RIIZE Criticized For “Weak” Vocals During “Boom Boom Bass” Encore Performance
K-Pop idols’ live vocals during encore performances have become a hot and controversial topic in recent months. These performances taking place after a music show win used to be a casual and entertaining event where the idols could have fun without stressing too much about how “professional” they seemed; now, it’s not uncommon to see them looking terrified at making one off-pitch note without the support of backing vocals.
The artists who seem to have gotten the most criticism over their live performances lately are generally girl groups, most notably LE SSERAFIM and ILLIT. However, it’s RIIZE‘s most recent encore performance after their second win for “Boom Boom Bass” that is under fire, though there are some mixed opinions.
The rookie boy group took home the win, which is their fourth total, on Show Champion‘s June 26 episode.
The members were obviously excited to receive the award, and the post-announcement speech that they gave went off smoothly.
Congratulations to RIIZE for winning first place on Show Champion today 🥳🏆
RIIZE 4TH WIN #RIIZE4thWin #BoomBoomBass2ndWin pic.twitter.com/mxVjeWP3Up
— riize pics (@riizepics) June 26, 2024
However, from almost the beginning of their encore performance, netizens think that the members sounded somewhat shaky and weak, some more so than others.
riize’s first encore for boom boom bass 🫶
RIIZE 4TH WIN #RIIZE4thWin #BoomBoomBass2ndWin pic.twitter.com/ADmX3LxjTJ
— riize pics (@riizepics) June 26, 2024
The post-chorus in particular is quite deep, and it seems like it might be a bit out of the comfort range of RIIZE’s members who sing it.
2冠おめでとう😭🏆🧡
#BoomBoomBass2ndWin#riize #showchampion pic.twitter.com/XJJHMtudyb
— ♡ (@ox5diO5Ne529219) June 26, 2024
The group’s strongest vocal members are considered Wonbin and Sohee, and while the two of them still got a fair amount of praise, the other members — Shotaro in particular — didn’t receive such kind words from critics. Since SM Entertainment artists, in general, tend to be known for being strong vocally, it came as a surprise to some and has others dubbing them as the “weakest vocal SM boy group”. The topic of line distributions among the members also came up in the conversation, arguing that Wonbin and Sohee should be getting more lines than they are.
Here’s what people are saying in response to RIIZE’s “Boom Boom Bass” encore performance, some of whom claim to even be fans of the group.