My friends!

It’s officially EOY season, which is when we look back on our drama years, and decide which dramas were worthy of our love, and which dramas we maybe shouldn’t have spent as much time on, as we did. 😁

As before, we’ll be seeing up to 2 guest posts per week, and this will unfold into January 2025, and my annual year-in-review will come out in early 2025, after all the guest posts have been published.

This way, by putting all our experiences together, we get a more wholistic view of Dramaland in 2024. Pretty great, yes? 🤩

If you missed our first post, you can check it out here: Sean.

Today, I’m pleased to announce that JJ and Deni are coming together to share their drama years – specifically in the area of music!

As you’ll see very shortly, music is a deep passion that they share, and their excitement for all things music, really comes through in this combined post.

I hope you guys enjoy!

~ KFG ❤️

DENI & JJ’S POST

JJ: Hey Everyone! Deni had a great idea and asked if we could do a joint post about Korean OSTs and Korean music instead of doing an EOY!

Basically bringing our conversations from the Patreon Water Cooler onto the main blog because as everyone knows, Deni and I cannot get enough talking about our love for Korean music!!! ❤️🥰❤️🥰❤️🥰❤️🥰

So here we are to regale you with our musical journey into K-Pop, K-Indie, K-OSTs and some of our faves from 2024 ❤️🎶 ❤️ Keep reading until the end or skip to the end whatever works best for you because we have a few surprises at the end for everyone.

SQUEAL!🤭 So excited ❤️  

Let’s get going 🎶🎶🎶

Deni’s Reading Note: YouTube links will play as you read, Spotify links will take you to Spotify to listen. A few playlists are also included which can be saved into your own Spotify libraries because you definitely need more songs in your library.

Patreon Note: Patreon is the membership side of what you see here.

There are three sections for discussion (and so much more): Deep Dive, Spoiler Free, and Water Cooler.

Water Cooler is a catch all for everything from Korean food to Korean News (martial law, what the heck?) to Korean Music as well as a smattering of Singapore culture and well anything anyone wants to discuss like best Sci-Fi books.

MINI INTRODUCTION

JJ: KFG asked us to introduce ourselves, so I’ll keep mine short since I did that with my first post way back when and here it is (shameless plug) if you want to know more about the K-Dramas that I love and adore.

Most of my first well loved dramas in the link below make their appearances here in this post as well because that first K-Love tends to stick with you doesn’t it? ❤️🥰

In short though, I went down the K-Drama Rabbit hole back in December 2020 and never have looked back.

I sat down for 1 K-Drama on Netflix, Bride of Habek, and 8 K-Dramas later I came up for air and dove back in again and here we are today over 300 Dramas later and countless (about 150, but I’m not counting, really🫣) OSTs.❤️🥰

Deni:  See below because who I am is really part of how I got into Korean music.

I will add that I am retired so I have time to let the Korean Hallyu take over my life. Friends and family think I am crazy, but it has given retirement so much joy.

Also, my husband is my partner in watching and listening. While our music tastes diverge some, in general, we are walking on the same road hand-in-hand.

After decades of marriage, finding Korean Hallyu has added some extra spice from language (so hard) to music to culture to history. Do not underestimate my love of Korean music which has wormed its way into my soul.

JJ & Deni: A HUGE Thank you once again to KFG for letting us put our words on her blog all these years ❤️❤️❤️❤️

KFG has built such a beautiful kind community giving us all the much needed space to discuss K-Dramas, C-Dramas, J-Doramas, Thai-Dramas, and so many more.

KFG, thank you for all your time, care and commitment to us here and on Patreon 🥰 Forever Grateful ❤️❤️❤️❤️

JOURNEY INTO KOREAN MUSIC

JJ:  Let’s see…how did I get into Korean music? Most definitely that started with K-Dramas. In all my early notes, I have notations about the music which still continues to this day. Bride of Habaek notes reads as – “*Love the Soundtrack”. ❤️

TKEM (The King:Eternal Monarch. Yes, Sean 😝) notes reads as – “ *Amazing Soundtrack. Love”. ❤️

Then, I don’t mention anything about soundtracks until I get to StartUp which was my 13th K-Drama and I noted – “*Great Soundtrack!” ❤️

As you can see I am quite verbose and detailed when discussing OSTs 😂

Music has always been noticed first by me in my watches 🎶❤️ 🎶❤️

Especially with the Introduction. If the opening music is awesome, I tend to have a good watch.

As with everything, we do have some exceptions to the rules, looking at you Hospital Playlist  🫣😳 Still love ya though even if your OST did not work for me, sadly 😭🥰

I even sit through most introductions, if I like the music even in 40 episode Cdramas!

