It’s been the year of K-Pop Demon Hunters, with no K-pop album even coming close to the soundtrack’s ubiquity, although Stray Kids swooped in at the year’s end to claim their seventh Billboard #1 album and set a mighty new record for the most number one albums on its chart this century. K-pop, meanwhile, an industry known for widely following a small number of sound trends at any one time, appeared to be splitting off in all directions. Some artists, like second-gen icons G-Dragon and Key, looked back, drawing on previous forays for new work, while rookie group AHOF paid close homage to that era for their debut record. Meanwhile others, like YVES and CORTIS, looked to more contemporary sounds and acts, pushing forward on their own terms. 

There was the usual glut of survival shows, mind-boggling lawsuits (NewJeans vs ADOR, CBX vs SM Entertainment, Ju Hakyneon vs One Hundred, and HYBE’s Chairman Bang Shihyuk vs HYBE’s investors over major fraud claims), and some welcome additions (JUST B’s Bain and XG’s Cocona) to the still small LGBTQ+ K-pop/J-pop idol enclave. And lest we forget summer’s lacklustre oddity, KPopped, Apple TV’s pairing of South Korean and western popstars to K-poppify the latter’s hits, which managed to spawn one truly great, and unexpected, moment – Vanilla Ice and Kep1er transforming “Ice Ice Baby” from zero to hero. 

So as we bid a thankful farewell to 2025, a year of wider cultural upheaval and uncertainty, take some time to sit back with 30 of K-pop’s best (in no particular order), from club-leaning anthems to love-obsessed genre benders, that’ll get you through to the new year, Honmoon intact.

HYOLYN, “SHOTTY”

Purveyor of the sexy summer bop, HYOLYN takes a darker turn with “Shotty” – a little bit sweet and a whole lot of ‘Screw you’. She’s got quite the arsenal with which to do it: slinky beats, honeyed harmonies, and choreography that absolutely bodies. “I pretend to die for you, I think that you play me like a bitch, Look at the life you kept denying me, How brightly it shines,” croons the former SISTAR member, reclaiming herself with a whipping sting in every line from being some mediocre man’s “Well, get this, bro…” late-night bar story. 

KAI, “OFF AND AWAY”

Post-military service, and fourth mini-album in hand, KAI dropped the hypnotic “Off And Away”, on which he’s so driven insane by love that he urges his lover to run, and far enough that he might never find them again. Yet, beneath this spiky tragedy, a percussive heaven pulses, its Afrobeats/Amapiano-influenced layers undulating and soothing, like warm hands on cool skin. “Right now, I'm so broken, all fade away, Let my entire world disappear,” KAI sing-speaks as the instrumental gathers pace, its lush tendrils pulling him asunder to save him from himself.

YEJI, ”AIR”

Charismatic and cat-like, ITZY’s Yeji brings a gracefully lithe energy to retro synth-pop that simmers and preens on the verses, and hits a satisfying repetition on the chorus like an incantation, which it might as well be; she’s enamoured with the one who whisks her to places unknown, who takes her literal breath away – “The most irresistible feelin', oh, baby, Got in my prayers”. Even if electric guitar wails like a warning on the bridge as she sings of leaving everything but her lover behind, there’s no stopping her. What Yeji wants, Yeji gets.  

CLOSE YOUR EYES, “X”

The frantic pace of K-pop never ceases to astound: survival show group Close Your Eyes debuted in April but pushed out three EPs, plus a collaboration with Imanbek, and such was their year that debut single “All My Poetry” sits near on par with the mesmerisingly slick pop-R&B of “X”. They sing and smoulder about limitless speed and burning to max but the ride they’re offering is one of effortless groove and lush harmonies that envelop you completely.

FROMIS_9, “LIKE YOU BETTER”

Oh, the girlish, friends-forever, explosive Carly Rae Jepsen joy of it all! “Like You Better” dances straight for the feels, setting off gigantic fireworks along the way. Propelled by choppy 80s synth, a post-chorus layered towards the heavens and a more-is-more production, the only pause is for the hushed bridge that hammer drops into the chorus and lets you have it with both barrels. Not many idol groups run their contract and depart their formational label and come back stronger than ever…Fromis_9, the group that you are.  

