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[K-POP] Korean 'yami' songs that fit a blue mood

K-pop captivates us with its powerful dance and outstanding vocal prowess.

At the same time, I feel that K-pop uniquely shines through songs with dark concepts or a melancholic atmosphere.

There’s also a subtle elegance that invites multiple, indirect interpretations.

So I’ve decided to spotlight some Korean “yami” songs—tracks that dwell in darker emotions.

When you’re going through sadness, hardship, or a streak of bad days, it’s natural to feel low.

There’s something called the “matching effect,” which suggests that listening to music with a similar mood can cleanse the heart.

Sometimes, it might be nice to relax and spend time with masterpieces that fit your blue feelings.

[K-POP] Korean “yami” songs that fit a blue mood (21–30)

Stop The RainTABLO X RM

TABLO X RM – Stop The Rain (Official MV)
Stop The RainTABLO X RM

A hip-hop track brimming with deep introspection and quiet, poetic sensibility.

This long-awaited collaboration brings together Epik High’s leader, Tablo, and BTS’s leader, RM.

Released on May 2, 2025, the piece blends a minimal guitar riff with a heavy beat in exquisite balance, painting a melancholic soundscape.

Their candid words about personal struggle and mental conflict evoke a resonant sense of empathy.

Coming roughly three years after their joint work on the album Indigo, this pairing is stirring up fresh winds in the Korean music scene.

It’s a song to listen to quietly when you want to look inward.

니가 하면GOT7

GOT7 “If You Do(니가 하면)” M/V
니가 하면GOT7

Niga Haemyeon, overflowing with cool GOT7.

It’s the title track of their 2015 mini album MAD.

There are times when, placed in different circumstances, you can’t be honest about your feelings to the person you like, right? I think it matches that wavering state of mind, caught between wanting to go back and wanting to vent feelings that have nowhere to go.

The music video is like, “What the hell! Damn it!”—brimming with intense anger—but I feel the hard-hitting rap and the catchy, singable melody balance it out.

You might sense a bit of a dark, sick-at-heart vibe in how the lament really hits you.

HeroineSUNMI

[MV] SUNMI (선미) _ Heroine (주인공)
HeroineSUNMI

Lyrics set to a slightly retro, bittersweet-toned melody.

I’m sure it will especially resonate with people who’ve had similar experiences.

This is a song released in 2018 by Sunmi, a singer formerly of Wonder Girls.

Loving someone so much that you accept everything they say, only to end up getting hurt—its worldbuilding captures that emotion so vividly you can’t help but relate.

You might sense a touch of darkness where Sunmi’s beautiful vocals, the intoxicating, almost maddening musicality, and the feelings toward her lover all intertwine.

Still, when you listen all the way through, there’s also a somewhat uplifting impression, as if it gives you the strength to break free from the spell.

우울시계 (feat.종현 of SHINee)IU

A Gloomy Clock (feat. Jong-hyun) (우울시계 (feat.종현 of SHINee))
우울시계 (feat.종현 of SHINee)IU

It’s a stylish song sung over bossa nova–style guitar, but the title “A Gloomy Clock” is intriguingly suggestive, isn’t it? Included on singer IU’s 2013 album Modern Times—she’s known in Korea as the “Nation’s Little Sister”—the track 우울시계, also known in Japanese as “憂鬱時計” (Gloomy Clock), was composed by SHINee’s Jonghyun, who sadly passed away in 2017.

With IU’s languid, ennui-tinged vocals, it’s the kind of song you’d want to play on a relaxed afternoon, yet the lyrics are anything but bright—that contrast is part of its appeal.

It’s a masterpiece to listen to when everything feels frustratingly bleak and melancholy.

GoodbyeTAEMIN

Goodbye (Sayonara Hitori Korean Ver.)
GoodbyeTAEMIN

This song was released in 2016.

It is a Korean remake of his own song “Sayonara Hitori,” which was originally released in Japan.

Within SHINee, Taemin held the position of “maknae,” meaning the youngest member, and had an image of being doted on.

However, through his activities as a solo artist, he established his own place.

It’s a wonderful song, quintessentially Taemin, with an androgynous, translucent quality.