Mwave, CJ ENM’s entertainment website, held a poll to find K-pop’s best B-sides and album tracks. The weeklong poll to give these hidden gems more recognition saw a turnout of 402,756 voters. Here’s the top 5.

(Big Hit Entertainment)

1. BTS, “Singularity”



Released on May 6, “Singularity” is a solo track by the band’s vocalist V. The track was unveiled 12 days in advance as a trailer to “Love Yourself: Tear,” the second album in the band’s “Love Yourself” series.

(Big Hit Entertainment)

An intro track, “Singularity” led the listeners into the album’s theme of love’s ephemerality that was explored more in depth in the lead track “Fake Love.”

2. EXO, “Been Through”


“Been Through” is the third track to be listed on EXO’s 2017 winter season album, “Universe.” The band has been releasing an annual series of winter-themed album since 2013 all of which saw success on music charts.

The fifth “winter special” album to date, “Universe” is composed of seven slower-tempo tracks that deviate from the band’s usual upbeat, fast-paced dance style.

3. GOT7, “Thank You”



Jinyoung co-composed and penned the lyrics to “Thank You,” the seventh and last track of “Eyes on You” released in March.

While overshadowed by the album’s lead track, “Look,” “Thank You” also received its fair share of love from fans. The live footage of the song sung by members in a recording studio was viewed over 8.8 million times as of Sunday.

4. Stray Kids, “Voices”



From Stray Kids’ third release of the year “I am WHO,” “Voices” combines powerful rap and mellow vocals over a jazzy rhythm created through ample use of brass instruments.

The lyrics tell the warning message of not getting distracted by peripheral “voices” and staying focused on one’s goal. Every track in the album was produced by the band’s production team 3RACHA, consisting of Bangchan, Han and Changbin.

5. Monsta X, “From Zero”



“From Zero” is from the band’s last album of 2017 “The Code.” The post-breakup song is about a man yearning after a bygone romance, and begging his ex-lover to come back and start again “from zero.” While music show promotions tend to be solely focused on lead tracks, Monsta X performed the song on Mwave in January.

By Kim Arin (arin@heraldcorp.com)