[Review] Cherish (My Love) – ILLIT

ILLIT is shaping up to be an interesting group. Their debut single, Magnetic, made them widely known in the industry earlier this year, so it comes as no surprise that their expectant comeback single would rival or even surpass their Magnetic beginnings. But Cherish (My Love) was released earlier this week and has not been able to reach the same heights that Magnetic did. Only time will tell if it does. But for now, it doesn’t look hopeful for ILLIT.

Two things stand out in Cherish (My Love) for me. The first is the “Che-che-che-cherish” hook. It takes that repetitive refrain from their debut track and makes it relevant to the new song. It is simple and straightforward, and the members’ soft delivery of the hook is cute and easy on the ears. The second thing that stood out is… well… nothing else. Aside from the main hook I mentioned above, I don’t remember much else from Cherish (My Love), which speaks volumes to me. The imbalance between the hook and the rest of the song is quite prominent, and this distracted me the first time I listened to Cherish (My Love), and subsequent listens to the song. With Magnetic, the instrumental was buoyant and upbeat. In Cherish (My Love), the instrumental stagnates and doesn’t develop into much. Cherish (My Love) needed much more in the instrumental to make it more memorable. Whilst lovely, the rest of the members’ vocals just don’t have a memorable element to them. I can say the exact same thing about Cherish (My Love)‘s melodies. Unfortunately, Cherish (My Love) doesn’t do it for me. I much prefer Magnetic, which does pop into my head from time to time.

The Korean term for ‘wisdom tooth’ is quite similar to the Korean term for ‘love’. It is so similar that Koreans link love to when your wisdom teeth start to grow. As such, the members are obsessed with their teeth and wish for them to grow to experience love. That makes so much sense and gives context to the cute teeth-themed video. I am glad some people on the Internet have clarified what the music video is about. Otherwise, this part of the review would probably contain some comments on the weird obsession of the members’ teeth, and given the controversy between HYBE and MHJ, this probably would not have boded well for the group.

The performance of Cherish (My Love) is very charming, and I enjoyed it. I am not sure if the “Che-Che-Cherish” move would surpass the likes of Magnetic‘s key dance move, but I think it has the potential to do so!

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.4/10