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Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to celebrate the songs that, rather unfortunately, lost the 1st Round of the 2025 END OF YEAR SOTY TOURNAMENT, hosted by the lovely @velvet
Let us all take a moment to remember them for the joy they brought us all (or didn’t!):
iLy – Say My Name
Despite not voting for this song, I did discover that I enjoyed it! So yeah, I am rather sorry to see it lose, that too with such a large margin.
Back To Life - &Team
Did I vote for it? Yes. Will I return to it? Unlikely. But all my respect to the song, as it was &Team’s debut in Korea.
Duh! – P1Harmony
As @velvet said, RIP piwon indeed. I wasn’t expecting this to be any good because I haven’t enjoyed most of the P1Harmony songs I’ve heard earlier. But this was a pleasant surprise. In fact, I was surprised enough to vote for it! I knew it was going to lose, and I still love Golden. But good job P1Harmony for making a song I enjoy, didn’t know y’all had in in you.
Elevator – Baekhyun
I don’t like this song but I’m sure there’s people who like it who are mourning it dearly. All I can say is that I love Baekhyun’s voice, and I appreciate the song gave me an opportunity to hear it again.
Shoot (Firecracker) – Chaeyoung
I was kinda out of Kpop this year so most of the songs here are new to me – even if they’re by my faves. Shoot too was new to me, and upon hearing it I started (figuratively) kicking myself because it’s a really good song. Why didn’t I support Chaeyoung earlier? Anyway, really sorry to see it lose so early on.
We Go Up – Babymonster
This was up against the song I nominated (Iconik by ZB1) so who I voted for is really obvious. That said I appreciate just how upbeat We Go Up is. I don’t really enjoy listening to the studio version on my laptop so much, but I think it’d be fun live.
High Horse – NMIXX
This matchup was really close! Although I did choose Sign, High Horse was a great discovery for me. I loved its creativity, its moodiness, and ofc the drums. Sad to see it go :(
Yes! – HYO
I voted for this song, although it was incredibly close for me. As I said earlier, it took me straight to the club (where Hyoyeon’s DJing, maybe?), and I wouldn’t hate seeing more of that in my Kpop. Also I need to know who the backup dancer in the MV is, she slayed.
Beautiful Life – Xdinary Heroes
Ugh such a great song, such a shame it was up against another amazing song. Wouldn’t mind it at all if I had more of this style of music in my life. Maybe I just need to find more acts who regularly makes music like this – even better if they’re fully free from a kpop company’s shackles, can release the full-length versions of their songs (yes, Beautiful Life was initially longer!) and actually pose with their instruments for group pictures.
What It Sounds Like – HUNTR/X
Imagine a KDH song losing out in the first round. Mind-boggling, isn’t it? And here we are. I don’t like it much on its own, personally (though I’m pretty sure it works very well in the context of the movie, idk haven’t watched KDH yet), but I’m sure many around the world and on KPS have loved and appreciated it.
Love Language – TXT
Did I want to hear Tropical House in 2025? No. But did others? Yes. Which is why I’d heard snippets of the song on Instagram reels without even knowing it was TXT! Anyway, it’s upbeat, people liked it, and Soobin is attractive as ever.
Are You Alive – tripleS
A close match, and for good reason! Both songs in this match were nice imo, and I love just how anthemic Are You Alive’s chorus is. Sorry to see it go, even though I didn’t vote for it :(
VVV – The Boyz
Oh no I really liked this one :( It was a close call for me, but I chose VVV for its classic upbeat boy group sound. Anyway, as sad as I am to see it go, I am happy to see Rebel Heart progress. Younghoon is stupidly attractive, and Jusitice for Ju Haknyeon, forever and ever.
Re:set – Re:wind
Look, I know I stan the underscore queens, but what was the need for these colons?? Both in the group name and in the song name??? It’s all right though. This was a cute find, a straightforward upbeat pop song with a really nice chorus. Sad to see it go.
Summer Was You – H1-KEY
This match broke my heart ngl. While I chose Strategy, this was easily one of my favourite songs of this year. H1-KEY is a group that’s been close to my heart ever since Rose Blossom era, they always have great music (and I have a crush on Yel). I love any and all the iterations of the upbeat girl group pop-rock sound, right from SNSD’s Way To Go, to this excellence. I love you Summer Was You. I’m sorry for not voting for you. You, and H1-KEY, deserve the world.
Go – CORTIS
I’m not the biggest fan of CORTIS’s sound, but I understand why it would appeal to many (and it might even be something I’d enjoy in a live context). Losing to a bunch of animated demons singing the most vanilla bright boy group song ever is crazy work though, let’s all be real about that.
