2007 Half Year Top 10 K-POP Songs

Jul 11, 2007

The first half of 2007 has just passed us. There are lots of happenings in k-pop in the past 6 months. As usual, I am compiling a list of 10 songs which scored the highest on our chart from January to June. I am sure a lot of you are waiting for this chart instead of our regularly weekly top 50. Before I listed the top 10, again I have to refresh our readers about the scoring methods of this half year ranking. Since our chart has expanded to 50 songs per week this year, I have to adjust the half year and full year scoring methods as well to better reflect which songs are more popular.

I summed the total scores of each song each week from January to June 2007, and adjusted them for 3 factors:

1. Position factor: To reward songs that rank higher in the chart, I assign a weight for each song each week. Even though we expanded to 50 songs, our focus are still on top 20 songs. As a result, songs from No. 1 to No. 20 will receive a considerably higher factor than songs from No. 21 to No. 50 each week, as follows:

1 – 1.000
2 – 0.965
3 – 0.930
4 – 0.895
5 – 0.860
6 – 0.825
7 – 0.790
8 – 0.755
9 – 0.720
10 – 0.685
11 – 0.650
12 – 0.615
13 – 0.580
14 – 0.545
15 – 0.510
16 – 0.475
17 – 0.440
18 – 0.405
19 – 0.370
20 – 0.335
21 – 0.300
22 – 0.290
23 – 0.280
24 – 0.270
25 – 0.260
26 – 0.250
27 – 0.240
28 – 0.230
29 – 0.220
30 – 0.210
31 – 0.200
32 – 0.190
33 – 0.180
34 – 0.170
35 – 0.160
36 – 0.150
37 – 0.140
38 – 0.130
39 – 0.120
40 – 0.110
41 – 0.100
42 – 0.090
43 – 0.080
44 – 0.070
45 – 0.060
46 – 0.050
47 – 0.040
48 – 0.030
49 – 0.020
50 – 0.010

2. Competitive factor: I summed up the scores of all 50 songs of each week, added up a grand total and divided by 26 (weeks from January to June) to arrive at an average weekly scores. The average is compared to the total weekly scores of the 26 weeks. The sum of each week's score is then divided by the average weekly score to arrive at a factor.
Weeks where the score is higher than the average is considered more competitive (factor > 1) than weeks where the score is lower than the average (factor < 1).

3. Seasonal factor: Traditionally, most big albums are released later in the year to have better chance for year end awards. Therefore, more recent songs carry a higher weight than songs from early in the year. I weighted this on a per month basis to apply to all songs appeared on the chart during that month:

January – 0.88
February – 0.90
March – 0.92
April – 0.94
May – 0.96
June – 0.98

Songs from July to December will have weights 1 or more, but it won't affect here.

The raw score of each song each week will be multiplied by these 3 factors to get an adjusted score for the week. Adding up all scores from each week will result in the songs’ total score in the first half of 2007. Keep in mind that songs that are popular just recently may not appear in the top 10 because it has not accumulated enough weeks and scores, but it may appear at the 2007 year end chart (which I'll list top 50 songs). Also, songs which ranked high but dropped off fast may not appear in the list as we tend to reward songs which stayed on the chart longer (that is a better prove of popularity).

I am sure you already get bored by reading these so I won't go any further. Here are the 10 songs which received the highest total adjusted scores in the first half of 2007. The result may come as a surprise to some of you but these are all very good songs.

1. Lee Ki Chan – 미인 (A Beauty) *** 2007 HALF YEAR NO. 1 SONG ***
Genre: Pop Ballad
Weeks in chart: 12
Highest position: 1
Watch the performance
Album: Lee Ki Chan Vol. 9 Track 4 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song of Lee Ki-chan's 9th album, "Para Ti," and was created by hit composer, Cho Young Soo, who has managed to gracefully mix Lee Ki-chan's trademark emotional voice with lyrical words. Through the language of lyrics, this piece communicates the sadness and pain of having to send off someone who wants to leave. The music video tells the story, in omnibus-drama fashion, of three people who have each experienced separation.

Music: Cho Young Soo / Lyrics: Ahn Young Min
Score: 7338

2. Tei – 같은 베개 (Same Pillow)
Genre: Pop Ballad
Weeks in chart: 12
Highest position: 2
Watch the performance
Album: Tei Vol. 4 Track 3 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song for Tei's fourth album, "Lover." The medium-tempo ballad boasts a flashy arrangement featuring string instruments. Tei's distinct vocals are wonderfully showcased and it's a song about the moments and memories shared with a lover. The music video stars Lee Wan and shows the actor's friendship with Tei.

