“POP/STARS” by K/DA, (G)I-DLE, Madison Beer & Jaira Burns
Thematically, “POP/STARS” is more or less the type of song you would expect to be attached to a game like League of Legends. In other words, the singers make loose, albeit identifiable references to their prowess on the battlefield. However, as the title indicates, it is primarily centered on the girls being “pop stars”. So the aforementioned references serve as double entendres if you will, also pointing to the success which the singers experience in general. And overall, the thesis sentiment which is being put forth is that the ladies’ accomplishments can be traced back to their tenacity.
Who are K/DA?
K/DA is a virtual band, based on characters from the globally-popular videogame League of Legends. And the group’s core members consist of four real-life musicians. Two of them, Madison Beer and Jaira Burns, are from America. And the other two, Miyeon and Soyeon, are both part of a South Korean girl group called (G)I-dle.
Release Date and writing of “POP/STARS”
“POP/STARS”, which came out on 3 November 2018, was the first single K/DA ever dropped. Riot Games, the company that put out League of Legends, also served as the label that released the song, as did a South Korean entity called Stone Music. Also, the Riot Games Music Team wrote the song, alongside another American singer named Harloe.
Success of “POP/STARS”
“POP/STARS” was created to promote the highly-popular League of Legends World Championship event, specifically of the year 2018. And for the record, the song was quite successful. For instance, it topped Billboard’s World Digital Songs chart. And overall it charted in nearly 20 nations, including some we don’t usually come across for a (partially) English song, such as China and Singapore. The lyrics themselves are bilingual, being recited in Korean and English.
And also, K/DA has also proven successful enough that the band came out with an entire EP in 2020.
Characters
The League of Legends characters which the singers respectively portray are as follows:
- Evelynn (Madison Beer)
- Kai’Sa (Jaira Burns)
- Ahri (Miyeon)
- Akali (Soyeon)
And during the aforementioned League of Legends Championship K/DA performed live, alongside the aforementioned characters whose roles they have taken on.
