recreate BLACKPINK. From music to concept, everything follows the same formula that YG has applied for the girl group in an attempt to pursue international success.
It is known that BABYMONSTER does not have a creative director behind the image building. Therefore, YG receives complaints from many fans for lacking creativity in creating concepts.
Despite many points of dissatisfaction, K-pop fans objectively acknowledge the talents of the YG rookie, especially since all 7 girls are boasting impressive and balanced idol skills. Ahyeon’s return is also welcomed and goes viral on many social media platforms, and the two Japanese members easily “steal the spotlight”.
Additionally, Asa’s rap lines in “Sheesh” receive a flood of praise for being “slay”. As a result, fans hope that YG will soon plan a promotion strategy for BABYMONSTER to not waste the talents of the girls.
Below are some comments from netizens:
- “Like That” is so good? Why wasn’t it the title?
- Why release music in the middle of the night? I really don’t understand what Yang Hyunsuk is thinking, why not just release it sincerely on Monday at 6 pm?
- After listening to the entire album, I feel that YG’s actual strength is not bad, especially considering that they don’t follow the current trend, which is quite tough.
- YG insists on creating the second BLACKPINK, which is a terrible move
- Without Teddy, YG is losing its strong songs
- The first part is good, the second part has too long rap, and the last part sounds like yelling at the listeners. This song would be great without the last part.
- Let’s try to create a new identity for the rookie and stop making them BLACKPINK 2.0…
Source: K14
