Video Vibes: Hwasa [화사] -Twit [멍청이] (2019) July 29, 2019 08:00

If you're a K-pop rookie like myself and wondering where to start in the sea that is Korean pop music then I recommend getting in on the ground floor of what may be the beginnings of a stellar solo career for Hwasa.  One of the members of the established all girl quartet Mamamoo, Hwasa (Ahn Hye-jin) dropped her first solo single back in February titled Twit, and it's what the hipsters would refer to as pretty "lit".

The basic premise of the song is Hwasa is annoyed by her boyfriend due to the amount of attention and the lengths he goes to please her, eventually pushing him away because of her attitude towards him.  Halfway through the song she realizes her mistake, and that the problem is her and that she is the Twit, not her boyfriend, but by the end he's had enough of her.  There's also some comparisons made of the boyfriend to an old character from Korean literature, Simcheong.  It's an interesting backstory and if you want to know more check out the YouTube video Twit Explained by a Korean which is a really nice thorough breakdown of the songs lyrics and imagery.

Now if you're like me and simply enjoy listening to international music for the melody and the tone because you can't understand the language, this one is definitely catchy.  The flute part of the track which is used frequently throughout the chorus reminds me a lot of a similar thing used in the song Remember Me by Japanese rapper Awich, and is extremely catchy.  This song would easily compete, if not beat, anything the top "pop princesses" in the US are putting out if it was geared towards an American market.  For me personally even in Korean it tops what today's US pop artists are putting out.

Of course the staple of K-pop are the music videos which seem to basically be one of the main factors the record labels take into consideration regarding the success of a song.  Artists with low video views rarely seem to make it past the occasional digital single stage.  I don't think that will be an issue for Hwasa whose video managed to rack up a little over 38 million views in about five months, while that's no where near record breaking for K-pop videos that's far from horrible.  The set design, cinematography (the scene with her and a couple of girls encased in plastic reminded me of a scene from the 1970's Edwige Fenech film Five Dolls For An August Moon), choreography, costumes are all great (as they usually are in K-pop videos) and Hwasa is just sexy. Even the look of international pop stars compared to those in the US is like comparing Supermodels to models in the Penny Saver ads.

Overall,  I really enjoy the song, the video is great, Hwasa is simply drop dead gorgeous, she's very exotic even compared to most of the female artists in K-pop who seem to fit a more stereotypical Korean look.  Right out of the bag I'm quickly becoming not only a Mamamoo fan but a Hwasa fan, and definitely look forward to what might be coming her way in terms of a solo career.  So if you're looking for a K-pop artist that breaks the mold in terms of looks and sound, keep an eye on this girl.