Music Monday|CL — +5 STARS+

Hello my BAYOG luvs!~ It’s Minty again with another Music Monday post!~ I’m just going to get right into it! Today’s first Music Monday track recommendation is CL’s “+5 STAR+”. It’s a fun, feel-good love song. However, I honestly really wanted to share it mostly because of how cute the music video is~ Again, this track is also one of the songs included on the Valentines Playlist I made for BAYOG~ You can check that out the [Lovely & Sweet Vibes playlist post] or go directly to my [Spotify playlist].

CL’s real name is Lee Chaelin (alternatively spelled “Chaerin”). Her stage name “CL” are the initials of her name, but also sound like “ciel”, the French word for “sky”. Chaelin was born in Seoul, but grew up all over the place; Particularly in Japan and France. Having grown up abroad and attending international schools, she’s multilingual and fluent in: Korean, English, Japanese, and French. She was previously a trainee at JYP Entertainment before realizing her love for rap and hip-hop. So she moved YG Entertainment where she eventually debuted as a member and [the leader] of the legendary group 2NE1. Prior to her debut she appeared in BIGBANG’s [“Hot Issue”] in 2007, Uhm Jung Hwa’s [“DJ”] in 2008, and YG Family’s [2007 Gayo Daejun stage].

2NE1 was YG Entertainment’s first successful girl group, and is the predecessor of Blackpink. They debuted in 2009 and officially disbanded in 2016. The members included: CL (Lee Chaelin), Park Bom, Dara (Park Sandara), and Minzy (Gong Minji). They made their debut in 2009 with the song and music video [“Lollipop”] alongside BIGBANG. It was a promotional song/mv for the LG Cyon phone. Their second single [“Fire”] was their first song that they actually promoted. They gained alot of attention for being different from other girl groups. Most girl groups back then really did cute or sexy (more like semi cute and sexy) concepts. 2NE1 had these tough, bad ass, independent, edgy, girl crush vibes. Their music and style was just very different and it helped set them apart from other groups of the time. Their most famous track is probably [“내가 제일 잘 나가(I AM THE BEST)”]. (Ah… “I Am The Best” I remember those days. I remember doing a [brief performance] of it during my uni days…) Some people may forget, but 2NE1 can definitely be credited as one of the first K-Pop groups to gain international exposure and popularity. They were one of the leaders in the globalization of K-Pop. Their music and fashion style really interested alot of people. Not to mention that they had good connections and friendships with alot of big names. CL in particular was known as a fashionista and close to big names in the fashion industry like Jeremy Scott of Moschino. She was also known for her friendships with DIPLO, will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas, Justin Bieber, Arianna Grande, and more.

Her first official solo release was [“나쁜 기집애(THE BADDEST FEMALE)”]. She tried her hand at a solo career in the US in 2014. She was managed by Scooter Braun, who was also known as the manager for Justin Bieber and Arianna Grande. In 2015, she released her first English track [“Doctor Pepper”] with DIPLO, RiFF RAFF, and OG MACO. She also later released [“Hello Bitches”]. Her last US release was [“Lifted”] back in 2016. It seemed like she was supposed to have another release. A music video was even shot already, but it never came to light. CL did [release clips] of the video that had been filmed though. She’s also been featured in Skrillex’s [“Dirty Vibe”] with G-Dragon of BIGBANG, Black Eyed Peas’s [“DOPENESS”], and Lil Yachty’s [“Surrender”] with Shaiana. It also seems like DJ Snake and Justin Bieber’s “Let Me Love You” seemed to be originally meant for CL, or she sang the demo. Brian Lee, one of the songwriters (he also worked on Blackpink’s “Lovesick Girls”), leaked a snippet of CL’s version of [“Let Me Love You”]. In 2019, CL chose to not renew her contract with YG, and left to be an independent artist. Since then, she’s released a few track, as well as been a feature on several different tracks. She was recently featured on Epik High’s [“Rosario”] with Zico. 2NE1 and CL were huge, and I’d say they had a big impact on shaping K-Pop and edgy concepts for girl groups. It’s a shame that they had some unfortunate events and were basically in the YG dungeon. YG used to hype them up so much. In my opinion though, they were neglected and severely underpromoted and mismanaged once it was around the third generation of K-Pop. Otherwise, I believe 2NE1 and CL would’ve had the potential at successful careers in the western and international music industry. However, everyone is doing what they love and doing it how they want, and that’s all that matters.