Music: Hwang Se Joon / Lyrics: Cho Eun Hee
Score: 6802

3. ERU – 흰눈 (White Snow)
Genre: Pop Ballad
Weeks in chart: 11
Highest position: 1
Watch the performance
Album: ERU Vol. 2 Track 8 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: Included on Eru's second album. The richly emotional ballad was written by the artiste himself. The lyrics are about a man who misses his girl friend on a snowy day. The music video was shot in Sapporo, Japan.

Music: Lee Joo Ho / Lyrics: ERU
Score: 6801

4. Ivy (feat. Wheesung) – 유혹의 소나타 (Temptation of Sonata)
Genre: Pop/Dance
Weeks in chart: 10
Highest position: 1
Watch the performance
Album: Ivy Vol. 2 Track 2 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: Featured in Ivy's 2nd album, "A Sweet Moment," this track falls in the neo-classic-dance genre and uses a sampling from Beethoven's "Fur Elise." The piece wonderfully harmonizes a strong beat, melody and classical strings, reminding listeners of a musical. Ivy's unique and charming voice mixes well with Whee Sung's powerful rapping.

Music: Park Geun Tae, Kim Tae Hyun / Lyrics: Wheesung
Score: 6718

5. Park Hyo Shin – 추억은 사랑을 닮아 (Memories resemble love)
Genre: R&B Ballad
Weeks in chart: 10
Highest position: 2
Watch the performance
Album: Park Hyo Shin Vol. 5 Track 2 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: As the title song of Park Hyo-shin's 5th album, "The Breeze of Sea," the lyrical and lovely melody of this track enhances Park Hyo-shin's unique voice, which has become softer and more comfortable than in the past. The artist appears in his music video, which conveys the memories of a beautiful, albeit sad, love.

Music: Hwang Sung Je, Park Hyo Shin / Lyrics: Kim Tae Yoon, Park Hyo Shin
Score: 6312

6. Youn Ha – 비밀번호 486 (Secret Number 486)
Genre: Pop / Rock
Weeks in chart: 14
Highest position: 4
Watch the performance
Album: Yoon Ha Vol. 1 Track 3 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song for Yoon Ha's first album, "A Great Day to Confess," which is also the first official domestic album for this artiste, who made it into the Orikon Chart just 10 months after her Japan debut. "Secret Number 486" is a fresh song about love in the new generation and "486" is a code used by teens to mean, "I love you." Whee Sung wrote the lyrics for the piece.

Music: Hwang Chan Hee / Lyrics: Wheesung
Score: 6119

7. Chae Yeon – My Love
Genre: Pop / Dance
Weeks in chart: 12
Highest position: 3
Watch the performance
Album: Chae Yeon Vol. 4 Track 1 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song to Chae Yeon's 4th album. "My Love." The track showcases a prelude with a strong brass section, and a Latin-style theme layered atop a unique rhythm. The artiste's sexy voice melds well with the upbeat feel and intense beats. The addictive arrangement, with a club-like, dope feel, wonderfully rounds out and deepens the piece.

Music: Im Chang Jung / Lyrics: Kim Chang Hwan
Score: 6118

8. Epik High – Love Love Love
Genre: Hip-hop
Weeks in chart: 13
Highest position: 2
Watch the performance
Album: Epik High Vol. 4 Track 10 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: Featured in Epik High's 4th album, "Remapping the Human Soul," this musically sophisticated track features Casker's Yoong-jin, a master at electronic and lounge-style music. It's an electronica song that re-interprets love's typical and corny stories.

Music: Lee Sun Woong, Choi Jin / Lyrics: Lee Sun Woong
Score: 5842

9. Lexy – 하늘위로 (Up To The Sky)
Genre: Hip-hop
Weeks in chart: 8
Highest position: 1
Watch the performance
Album: Lexy Vol. 3 track 4 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song for Lexy's 3rd album, 'Rush,' and it's an appealing piece indeed, with Lexy's powerful rapping and YG-entertainment's newcomer Kim Ji Eun's mechanical vocal style. A fast and light-hearted melody melds charmingly with rapping to bring out Lexy's almost uni-sexual appeal. The strong beats, punctuated with electronic sounds and driven with speed, create a surreal effect.

Music: Perry,용감한형제 / Lyrics: Yang Hyun Suk
Score: 5682

10. MC The Max – 가슴아 그만해 (My Heart Cannot Go On Like This Any Longer)
Genre: Rock Ballad
Weeks in chart: 9
Highest position: 1
Watch the performance
Album: MC The Max Vol. 5 Track 3 – Listen here for 1 minute sample

Arirang TV: This is the title song to M.C The Max's 5th album, 'Returns.' With a lyrical melody and the deeply appealing voice of Lee Su, this track has become the representative M.C The Max ballad. The music video stars Yoon Kye-sang and Park Si-yeon as heartbroken lovers who have separated and includes a touching kiss scene.

Music: Shin In Soo / Lyrics: Yang Jae Sun
Score: 5365