amedawg18

-she calls taemin "child of kpop" to mean that he was raised by the industry and grew and developed within the field. which is honestly true and on top of that he's kind of the epitome of what the industry has to offer the music world

-she went onto explain "taemddorol" which means "taemin is the role model again" because he basically inspired an entire generation of younger male idols

-she said that taemin is one of the artists who does the best job at starting an album with a killer atmospheric track. she had to pick b-sides as her top and she had to narrow it down from 10 with great difficulty and the first few ended up all being first tracks on his albums.

-first b-side she chose is ace (!!!). it's the first song of his first album and she remembers how she felt when she first heard it. "what? t-taemin-ah??? taemin? taemin?" is how she felt. like he came in determined to pull you in. and the term "ace" as in kpop's ace showing his identity and that he chose to do it in this seductive rnb way.

-and ace is made by deez (known for sm's deeper rnb tracks), ylva dimberg (recently known for newjeans), daniel obi klein (who she calls obi oppa). she said that it's her favorite korean topline writers and black music producers in kpop. so there was no way for her to not like it along with taemin's skill in performing it. and the lyrics made her think "who the hell translated taemin's character so well?" and the answer is changmin from tvxq, who wrote lyrics that feel like cheating from taemin because it's so intense and fitting. things like "you think i'm a young prince, you think i don't know love yet?" or "the one you've wanted, the one you've dreamed of, ace" that combination is just affecting for people who have been watching taemin's growth and can grab the attention of those awaiting kpop's next ace. and the concept video is very good too.

-next song is drip drop! she said "do you hear the water drop sounds? this synth feeling, the wet feeling? the siren-seducing voice? and then the lyrics!" and wooseok said "you sure you're a music critic?" and she said "oh right where was i? wait this part is great too!"

-and drip drop the performance video is in kpop's top 10 moments for her (v much agree). it's filmed in LA and it felt like since it was the first track of his first full-length album he had to start strong. "this video was like the first footstep of this album and i felt like i completely lost my mind." "around 3:50, there's a dance break and it just makes your breath stop. the performance intensity. the song is good just from listening to it but this is one where i want people to enjoy it with their eyes and all five senses."

-next song is g.o.a.t. (which was pretty surprising to me) and it's the first song of the eternal album. she said "there was a composite-like quality (복합적인) to this first song and the first album outside of sm was meant to show a wider variety of things he could do. so his thoughts and concerns were carried in this song so you can feel him reflecting on the passing of time as the genres change every thirty seconds. it started as old-school hip hop and then a jazzy relaxed section goes by and we return and then shift into a trap beat. and despite having this many pieces, there's taemin's signature lightness of touch in it. and it's best expressed along with taemin's performance."

-next song is crush! "i'm actually just here to promote this song. everyone please listen to this song."

-"this song felt both kpop and like 80's michael jackson. i think taemin is one of the artists with the greatest potential for being a pop star or pop icon, and this song really showed that. taemin likes very deep and conceptual themes as well is excellent at that and expands kpop's boundaries. but personally i also always want to shwo people the light and natural side of him that casually flaunts his pop star side that's always been a part of him. so i want to strongly push this song. there's a comparatively free feeling to this, unencumbered by intellectual concepts. some people said that they skipped through this song on first listen but loved it after seeing him live. he's really really good at this."

-"taemin is known as korea's representative 'michael jackson kid' where he was inspired to become an idol by watching michael jackson's singing and dancing and then has the potential to become a big name as well."

-next one is artistic groove!! "i was debating on choosing experience or sexuality, but ultimately i chose artistic groove for this part. there's a taemin signature alluring feeling that's different from an ordinary sexy and has his unique difficult-to-approach cebrebral quality to it and i feel like this song captures it very well. the album was want, which had a very minimal sound in many of the tracks compared to the rest of taemin's discography. this song basically only had that basic bass rhythm and the high sound and his vocal melody, but along with this feeling of constant tension in his voice that keeps squeezing you as it goes; it creates a very taemin-characteristic cerebral beauty that comes from restraint."