Couldn’t get enough of Charlie Zhou Shen’s song from the Cdrama, The Bond ❤️ ( Hi Bestie!!!)  Spoilers in MV link !!!

Or more recently (this one is for you Kate 😂) the Cdrama Meet Yourself

However, one very notable intro music that I love so very much is Like Flowers in Sand 🎶❤️ The opening visual montage and music is just beyond perfect and I watched the intro every time and sometimes rewound the montage so I could watch again.  🎶❤️

As usual, I am digressing and am getting off track with my writing! Sorry, Deni! Here I come to turn things over to you. YAY!

Well, in a second.

Hang tight everyone.

🤭🫣😳❤️🥰🤣😇

I did some quick numbers (for all you numbers people, Sean because its really a competition 🤣) on all the OSTs I have downloaded.

And let me tell y’all something. I never and I mean NEVER downloaded music all these years. I still had cassettes and my Walkman AND CD’s with my CD player and CD radio player combo. And certainly, did not listen to music on YouTube. 

Well, all that changed with Kdramas OSTs. Here is my quick tally which could be more inaccurate than accurate (+/- 5 possibly +/-10)

OST Downloads and K-Pop
2021 – 29 Total Albums – Mix of OSTs and K-Pop
2022 – 3 Total Albums all K-Pop (Huh? What happened here 😳)
2023 – Over 70, I stopped counting at 70….
2024 – 53ish and counting…

Never enough time for music 😞

I heard recently a quote shared by the very prolific American Film/TV Composer John Williams (think movie soundtracks from E.T., Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jaws to name a few) during his recently released documentary “ Music by John Williams” that sums up probably everyone’s feelings who love music –

“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.” 

Rachmaninov 😭🎶❤️

*SIGH*

Before I go, I have to say 2024 has been a GAME CHANGER with OSTs and K-Music because in walks Deni into KFG’s Patreon Community and into my life and I’ll happily never be the same with Drama OSTs and K-Music. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

After months and months of putting Deni off of listening on Spotify, I finally joined! We have been non stop sharing music and playlists galore and then some. Thanks, Deni  ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Deni: We (my husband and I) started watching K-dramas in September 2022 with Extraordinary Attorney Woo.

We are now 119 dramas/movies into our journey.

Early on we noticed the music was an integral part of each drama.

The music is not a compilation of songs selected from some large database but rather is almost entirely custom composed for each drama, hours and hours of music for EACH drama!

The music is as important to a drama as any other facet.

A good OST can save a drama (Cinderella at 2AM). A bad one can have you covering your ears (Bashing Something in the Rain, again).

But oh how do you listen to the music when the drama is over? We had to join the world of music streaming. We were very very late. Blame it on living rural and never having decent internet….

Now that I have time to actually listen with intention versus music as background, I have found K-dramas OSTs to be an easy doorway to walk through.

It’s a pathway to explore music with direction and intent versus wallowing around in the big world of music. 

OSTs have so much variation that it’s hard to ever get bored. By nature, I am prone to curiosity and deep dives into anything of interest. Korean OSTs have been no different.

I research songs, artists, music directors and slowly have built up a massive library and have begun to scratch the surface of the Korean music scene.

I do outside chores with headphones on, listen on our great stereo system, stream it on our car stereo, stick headphones in my travel bag for those long flights….it has taken over my life.

Based on my Patreon membership and subsequent discussions over on Water Cooler, I have also begun to explore the K-Pop scene (thanks JJ, Trent, Elaine).

It’s not my lane, but there is much to love about the hardworking talented artists occupying the heart of Hallyu wave (Hello BTS, IU, Stray Kids, Minho, D.O).

I requested recommendations from the Patreon community shortly after joining and six months later I have my own K-Pop playlist including many of the tracks recommended as well as VIP tickets to a K-Pop concert in 2025! 

It’s not a competition so JJ says….. (JJ:🤭 😂) I have 114 OSTs in my library in just over two years, I follow over 100 artists on Spotify. Spotify won’t tell me how many songs are in my library but I haven’t hit the limit yet of 10,000. Phew.

To give you an indication of my obsession (let us call it what it is), I listened to 143,210 minutes (6.5 hours/day to save you the math which  puts me in the .5% of listeners), listened for 18 hours straight (a very long travel day) and to 5,477 songs.

My Spotify wrap also notified me that in November, my taste changed from Korean Indie and OSTs to K-Pop. That is entirely JJ’s doing. Well played JJ (pun intended).

My Instagram is so full of Korean artists and cultural accounts that I am now getting posts from Healthcare.gov in Korean.  🤣

My true love is the K-Indie scene which I continue to explore.

OSTs have been a great jumping off point as many music directors feature lesser known artists as well the standard K-Pop fare.

