As K-pop’s 2025 release schedule starts to slow ahead of the end-of-year festivals and award shows, Starship Entertainment is having a few of their artists release digital singles. This is a smart way to feed their fan base without needing to invest in larger projects during a time that’s already busy.
Monsta X have an increasingly global fan base and Baby Blue seems designed to appeal to international audiences. Not only is it recorded in English, but the song itself is a sleek synthpop number that won’t offend anyone. I’ll always love synthpop, but it feels like we’re past the tail end of its dominance as a leading pop trend — at least for now. These genres always cycle back around, but we’ve heard so many songs with Baby Blue‘s sound over the past few years that it takes a very special composition to stand out.
Baby Blue is pleasant, whooshing forward on a chugging beat supported by airy melodies and equally soft vocals. The song delivers a nice sense of heft during its chorus, but the arrangement sacrifices power in favor of moodiness, preventing Baby Blue from building toward anything truly memorable. Compare this to the masters of K-pop synths (ie: Sweetune) and you’ll immediately hear the difference. Baby Blue forgoes bombast and intricate layering for an easy, breezy toothlessness. It’s fine in the moment, but its lack of ambition will blunt its long term effect. The song simply needs to be roughed up a bit.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 8 |
