K-Pop Double Take: Yoo Se Yoon Makes A Highly Funky Sound With Jay Park And Niihwa On 'Middle School Sick' [VIDEO]

K-Pop Double Take is a weekly review column highlighting recent releases that have yet to receive the attention we feel they deserve.

If you haven't found yourself posessed with the desire to dance lately, you probably haven't heard "Middle School Sick," released on April 14, by South Korean comedian Yoo Se Yoon.

This latest installment of Yoo's serial music project "Monthly Yoo Se Yoon," finds the comedian has teamed up with Jay Park and Niihwa with some highly funkified results. "Middle School Sick" is a breezy slice of summer K-pop that combines elements of hip-hop and disco into a fun loving whole, with Jay Park taking over lead vocal duties.

Yoo See Yon is one of the three MCs on the TV show "Non-Summit," as well as a member of hip-hop duo UV. Jay Park is an American singer, dancer and rapper who rose to prominence as a member of the South Korean boy band 2PM. Niihwa is an emerging rapper signed to RB entertainment.

"Middle School Sick" rides a smooth disco groove that melds together funky pop bass with a disco-fried lead, washing it all down with some super smooth piano. Add to this some smoking brass on the chorus and you got yourself a classic warm weather groover, both playful and classy.

Jay Park, more known as a rapper, steals the show with some unexpectedly melodic vocal work that demonstrates the versatility he is known for. For a song in which he is technically a featured guest, Park does a majority of the heavy lifting, vocally speaking.

It's rare to find someone who can both rap and sing, but Jay Park pulls it off with style to spare.

The singer is complimented by duel back-and-forth rapping by Yoo and Niihwa scattered throughout the track. When pared with the song's funky disco backing track, the duo's rapping takes on the timeless spirit of old school hip-hop like "Rapper's Delight" by Sugarhill Gang or "That's The Joint" by Funky Four Plus One.

Although it may have been recorded by a comedian, the groove on "Middle School Sick" is no joke.

Fans of the last Daft Punk record or just timeless disco music will find a lot to like here. "Middle School Sick" is a song that would sound good blasting out of a convertible or at a backyard party.

You're going to want to go ahead and add "Middle School Sick" to your summertime BBQ playlist now, before the dog days of summer are upon us. It'll be any day now!

Watch the music video for Yoo Se Yoon's "Middle School Sick" featuring Jay Park and Nilhwa RIGHT HERE

 

John Chiaverina is a musician and journalist living in New York City. He has performed in over 18 countries, including two tours of South Korea, under the name "Juiceboxxx."

Tags
Jay Park
Yoo See Yon
Niihwa
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