ICU – Xdinary Heroes
Allow me to wax poetic about ICU. I think XDH have found their vision. Great, rocking song with insane energy. Like I mentioned earlier, there’s that boyish brattiness I can sense in the song that wouldn’t be so out of place in a Block B song (am I the only one who sees it? This is one of the rock-leaning Block B numbers with the hip-hop sensibilities subbed out for even rockier sensibilities), and a balls-smacking guitar solo I need more of in my life. It's just plain unfortunate they had to go up against my ults. Anyway, I guess I need to keep an eye out for Xdinary Heroes from now on.
Tilt – Irene & Seulgi
I’m not a Reveluv, but I do have a special affection for Red Velvet as a group and wish nothing but the best for them. So, despite my not-entirely-positive feelings towards Tilt as a song, it does suck to see I&S lose so early on. Well, at least Sunkiss and Baby Not Baby are doing well so far!
Ceremony – Stray Kids
Nice to see Felix in a suit in the MV, he looks handsome.
Dirty Work – aespa
I earlier said I didn’t really like Dirty Work. That wasn’t entirely true – while think it just needs a bit more oomph to be a song I’d actually enjoy listening to, I like some elements of it. The instrumental textures were cool (plus the drums omg), the members look amazing and their vocal delivery is so good, they have me on my knees fr. Lord have mercy, I am but a simple little gay.
Closer – Somi
Ah, another one I’m bummed to see lose this early on, despite not voting for it. Closer, much like Yes by Hyoyeon, takes me straight to the club. I like the more electronic (?) direction Somi seems to be going in after Fast Forward (another song I quite liked), and if she’s going to be going on this direction for a good while, consider me tuned in.
FaSHioN – CORTIS
That one guy doesn’t look too bad eh? What’s his name? Yeah, James, he’s pretty handsome. Anyway yeah, like I said before, I’m not going to willingly listen to CORTIS any time soon, but if their music were to play at a party I’d probably bop along, and if I were to see them live I’d probably genuinely enjoy it, the guys seem charismatic.
Season of Memories – Gfriend
Oh :((( I voted for Season of Memories! Is it the best Gfriend song on the planet? No, but it was really nice, and I’m quite sad to see it not progress in the tournament, considering how lovely it was to see Gfriend all together, once again.
Spinnin’ On It - NMIXXX
This was so close for me omfg, I almost didn’t choose. Spinnin’ On It was a relatively newer discovery for me, compared to Baby Not Baby. I must commend how quickly it won me over, and convinced me to keep an eye out for future NMIXX releases. It’s such a great song, man.
Whee! - Xiumin
This kind of sound is nothing new in kpop, it’s been tackled many times over. But it’s a solid sound, and one that I personally greatly enjoy. Xiumin (well, his songwriters) knew better than to reinvent the wheel, they went ‘whee!’ into my heart by keeping it simple, hence I gave it my vote. Alas, I was in the minority. Sad to see both EXO members lose out so early on :(((
Plot Twist - AtHeart
THIS MATCH WAS SO CLOSE FOR ME I SWEAR – and similarly close for KPS in general, seeing as it ended in a tie (that I caused… by not voting for this song… my bad y’all). Sadly, an excellent song had to lose out so early. Just so you know, it could have gone either way for me. This is a great song y’all. It experiments, and more importantly, it gets those experiments *right* (something many experimental songs fail to do). It’s short, but it gets its point across, and creates a great listening experience. Elite song, man.
1&Only – XLOV
This is a nice song, very cool, and very vibey. I also am very fond of XLOV as a group, I think the way they present themselves is genuinely breaking boundaries in kpop (plus, I’ve followed Wumuti, Rui, and Haru from Boys Planet). This honestly might be one of my favourite XLOV songs now, along with Biii:-P. That said, I’m Indian. This year, an Indian song hopping onto the Afrobeats trend, ‘Shaky’ by Sanju Rathod, was a massive hit out here – and it showed me the small, but glaring fault I find in 1&Only – the song just floats along. ‘Shaky’ on the other hand changes things up every so often. The verses have different melodies, and Marathi folk music is blended into the song. Just shows that being derivative never was the problem in kpop, but being boring always is. Anyway y’all hope you give ‘Shaky’ a listen, it’s a great song imo.
---
Anyway thank you guys for reading this, and honouring the memories of the great music we lost along the way.
Gone from the Tournament, but not from our hearts </3
Let us all take a moment to remember them for the joy they brought us all (or didn’t!):
iLy – Say My Name
Despite not voting for this song, I did discover that I enjoyed it! So yeah, I am rather sorry to see it lose, that too with such a large margin.
