We salute artists who want to deliver an entire package with every song they release.

While we may be past the Golden Age of MTV, it's still nice to see artists put in the effort to produce music videos to accompany the songs they put out. We do live in an extremely visual world after all with acts releasing not just music videos but also visualizers, lyric videos, and even short looping video clips on streaming platforms. These things complete the listening experience, adding another layer of entertainment to keep fans amused with the ways bands could tell their stories.

Here are the top music videos—in no particular order—that wowed the Bandwagon team in 2023:

'SEVEN' feat. Latto - Jungkook

Directed by Bradley & Pablo

BTS' Jungkook made his official solo debut this year, and while everyone was waiting eagerly for 'SEVEN' to drop, we were also ecstatic about the accompanying music video. Directed by British director duo Bradley & Pablo, the music video chronicles the seven days of the week – with Jungkook and his numerous attempts to woo and win back Korean actress Han So Hee. For his first time starring in a solo music video, he eases into the lead role as a lovestruck boyfriend with humour and playfulness, while So Hee plays the annoyed girlfriend who, deep down, still has a soft spot for Jungkook's silly antics. It was such an enjoyable watch and provided moments of kilig (romantic excitement) in between (see: Wednesday, laundromat scene).  - Camille Castillo, Editorial Director

‘Reflection’ - Ichika Nito feat. Clara Benin

Directed by Takumi Osera

Ichika Nito and Clara Benin’s collaborative effort ‘Reflection’ is something special on its own, but its music video gives me peace. It’s immaculate. You can almost smell the crisp, fresh air just watching it as you step into Ichika and Clara’s dream world of fresh grass and clean linen.

Directed by Takumi Osera, the ‘Reflection’ video perfectly visualizes the words Clara sings on the track: “I don't know when I'll be here again / I'll make the most of this moment / All that I am, breathing it in / Feels good to be alive.”

We need more music videos that make us feel good inside and ‘Reflection’ does exactly that. It isn’t complicated (though I imagine getting up to a mountaintop to shoot a video isn’t the easiest thing in the world) and it doesn’t make you think too much. It simply reminds you to be in the moment and breathe. - Kara Bodegon-Hikino, Writer

'life with u' - lullaboy

Directed by Dexter Anthony

More often than not, we see love songs becoming sappy short films when translated into visual form. In their attempts to leave you with a warm, fuzzy feeling on the inside, they hit you with a barrage of shots of lovestruck couples doing lovey-dovey things. Rather than going with this overused trick, the music video for ‘life with u’ chooses to tell its love story a little differently — a decision that pays off handsomely. 

Helmed by Malaysian filmmaker Dexter Anthony, the video follows Singapore-based singer-songwriter lullaboy as he explores the “timeless essence of love”. Like a being who exists outside of time, lullaboy observes couples of different ages doing life together. Here, Anthony opts to highlight that true love is not a feeling that sends your heart racing, but one that is beautiful because of how it endures for a lifetime. The warm colour palette of shots of childhood sweethearts giggling while talking through handmade phones and elderly lovebirds dancing while making a meal emphasizes this by telling us that even the seemingly ordinary moments can become precious memories when there is love in our lives. It is also worth pointing out that Anthony uses the couples sparingly in the video and chooses to infuse as much emotion into each tenderly put-together shot instead of going for quantity.

Apart from being an observer, lullaboy also stars in his own love tale in the music video alongside model Bay Doucet. Of the three stories featured here, this one plays out in the most unexpected manner. Despite that, it does not feel out of place at all, and a scene (you will know which one I’m talking about) from it towards the end of the music video will leave you thinking about what timeless love truly means.  - Brandon Raeburn, Staff Writer

'Got Me Started' - Troye Sivan

Directed by Gordon von Steiner

 Foreigners love Bangkok, that’s a given, and it probably should but it honestly never stops being exciting to see, even for someone who’s lived here for half a decade or more. What I adore about the music video for Troye Sivan’s ‘Get Me Started’ is how it ventures a little farther from the usual haunts for first-time travellers and shows a glimpse of the metropolis from slightly more local perspectives – not just in terms of places and sights, but more importantly by featuring local creatives and talents, from beloved drag queens to a diverse community of dancers, and even a famous pop star. It’s a love story from the eyes of someone who has been here at least a few times, and knows fully well that every visit always has something new and exciting to offer, and has even made some very good friends they can hit up to take them for a spin anywhere, any time. 

The MV, which pays some homage to the iconic auteur Wong Kar-Wai, is also an unapologetic celebration of queer joy and the universality of self-actualisation and desire. There’s plenty to be said about how Bangkok has become a hotspot for rainbow tourism and what it means, but that’s for another avenue of discussion; in any case, it is a place where LGBTQ people continue to thrive and boldly claim their place and welcome many others of every kind to join the fun, and the team behind ‘Got Me Started’ really gets that. - Ginny Palma, Contributing Editor

ETA - NewJeans

Directed by Wooseok Shin

For the official video of 'ETA,' NewJeans reunited with 'OMG' and 'Ditto' director Shin Woo Seok. This time, the music video starts off with a Facetime call (apt since the entire video was filmed with the iPhone 14 Pro) between NewJeans and their friend Eva. Hanni, Dani, Hyein, Minji, and Haerin are at a pool party and spot their friend's boyfriend with another girl. In true girl code, the girls update Eva while she makes her way to catch them – in between choreography and dance sequences, of course. More than a thrilling visual narrative, director Shin Woo Seok also intended for the video to share some relevant social commentary. In a reply to a fan's question, the director shared how he wanted the video to convey how fueling baseless rumours can end up with irrevocable consequences.  - Camille Castillo, Editorial Director

'Drama - aespa

By now, we have come to expect music videos with high production value from SM Entertainment. And in the visual accompaniment to aespa’s ‘Drama’, the South Korean label has a masterpiece that puts many modern blockbuster films to shame. 