I discover new artists via K-Indie music labels, OSTs and Spotify. I eventually curated an K-Indie playlist for fellow music lovers on Patreon but it is mostly a road that I walk alone. It’s below for anyone interested in checking it out.

Deni’s K-Indie Playlist

I will add that finding JJ as well as other Patreon members was a game changer for me too. 

I had been feeling isolated in my love for all things Korean. To find fellow enthusiasts AND music nerds gave me a home I didn’t know I needed. {Awwww, Deni🎶❤️🥰}

APPROACH TO KOREAN OSTS

JJ: Mine is simple. If the music grabs me emotionally, I am off to find the OST to download to give the OST a once-through listen.

I rate the songs as I go and sometimes I give them only a 30 second chance. Whereas I have a patience for a 40 episode Cdrama, my patience for a song that does not work for me is only 30 seconds sometimes only 5 seconds if the opening chord strikes me wrong 🫣

Deni: Mostly, I download OSTs for almost all dramas we watch unless it’s obviously boring-Seoul Busters comes to mind, or terrible-Something in the Rain (I will restrain from adding more).

I then listen to the entire OST several times and any compelling songs are added to various playlists.

There are a handful that we love in their entirety like Familiar Wife, Jirisan, Destined with You, Cinderella at 2AM, A Piece of Your Mind, Bride of Habaek, Encounter….

MOST COMPELLING OST 2024

THE ATYPICAL FAMILY

Deni: JJ and I completely agree on this. While there are plenty of OSTs to discuss, we both found this OST to fit the drama like a glove with no wiggle room for consideration. 

It was compelling from the vocals to the instrumentals.  It reflects the unexpectedness, quirkiness, off- beat, and surprising moments all in song. It’s quite an accomplishment. 

We consider ourselves OST aficionados and I can’t remember a drama where we said over and over-whoa, what a perfect piece of music for that moment. Sometimes we would even rewind to listen to the music and the moment again.

Wondering what a typical deep dive means at our house? Wonder no more.

We loved that the music director, Jung Jae Hyung, sought out not the younger voices from K-pop bands or the K-Indie scene (yes, MD Nam Hye Seung I am talking about you) but reached into the depths of the experienced mature Korean singers and chose Lee So Ra and Yi Sung Yol. 

Lee So Ra is a well-loved balladeer who won the Korean Music Award for Best Female Vocal in 2005. She also appeared on Jirisan and Encounter.

Yi Sung Yol debuted in 1994 as part of the pioneering Korean modern rock duo, U & Me Blue.

A New York City native, Yi Sung Yol, soared as a solo artist making his mark as one of Korea’s top modern rock icons winning ‘Musician of the Year’ and ‘Modern Rock Song of the Year’ accolades at the 2008 Korean Music Awards and ‘Modern Rock Album of the Year’ and  ‘Modern Rock Song of the Year’ at the 2012 Korean Music Awards.

He has made appearances on several OSTs before including Jirisan, My Lovely Sam Soon, Chief Detective 1958.

The song sung by Lee So Ra I See You completely got under our skin. It was also key to our understanding of the drama.

We were so taken by the OST that we listened to it quite a few times during the day during our watch. My husband asked what 비처럼 (bicheoreom) meant since it’s used a lot in the song’s lyrics and Netflix doesn’t provide lyric translations (shame shame).

It means “like rain”. The first lines are loosely translated as

“Like rain, calling out love, like spring rain

You, like rain, seeping into the wind like warmth.”

Our interpretation is that during the early episodes it was like being outside in a light rain and just getting a bit damp and then running for cover. No problem. Just a little wet here and there.

But after many trips out into the mist, you find yourself soaked to the bone when it was just a light rain. The rest of the song lyrics echo this sentiment. 

The song, so superbly written by Jung Jae Hyung, is the entire drama in song.

It tells how their love will grow slowly until they have gathered each other into their hearts.

Because we knew this about the song going into the last half, it all made more sense. Their love wasn’t a leap. Once they were soaked, there wasn’t anything left but to jump into the thunderstorm. 

Atypical Family Song –  I See You

Atypical Family Song –  I See You with Lyrics

Lyrics as translated by Papago for a basic understanding but translation is also consistent with everything I can find from various online lyric sites.

