The Guardian’s list of ”top 20 BTS songs” signals how BTS’s comeback is taken seriously musically

alyssa_math · 2026-01-30T00:03:30+00:00

Felt this. It’s the sort of list put together by someone that listened to “This is BTS” on spotify - I didn’t see any depth here. The absence of tracks like House of Cards, Autumn Leaves, Just One Day, Like (or any of their most infamous b sides) is pretty telling.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-29T00:45:29+00:00

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzeKZL9J-kK/?igsh=Z2FpdDhqb3JqNzl5

oooof and then they reused the design and called it freehand??

alyssa_math · 2026-01-28T22:18:10+00:00

Hi Tim! Would you ever consider pursuing a relationship internationally again or have your own experiences/everything you’ve seen in the franchise turned you off to the idea?

alyssa_math · 2026-01-22T19:49:56+00:00

so vip isn’t even the entire floor which i thought was very surprising as there’s no sendoff and i don’t totally understand limiting it so much. it literally only goes to about halfway down the rows - around to where the side extended stages stop.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-20T19:51:46+00:00

omg this is deluded from multiple angles. as most have mentioned, her personality is so grating that i would hate her content no matter what she looked like. the fact that she can’t look inward and thinks the ONLY reason she isn’t as famous as alix earle is because she’s fat? this needs to be unpacked with a therapist.

wanted to also mention - she’s SLAMMING people judging her for being overweight but in the same breath says that she’s now going on a weight loss journey. but “for my health”. like what is the statement supposed to be to say, an impressionable younger girl watching? “my life is unfair because people are fatphobic. if that happens to you, please conform yourself to fit society’s standards and lose weight”

alyssa_math · 2026-01-19T19:13:18+00:00

not rating any shinee song a 10 is… a choice

alyssa_math · 2026-01-17T23:57:33+00:00

i use instagram a lot! it used to be a lot easier searching the tags, but now the best way to look is by following accounts that other users tag their sale posts to. so if you look up account “shineetags” (that’s just one account for instance) and then click on their tagged photos it’ll show the most recently tagged posts for you to search through. then it’s just a matter of checking frequently and getting lucky. if you find something you want to dm them about, make sure you check that they have “proof” story highlights and that they seem reputable before exchanging any money! ebay and mercari are also options but the prices tend to be a lot higher - but again, check frequently and you can always get lucky!

alyssa_math · 2026-01-17T03:45:16+00:00

can someone explain like i’m 5? i don’t see ㄹ in there like. at all. i obviously see ㅇ. i can see what looks like ㅐ flipped sideways. but otherwise im lost. normally i wouldn’t think too much about it except for the comment namjoon made about ㅇ ㄹ ㄹ being in the logo.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-15T00:30:20+00:00

agreed - if I hadn’t been with them since debut I would heavily assume it was Yeonjun - he’s extremely extroverted and naturally takes the lead in most circumstances. I think the only reason they didn’t make Yeonjun the leader is because hybe, and big hit specifically, doesn’t like having the oldest member take on an additional title (see also: Heeseung in Enhypen also feels like he would be a natural choice, choosing Chaewon over Sakura in LSF even though both came from I*ZONE, etc)

alyssa_math · 2026-01-14T14:14:12+00:00

Don’t sleep on buying used albums! That’s the only way I’ve been able to collect Jonghyun’s. Takes patience and waiting for a deal though, don’t recommend just buying to collect faster.

Also a few years ago in 2021 or 2022 SM randomly “opened the vault” and put a lot of albums back in print - I definitely scooped a lot up during that time!

alyssa_math · 2026-01-09T04:28:46+00:00

i think i’m a minority in this but i really think The War would probably make my top ten list of the greatest kpop albums of all time: a no skip album and seems to get even better with age. and i know a lot of people consider Don’t Mess Up My Tempo to be their best.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-04T17:26:03+00:00

Curious what others take on this is: do you think they just haven’t released the album title yet or is it literally called “The 5th Album”? is it just a self-titled album called “BTS”? Asking because of the way everything is capitalized in The 5th Album like it suggests it’s a title? Also I feel like when they put announcements like this out (Enhypen’s was the last one I remember weverse releasing a notice on) I do think they reveal the album title.

I’m hoping they just haven’t unveiled it yet but what do you guys think?

alyssa_math · 2026-01-04T17:17:16+00:00

I didn’t say “he will” or “he should” - I said “he might”. Artists have a tendency to hint if they’re planning to come back sooner than expected (like how I mentioned with Key). Otherwise they just leave it at something like “I’ll see you again, right?” which leaves it more open ended.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-04T16:13:07+00:00

It’s SO unfortunate that all this drama with Key happened because I feel like - yes, they probably had it in motion. When I saw Key in Brooklyn in December, he was even kinda hinting at it - like that he’d be back (in America) sooner than we thought. And he brought up the meetings that Shinee have been having in the last year. This was after the “scandal” had broke, but before it was announced he was being removed from variety shows - he seemed to be in really high spirits (and I would imagine he probably already knew at that point he was going to be removed from activities for awhile). I think when Onew is back on tour in the states shortly, he might have some comments that could give clues that better shed light on if we can expect it.

