The ‘Carol Battle’ has taken place to celebrate the end of the year, considered the best part of the K-pop stage. With various K-pop stars from V of the global group BTS to ‘rising star’ Fifty Fifty all releasing winter songs, attention is focused on who will be the protagonist of the new ‘Winter Pension Song’.

V is by far the leader. V, who is currently serving in the military, released ‘Winter Ahead’ and ‘White Christmas’, which he recorded before his enlistment, on the 29th and 6th of last month, respectively. ‘Winter Ahead’ is a jazz-style song sung with ballad powerhouse Park Hyo Shin, while ‘White Christmas’ is a duet in which V reinterprets and sings the representative carol of pop legend Bing Crosby.

The two songs, which maximize the warm and romantic atmosphere of winter, gained popularity immediately after their release and quickly settled at the top of domestic and international charts. In particular, on Billboard, which is considered an indicator of the popularity of global pop music, ‘Winter Ahead’ ranked 99th on the main song chart ‘Hot 100’ (as of December 14), competing with famous carols. This is the fifth time that V has entered the chart with a solo song, following ‘Christmas Tree’ in 2021.

Following this, Chungha, Oh My Girl‘s Hyojung, and Kassy presented special Christmas singles. Chungha expressed her excitement and love for the end of the year with her single ‘Christmas Promises’ and the title song ‘Slay’ on the 3rd. The title song music video also brought the Christmas mood to the forefront, with Chungha surrounded by a tree. Kassy and Hyojung will be releasing their new singles ‘I Won’t Melt’ and ‘Christmas Night Train’ on the 8th and 18th respectively. This is their first time releasing a ‘Winter Song’, so it is a hot topic among their fandom.

Rookie groups with unique personalities also confidently threw themselves into the ‘Carol Battle’. Fifty Fifty released their digital single ‘Winter Glow’ on the 9th, featuring the emotional ballad ‘When You Say My Name’ and the pop-style carol ‘Nutty or Nice’. Hip-hop group Youngpa C features a Y2K concept and retro sensibility in their digital single ‘ㄱㅓ리… ’ was sung with ballad singer John Park.

A variety of carols with unique concepts that you‘ve never seen before have been prepared. Trot singer Jin Hae-seong recently released ‘Love Christmas (feat. Hae-seong Love)’, which titled his fandom name. He completed a cheerful carol with his composed voice.

‘The Last Christmas’, sung by Lee Seung-gi, Taemin, Baekhyun, Chen, Xiumin, and other singers affiliated with One Hundred Label, was also released on the 10th. One Hundred Label stated, “All proceeds from the release will be donated to the Korean Red Cross to be used as a fund to support children with rare and incurable diseases.”

Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com