Like rain, calling out love, like spring rain

You, like rain, seeping into the wind like warmth

Unable to express everything, so many words, choked up

 

Like rain, dividing time, that rain-like

You, like rain, the more I see you, like a longing gaze

Shyly holding hands, leading me by holding hands

 

You’re there, watching me, in that somewhat unfamiliar distance

Hoping for a slight pull, somehow it feels good

You’re there, watching me, smiling, promising not to change

Gathering my heart as if embraced in my own arms

Gathering prayers

 

Like rain, dividing time, that rain-like

You, like rain, the more I see you, like a longing gaze

Shyly holding hands, leading me by holding hands

 

You’re there, watching me, in that somewhat unfamiliar distance

Hoping for a slight pull, somehow it feels good

You’re there, watching me, smiling, promising not to change

Gathering my heart as if embraced in my own arms

Gathering prayers

JJ: Ohhhh, I just love what Deni has to say about Atypical Family 🤩🥰🥰🎶❤️

The only thing I will add is that Jung Jae Hyung has been around for a very long time in the industry. He is known by many and has his own YouTube Channel where he interviews lots of Actors and Idols and Singers while he cooks for them.

Do check out his channel when you get a chance ❤️

FAVORITE INSTRUMENTALS FOR 2024

Deni: We love the instrumentals of our K-Dramas. My husband is the instrumental aficionado in our house. I have created a playlist of all his favorite selections. Don’t ask how long it is.

Deni’s Husband’s Spotify OST Instrumental Playlist

The one that stuck with us the most from 2024 was Like Flowers in Sand.

However the instrumentals are not available anywhere for downloading or streaming. We have been robbed of listening to some lovely guitar work.

One little side story here since we are already being very verbose.

As we watched this, I recognized a voice for one of the songs. First words and I am like I know that singer. I was so proud. O.When. I knew that voice. I mean I really know that voice.

To recognize a voice is an accomplishment for me. I have no musical talent, no musical ear, can’t carry a tune in a bucket or elsewhere, can’t play any instrument….

My Most Beautiful Day – O.When

But choosing one drama where the instrumentals spoke to us was almost impossible. 2024 runner’s up are instrumentals from Destined with You, Cinderella at 2AM, The Atypical Family, and Serendipity’s Embrace to mention the ones currently on replay.

Destined with You Full OST including Instrumentals – Spotify

Cinderella 2AM – Full OST including Instrumentals (Deni’s Husband Favorite)

JJ: ROBBED! TOTALLY ROBBED 😭 It’s such a great sadness the powers that be have denied us the full OST which has not been released as far as we can tell 😭😭😭😭

But, do give a listen to what they did release. Better, yet. Just go watch Like Flowers in Sand to hear the full OST and watch a great Drama ❤️🤩🥰🥰🎶❤️

MOST FUN, HAPPIEST OST FOR 2024

Deni: My Sweet Mobster, particularly the instrumental pieces are as hysterical as the drama. We don’t listen to this one alone but have most of the instrumentals in other playlists.

JJ: I have to wholeheartedly agree with Deni here about My Sweet Mobster. Just a happy OST in the Drama. I tried to listen to the OST outside of the drama and it did not work for me outside, but is perfect inside the drama 🥰

My Sweet Mobster – Full OST Spotify Playlist

FAVORITE OST SONG FOR 2024

Deni: My selection is ‘Boyfriend’ by YeonJun from Tomorrow x Together (TXT) for the OST for Cinderella at 2AM. While not a particularly compelling watch this song is on constant replay at our house.

It’s not something I would have expected. We are not K-Pop fans in general preferring the simpler music of K-Indie artists.

My partner in watching and music is my husband. He, as a general rule, cannot stand K-Pop. BUT, this OST song is his favorite for the year hands down. It makes me laugh every time he plays it. YeonJun is just so cute singing in the MV.

JJ: My favorite song choice for the year is from Knight Flower by Youngji !

I have been following her for some time on her YouTube Channel and she is one very talented Artist.

First, she is a solo artist which is hard to do in the landscape K-Pop that relies so heavily, almost exclusively,  on groups.

And she is a female Solo artist. I love her voice so much and I love that she raps and sings.  And lots of Idols want to collaborate with her, even Crush. GAH! I hope she continues to do great things. Spoilers for Knight Flower in the MV link!

FAVORITE SINGERS FOR 2024

Deni:  See the title here? It is Favorite Singers. Nothing about OSTs. JJ did that.(JJ: Ospies 🤭😂) So I am going to follow her lead and skip the entire OST thing and go with my favorite Korean Singer for 2024. 

Of course it’ll be no one that anyone recognizes. His music has been accompanied many nights while cooking dinner or running errands.

His name is Chanmin. His Spotify Wrap listed the below song as his most popular. I’ve also included a couple of his music videos.

Give this talented young man a listen. He composes, writes and produces all of his music. He released one album (his second) and two MVs in 2024. He is only 20 years old!

