Life Listens: New music from Stray Kids, Jimin, Halsey, Childish Gambino, Hongjoin
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Deadpool & Wolverine star Ryan Reynolds (far left) with members of K-pop boy band Stray Kids in their Chk Chk Boom music video.
PHOTO: JYP ENTERTAINMENT/YOUTUBE
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In this monthly column, The Straits Times curates the most buzz-worthy music you need to know about that was released in July.
Must-see MV: Stray Kids – Chk Chk Boom
Deadpool & Wolverine and Stray Kids – what more needs to be said?
Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman co-headline the biggest superhero movie of 2024 so far, Deadpool & Wolverine. And boy band Stray Kids contributed the song Slash to the soundtrack.
At the same time, Reynolds and Jackman surprised K-pop fans by showing up in the music video for Stray Kids’ Chk Chk Boom.
The pair feature as co-anchors of a fictional news programme. The video opens with Jackman in his Wolverine get-up attempting to give a weather update before giving up and walking away.
The scene turns to Reynolds, who sits down and begins presenting just as the video segues into the Latin-style hip-hop track proper.
Stray Kids performing at British Summer Time festival in Hyde Park in London in July.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The video then focuses on the eight members of Stray Kids, who serve up powerful dance moves and rap verses infused with swagger at various locations across New York City, as colourful explosions go off in the sky.
Their scenes are also spliced with shots of Reynolds in the news studio – first in his anchorman suit, then in his Deadpool costume.
At the end of the video, Reynolds and Stray Kids are in the news studio as the actor cheekily asks the octet whether they are looking for an “older, less agile member”, presenting himself as a possible addition to the group. Alas, he is rejected. - Jan Lee
Chart Champ: Jimin – Who
Who, a song by South Korean singer Jimin of BTS, is the lead single from his second album, Muse.
PHOTO: BIGHIT MUSIC
BTS member Jimin might be serving in the South Korean military, but that has not stopped him from still making an impact on the pop charts.
Who, the lead single from the K-pop star’s recently released sophomore solo album Muse, is No. 1 on both the Singapore and international charts on Spotify.
On Apple Music, it topped the charts in countries such as Brazil, Qatar and Vietnam. It peaked at No. 4 in Britain, his highest-ranking solo song on the British pop charts.
Sung entirely in English, the R&B and hip-hop-tinged track is propelled by a melancholic melody and groovy bass line, and showcases the 28-year-old’s smooth vocals and soaring falsettos.
South Korean singer Jimin is currently serving in the South Korean military.
PHOTO: BIGHIT MUSIC
Jimin also performed Who on a recent episode of American talk show The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, which was filmed before he enlisted in December 2023.
Muse is doing well on the charts too. It is at No. 2 on the US Billboard album chart, right behind K-pop boy band Stray Kids’ ATE. This is the first time the top two positions on this chart are occupied by K-pop acts. - Eddino Abdul Hadi
Stream This Song: Halsey – Lucky
American singer Halsey’s new song Lucky interpolates Britney Spears’ 2000 hit of the same name.
PHOTO: COLUMBIA
American pop singer Halsey’s new single – the first one off her upcoming fifth album – will sound very familiar to those in tune with pop music from the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Lucky has a chorus that interpolates the 2000 pop hit of the same name by American pop princess Britney Spears, with a dash of American R&B singer Monica’s 1998 hit Angel Of Mine in the mix too.
Halsey references her health problems and relationship breakdown in her new song Lucky.
PHOTO: AFP
The music video features Halsey wearing an almost see-through bodysuit similar to the one Spears wore in her Toxic (2003) music video.
Halsey’s version of Lucky carries emotional heft. The R&B-tinged pop tune references several of her setbacks in recent years.
These include her diagnosis of autoimmune disease lupus and a rare T-cell disorder, as well as the breakdown of her relationship with American writer-producer Alev Aydin, with whom she has a three-year-old son.
“It was really challenging to incorporate so many conflicting emotions in just a few minutes,” Halsey, 29, wrote on Instagram.
There was a brief controversy when a post appeared on Spears’ Instagram account stating how she felt “harassed, violated and bullied” by Halsey’s music video.
The post was later deleted and Spears posted on X: “Fake news! That was not me on my phone! I love Halsey and that’s why I deleted it!” - Eddino Abdul Hadi
Ace Album: Childish Gambino – Bando Stone And The New World
Bando Stone And The New World is the fifth album by American musician Donald Glover, and the final project under his Childish Gambino moniker.
PHOTO: RCA
American multi-hyphenate Donald Glover says goodbye to his alter ego with Bando Stone And The New World, his fifth and final album under the Childish Gambino stage moniker.
It is also the soundtrack album to the upcoming film of the same name from the Grammy-, Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning singer, songwriter, rapper, actor and director.
Like much of his oeuvre, the collection of songs reflects 40-year-old Glover’s multifarious nature, mixing genres like trap, pop-punk, country and pop in a feel-good brew.
Singer, actor and rapper Donald Glover takes on topics such as fatherhood in his new album.
PHOTO: AFP
While a track like Yoshinoya features some choice rap verses, Real Love and Running Around are full-on indie pop tracks. Survive is a modern R&B/electronic hybrid with a solo from acclaimed American jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington.
Bando Stone And The New World contains several references to fatherhood. The country-tinged Dadvocate, for example, contrasts life before and after becoming a parent.
There are also several notable cameos. Glover’s eldest son, eight-year-old Legend, opens the album with a spoken line, and later sings on Can You Feel Me. Glover and his wife Michelle White have two other sons.
Glover’s long-time collaborator, the award-winning Swedish composer Ludwig Goransson, is a co-writer and composer on tracks such as the orchestral No Excuses and euphoric album closer A Place Where Love Goes. - Eddino Abdul Hadi
Singapore Scene: Music Lab podcast – Hongjoin
Singer Hongjoin is the latest guest on ST’s Music Lab podcast.
ST PHOTO: HESTER TAN
What is it like to be a young Singaporean musician trying to make music in the United States?
Home-grown singer-songwriter Hongjoin answers that question and more in the latest episode of ST’s Music Lab podcast.
The 22-year-old, whose music encompasses genres ranging from R&B to indie-pop, is currently based in Boston and performs regularly while juggling his studies there.
He has been highlighted by Spotify as a Radar artiste, a programme that features rising talent from around the world. He recently returned to Singapore for two concerts – a solo headlining show at the Esplanade in June, and as the opening act for American singer-songwriter Ricky Montgomery’s gig at Pasir Panjang Power Station in May.
Like many Gen Z artistes, Hongjoin is active on TikTok and Instagram, which has helped him build a following in regional countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines.
Singapore singer-songwriter Hongjoin’s second album, Komorebi.
PHOTO: HONGJOIN
He recently released his second album, Komorebi, a work that references his Japanese roots. The title is a Japanese word that describes sunlight filtered through the leaves of trees.
Listen to the Music Lab podcast, as well as Hongjoin’s live rendition of the title track off Komorebi, at str.sg/pNYi