-next song is 2kids! "people might not have heard of this since it was a title track, thought it was a pre-release single, but i always sigh when i listen to it. if you asked me to pick top 3 taemin bsides i would pick this one."

-kim yoonha: "it was surprising for a lot of people including me because while he got us used to very tightky wound performances with heavy and dark themes, this pre-release single made everything feel let loose and released. while you could say his previous tracks had a lot of lyrical and abstract messages, this song felt like a really honest song and melody about a youthful fleeting moment of connection. so it felt like we've seen a version of taemin we've never seen before, like a different taemin was cracking through the previous one. before this it was about creator of the universe, good and evil, beauty and ugliness, even male and female and sexuality, these are the kinds of images you think of when you think about taemin's work. but from all of this having this puppy love story rise up through all of that, it feels like a sense of peace. like an entirely new side of this artist that we've never seen before. and he participated in the songwriting as well, so it felt extra intimate artistically."

-title tracks time! "this last section is songs that could not have existed without taemin."

-first one is criminal(!!!!) "doesn't it just boil up? he's so good at this. putting the listener on edge, luring you in, making you clench. in this he was just born for it."

-kim yoonha: "as soon as it starts it makes you tense, and never lets go for the entire duration of the song. don't move, don't lose your focus, don't breathe comfortably. and it's pulled along by a newtro synth sound and it's easier for general listening but also has a very deep and fatal line, 'destroy me more.' and i thought, 'me? did i hear that right?' this was only possible because it was taemin, if anyone else had said it i would just be confused. and the deeper context is that the song is based on stockholm syndrome. someone is scared, and becomes like the person they're scared of, and they become assimilated. like trying to overcome the situation of having been absorbed into the person you fear. it's very deep and it's always what taemin is talking about, self vs. self. the police radar sounds increase the tension here too."

-wooseok: "this isn't a song that can become yours just because your voice suits it. in terms of his image too, it just feels so much like 'this is mine'." kim yoonha: "sometimes you can see that they're trying too hard to fit the song and you think oh no, but for taemin it's like he and the concept are intertwined. wooseok, you should try it too." wooseok: "yes, destroy me more. actually no i'll try it in a few years, i still have a maknae vibe." kim yoonha: "taemin is a maknae too!"

-next song is advice!! "you remember this piano performance? it's a performance like it popped out of a music about vs. evil. it has to go into the category of songs that could not be possible if it wasn't for taemin. along with idea it's taemin's songs that had the darkest heaviest charm. and emotionally and in terms of performance it really pulled up the limits of what kpop can do. for this song it's hard to not be overwhelmed by the track, with the production and the choir and the philosophical sound."

-"just another level. truly like one man doing ten roles, taemin completely owned this song and every technique in it. and the lyricist jo hyunkyung writes lyrics that are incredibly fitting for taemin."

-next song is danger! "i couldn't not being this song. it's like the essence of taemin for me, danger. if you think about it, taemin doesn't do this style anymore but it has that michael jackson feeling that crush has. it's pop-like in the way that kpop and lee taemin do best, a representative pop performance that combines combines these things. when this first came out, i remember. at a critics round table discussing "most iconic performance of the year" everyone else was talking about festival performances while i said "danger by taemin on a music show stage" and did not match the balance of the conversation."

-kim yoonha: "if you look at the choreography and the costuming you can see the feeling of michael jackson who he said he grew up watching and copying. like the white stripe around the sleeve or the arm turns in the choreo. but even now he does this song as an encore."

-wooseok: "yes this was a song that trainees had to learn. not just our company, all of them assigned this song."

-kim yoonha: "even songs like danger that are 10 years old so they could sound old by today's sound, but it was still the extreme sophistication of that time that evidences the absolute highest quality of that time. so that still translates into listening it today. lee taemin is a person who is always renewing the cutting edge of each era. and who is always creating his own flow and breaking down walls and limits inside of his work and therefore expands kpop's boundaries as well, a truly rare person. if i ever had to do a committed research project on one person, it would be taemin. you could see a majority of kpop's story through the lens of taemin alone."