Back To Life - &Team
Did I vote for it? Yes. Will I return to it? Unlikely. But all my respect to the song, as it was &Team’s debut in Korea.
Duh! – P1Harmony
As @velvet said, RIP piwon indeed. I wasn’t expecting this to be any good because I haven’t enjoyed most of the P1Harmony songs I’ve heard earlier. But this was a pleasant surprise. In fact, I was surprised enough to vote for it! I knew it was going to lose, and I still love Golden. But good job P1Harmony for making a song I enjoy, didn’t know y’all had in in you.
Elevator – Baekhyun
I don’t like this song but I’m sure there’s people who like it who are mourning it dearly. All I can say is that I love Baekhyun’s voice, and I appreciate the song gave me an opportunity to hear it again.
Shoot (Firecracker) – Chaeyoung
I was kinda out of Kpop this year so most of the songs here are new to me – even if they’re by my faves. Shoot too was new to me, and upon hearing it I started (figuratively) kicking myself because it’s a really good song. Why didn’t I support Chaeyoung earlier? Anyway, really sorry to see it lose so early on.
We Go Up – Babymonster
This was up against the song I nominated (Iconik by ZB1) so who I voted for is really obvious. That said I appreciate just how upbeat We Go Up is. I don’t really enjoy listening to the studio version on my laptop so much, but I think it’d be fun live.
High Horse – NMIXX
This matchup was really close! Although I did choose Sign, High Horse was a great discovery for me. I loved its creativity, its moodiness, and ofc the drums. Sad to see it go :(
Yes! – HYO
I voted for this song, although it was incredibly close for me. As I said earlier, it took me straight to the club (where Hyoyeon’s DJing, maybe?), and I wouldn’t hate seeing more of that in my Kpop. Also I need to know who the backup dancer in the MV is, she slayed.
Beautiful Life – Xdinary Heroes
Ugh such a great song, such a shame it was up against another amazing song. Wouldn’t mind it at all if I had more of this style of music in my life. Maybe I just need to find more acts who regularly makes music like this – even better if they’re fully free from a kpop company’s shackles, can release the full-length versions of their songs (yes, Beautiful Life was initially longer!) and actually pose with their instruments for group pictures.
What It Sounds Like – HUNTR/X
Imagine a KDH song losing out in the first round. Mind-boggling, isn’t it? And here we are. I don’t like it much on its own, personally (though I’m pretty sure it works very well in the context of the movie, idk haven’t watched KDH yet), but I’m sure many around the world and on KPS have loved and appreciated it.
Love Language – TXT
Did I want to hear Tropical House in 2025? No. But did others? Yes. Which is why I’d heard snippets of the song on Instagram reels without even knowing it was TXT! Anyway, it’s upbeat, people liked it, and Soobin is attractive as ever.
Are You Alive – tripleS
A close match, and for good reason! Both songs in this match were nice imo, and I love just how anthemic Are You Alive’s chorus is. Sorry to see it go, even though I didn’t vote for it :(
VVV – The Boyz
Oh no I really liked this one :( It was a close call for me, but I chose VVV for its classic upbeat boy group sound. Anyway, as sad as I am to see it go, I am happy to see Rebel Heart progress. Younghoon is stupidly attractive, and Jusitice for Ju Haknyeon, forever and ever.
Re:set – Re:wind
Look, I know I stan the underscore queens, but what was the need for these colons?? Both in the group name and in the song name??? It’s all right though. This was a cute find, a straightforward upbeat pop song with a really nice chorus. Sad to see it go.
Summer Was You – H1-KEY
This match broke my heart ngl. While I chose Strategy, this was easily one of my favourite songs of this year. H1-KEY is a group that’s been close to my heart ever since Rose Blossom era, they always have great music (and I have a crush on Yel). I love any and all the iterations of the upbeat girl group pop-rock sound, right from SNSD’s Way To Go, to this excellence. I love you Summer Was You. I’m sorry for not voting for you. You, and H1-KEY, deserve the world.
Go – CORTIS
I’m not the biggest fan of CORTIS’s sound, but I understand why it would appeal to many (and it might even be something I’d enjoy in a live context). Losing to a bunch of animated demons singing the most vanilla bright boy group song ever is crazy work though, let’s all be real about that.
ICU – Xdinary Heroes
Allow me to wax poetic about ICU. I think XDH have found their vision. Great, rocking song with insane energy. Like I mentioned earlier, there’s that boyish brattiness I can sense in the song that wouldn’t be so out of place in a Block B song (am I the only one who sees it? This is one of the rock-leaning Block B numbers with the hip-hop sensibilities subbed out for even rockier sensibilities), and a balls-smacking guitar solo I need more of in my life. It's just plain unfortunate they had to go up against my ults. Anyway, I guess I need to keep an eye out for Xdinary Heroes from now on.