Wave – Chanmin – Spotify Playlist

[MV] CHANMIN(찬민) – CINEMA

찬민(CHANMIN) – 10월 [Official Music video]

JJ: I am going to have to go with Lee Youngji 🥰🥰🥰🥰

I am just smitten with her and while this song is not in a Drama, I am going to include it anyways because so many (Elaine! MC!) loved this one with Youngji and D.O. 🥰

Deni: I don’t know about calling her my favorite singer but I love this song so much. The lyrics are so poignant and catchy at the same time. Bet you can’t listen without it running around in your head for days.

FAVORITE 2024 OST SONG WRITER

Deni: Kim Kyung Hee (and Nam Hye Seung) for ‘The Reasons of My Smiles’ sung by BSS of Seventeen and winner also of 19th Seoul International Drama Awards for Most Outstanding K-drama OST Award from Queen of Tears.

I have gushed extensively about Kim Kyung Hee over on Patreon’s Water Cooler.

If you are unfamiliar with his work, he sings, composes and performs. He works extensively with Nam Hye Seung on OSTs with this being their latest collaboration.

He is my first love in the Korean music scene. He was the first singer I followed on Instagram, the first to be in my Spotify library, the one I return to always and whose voice is now instantly recognizable, to me that is.

In case anyone is interested in exploring Kim Kyung Hee, here are two of my Spotify playlists.

The first one is for all of his OST performed songs from K-Dramas from Goblin to Our Beloved Summer to CLOY as well as select songs from his band April 2nd (he has two Spotify profiles so this fixes that).

The second playlist is for all the OST songs he has written but doesn’t sing.

Kim Kyung Hee – His OST performances – Spotify Playlist

Kim Kyung Hee – OST Written but not performed by him – Spotify

A second note, in early December we started Tell Me That You Love Me.  We didn’t have the emotional fortitude to move past the first two episodes which is a reflection on our mood NOT the drama.

However, I have been listening to this OST since it dropped because well, it’s another Nam Hye Seung directed OST. The BEST LOVE SONG FOR 2024 has to be To Your Home performed by Kim Kyung Hee and written also by him as well as Nam Hye Seung.

Tell Me That You Love Me Song:

Tell Me that You Love Me OST:

Here is a music video of him singing!!!! This is Rosie, released by April 2nd earlier in 2024. Watching this again, just made me fall in love with him all over, if that’s possible.

JJ: GAH! Songwriter? Oh geez. I gotta think about this one because I am more of a push and play and dive in person rather than research into who wrote a song….hmmmmm. Deni? Help!

Gaemi(TKEM)?  So many to pick from, but I don’t know their names. Deni??? Who are my favorites?? 🤭🤣

Deni: JJ will have to figure this out for next year. I’ll give her a pass this year 😂 I have been paying attention to the song writers since the very beginning. JJ has some catching up to do.

2024 OSTS TO CHECK OUT

JJ: While Deni and I can talk about each OST forever and ever, we realize if you made it this far your eyes might be glazed over, so we will shorten this section and just list out quickly some of faves of 2024 we want you to take a listen to 🙂

Deni: I think we might begin repeating ourselves? We don’t watch dramas typically as they are released.

We are bingers and we don’t mind the feeling of being left out when everyone is gushing about the latest drama. 

My favorite OSTs for 2024 released K-Dramas: Cinderella at 2AM and Tell Me That You Love Me. We watched many dramas from before 2024 and that is a discussion for another time.

JJ: Oh I have so many to tell people about for 2024!!!

My picks are the following – Lovely Runner (Sun Jae-a!), Midnight Studio (Good Mix of Songs), Romance in the House (Unexpectedly Enjoyable), and When the Phone Rings (Intense) are some I have enjoyed for 2024.

Lovely Runner OST

Midnight Studio OST – Spotify

Romance in the House OST

FAVORITE OST FROM PRIOR YEARS

Deni: We are ONLY picking ONE to discuss here in hopes of avoiding glazed eyes and ringing ears. It is also the story about how our friendship evolved over our love of music.

Early in our discussions over on Patreon Water Cooler, we asked each other about our favorite OSTs. On JJ’s list was Familiar Wife.

I had at this point not seen it (since corrected that deficit) but decided to listen anyway.

I was listening and was thoroughly enjoying the vocals and wandering about doing chores. THEN, the instrumentals popped up. Wait. Stop. I know that sound, not the music but the distinctive style.

It was Ji Pyeong Kwon. How did I know? Because he also did the OSTs for Shopping King Louis as well as My Holo Love. 

I was very familiar with those OSTs. So we did a long back and forth about Ji Pyeong Kwon.

At this point JJ had not really explored the underpinnings of OSTs. The tie between all 3 K-dramas, which has awesome OSTs, is one musical director. This was the beginning of many deep dives into Korean music.

At some point, I created a Ji Pyeong Kwon instrumental playlist, available here in Spotify. He has one of the most distinctive voices in K-Drama OSTs.

