At the end of each year, various magazines, critics, as well as music and review platforms, introduce their lists of the year’s best music, and Apple Music is no exception with its “A-List: K-pop 2023” playlist.
Recently, Apple Music’s “A-List: K-pop 2023” playlist was revealed, featuring standout K-pop songs that attracted considerable attention within the year. However, while the Top 20 of this list includes many familiar faces, it has sparked controversy for excluding NewJeans, a prominent representative with various viral and high-quality songs in 2023.
HYBE Dominates
In the Top 20 of Apple Music’s “A-List: K-pop 2023” playlist, HYBE artists remain the majority. Even though BTS was on hiatus as members enlisted and focused on solo activities, HYBE demonstrated its potential with the meteoric rise of two 4th generation girl groups, NewJeans and LE SSERAFIM, the steady performance of the million-selling group SEVENTEEN, alongside the explosive solo releases of BTS members.
Jungkook’s solo debut achieved unprecedented success
In particular, 6 songs out of the Apple Music’s Top 20 for “A-List: K-pop 2023” belong to artists under HYBE, including LE SSERAFIM’s “Unforgiven” (#1), Jungkook’s “Standing Next to You”, BOYNEXTDOOR’s “But Sometimes” (#8), V’s “Slow Dancing” (#12), BTS’s “Take Two” (#16), and SEVENTEEN’s “God of Music” (#18).
LE SSERAFIM’s “Unforgiven” tops Apple Music’s “A-List: K-pop 2023” playlist
Leading the list is “Unforgiven” by LE SSERAFIM. The track combines Hip-hop and Funk Rhythm, creating an addictive melody for the summer of 2023. The next positions in the top 5, in order, belongs to NATTY’s “Sugarcoat” (#2), FIFTY FIFTY’s “Cupid (Twin Ver.)” (#3), Stray Kids’s “LALALALA” (#4), and IVE’s “Baddie” (#5).
Jennie, despite not officially promoting, made waves in the music scene with “You & Me.”
Additionally, Jennie, despite not engaging in official promotions, created a music sensation with “You & Me”, which secures the #9 position on Apple Music’s list.
The absence of NewJeans raises controversy
After Apple Music’s “A-List K-pop 2023” was widely shared on social media, discussions ensued regarding the results. Many agreed that the featured songs were of high quality. However, there was also dissenting opinion about the list, given that NewJeans was entirely missing from the top 20.
Over the past year, NewJeans rose to prominence with a series of hits, including “Ditto”, “OMG”, and the EP “Get Up.” The girl group, under the direction of creative director Min Hee-jin, not only gained public recognition but also set a new trend in the music industry, receiving high praise from music professionals.
NewJean’s EP “Get Up” and its triple title tracks, named “Super Shy”, “Cool With You”, and “ETA”, received a shower of praise and secured top positions in reputable K-pop ranking lists of various magazine and review platforms, such as Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, NME, etc.
In addition, NewJeans is also the Korean artist with the highest number of streams on Apple Music in 2023 with “Ditto”, making their absence from the Top 20 of Apple Music’s “A-List K-pop 2023” questionable.
It is also known that the NewJeans track that appears in this list is “ETA” at a humble position of #41, further sparking controversy.
Below is the Top 20 of Apple Music’s “A-List K-pop 2023”:
- “Unforgiven” – LE SSERAFIM
- Sugarcoat” – NATTY
- Cupid (Twin Ver.)” – FIFTY FIFTY
- “LALALALA” – Stray Kids
- “Baddie” – IVE
- “Standing Next To You” – Jung Kook
- “Drama” – aespa
- “But Sometimes” – BOYNEXTDOOR
- “You & Me (Coachella Ver.)” – Jennie
- “Talk Saxy” – RIIZE
- “Set Me Free” – TWICE
- “Slow Dancing” – V
- “Chill Kill” – Red Velvet
- “Love Lee” – AKMU
- “Fast Forward” – Jeon Somi
- “Take Two” – BTS
- “Teddy Bear” – STAYC
- “God of Music” – SEVENTEEN
- “CAKE” – ITZY
- “Perfume” – NCT Dojaejung
Source: Apple Music, K14