G-DRAGON, “HOME SWEET HOME (FT. TAEYANG & DAESUNG)”

Love him, hate him or otherwise, without G-DRAGON, K-pop as you know it would look very different. His impact and influence have often seemed a heavy mantle, but here G-DRAGON openly embraces what brought him to the here and now – Big Bang, and his two remaining bandmates – singing “It's been a while since I sang an old song, I'm feelin' like I never left”. “Home Sweet Home” is the closest we’ll get to the Big Bang of yesteryear, before all the shit really hit the fan, a thumping EDM monster dripping in nostalgia, a record on which he’s flippant, vulnerable, and scathing, his self-referential lyrics equal parts beacons and bullets.

NMIXX, “PAPILLON”

NMIXX made their name on ‘MIXXPOP’, the self-named style of glueing two opposing genres into one track, but “Papillon”, though it oscillates between layering hazy alt R&B, fragments of hyperpop, and peppery electronica, is undeniably whole. It’s also immensely twitchy and glitchy, the vocals staccato and feisty alongside rich and drawn out, but it eschews overwrought for a steely matter-of-factness—”There’s no such thing as ‘that’s just how it is’” – and a tenacious take on overcoming the struggles life throws at us.

ONE PACT “100!”

Co-written and produced by ONE PACT’s TAG, “100!” is plenty retro with a sneaky city-pop influence, but its aspirations far exceed throwback status, switching seamlessly from delicate and coy chorus to robustly groovy with a funky, head-bobbing bass line that feels like summer tippy-tapping on your shoulder. There’s a gentleness about it, even with the second verse rap momentarily breaking form to up the pace, leaving plenty of breathing room for all the glittering little details in the instrumental that are an absolute joy to pick out on each listen. 

ILLIT, “JELLYOUS”

ILLIT’s vocals bounce and echo over 8-bit pop, lost for a moment in catching some big feels – “A daydream-filled, happy jelly shower, Suddenly, you're all ovеr my mind” – but the cuteness is just a front for the mental flip-flop of emotions that comes with it. “Kindness, sweetness – is this for me? What if this is all just in my head?” they fret, sugar sweet, but glued to their phones for the next DM, rushing on the excitement and anxiety as the beat thumps like a heart poised to fly but trying its damndest not to think about the fall.

JENNIE,”LIKE JENNIE”

This is BLACKPINK’s Jennie Kim acknowledging the flipside of her fame, which was years of online abuse from the uglier parts of K-pop’s parasocialism. Still, it’s equally a prime candidate as the year’s most perfect pop banger, a thumping declaration of zero fucks given, its chorus so purposefully, diabolically catchy that any time her haters take to their keyboards, “like JENNIE” surely loops in their subconscious in a deserving mockery. For everyone else, it’s a crown, 130BPM of pure confidence that fits whoever wishes to wear it.

JUSTB, “CHEST”

“Chest” shuns the hyperbole that’s become a kind of K-pop industry standard for ‘cool’, and opts for a myriad of opposing synth textures – tinkly 90s Eurodance, flat murky bass, shuddering blips – and sadboy vibes (“You are the one I can't forget, 'Cause for you, I will be undead, Come take my soul away, that's all I have left”). It’s restless like a bad night’s sleep, aching and grittily human under all its shiny machine sounds, and easily one of the most intriguing boy group songs of the year. 

STAYC, “BEBE”

“Bebe” believes only in herself (“I trust us two me and her in the mirror”), sporting the kind of coquettish confidence that five vodka & Red Bull and a great hair day instils. Camper than a row of tents, it’s meant to be danced with abandon to, the rubbery bass and glitzy synth pulling your ass down low and hands up high. STAYC might be serving serious face throughout its video,but the fun is everywhere, from the hooky line of French – ”Yeah, that’s me, si, c'est moi” – through to the perfect shoehorning in of their signature line – ”STAYC girls, it’s going down”. 

ENHYPEN, “HELIUM”

“Helium” teams the group once again with writer/producer FRANTS (who penned their excellent “Teeth”) as ENHYPEN’s Jay steps up to co-write and co-produce what’s essentially a song about being lifted by love. Sweet as that may sound, “Helium is a gruff chameleon, rollicking through a bit of rock, a bit of pop, and a lick of gothic, where guitar whines across the end of the record like it's trying to corral the sprint of the chorus, leaving the ad libs to run wild – from breathy to impatient, to soaring – a ternion of ever increasing intensity that’s mesmerising.

