Of genres there are

It's no news that I was exposed to so many things in my first year in the university. I found myself in the midst of a wide circle of friends and as dramatic as that was, there are so many things I've come to love deeply, thanks to my interactions with them.

I grew up in an environment where the belief was that anybody who loves anything Korean isn't a serious person. The dislike for Korean dramas, music and everything, ran deep into me such that when asked, I'd tell people I saw Korean lovers as cringe too. Leaving out the fact that I giggled, cried and laughed when I watched korean series as a child. Or the fact that whenever BTS's hit - 'Butter', played on my TV, I danced and sang along.

My attempts at hiding away the things I loved, disappeared almost as soon as it came because it didn't take long, I was exposed to them. And this time, I fell deeper.

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My love for kpop was ignited one particular night. I remember being halfway asleep, and there was this my roommate that was playing music through a boombox. Then a friend came into the room, and at that moment, the famous Blackpink song - 'How you like that' began to play. They both sang along and although my eyes were in need of sleep, my brain registered the iconic line 'Blackpink in your area'. That was it!

I went on to search that line that stuck, and trust the internet to always deliver, I discovered other beautiful songs from them - Shut down, Pink Venom, Hard to Love, Stay and so many others. From there, I began to explore.

One kpop group that I fell in love with almost immediately after Black pink, was Straykids. This 8 members boy band hooked me the moment I heard their song 'La la la la'. Then, there was also the Christmas song that had us all on chokehold, thanks to Felix's voice.

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I'd be lying if I said I was attracted to them, thanks to their songs alone. I also loved Straykids, thanks to Hyunjin. His facecard struck me the very first day I saw a clip, I just had to research him. Made me fall deeper than I already had.

It's been three years of listening to Kpop, and safe to say, I'm still waxing strong. From Aespa, to Newjeans, to Illit, to Ateez, to Seventeen, to P1harmony, down to the movie girl group - Huntrix, you'd find me listening to them, and carefully adding them to playlists, when the mood calls for it.

I'm also a fan of solo artists. Those I got to know as members of a particular band, to those I got to know from Spotify's smart shuffle. Although Blackpink no longer sings as a group, I still enjoy solo songs from the members. I listen to Hwasa and Nayeon when I need confidence boosters. I listen to Yung Kai and Rosé when I'm in the mood for love songs.

I'm a lover of Korean songs, even though I have 0% understanding of what is being said most of the time. But does that actually matter? I doubt that. What matters is that it finds it's way to my soul, just the way music should.

This is my entry to the Korean Hive Village Contest for the week.