Hoody releases standard R&B with “Like You,” but is that enough?

Hoody is an R&B vocalist I think a lot of people have kept their eyes on ever since earlier singles like “Baby Oh Baby” and her featuring on Jay Park‘s “Solo.” She’s the first female artist to be signed to label AOMG, and her latest single is titled “Like You,” but it’s a fairly standard release for Korean R&B right now.

“Like You” is definitely on trend for Korea, but with that said, that also means it doesn’t stand out among other current (more successful) releases in this genre. AOMG producer GRAY is responsible for the instrumental, so while it’s enjoyable, I don’t find it too surprising that it’s more of the same that we’ve already heard. It’s something I’d personally listen to and put on a playlist simply because I enjoy this sound and her voice, but if I’m being more objective, it’s nothing we haven’t heard already and that’s disappointing. Literally anyone else in Korean R&B could have released this right now, and no one would know the difference.

Well, except for the fact that she’s a she. Hoody is one of the few female artists I currently know of releasing R&B/hip-hop, and more importantly, marketing herself as an R&B/hip-hop singer. It’s hard for me to not to want to route for female vocalists in this area of the Korean market because: a) they are far and few between, and b) knowing that if she had a willy, she’d probably be much bigger by now in Korea. When you consider these things, this is why I say it’s a disappointing effort. This is more a criticism on the label than anything else, but I can’t help but feel like things could’ve been pushed further here to give Hoody a fighting chance among the cock pit.

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The music video is fairly aesthetically pleasant with warm colors and pretty silhouettes. In particular, I found the dancer the highlight of the entire video, bringing beautiful and interesting movement.

The plot, though, leaves a lot to be desired. Honestly, 90% of the imagery doesn’t make sense to me or seem to have much purpose. I’m sure it does in some vague way, but it’s lost on me. If you consider the lyrics, the general idea of the girl being isolated and the two of them exchanging places makes sense as the chorus refers to two parties in a relationship pushing each other away only to regret it. (Hence “I was like you, and you were like me” being repeated.)

All that considered, though, I still feel like the attempt at a plotted music video was a poor choice because it wasn’t executed all that well and it didn’t match the overall vibe. I think it would’ve been much better spent highlighting Hoody and that dancer. A lot of people still have yet to recognize who she is to begin with, but also I’m still unsure what image they’re trying to go for with her. This was a missed opportunity to solidify that. I loved the white suit, slightly damp hair look that is also highlighted in the promotional images, but that was in the video for all but three shots.

And, not that this is technically a part of the review, but if you take a look at any of the lives for this, I think you’ll really start to question what the hell AOMG is doing with her image. I’ll paint the picture for those of you too lazy: poorly fitted outfits that make the background dancers look more sleek and put together, while making her do body rolls in the chorus when it’s obvious she can’t dance.

Where is the justice plan?

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The moral of the story is that even though this is not bad, it’s still disappointing and that has nothing to do with Hoody. The decision to give her a song that is more or less the same stuff being churned out by male acts that are dominating this sound right now is a poor choice from her team. The decision to not highlight Hoody and nail down a real image for her in both the music video and live performances is another example of AOMG failing to really do all they can for their artist.

Her career is still young, so I can only hope that we see more of her and more of these things work themselves out in time. Fingers crossed that it doesn’t take too much longer, though, otherwise I fear Hoody will eventually fall off and be the one who got away.