Tilt – Irene & Seulgi
I’m not a Reveluv, but I do have a special affection for Red Velvet as a group and wish nothing but the best for them. So, despite my not-entirely-positive feelings towards Tilt as a song, it does suck to see I&S lose so early on. Well, at least Sunkiss and Baby Not Baby are doing well so far!
Ceremony – Stray Kids
Nice to see Felix in a suit in the MV, he looks handsome.
Dirty Work – aespa
I earlier said I didn’t really like Dirty Work. That wasn’t entirely true – while think it just needs a bit more oomph to be a song I’d actually enjoy listening to, I like some elements of it. The instrumental textures were cool (plus the drums omg), the members look amazing and their vocal delivery is so good, they have me on my knees fr. Lord have mercy, I am but a simple little gay.
Closer – Somi
Ah, another one I’m bummed to see lose this early on, despite not voting for it. Closer, much like Yes by Hyoyeon, takes me straight to the club. I like the more electronic (?) direction Somi seems to be going in after Fast Forward (another song I quite liked), and if she’s going to be going on this direction for a good while, consider me tuned in.
FaSHioN – CORTIS
That one guy doesn’t look too bad eh? What’s his name? Yeah, James, he’s pretty handsome. Anyway yeah, like I said before, I’m not going to willingly listen to CORTIS any time soon, but if their music were to play at a party I’d probably bop along, and if I were to see them live I’d probably genuinely enjoy it, the guys seem charismatic.
Season of Memories – Gfriend
Oh :((( I voted for Season of Memories! Is it the best Gfriend song on the planet? No, but it was really nice, and I’m quite sad to see it not progress in the tournament, considering how lovely it was to see Gfriend all together, once again.
Spinnin’ On It - NMIXXX
This was so close for me omfg, I almost didn’t choose. Spinnin’ On It was a relatively newer discovery for me, compared to Baby Not Baby. I must commend how quickly it won me over, and convinced me to keep an eye out for future NMIXX releases. It’s such a great song, man.
Whee! - Xiumin
This kind of sound is nothing new in kpop, it’s been tackled many times over. But it’s a solid sound, and one that I personally greatly enjoy. Xiumin (well, his songwriters) knew better than to reinvent the wheel, they went ‘whee!’ into my heart by keeping it simple, hence I gave it my vote. Alas, I was in the minority. Sad to see both EXO members lose out so early on :(((
Plot Twist - AtHeart
THIS MATCH WAS SO CLOSE FOR ME I SWEAR – and similarly close for KPS in general, seeing as it ended in a tie (that I caused… by not voting for this song… my bad y’all). Sadly, an excellent song had to lose out so early. Just so you know, it could have gone either way for me. This is a great song y’all. It experiments, and more importantly, it gets those experiments *right* (something many experimental songs fail to do). It’s short, but it gets its point across, and creates a great listening experience. Elite song, man.
1&Only – XLOV
This is a nice song, very cool, and very vibey. I also am very fond of XLOV as a group, I think the way they present themselves is genuinely breaking boundaries in kpop (plus, I’ve followed Wumuti, Rui, and Haru from Boys Planet). This honestly might be one of my favourite XLOV songs now, along with Biii:-P. That said, I’m Indian. This year, an Indian song hopping onto the Afrobeats trend, ‘Shaky’ by Sanju Rathod, was a massive hit out here – and it showed me the small, but glaring fault I find in 1&Only – the song just floats along. ‘Shaky’ on the other hand changes things up every so often. The verses have different melodies, and Marathi folk music is blended into the song. Just shows that being derivative never was the problem in kpop, but being boring always is. Anyway y’all hope you give ‘Shaky’ a listen, it’s a great song imo.
---
Anyway thank you guys for reading this, and honouring the memories of the great music we lost along the way.
Gone from the Tournament, but not from our hearts </3
![Have You Met? [centen]](https://kpopsource.com/data/medal/2616_1765485367m.jpg)
![Soobin [lexus]](https://kpopsource.com/data/medal/2599_1774929363m.jpg)
![WHOS [RandAlThor]](https://kpopsource.com/data/medal/1148_1589468878m.jpg)
![Xdinary Heroes [shinku]](https://kpopsource.com/data/medal/2287_1718413093m.jpg)
![Have You Met [ilychan]](https://kpopsource.com/data/medal/1940_1730823703m.jpg)