Ji Pyeong Kwon Instrumental Playlist-Spotify Playlist

Months later, JJ found her own links to Familiar Wife in the vocal portion.

JJ: Oh Familiar Wife OST, how I love you, so ❤️❤️❤️❤️150 OSTs later and still looking for your equal. Seriously. I have not been able to find one that I can play from start to finish without any skips.

I, do, also, love TKEM (yes, Sean. TKEM), but it’s vastly different from Familiar Wife and much longer as well.

TKEM is my second favorite, but honestly nothing takes the cake like Familiar Wife.

Bride of Habaek is a great OST and one of my faves, but there is one song I must skip each time. Ok, two.

And then, Romance is a Bonus Book has a great OST, as well, with some awesome songs and a couple skips. I am not sure how Familiar Wife does it, but I can listen to that album from beginning to end without issue. 

Let me tell you about the fun rabbit hole with Familiar Wife which actually happened to be two of them!

First Rabbit Hole occurred with the song Love Me Again by SF9.

Who is SF9? I didn’t pay attention to who sang the songs for years in general. Some, sure, I would notice, but not in general. And not with the name SF9.

Then, somehow, I learned that Rowoon was in SF9 and my brain eventually put two and two together and I went to check out the music video for “Love Me Again” because I mean come on its Rowoon.

Who incidentally is in She Would Never Know which I have seen multiple times which does have a good OST in the Show. Anyways….

So here I am all excited to check out a live performance of the song and see Rowoon sing which I had not prior because I just never paid attention. Ready? Wait for it. Have a watch to see him perform with SF9. It’s only 3 mins and 8 seconds. You can spare that, right?

Well, I sat through the whole performance waiting just waiting to see Rowoon sing. And GUESS WHAT? We do NOT see him sing. NOT ONE NOTE 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣Not One. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Did I blink and miss it? Or did the fan cam miss him??? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I went back to watch again because this fancam missed sometimes when someone was singing focusing on other members. And, honestly, I had not heard Rowoon’s voice prior to this song. So I guess we missed his part when he was singing?

I went to find another video in order to figure out which part was his so I can hear his voice. So I sat through the song again, not that that’s very difficult for me because I love this song so much, but I was a bit impatient to find Rowoon’s part. But, this time, I had the color coded lyrics matched to each member.

And he has TWO, count them, TWO very short lines 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣Per this color coded thingy.

Could this be any funnier???? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

YES! It can!🤣

Took me years (and just did it now while writing this post) to figure out just to go find the actual Show from the fan cam. YEARS, people. YEARS 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

And here we finally see Rowoon singing his TWO lines 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 At the 1:53 mark and the 2:35 mark for those interested. Anyone? 🤣 

Am I the only one who finds all this hysterical ???🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

And now for the second Rabbit Hole with Familiar Wife. This one is quick and easy and not very funny. Just kinda of “shocking” in the form of pay better attention, JJ!!!!

Most of us (not j3ffc though, but I am not bitter about it and not calling out j3ffc in any shape or form. I mean how can I when he wrote Dark for us 🥰 )  fell for Lovely Runner and the OST, too! Especially this song, Star, from N. Flying

Well, one day I am looking at all the names of the singers/groups on Familiar Wife because Deni has totally started to rub off on me now 🥰🥰🥰🥰 and I noticed N. Flying’s name. Wait? What?

N. Flying on Familiar Wife? Whoa.

And I match them up to the song which happens to be my second favorite off the OST! Spoilers for the Drama in the MV if you haven’t seen it, yet!

MOST SURPRISING OST FROM ANY YEAR

Deni: Goong. It is KFG’s gateway drama and several of us watched it spring 2024 while KFG was on hiatus and to stay out of trouble (looking at you j3ffc).  The OST was a surprise which we discussed over on Patreon Water Cooler.

It seemed silly to generate my own review and JJ concurred since @j3ffc nailed it exactly. 

Here is part of that conversation between @j3ffc and me and KFG (used with permission). And here is a plug for joining Patreon.

This conversation is very typical of what happens on a daily basis. This is only the portion relating to the OST. @j3ffc wrote an excellent review of his impressions of Goong in Spoiler Free.

j3ffc: The soundtracks were also nicely done. I use the plural because there are two different types of tunes in it. On the OST, the first half is the sort of pop love ballads that were popular in 2006 (and, which more or less still are), including the lead song, “Perhaps Hours”, which has wormed its way into my heart.

But my favorite aspect of the OST is the instrumental incidental music that appears throughout the show. It confused me at first as it hit my ears as Irish influenced, but it is performed by a Korean group called 2nd Moon, who say they specialize in traditional Korean music, updated.