There is so much here to feast your eyes on that, even after repeated viewings, I still find myself wanting to hit the replay button as soon as the video concludes. For example, the video opens with a shot of black vinyl with a red centre before cleverly transitioning to a shot of aespa standing on a red platform in the pitch-black room while surrounded by dancers. It may not be as immediately noticeable as something like a flashy visual effect, but it is a detail that I really appreciate as someone who appreciates subtle but effective visual storytelling. 

From then on, the video cuts between scenes that throw Karina, Giselle, Winter, and Ningning into action-movie-like scenarios. We see Winter, clad in biker gear, speed down a road on a motorcycle, Ningning pose in front of a burning car, and Karina engage in a rooftop confrontation with Winter not unlike what you would see in a Sin City film. My personal favourite? That would have to be the one where Karina dispatches a group of hired guns with a katana before duelling her aespa members à la Uma Thurman in Kill Bill. 

Combining breathtaking cinematography, gorgeous set design, and showstopping performances from aespa, who have shown so much improvement not only as singers, but also as actors, since their debut, the music video for ‘Drama’ further raises the bar for video production in the K-pop world. - Brandon Raeburn, Staff Writer

'SPECIALZ' - King Gnu

Directed by OSRIN

It’s not easy to make a music video for a song that already serves as the theme song of a highly popular anime series, and make it just as – or even more – engaging as what viewers look forward to on a weekly basis. ‘SPECIALZ’ succeeds in that, and it feels almost like an extension of Jujutsu Kaisen’s opening sequence for the Shibuya Incident, matching the tone of the arc in its excitement and overwhelming sense of dread. Numerous fans have taken to dissecting the music video itself for clues related to the story itself, which says a lot about just how much they’ve embraced it on top of its place in the series. 

But even without its connection to the series, this one seriously stands out. King Gnu’s music is always, in the best sense, an overwhelming experience in itself, and their music videos know exactly to amp it up with a visual treat that perfectly matches every song’s intensity, often harnessing the grotesque to create an experience that awakens all your senses. ‘SPECIALZ’ practically swallows you whole, a grand festival of unsettling sights that are almost beautiful and so oddly captivating, you might just be drawn to dive right into it. - Ginny Palma, Contributing Editor

'get him back!' - Olivia Rodrigo

Directed by Jack Begert

"I want sweet revenge, I want him again." Olivia Rodrigo goes back and forth about her feelings for an ex in 'get him back!'.  See-sawing between fantasies of exacting revenge and getting back together, the Jack Bergert-directed music video features numerous Olivias wreaking havoc amidst breaking plates and shattering car windows. The car scene, with four Olivias, has to be my favourite moment from the music video. Reminiscent of Alanis Morisette's now-iconic 'Ironic' music video from 1996, the multiple Olivias represent her conflicting thoughts and feelings. "I want sweet revenge, I want him again." The chaotic visual, filmed entirely on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, matches the dynamic energy and vibe the song exudes. - Camille Castillo, Editorial Director

'Fast Forward' - Jeon Somi

Directed by Han Sa-Min 

Disco fever is alive and well as heartbreak blues prove no match for the power of dance in Jeon Somi’s ‘Fast Forward’ music video. Despite the bit of controversy it came across early on, the whole thing is a serious feast for the eyes and a balm for the heart – you know, the type that sends a hot sensation throughout your body. It's a pretty typical anthem about facing countless adversities and emerging stronger than ever, but that’s exactly where it excels. It knows what it wants to show and runs with that, the unabashed kookiness and aspirational glamour of it all somehow making me think, ah, this is girlhood as well. 

Jeon Somi herself GLOWS with every side she shows in this: She's mature and super sexy, she's goofy and a little nerdy, she's cool as hell and right now very mad and will kick your a**. I’m obsessed with the choreography and how easily it could fit right in a club you hit with your best friends on a Friday night. I love how pink and glittery it gets, and how her schoolgirl bicycle turns into a motorbike that rocks the anime vinyl wrap hard at night. I love the bits where she’s a literal goddess – with a horse! – and also just cruising along a futuristic time warp. The whole thing marries nostalgia with a particular freshness that I hope becomes Somi’s indelible mark. She's the K-pop solo artist that's gotten me the most excited this year and I’m looking forward to where this trajectory takes her.  Ginny Palma, Contributing Editor

Bandwagon's Best of 2023 series continues on 28 December 2023 with Top Albums/EPs of 2023: Bandwagon Picks.