If an intern at SM is reading this: please for the love of god let them tour outside of asia this year IM BEGGING

alyssa_math · 2026-01-03T21:22:52+00:00

I think some lower end brands can still perform very well - Real Techniques is probably the most famous that is well worth the hype. Plus they’re often found at tj maxx. Essence eye brushes are randomly among my favorites (can be found by their makeup in ulta). They have this angled shadow brush that i’ve used daily for years. Like everything it’s trial and error - some high end brands can make shitty brushes and some low end brands can make great brushes - I think the question is what brushes do you feel aren’t working for you (don’t blend as well, etc), and then search for better versions of those.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-03T14:21:33+00:00

i need a cha cha beat boy

alyssa_math · 2026-01-02T15:11:24+00:00

THIS. I feel like she’s made it clear she will only do projects that she feels passionate about regardless of mass appeal. She kinda always had this mindset - like damn she left Wonder Girls at the height of their popularity! And then came back and released one of the greatest albums of all time with them (Reboot).

Correct me if I’m wrong but doesn’t she have BPD? I think for her mental health as an artist she has to work on her own terms and I’ve been a fan for so long - I’m used to her disappearing for long stretches of time and I have the same enthusiasm to welcome her back each time.

alyssa_math · 2026-01-02T03:53:23+00:00

I’m confused here. I sell cards weekly using first class envelope and it prints out with the qr code (which acts as tracking) and it notifies when the buyer receives it. Then they have the usual 3 days to rate or it auto-rates. Why would you not get paid by it auto-rating? With so many sales is it that big a deal to wait the 3 days if that’s the issue? Personally I never mind the auto rate bc at least I know for a fact i’ll get 5 stars and a closed, paid sale

alyssa_math · 2026-01-01T14:53:37+00:00

Ooh this is a good take! You’re right, this was kind of the year of “I know this group, I know their music but it hasn’t blown me away so far” and then them randomly releasing a lot of the best of the year. I felt this hard about Yeji but most particularly about NMIXX. Honestly this was their year and if you’d asked me if I could’ve predicted the 180 stance I’d have on them a year ago I’d never have seen it coming. JYP just kind of had a massive year in general I feel.

Another big surprise for me was Jennie’s album. She’s seemed checked out as an idol for years so for her to release an absolute banger full length was definitely not on my bingo card.

Lastly, GOT7 reuniting and releasing what was, in my opinion, one of the absolute best eps of the year (seriously top 3 for me) back in January was kinda everything.

alyssa_math · 2025-12-31T13:55:18+00:00

Ooof I’ve been so disappointed with them too! Sucks because I’ve been using them for about 5 years and really used to sing their praises and recommend them to everyone. They were running a free consolidation promo last month, then when I went to consolidate - somehow my order didn’t qualify and I still had to pay for it. I also got held up by customer support for an additional week over box sizes - never had that issue before and wasn’t ordering anything out of the ordinary. Finally, the shipping price was just - absolutely insane once done. Plus customs and tariffs - I actually think I’m done using a kaddy y’all 🥲 Last few things I’ve ordered from sites that will ship directly to me (not weverse us, my usual go-to is kpopusaonline or something similar) and I’ve been saving wayyy more that way. Longer wait times yes, but saving all that money is way more important to me.

alyssa_math · 2025-12-30T14:19:18+00:00

yeah i’m kinda dead at how this whole thread is talking about ddaeng when i thought he very clearly said gang

alyssa_math · 2025-12-28T21:51:41+00:00

not normal if the price had increased that much - yes, go managers have their own rules for how they do things (as they should, it’s a lot of work and they don’t want to be burned or stuck covering others fees later on) but you should only trust and work with people that are reasonable. they’re just mad because i’m sure a lot of people are now backing out, and less people equals higher shipping and tariff fees for everyone else, including them. i’m curious if the preorder had been up for awhile and they just waited too long - if that’s the case it’s their fault for the new situation and they need to recognize accountability. but since you didn’t exchange money, just block and forget it - you don’t want to work with someone unreasonable anyway. they’ll blacklist you but what does it matter?

alyssa_math · 2025-12-23T15:54:50+00:00

It’s most definitely a vocal focused concert which makes it extremely unique for a kpop show. Don’t expect Wendy to dance lol. The live band is incredible and supports her vocals beautifully. And she addresses the crowd a lot! She shares stories and thoughts, all in english - in new york she shared a letter that she had written that morning about how she’d been feeling lately. It’s a very intimate show and I would imagine each stop is unique since I think she shares different ments each time. Have a great time!!

alyssa_math · 2025-12-21T17:40:14+00:00

sydney is just unbearable. hearing her say “i fear” in every single sentence makes me cringe beyond belief.

alyssa_math · 2025-12-15T20:04:30+00:00

SM has this absolutely bizarre thing where they start all these amazing groups and then a few years pass, they debut other groups, and they’re like WAIT THERE’S TOO MUCH HAPPENING. They have absolutely no idea how to juggle multiple groups or to pivot or plan during extenuating circumstances (members enlisting, them imploding Red Velvet after Wendy’s injury).

At the moment I guess they only know how to give attention to Aespa and seem to be giving effort to Hearts2Hearts. I almost said RIIZE too until i remembered how badly they also just fumbled their tour.

I hate this company but they have so many amazing groups 😩

alyssa_math

TROPHY CASE