It is no secret that ILLIT’s debut has been one of the most successful in K-pop history. It would frankly be a waste of time to rehash over their incredible streaming numbers, as well as numerous music show wins (especially given their fierce competition!). Instead, let’s try to dive into what within their music has made them so successful.
In my review of ‘Magnetic’, I have emphasised that the production of ‘Magnetic’ is effectively established them a distinct sound, and is simply top-tier all round. However, I think the unresolved feeling that the melody brings limits its potential. On the other hand, ‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ does not share this problem.
Interestingly, I usually have a bias against short songs like ‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ (with the latter running at a mere 2 minutes and 20-ish seconds!), because it usually doesn’t give the song enough time to build and blossom. Additionally, it usually does not give enough time for the song’s hooks to stick. I will admit, ‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ definitely suffered from the latter in particular, and I was much more drawn to ‘Magnetic’ upon the first few listens of their debut album, ‘Super Real Me’. Nevertheless, time has proved to be quite kind to it.
‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ stands as a great example of sticking to two or three musical ideas, committing to it, and executing it very well. Though I wasn’t initially sure of the song’s hooks, after about 3 or so listens, every single melody of the song ended up stuck in my head. This does not happen often, especially in the last few months. The most recent song I can think of that triggered this occurrence is ‘One Kiss’ by RIIZE, whose nostalgic melody and simply superb song writing enabling the phenomenon. ‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ does not have melodies that are imbued with the same nostalgia, but they sure are catchy as hell, and more importantly, feel complete.
The strength of its melodies are especially emphasised through the producers’ clever vocal direction. They milked main vocalist Minju’s voice to the highest extent, placing her at the opening verse, the opening of the second verse, and the other catchiest parts of the song. This is especially significant because her voice is extremely memorable and pleasant to listen to, even in the context of the entire K-pop industry, with the combination of her slight indie-pronunciation and vocal timbre. Then, they also played around with the different member’s tones and endured that following almost every line, the member that will sing after have contrasting timbres (smooth vs. textured), and this pattern repeats throughout the song. This truly maximises the member’s abilities and adds to the overall song quality.
Last but not least, I think the members were able to show themselves a lot more within this song in comparison to ‘Magnetic’, successfully imbuing their special something into it.
Cumulatively, though the framework of ‘Lucky Girl Syndrome’ didn’t inspire me much confidence, it ended up being more successful than ‘Magnetic’. (though the latter’s production is definitely a lot more interesting)
Hooks – 10
Production – 9
Vocal Delivery – 9
Overall – 9.25
K-pop Evaluated 
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