5 Worst K-Pop Album Covers From 2023 That Scream "Graphics Design Is My Passion"

Physical albums are still a big deal in the K-Pop industry. Though their design quality has noticeably gone up the past few years, there are a few that have unfortunately let fans down.

Check out some recent examples of this below.

1. Jungkook

First up, the new single of BTS‘s Jungkook featuring Jack Harlow caused confusion among netizens who believe that they deserve a more interesting cover. “3D” was even called “The Worst Album Cover in History” by some due to its overly simplistic design.

It will be released on Friday, September 29, at 1PM KST.

2. LE SSERAFIM

Though LE SSERAFIM‘s Unforgiven became a worldwide hit as soon as it was released last May, its album cover was not the best according to many. Its fatal flaw was its signature “burn” design that ended up looking unfortunately like excrement.

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byu/sad-dog-hours from discussion
inkpophelp

As soon as one person points this out, it is difficult to unsee.

3. FIFTY FIFTY

Though not quite on the same level as the previous answer, netizens found FIFTY FIFTY‘s The Beginning compilation album underwhelming with its all-text design and plain background.

4. SF9

SF9 released their 12th mini album, The Piece OF9, on January 9, 2023. It came in three versions which all went down the minimalist route.

The main issue people had with it was the unnecessary staple wires sticking out of the album’s spine.

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byu/sad-dog-hours from discussion
inkpophelp

While not “ugly,” it was not a useful or relevant design choice either.

5. Stray Kids

Finally, Stray Kids released The Sound, their first Japanese album, in February of this year. Though the songs inside were as good as expected of the JYP Entertainment group, some fans found its photo grid-style album cover a bit too dated.