SEULGI, “BETTER DAYZ”

Seulgi prowls across “Better Dayz”, pissed and pushed to the edge. She makes her bitterness and anger sound delicately seductive, letting the thick bass and crashing wall of the pre-chorus illustrate the weight of her promises –  “Oh, holding the darkness and the light in my hands…I'll give you, I'll give you lies”. It’s delivered with a clear head and ominous intentions as she lingers in the shreds of a relationship to ensure that when it heaves its final breath, she’s the one leaving – even if she’s walking wounded. 

82MAJOR, “TROPHY”

Bluster tracks are a dime a dozen, but while the flashy lyrical and visual hallmarks are present, there’s something curiously unserious about “Trophy”, which makes it work so damn well. It’s the smirks in the video, the wind machine set a smidge too high, the stationary bikes and car blitzed with neon CGI, the “I feel like Adele, Skyfall like it's on time” bar, all delivered with a certain tongue-in-cheek knowingness, and matched with a sublimely dirty beat that’s more house than hip hop, its chorus drop hefty enough to leave craters.

HEARTS2HEARTS, “FOCUS”

Having had their 2023 debut delayed until last February, Hearts2Hearts leapt from the starting gate with four singles across the year. Bumping and thumping like Ibiza House in its Hed Kandi era, and with a generous dusting of 70s disco twinkle, “Focus” is sumptuous, potent and spacey, pulling the body onto the dancefloor but setting the mind loose on its undulating grooves, arcs, and repetitions, a spell cast in the guise of a pop song.  

MONSTA X, “DO WHAT I WANT”

Post-military service, MONSTA X aren’t quite ready to hang up the noisy chaos that marked their early years. If anything, “Do What I Want’ – alongside the elf ears, horns, wings, and rave dancing – doubles down on their signatures; gratifying builds, spiky charisma, and a driving chorus. As a third-gen group in a fifth-gen era, and in an industry that fast forgets, their commitment to do what works for them rather than deliberately attempting to corral younger fans, is exactly what’s needed and, holy shit, it sounds good.

YVES, “DO YOU FEEL IT LIKE I TOUCH”

Her Soft Error EP features PinkPantheress and marries all manner of pop – hyper, dream, bedroom, even punk – but it’s with the B-side, “Do you feel it like i touch”, that Yves can claim the year’s most ethereal track. Every facet is delicate yet deliberate, like fingertips exploring a lover’s skin, her falsetto probing in tiny slivers over barely there electronica that descends into pulsating bass, mirroring her palpable frustration with a relationship that has too many silences.

HUNTR/X, “GOLDEN”

Whether or not you count Huntr/x as an idol group, K-Pop Demon Hunters was K-pop in 2025 for a whole new generation of tiny pop fans. It’s not hard to understand why “Golden” broke out to be a number one hit globally: The galloping electropop, those high notes that scratched an itch in your brain and, for a world sinking into a very real hell, the stubborn optimism of it, the absolute certainty that things – you, me, we, whole societies gone batshit insane – might just end up being okay again sometime soon. 

TEN, “STUNNER”

Don’t you just love when lyrics and beats flawlessly inform each other? “Dangerous, in that fleeting moment, you spread in me, Tick tock, in a bit feels like it'll explode”, sings NCT and WAYV’s Ten in a beguiling, rhythmic falsetto as the instrumental clicks beneath like a clock counting down to the moment desire crosses the line into obsession. “Stunner” is sensual and moody, but it never wanders loose or wastes a moment, a production tightly engineered to spotlight Ten’s triple-threat abilities as a vocalist, dancer, and wholly magnetic presence.  

LE SSERAFIM, “SPAGHETTI (FT. J-HOPE)”

It could’ve so easily been hard carried by its kooky, new wave indebted chorus, but it delivers clingy verses and a smart refusal to dial up into the sugary, crazy K-pop extreme you might expect. By perfectly aligning a stuttering, monotone hook and droll self-awareness to LE SSERAFIM’s cool girl vibes and J-hope’s biting, humour-infused flow, “Spaghetti” is as much an experimental collaboration project as it is a feisty, welcome addition to both artists’ already impressive discographies. 

CORTIS, “GO!”

“GO!” promptly divided the internet, criticised for its heavy-handed lifting from Scott/Carti, praised for its DGAF teenage kicks and a stridently simple hook that sticks like Gorilla Glue. But CORTIS, and their co-written and co-directed pre-debut track, were intended to disrupt. The sheen that comes with being developed by K-Pop’s biggest label, HYBE, is undeniably present, but they’re yanking on that leash, a scrum of hormones, hyperactivity and ambition, an idol group seemingly determined to keep hands on the steering wheel at all times.