This was also the first time in a while that I’ve experienced that hole in my heart left when a show ended. I’ve had the OST on the last week.

KFG: The OST of this show really has stuck with me over the years, and I’d imagined that that was mostly because it was my gateway drama and I’d watched it multiple times, so to hear that you’ve also taken to the OST, really brings home how brilliant the OST is, both in its creation and its application.

Deni:  I am listening again to the OST and remember how we were thrown by the music too. It’s a lovely OST although I have to say as an entire package it’s a bit disjointed because the “Irish influence” seems out of kilter after the vocals. But it surely worked during the watch. Thanks for bringing up the music. And reminding me how much I loved the show. It’s a gem. 

j3ffc: Deni, I know, right? My solution is to listen to the two parts separately. And thank YOU for the idea of watching the show in the first place. 

JJ: Thanks j3ffc for letting us use your review for Goong! What a fun watch that was; we all did it sorta together and a very fun discussion in the Water Cooler!

SPECIAL MENTION

A-LIST TO PLAYLIST

JJ: I had to give a huge shout out to one of our favorite actors around these parts Jo Jung Suk /Cho Jung Seok (JJS). Many of us had such high hopes for his drama this Year Captivating the King!

While he delivered a mesmerizing performance, the Drama overall did not live up to his performance. He was flat out amazing and stunning. He completely owned that role. Some people are just born for the stage and he is one of them, I believe.

As we all know he oozes talent as a triple threat, but did anyone know how much he loved music? Well, we were lucky enough Netflix did a Show on just how much he loves music AND how ridiculously talented JJS really is. ❤️

One of the highlights of the Show for me is the bromance between JJS and PHS. Who is PHS you may ask ?  YAY! I haven’t digressed too much in this post, so here I go

PHS is short for Park Hyo Shin who is a legendary singer in Korea. And how do I know this? I know this because of phl1rxd. I swear all good things come from lovely phl1rxd 🥰❤️🥰❤️🥰❤️

One day phl1rxd randomly sent me this song out of the blue and I swear time stopped while repeat did not.❤️❤️❤️❤️

박효신(Park Hyo Shin) – 야생화(Wild Flower) Special Video

PHS is a legend and has been quiet for many years not releasing anything new. However, it looks like that will be changing soon! YAY!

Deni: Inserting myself for a quick second. PHS changed our lives.

My husband fell in love and here is the image for you. An old white guy, living in midwest US, hanging out in the barn/shop, putzing away on little projects, all the doors open, and PHS’s music blasting out of the doors for everyone to hear.

I’ll leave it at that because I am behaving when I could go on and on. Go listen to his new song Winter Ahead with V and then Hero which is coming out next week. The Captain is BACK and life will be better.

JJ: Back to the A List to Playlist, seeing JJS and PHS Bromance in action was awesome. OMO! So real and they both have such affection for each other. AND Gummy (wife to JJS) and PHS go WAY back. WHO KNEW??? Now we know ❤️❤️❤️❤️

For another one his songs from the Show that is my favorite is called Friend.

As smitten as so many were with the cast in Hospital Playlist, they themselves were smitten with each other in real life! They have maintained a friendship amongst the group since then and they all appeared on this Show and on one of his songs.

I mean come on, can we say AWWWWWW 🥰❤️🥰❤️

Friend – Spotify

One of my other favorite moments was when JJS met with Dynamic Duo to work on a song. I love the song they made together “Like a movie, Like music”. I normally do not pay attention to lyrics, but for that song I hung on every word. Loved. It. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

And then, when Dynamic Duo showed up to perform the song they co-wrote with JJS. Sigh. So good. Dynamic Duo gave it their all and it wasn’t even their Show. I am so impressed they did that for him. AND they respect him as a musician.  ❤️

JJS was just so special ❤️

I love his voice ❤️ I loved his stage presence. He held his own with seasoned singers (his own wife, even) who have been doing this for years. Amazing, really.

How often can actors make the transition to singers? I think it’s easier the other way (singers to actors) I believe from what I have seen over the years.

What blew me away the most was JJS wrote ALL the music. One thing if he did just the lyrics, but he WROTE all the music. He. Wrote. His. Own. Music. GAH. He is ridiculously talented. 

Even Gummy said (paraphrase of course), “I knew he loved music, but didnt know how creatively talented he was with making music.” ❤️🥰

If you have not checked out, yet, A List to Playlist, make sure you give the Netflix Special some time. I think you will thoroughly enjoy this very heartfelt and endearing watch. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Deni: I also watched this but this was JJ’s post from the get go with all her love, enthusiasm and emoji’s. Go watch it. It is indeed heartwarming and full of the love of friends.

