An only kinda happy one…
[Video]
[4.17]
Mo Kim: If anybody in the K-pop has earned the right to a little bravado, it’s Somi, who after several cycles through a revolving door of reality shows and project groups has finally landed in a permanently viable position. (At least if we overlook YG’s past track record with female artists.) The charisma and personality she possesses as a performer, however, is but a layer of icing camouflaging a tragically undercooked composition: try as she might (and she gets close!) nobody could sell the wafer-thin melodies, the sub-Trainor rap verses, or the hook’s rancid brattitude. “Oops, you’re not invited,” Somi sneers, at a party that went sour before the first candle was lit; here’s hoping she graduates from Kidz Bop sass soon and onto a single that’ll invite her to better showcase her talents.
[4]
Joshua Minsoo Kim: There are moments when one can hear the Blackpink comparisons in Somi’s voice (that snide “Uhh,” for one), but a stronger command of the English language and a more teen-friendly aesthetic make for a “girl crush” song that bears far more resemblance to Cher Lloyd than 2NE1. While this decade has countless examples of YG songs with middling drops-as-choruses, “Birthday” is one of a handful that executes it flawlessly. The secret is in the drop’s function as a building block and not a terminal passage or hollow expression of bratty confidence; the snark of the lyrics is instead fully realized in a chromatic vocal run during its first half. The TNGHT horns fill out the sound as the synths move up an octave, allowing for a smooth transition into a bridge that finds Somi singing in a higher register. And just like the final section of “Whistle,” “Birthday” culminates in a final passage that combines those elements so naturally that any inclinations that this genre blending was untenable is blown to bits. When those horns first hit before the final chorus, it feels like an actual celebration; it’s the exact moment when Somi stops telling you about how great she is, and makes you feel it.
[7]
Alfred Soto: I believe it’s her birthday — this Miley/Avril hybrid snaps and crackles without popping, as if she had an expectation she might cry if she wants to.
[7]
Alex Clifton: A bit like being stuck inside a piece of Funfetti cake. I thought this would annoy me by getting brighter and sweeter, but what did me in is the breakdown after the chorus–it sounds empty and serves no purpose. Somi delivers the line “oops, you’re not invited” with the bravado of a My Super Sweet Sixteen kiddo, but overall I feel like I missed a party, and a pretty mediocre one at that too.
[4]
Iris Xie: Those “ah ah”s in the beginning are the sound of fingernails scratching against a chalkboard. Too bad they’re bested by that awful Jennie-lite rap and verses that are a Frankenstein of four different TWICE songs. You, our dear reader, if you have not had “Birthday” inflicted on you yet, are much better off fleeing when this song comes up in your Spotify and Youtube suggestions. But I can understand why this dumpster fire of a song was released.
[0]
Jessica Doyle: Somi should be easy to root for: she’s very charming, and if we’re going to get to a future where idols have some kind of employee rights before struggling through a seven-year contract and winning the public-approval lottery, then we need more moves like her JYP-to-YG’s-Black-Label jump. The problem is, her debut song is charmless. It’s easy to pick on Teddy and his worn-out drops (we even pick on Teddy and his worn-out drops when the worn-out drop wasn’t Teddy’s!) but that “Oops, you’re not invited” smug nonsense makes a bad situation worse. It doesn’t ring true for a debuting singer who’s already seen some of her I.O.I. bandmates done dirty; it doesn’t ring true in the context of an actual birthday party, where the more is often the merrier; it doesn’t ring true to the best part of the song (“Well, alright alright alright alright / nan hu hago bulkke, can you blow my mind?”). It does make sense in the context of YG showing off a victory over a business rival. I hope Somi’s getting the respect there she wants (and deserves), but if she’s not it wouldn’t be the first time her parent company reduced women to bartering chips.
[3]