‘Japanese debut’ New Jeans, a spoonful of H.O.T. to S.E.S.… Beyond Y2K and into the 20th century

New Genes, the group at the center of Y2K, moved into the 20th century with their Japanese debut single 'Supernatural'. The public who heard this is giving positive reviews as they are reminded of the group SES, but also feel the novelty of the calm, modern melody. Some say that the choreography and costumes remind us of HOT male idols from the 90s.

The genre of 'Supernatural' is new jack swing with a city pop style, and the song is an iconic ad-lib of 'Back of My Mind', a collaboration between world-famous singer Pharrell Williams and Japanese singer Manami in 2009. This is a song that producer 250 took and reinterpreted the bridge of.

Reminds me of SES's songs '('Cause) I'm Your Girl' and 'Dreams Come True', which were sensationally popular in the late 90s, and 'In the Summer' by the group Deuce. Here is the reason why.

New jack swing is a genre that dominated Japanese and domestic popular music from the late 1980s to the 1990s. It is the result of combining R&B (rhythm and blues), hip-hop, and funk elements with electronic music, and is characterized by soft melodies, strong rhythms, and tempos that are good for dancing. Singers Hyun Jin-young, SES, and Deuce were the pioneers who introduced the genre to Korea 30 years ago.

However, New Jeans did not lose their unique color. The song's accompaniment is strongly influenced by the New Jack Swing genre, but the melody embodies the easy listening that New Jeans has previously done.

Kim Do-heon, a popular music critic, said about the musical style of New Genes' 'Supernatural', "Rather than entering the Japanese market through this song and presenting completely new music, New Genes is emphasizing the musical style of New Genes that they have been making in Korea. “It stands out that they are trying to make a stable start in the Japanese market.”

Additionally, the fashion and choreography revealed through the music video also contain elements that were popular in the late 90s. In fact, some say it is reminiscent of the hip-hop choreography of male idols from the 90s, including choreographer HOT, and some welcome it, saying it is a reproduction of the street fashion they wore on stage at the time. Last month, New Jeans joined hands with Hiroshi Fujiwara, a music producer who led Japanese street fashion in the 90s, and became a hot topic by announcing a street fashion concept.

Above all, the most notable part of this new song is that, like the song 'Right Now', whose music video was released on the 17th, Korean, Japanese, and English are harmoniously mixed in the lyrics. There is almost no difference in proportion between languages. Accordingly, the public is receiving favorable reviews, saying that it is a challenge targeting not only the Japanese market but also domestic and international markets. The public commented on the music video, saying, "It's a godsend that they didn't just write the song in Japanese because it's their Japanese debut song, but didn't let go of their identity as a K-pop idol. It's not a Japanese debut song, but rather a New Genes comeback song. It's captivating the domestic market as well." He praised it, saying, “It was a plan,” and “It can’t be this new because Korean is mixed between English and Japanese.”

Regarding this, critic Kim Do-heon said, "Y2K with a 2000s sensibility is said to be trendy around the world, but New Jeans went beyond this and headed toward the 90s. They brought the aesthetics of the 90s but added a modern melody and message. Who will be popular in 2024? “We have released a song that is easy to listen to as everyday BGM, and is also a song that is easy to play for DJs and producers, or a song that they can personally add to their favorite playlist,” he said.

He continued, "The theme of this song is nostalgia, a nostalgia for the past." He added, "Isn't CEO Min's taste in the 80s and 90s? He wanted to avoid harmful elements and anachronistic messages in the music enjoyed by the public at the time. “I just came with a sense of beauty,” he explained.

In this way, the song 'Supernatural', which well expresses the colors of 'Japanese New Jeans', entered the Melon TOP 100 chart at 34th place at 2 pm on the 21st, proving the song's topicality.

However, some voices raised the need to further expand musical scope and diversity rather than relying on Producer 250's musical style. The genre of city pop, which was already consumed in the 80s and 90s, was discovered in the mid-2010s and has been consumed to this day, so it does not bring anything new to the public, and there are concerns that no one knows how long 250's certain song progression method will be effective for the public. all.

Critic Kim Do-heon said, "There are certainly indications that New Genes' music feels similar to each other. It is true that the subject that creates New Genes' music is currently limited," adding, "In order to provide production diversity, 'Super Shy' Foreign R&B artist Erika de Casier participated and added two-step house garage, and it is important to continue to expand the scope of music like this in the music shown in 'Right Now'.

Reporter Lee Min-kyung, Ten Asia 2min_ror@tenasia.co.kr