“+5 STAR+” is the second and final track on CL’s single, +HWA+. It dropped back in October 2020. Other than a few features here and there, she hadn’t dropped anything since her In the Name of Love releases. Those had dropped in December 2019 and had been her first releases since leaving YG Entertainment and going independent. Both “+5 Star” and “+HWA+” were co-written with Tablo of Epik High. It’s a feel-good type of love song with some heavy bass, brass hits, and some sweet vibes to it. CL said she wanted to express the feelings of the first encounter and stage of a relationship where you just fell in love. CL and 2NE1 didn’t have many love songs. Rather, they had alot of break up or sad love songs. So this was a nice change. It was a bit different and showed a new sound and side of CL. So yes, I actually really liked it when I first listened to it. To be honest, I personally like it more than “+HWA+”~

You can find CL’s “+5 STAR+” and +HWA+ on Spotify, here:

You can listen to CL’s “+5 STAR+” on YouTube, here:

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Music Video

The music video is by DPR (Dream Perfect Regime), an independent multi-genre music and video group. It was founded by core members: DPR Live (Da Hong Bin), DPR +IAN(Christian Yu/Yu Ba Rom), DPR Cream (Kim Kyung Mo), and DPR Rem (Scott Kim). The MV actually also stars DPR +IAN (He’s talented and hot btw lolol). DPR +IAN, aka Christian Yu, was formerly known as Rome of the idol group ([C-CLOWN(씨클라운)], and he was originally from Australia. He stars as CL’s love interest (boyfriend?). Actually they were super cute in the video. Honestly, it was so cute I was like, “I ship~”.

The song itself sounds cute and fun. Although I admit that I chose this track for today’s Music Monday more because of how cute the video was, rather than the lyrics. It’s a catchy song, and the lyrics are good. I love the melody and vibe of the song. However, I was more like “AWWWW~~~~” from the video than the lyrics~ You can check out the translations over at [Genius].

I should also note that this video and CL also seem to be connected to DPR IAN’s [“So Beautiful”] and [“No Blueberries”]. The order of the releases were: DPR +IAN’s “So Beautiful”, CL’s “+5 STAR+”, and then DPR IAN’s “No Blueberries (Feat. CL & DPR LIVE)”. CL made an appearance in “So Beautiful”. You’ll also find they probably shot the woods scene from both music videos at the same place and time. Lastly, CL’s vocals are featured in “No Blueberries”. “No Blueberries” is also definitely a continuation of video for “So Beautiful”. You can also tell that there were probably the same filming locations and sets as well.

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YAY! That’s it for this Music Monday post y’all~ I hope y’all enjoyed the song and MV~ What did you think?~ Also, are y’all fans of CL or 2NE1? What about DPR IAN?~ Which of their tracks do you like?~ Let me know in the comments, my socials, or Discord! Yo’ girl is tired AF…but I’mma try to put out a second Music Monday post today huhu~ Please take care, stay safe, stay warm, and have a lovely Monday luvs~

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LET’S BE FRIENDS!~ (つ✧ω✧)つ

Hihi! I’m Minty! I’m Thai-American~ เป็นคนไทยค่ะ~ ยินดีที่ได้รู้จักนะคะ~
I’m BAYOG’s hella basic Asian chick, Real People Stuffs expert, and boba addict. I’ve been a part of the BAYOG Crew since 2017~ I fangirl and mostly blog about music, live action movies/dramas, manga/webtoons, and occasionally webnovels~ When I’m not blogging, I’m usually writing/singing Thai-English covers~

It’s nice to meet all of you lovely people from around the world! Thanks for stopping by our blog!~
💜• ขอบคุณค่ะ • ありがとうございます • 감사합니다 • 谢谢你 • Salamat Po •💜

Wanna Buy Boba/Coffee For Your Bobae?☕ (´｡• ω •｡`) 💜: [Ko-Fi]
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I also sing and write lyrics~ You can hit me up on my socials or Discord. I’m always happy to make friends~ For questions or business inquiries, contact me through my BAYOG email~
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Contact: BAYOGMinty@gmail.com | Discord: piecesofminty#0182

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BE SAFE. BE RESPONSIBLE.
WASH YOUR HANDS. WEAR A MASK.
SOCIAL DISTANCE. PLEASE.

Take care y’all. Please stay safe and take care of yourself. All jokes and fun aside…please, please, please, pleaaaase always wash your hands, practice social distancing, and wear a mask! It’s better to be cautious than face irrevocable consequences of health complications or death.

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BLACK LIVES MATTER

AS A GROUP OF BIPOC, BAYOG strongly stands with Black Lives Matter. We are all too familiar with the racism that we, our friends, and family have faced on a daily basis. Every life is precious. However, as BIPOC, we also recognize that black people are a group of people that face extreme racism and at a higher risk for their safety. We’ve individually done several donations. Of course, donations to support the cause and support change isn’t the only thing needed. Support for the cause and change also requires conversation and understanding. Make sure to have those conversations. Please remember to be an active supporter, be it through donations, sharing information, and/or conversations and speaking up.

If you can, please consider donating. I’ve donated more than once as well. For one of my donations, I donated through the BTS ARMY x BLM project. I recommend that if you’re unsure of where to donate. This is because the donation will be split amongst several different non-profit organizations. Of course, you can also choose a specific organization(s) if you wish as well. You can find that [HERE].

You can also check out the following:

• http://blmsites.carrd.co
• http://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co
• http://blackliveswillalwaysmatter.carrd.co
• http://blmstanguide.carrd.co
• http://saytheirnames.carrd.co

Stay strong. Fight racism, brutality, injustice, and bullshit. Don’t lose sight of the goal. We’re witnessing and being a part of history. Be allies and make sure change happens. Once again, BLACK LIVES MATTER.