Whatever you say this has to be true that, in the world of entertainment, the Korean entertainment field has spread its giant wings promptly. Ain’t I right? Korean dramas are getting recognition day by day for their amazing story and iconic characters. K-pop is no less than that. So think about what happens when these two hotshots meet. You can find so many KDrama OSTs sung by renowned K-pop idols. If we make it a list then the list will be very long so I’m going to make it very short. K-pop artists singing K-drama OSTs are nothing new. Here we will briefly talk about some of the memorable OSTs of some superhit K-dramas that will compel you to listen to them in a loop. So I am going to start with the hope that you will like it.
Top Chart-Topping KPop OSTs
Let’s make a very short list of some chart-topping OSTs by kpop idols that you need to listen to.
Shortlist:
- With You by Jimin (BTS) & Sungwoon
- Sweet Night by V (BTS)
- Stay With Me by Chanyeol (EXO) & Punch
- Love Lane by Mamamoo
- Stand By Me by SHINee
- Everytime Chen (EXO) & Punch
- Even If I Die It’s Only You by Jin and V (BTS)
- I Give You My Heart by IU
- Love Maybe by Secret Number
- Story That Won’t End by Stray Kidz
- Star by Stayc
- Here Always by Seungmin (Stray Kidz)
- Love Sight by TXT
- Reaching for You by Zerobaseone
- Bad Liar by Yuqi (G-Idle)
Now we are going to have a brief talk about these OSTs.
With You – Jimin (BTS) & Ha Sungwoon
Drama: Our Blues (2022)
With You is a soft ballad that appreciates the bittersweet yet admirable love of the passionate lovers. The drama is set on Jeju islands which is one of the most beautiful islands of South Korea that soothes our eyes and again the softest voice of Jimin and Sungwoon was a bonus treat to our ears. The visuals and the music blended so perfectly that makes this OST a dear one to the audience.
And guess what his OST ranked #1 just in an hour in more than 100 countries in the iTunes chart.
Sweet Night – V (BTS)
Drama: Itaewon class (2020)
Sweet Night is sung by V of BTS aka Kim Taehyung whose ocean-like deep voice will make your mind heavy with an unknown feeling and thoughts. The melancholic tone of voice of V showcases the inner conflict of Park Sae Royi, the lead character of the drama. Taehyung’s soulful voice made this song one of the all-time favorites both to K-pop fans and the K-drama fans.
This song broke so many records and charted #1 in iTunes charts in 119 countries.
Stay With Me – Chanyeol (EXO) & Punch
Drama: Goblin (2016)
The soundtrack sung by Chanyeol of EXO and Punch has the whole heart of Goblin Fans. This song is one of the most iconic OSTs ever in Kdrama history. The lyrics of the song perfectly suited the atmosphere and emotions of the storyline of Goblin. The melody is so catchy and the voices of Chaneyol and Punch were so perfect for the song.
Till now this song with a prestigious record remains one of the most loved and streamed songs ever in South Korea.
Love Lane – Mamamoo
Drama: Marriage, Not Dating (2014)
Love Lane by Mamamoo is a perfect pick to listen to and do your household chores. This song is so vibrant that it will make you smile and give you a pleasant energy. Love Lane not only helped the audience to get connected with the drama character but also made Mamamoo a household name in Korea.
Stand By Me by SHINee
Drama: Boys Over Flowers (2009)
One of the most iconic OSTs of all time Stand By Me is sung by the rising stars of that time SHINee. Everything that belongs to Boys Over Flowers came out as an iconic one including the OSTs and even the characters. SHINee’s youthful voice in this song even helped them to be recognized and to be the beloved of fans. SHINee gained a lot of love for this particular song.
Even If I Die It’s Only You – Jin & V (BTS)
Drama: Hwarang (2016)
The powerful duo of the BTS members Jin and V made this song even more powerful. Both the talented vocalist of BTS created this song as a powerful as well as youthful one. This song is loved by both the Hwarang fans and the BTS fans. Their rich vocals helped the song to bring out the deeper emotions of the story and also matched the historical tone of the drama.
It gained so much popularity both in Korea and overseas as the loyal fans found the involvement of BTS in the drama as well as the soundtrack.
Everytime – Chen (EXO) & Punch
Drama: Descendants of the Sun
Everytime is an upbeat romantic song of Descendants of the Sun by Chen of EXO and Punch. The powerful and sweet voices of Chen and Punch give the song an amazing power that lifts the whole mood of the drama. The love of the main leads is skillfully expressed by this song.
This song gained so much popularity and still, it is in the prestigious list of all time favorites of the fans.