JJ: Oh, and finally, I had to include this acoustic cover of Love Wins All JJS “mysteriously” did many months ago.

아이유(IU) – Love wins all 커버 (COVER) by 청계산댕이레코즈

And, here is his cover he did on IU’s Show. He is a HUGE fan of IU and this song. He and IU actually, also, go way back together after doing a drama together in 2013 called You are the Best! ❤️🥰

And IU revealed, he was one of the first people to reach out to her once Love Wins All had been released ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

SHOUT OUT FOR C-DRAMA OSTS

JJ: I had to take a moment to give a shout out to C-Dramas OSTs because alas, I have not been able to convince Deni, yet, to dip their toes in the water for C-Dramas. I am patiently waiting. So, she kindly let me have this section. Thanks, Deni!!!🥰🥰

I do love me a great C-Drama OST such as Love Like the Galaxy’s! Which was on repeat for many weeks after finishing that drama. A favorite of mine and MC’s 🥰

Many of the Fantasy and/or Wuxia Dramas have epic scores and lots of instrumentals in the background along with some pop songs or songs with lyrics which sometimes work for me and sometimes do not at all. 

For 2024, I did watch lots of C-Dramas and while I enjoyed my watches overall, only three really stand out the most to me which are the following;  Legend of Shen Li, The Tale of Rose and Angels Fall Sometimes 🥰🥰🥰

The OST that has stayed in my ears all year is the one from Legend of Shen Li 🎶❤️

Listen to the opening song for the OST! Doesn’t that just suck you right into this World?

Ugh. I love it so much I listened to the intro every time and that’s 39 times ❤️

The other link is just the songs with lyrics only. Oh and song number 14 takes elements of the Opening Song and makes into a beautiful light calming piece in contrast to the big bold opening song.

Here is a link for just the Songs from the OST

I have to digress per usual because I need to give a nod to this Drama and both leads. I believe phl1rxd is the one who told me to look at this one. Always, phl1rxd having my back with C-Dramas. Thanks, phl1rxd ❤️🥰

We have two mature leads in a Wuxia both delivering very impressive performances individually and together.

A very mature relationship in a Wuxia with great dialogue and just a wonderful several beginning episodes. Honestly, some of the best I have seen out of Wuxia. With a dash of great comedy thrown in there as well with gorgeous CGI. Just a total feast for the eyes.

So much so when the ML, played by Ling Geng Xi, appeared in a modern drama next, The Tale of Rose, I did not realize it was him for several episodes.

And, actually, had to look him up to figure out why he seemed familiar. He basically is an incredible actor. I suggest to watch both Shows 😀

As for the FL, played by Zhao Li Ying, we have a strong and completely capable in this Wuxia Fantasy World.

For me, this was my first time seeing her and she completely blew me away in her screen presence, character delivery and not to be overshadowed by the very powerful ML.

I looked her up to see what else she has been in and no surprise she is the FL in The Story of Minglan which has been on my watchlist forever, but even for me who loves the 40 episode Cdramas, 78 episodes is quite daunting!

Also, I wanted to include the OST for The Tale of The Rose which I just loved as well. The opening song is just beautiful and feels very epic. The singer just sounds gorgeous and their name is Lei Jia ❤️

And the second song is sung by my all time favorite Charlie Zhou Shen 🥰❤️🥰❤️I thought he would have had the opening song, but he takes a quieter song this time. Both beautiful in their different ways. 

THE END

(but not really as there is never an end to music)

JJ & Deni: Well, folks, we made it to the end of this post, BUT never fear this is not the end of Deni and JJ discussing music! You can find us discussing it nearly daily over on the Water Cooler in KFG’s Patreon Community 🥰🥰🥰🥰

Thank you so much for reading our post about OSTs. We had so much fun doing this together! ❤️

Do make sure you share your favorite OSTs for 2024 and overall with us. We always love hearing about new music and love to find others who love the same music we do. So comment away please

❤️❤️🎶🎶May 2025 bring you all much joy in your dramas and music! 🎶🎶❤️❤️

  🥰❤️🫶🫰

OH and OUR SURPRISE…

A tidbit of something to come in the future.

JJ and Deni found each other over on Patreon as we mentioned earlier.

After months, JJ lost patience with the Patreon inability to manage our long-winded multi-month conversations. Time for action.

With KFG as the initial intermediary, we began conversing outside of the Patreon community about music.

This was a fated friendship, just like in a K-Drama. It has been more than a half-century in the making, long before either of us were born. So we are going to regale you with the craziest USA-based drama sometime next Spring.

Prepare yourselves. And know that fate, of which many of us think as a K-Drama trope, of which we get very tired, is maybe a real thing ❤️

~Deni & JJ