Song Review: Odd Youth – Best Friendz

Since their establishment in 2005, Top Media has exclusively managed male acts. Teen Top, 100%, UP10TION and MCND have all made their way through the agency’s ranks, but now Top is branching out to debut their first ever girl group. Odd Youth haven’t taken that all-important debut step yet, but we get a first look at them today with their “brand MV” for Best Friendz.

That “z” at the end of “friendz” is already rubbing me the wrong way, but I’m going to do my best to overlook it and focus on the music! Can Odd Youth live up to their name and finally inject some new ideas into K-pop’s staid girl group landscape?

The answer is… not really. Best Friendz is a cute Kidz Bop, bounding along bright percussion that encourages the chirpiest of singing. Nearly every note bends upward in a cupie doll style, which will either charm or repel listeners depending on their tolerance for the saccharine. To me, the song sounds like something you’d hear in a Barbie cartoon (do those exist?), fusing sing-song melodies to a sunny exclamation extoling the virtues of friendship. I can’t begrudge a song for doling out (very commercialized) positivity, but this brand of grade school cheese is definitely not for me.

Grade: D