I Give You My Heart – IU
Drama: Crash Landing on You (2019)
The K-pop star IU painted the sweet love story of the main leads of the drama with her sweetest voice. I Give You My Heart is an emotional ballad portraying both the romantic and dramatic love between the leads.
This song charted top on so many musical platforms that brought ceaseless praise for both the lyrics and IU’s vocals.
Love Maybe – Secret Number
Drama: Business Proposal (2022)
The drama itself is a romantic comedy and this soundtrack suited the drama perfectly. The voices of the members of Secret Number give the song a pure view of pure love. This song will make you remember your first and purest love story for sure.
The underrated K-pop group Secret Number gained so much recognition with this song and made them a potential artist group among the fans.
Story That Won’t End – Stray Kidz
Drama: Extraordinary You (2019)
This whole drama Extraordinary You is full of twists and tensions and the powerful vocal of Stray Kidz adds the intensity of emotions in the drama. As we can see the drama shows a world in Webtoon, everything depends on the writer and the destiny of the lovers here. The Story That Never Ends focuses on the lovers who are not sure of their destiny but are hopeful for their true love to have a happy ending.
The voices of the members of Stray Kidz and the lyrics give a wonderful relaxation in mind that makes this song one of the favorites of the fans.
Star by Stayc
Drama: Our Blues (2022)
The song Star by Stayc is one of the most soothing tracks of the drama Our Blues. The pure love story of two strangers who become lovers on Jeju Island is focused here. The heartfelt love of the lovers you can feel through this song.
The soft and comforting feeling that the voice of the members of Stayc delivers through the song is gladly accepted and loved by both the K-pop and K-drama fans.
Here Always – Seungmin (Stray Kidz)
Drama: Hometown Cha Cha Cha (2021)
The soft and comforting ballad Here always by Seungmin of Stray Kidz has a wonderful healing power to heal the wound of every lover. The drama Hometown Cha Cha Cha is set in the countryside of Korea and the sight of that place comforts the eyes of the audience and the soft voice of Seungmin gives another type of peace. Again the lyrics of the soundtrack come out like a shoulder pat that we always crave for.
Above all this song receives so many positive reviews from fans of every corner.
Love Sight – TXT
Drama: Doom at Your Service (2021)
The romantic ballad called Love Sight sung by the members of TXT helps the audience to hear the unspoken inner turmoil of the lovers of the drama. A Doom who is an immortal being meets a mortal being who is about to die in a few days meets together and falls in love with each other which is not accepted by the law of nature. But love can not be forced, even if you deny your love for someone your eyes tell everything. And this ballad became one of those elements that declares the love of two lovers.
Reaching for You – Zerobaseone
Drama: Love Next Door (2024)
Love Next Door gained so much love from the general fans and the soundtracks of the drama are also loved by the fans. The rising stars of 5th gen K-pop group youthfully conveyed the friendship and joyful love between the neighbors of the drama who always stand with each other and love each other in every situation, which was praised by both the Zerobaseone fans and Love Next Door fans.
Bad Liar – Yuqi (G-Idle)
Drama: Marry My Husband (2024)
The central themes of the drama are betrayal, revenge and punishment. The dark theme of the drama and the deep voice of Yuqi of G-Idle matched together and had a powerful impact on the viewers of the drama.
The drama became a superhit of 2024 and the song Bad Liar also got immense praise from the fans.
To be honest the performance of Kpop Idols in Korean Dramas helps the drama to achieve global recognition directly. Because each group and each idol has a separated loyal fanbase who never misses a chance to listen to the voices of their favorite idols or singers. They even pledge to bring that particular music of their favorite artist on the top of the chart.
If we see one OST suppose Sweet Night of V (Kim Taehyung), this soundtrack broke so many records of previous OSTs and became #1 in a total of 119 countries on iTunes chart. It’s not only because of the melody or the lyrics or the screenplay but it became one of the most successful soundtracks of all time with the magic of Kim Taehyung. There is no doubt that the melody, lyrics and the timing of the song play were praiseworthy but Taehyung made it more than just a hit. Taehyung has a huge fan following called ARMY from Korea and outside of Korea who made it an ultimate hit of all time. They restlessly streamed the song on every streaming platform, and that’s the charm of BTS and the charm of V worked.
In conclusion, I would say that like BTS, other K-pop groups and solo K-pop artists have their own fanbase that helps a soundtrack more love of the fan than usual and through this a drama becomes more successful than usual. So, this is how and why having a music involving K-pop stars in Kdrama helps a drama be more affluent and to more global recognition.