With half of the year wrapped up and the second half of the year kicking off, July has seen many groups look to build off a very successful start to 2023. The month has seen some of the best releases to date with a dedicated Best of the Rest short to follow and cover those great releases we aren’t able to cover right now.

1 – The Rose – Back To Me

After their incredible performance at BST Hyde Park at the start of the month The Rose surprised all Swiss Black Roses as they performed their then unreleased song “Back To Me” which would later be released at the end of the month.

The song comes after their world tour ‘HEAL Together’ which famously saw them perform in London on valentines day. The band have taken their new beginning under self-made label Windfall in stride with the tour named after their 2022 album HEAL.

“Back To Me” sees The Rose once again emotionally sing about past relationships with a heavier rock sound different to their softer sound that the band has seen success with in the past. The song the sees the group looking to experiment with an entirely different sound with incredible vocals once again by Woosung on the song’s chorus and first verses, it also makes the most out of member Dojoon whose rapping and vocal ability shines throughout the song in what is surely set to a new fan classic when performed live.

2 – FIFTY FIFTY Feat. Kalli – Barbie Dreams

One of the most surprising entry’s on the list and one that I didn’t think that I would be adding when I heard that FIFTY FIFTY would be added on the Barbie soundtrack it’s easy to think that any song apart from “Barbie girl” or being featured on a sound track alongside the likes of international superstars such as Sam Smith, Lizzo and Dua Lipa would be hard for any group to stand out in.

However, FIFTY FIFTY arguably made the greatest song of the Barbie soundtrack completely understanding the brief and what the film needs. The song has everything you expect when you think barbie. 

Sampling Janet Jackson’s “Together Again” the song starts with an addictive electronic sound before starting out with the chorus before going into a speed up rap style verse the song benefits from its perfect lyrics which greatly explains the barbie world with relatable words that even non barbie songs can relate to its great mixture of rap and singing alongside Kaliii is almost a reason in itself to watch the film.

3 – J’Kyun – Trigger 

A legend now in at number 3 in this list its been now 18 years since Korean rapper J’kyun made his debut on the South Korean Hip-hop and RnB scene becoming a staple of the scene he has appeared on 4 separate seasons of Show Me The Money first on the shows season and even appearing on the shows 11th season last year. The rapper has even his own alter ego Cox Billy a masked rapper who famously made an appearance on show me the money 8 and later the show’s 9th season also.

Now back as J’kyun again and with his third comeback of 2023 J’Kyun takes a different approach to fast paced engineered track and instead opting for a more rock RnB style with a electronic bass as the rapper shows off his power and adaptability as the second generation continues to make his name known in the Korean music industry.

If you are looking for a powerful, easy to listen rap then this is the one for you.

4 – TXT, Jonas Brothers – Do It Like That 

One of the biggest news of 2023 was when it was first rumoured and later confirmed that BigHit giants TXT would be joining forces with disney channel and American super boy band Jonas Brothers. In arguably their release since coming back after a 6 year split from 2013-2019 this release was perfect for both young and old K-pop fans who remember the old camp rock days of the Jonas Brothers.

The release is a big release for TXT as it not only comes as one of their first collaborations outside of Asia. The track comes as one of their first-ever full English tracks as they continue to look to shine for BigHit with BTS now enlisting.

“Do It Like That” sees TXT change style completely to a dreamy pop song in what is possibly their catchiest style of song to date the song has everything from TXT’s beautiful vocals and rapping you can just sound how happy the group are and their energy is matched by Jonas Brothers as the two perfectly compliment each other in what will surely end up being the collaboration of the year.

5 – IVE – I Want

IVE and NewJeans have always been compared to each other and rightfully so, debuting a year apart both girl groups have quickly become two of K-pop’s biggest idols of the new fifth generation hugely successful on social media and with great discography.

However, the similarities don’t end there as just a few months after releasing “Zero” a song in partnership with global soft drink giants Coke. Starship have themselves gone and partnered with the company’s biggest rivals Pepsi with IVE being given the task of bettering NewJeans’ song released back in April and that’s exactly what “I Want” does.

More of a promotional song NewJeans reference Coke a lot during their song doing a perfect job at promoting the drink and letting their audience know what the purpose of the song is. However, in comparison “I Want” feels different listening on Spotify or without the music video you could easily not recognise the fact that it is indeed a partnership with Pepsi and is in fact just another great song in the discography of K-pop’s biggest talents.

The song is much like IVE’s other discography a perfect mid-tempo beat with a great drop for the chorus it reminds me a little of after like with the chorus and is definitely one of my songs of the summer and just shows another incredible aspect of them with each member getting equal lines and time to shine in what is looking to be the second instalment of the cola wars.

Do you agree with our list? What are your favourite k-pop songs of July? Let us know in the comments or over on social media on either Twitter or Instagram.