Valentine’s Day 2024 is here, and (almost) everyone is in the mood to listen to love songs. K-pop has a treasure trove of songs for all the emotional states that someone in love goes through.
From evergreen K-pop love songs to more recent ones declaring self-love, ComingSoon.Net lists some must-listen songs for Valentine’s week.
TVXQ ‘Love In The Ice’
TVXQ’s “Love In The Ice” is a hidden gem and goes straight into the list of some evergreen K-pop songs that will never be discarded from the OG fans’ playlist. The heartwrenching melody of the song, coupled with TVXQ members’ stellar vocals, make it one of the most romantic songs K-pop has ever created.
“Love In The Ice” features all the initial members of TVXQ, including U-Know Yunho, Hero Jaejoong, Micky Yoochun, Xiah Junsu, and Max Changmin. The song was released as a B-side track of their 4th album MIROTIC in 2008.
SHINee ‘Tell Me What To Do’
SHINee’s “Tell Me What To Do” will make any K-pop listener nostalgic. In “Tell Me What To Do,” Onew, Late Jonghyun, Key, Minho, and Taemin deliver a dark love ballad but with a beat.
The song’s catchphrase repeats till the end, sounding like a wish or an earnest prayer. The ‘experimental’ track’s majestic production, where EDM happily infuses with soft acoustic guitar loops, makes it stand out.
Taeyeon ‘Make Me Love You’
Taeyeon, aka the queen of K-pop, released “Make Me Love You” as part of her first solo album, My Voice. Taeyeon’s powerful vocals and the lush synths help build the song’s temperament.
In “Make Me Love You,” Taeyeon depicts a lover who has self-doubts and needs affirmation. Even while asking for reassurance, Taeyeon’s soulful voice brings out her hidden desire to be loved, a universal feeling that listeners can relate to.
Seventeen’s “All My Love”
K-pop’s record-making group Seventeen serenades love with a bit of dash and charisma in the R&B number “All My Love.” While Seventeen is known for its edgy tracks, “All My Love” shows the group’s vocal prowess in minimal music arrangements equally well.
Their honey vocals come together beautifully in the chorus of the song, where they sing, “My love only amounts to this/ But thank you for staying by my side, my baby/ Even if my love only amounts to this/ I’ll be your spring to whatevеr winter it may be.”
BTS V ‘Love Me Again’
BTS V, aka Kim Taehyung, knows how to add a touch of romance to everything he does. His first solo album, Layover, was no different. The album’s title track, “Love Me Again,” could convert any anti-romantic to pay attention to ‘love’ again.
The soft lullaby-ish arrangement of the song is soothing to hear after a long day, where V earnestly sings to his lover, “I wish you would love me again/ No, I don’t want nobody else.” The song’s jazzy arrangement and V’s husky vocals make it a heavenly listen.
BTS RM’s ‘Wild Flower’
Not all love songs need to be about a lover; BTS RM’s emotional solo discography repeatedly proves it. In RM’s “Wild Flower” (featuring Youjeen), RM declares his love for the self despite losing hope.
The powerful chorus of the song creates a goosebumps-worthy moment for listeners. The cinematic music video matches the song’s sentiment, where RM sings, “When all this fame turned into shackles/ Please take my desire away from me/ No matter what it takes/ Oh, let me be myself.”
IU’s ‘Blueming’
IU’s ‘Blueming” celebrates the jitters of falling in love. The lightweight and upbeat song is an instant mood-lifter. IU remains one of the most powerful vocalists of K-pop, and “Blueming” shows why.
The energetic anthem is also one of IU’s best hits, garnering over 172 million views on YouTube since its release in 2019.
With new K-pop groups debuting every year, the discography of love songs from the Korean Music industry will only continue to grow. We’ll revisit the list yearly, hoping to find more V-day anthems to add to our playlist.