KIIIKIII, ”DANCING ALONE”

Debuting in March with one of the more visually intriguing rollouts in recent memory, KiiiKiii are what you might term a sleeper group, quietly knocking out great tracks. Theirs is a naturalistic, somewhat quirky aesthetic, an ‘every girl’ type approach, which is nicely surmised by “Dancing Alone” and its 80s nostalgia that prances and grooves with little bursts. Playful but understatedly moving, it unravels the ribbon of girls’ friendships – their secrets, loves, and misunderstandings – an experience that’s exhilarating, heart-warming, and crushing in equal measure. 

NCT DREAM, “I LIKE IT”

It’s hard to fathom the Dreamies, as they’re affectionately known, hit their ten-year anniversary in 2026, but though their cherubic cheeks and school shorts days are long gone, the trop house-infused, harmony-heavy choruses of “I Like It” ping nostalgic heartstrings even as the militaristic snare rolls march it forward. Its quest for momentum is the perfect breeding ground for the group’s big vocalists to lay on the razzle dazzle, pulling you into a final whirl of vibes so sun-soaked, you can practically smell the Coppertone. 

ARTMS, “OBSESSED”

The soulful intro gives way to softened drum and bass as fast as ARTMS’s all-consuming obsession bursts into flame, the instrumental and vocals shifting between a barely contained urgency and a laconic clarity, an acknowledgement that every part of you feels crazed but in the most delicious way: “My heart is falling into another world, Oh, I can't stop now” croons HaSeul, each subsequent verse letting them freefall deeper into this intoxicating new world. There’s no crash landing into reality either, only the dreamy cocoon of wanting and waiting, a space ARTMS articulate with magical ease.

RIIZE, “EMBER TO SOLAR”

“Ember To Solar” lands its punches at a frenetic speed, RIIZE’s vocals vaulting across the clattering, honking instrumental for an experience that, on first listen, is overwhelming. On closer inspection, it falls into place – the choppy verses, the urgency and thrust of the chorus – as a hype song for one, meant to be listened to alone, though there’s nothing subtle or intimate in its encouragement. It’s equivalent to being hollered at through a megaphone, a raucous, supportive rallying cry to get your shit together and fly high.

ATEEZ, “LEMON DROP”

There is ATEEZ’s career-spanning conceptual and lyrical lore and then there is “Lemon Drop”, a sweaty, slippery, synth-R&B grindfest thrilled at being driven utterly crazy by desire. For their “muse” and “hottie”, there’s promises of burning nights, staying up ‘til sunrise, and using their lemon drop like a palate cleanser – a smorgasbord of innuendo and sparring vocal timbres, with a cantering chorus and refrain ramped up by needy ad libs that rushes towards a heated and, one hopes, satiated, finale.

XLOV, “1&ONLY”

XLOV’s genderless concept has been a warmly welcomed addition to the K-pop landscape, pushing the boundaries of the ‘boy group’ into new spaces both visually and physically. Their sinuous choreography, already much clipped on TikTok, found the perfect partner in the lush, laidback silkiness of “1&Only”’s Afrobeats, the raw desire central to the song soothed by harmonies that verge on hypnotic. It rolls and dips, washing over the ear seamlessly, and holds you to its buttery chorus with an immaculately manicured grip.

JEON SOMI, “CLOSER”

Taking a snippet of Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls” and turning it into an icy club banger perhaps shouldn’t work as well as it does here, where the beat drops into the chorus like melted rubber hitting hot cement and Somi’s vocals glitch out in sublime waves. This trance-inducing moment is juxtaposed by a surprisingly demanding, shouty post-chorus on a song that sweeps past in a mere two and a half minutes, a far too-brief experience but one to be grateful for nevertheless.

KEY, “HUNTER”

When Key taps squarely into the retro synthpop vein (this time with a sonic nod to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”), you can pretty much guarantee he’s going to deliver a propulsive, high-octane head rush that’s equal parts tortured soul and dancefloor catnip. “Hunter” reads both as being tied to an emotional vampire (a human version) and accepting the darker side of oneself but, as bloodstained and drained as he might get in the video, nothing can dim the high gloss polish and emotional one-two punch of Key at full throttle.