If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers.

BreadBeat

Years active: 2016-present

Associated Acts: TRCNG, Pentagon, The Unit, fromis_9, B.A.P, BTOB

His sound: Layers of bright, retro synths supporting big, melodic choruses. Occasionally melds these elements to a more modern hip-hop-meets-EDM structure.

Why you should love him: BreadBeat has a memorable moniker, for sure. He’s relatively new to the scene, making it hard to find much information about him (or a picture!). But what we’ve heard of his music so far is incredibly promising and points to a very bright future in the industry. He’s steered rookie group TRCNG’s career so far, and contributed to two of the best songs from competition show The Unit. His work with Pentagon has also been stellar. He’s got that classic, throwback sound that I just adore. I can’t wait to see how his work grows.

Examples of his best work:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ngv2H75yjE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9W2Mqn3tYEo