Song Review: Taeil – Likes Me, Likes Me Not (ft. Sejeong)

Release Date: June 12, 2017

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Recommended for: Lovers of light-hearted songs, Park Kyung solo music fans

NOT recommended for: Those expecting a ballad with Taeil’s power vocals

While many are familiar with Block B’s mega-popular leader Zico’s many solo releases, and rapper Park Kyung’s sweet and romantic songs, little take notice of main vocal Lee Taeil’s solo music. We’ve seen him shine singing solo ballads on Block B’s albums, drama OSTs, and on his 2015 song, “Inspiring”. However, in his newest release, “Likes Me, Likes Me Not”, we finally get to hear Taeil try something completely different.

Featuring Gugudan vocalist Sejeong, “Likes Me, Likes Me Not” is a drastic change from Taeil’s previous releases and his first song to feature another singer. A light, refreshing, and happy song, “Likes Me, Likes Me Not” was produced by fellow Block B member Park Kyung, with his signature cheerful, bright pop style dripping from every note.

With lyrics describing two friends falling for each other, the highlight of “Likes Me, Likes Me Not” is most definitely the vocals. Taeil’s clean angelic voice meshes beautifully with Sejeong’s sweet tones, making for an experience that is nothing but delightful to the ear.

Unfortunately, the vocals is one of the only strong points of this track. While the instrumental is pleasant and pretty, it seems to get a bit boring, with no real feeling of much variety between various parts of the song. This track can easily be lost as background noise; it’s nice to hear, but hard to really want to focus on listening to it.

Another issue that arises with this track is the fact that while this song was produced by Park Kyung, it sound a bit too much like a Park Kyung song. This track could easily go with Kyung’s solo songs that are light, cheery, and feature a female vocalist (i.e. “Ordinary Love”, “Inferiority Complex”). While this style isn’t a bad thing, I believe there is a danger in having another member of the same group have a solo song sound so identical to another member’s. Taeil is his own person with his own style, and while it’s nice to see him try something new, there needs to be a little more distinction between his sound and Kyung’s sound. If other members are going to produce for Taeil, then there needs to be a thought process of making it specifically for Taeil, and crafting something that sounds a bit different than what is done by other members.