K/DA vs ART TOYS (Vol.1)
My geek-life flourishes and collides with this mash-up / crossover / whatever-you-want-to-call-this personal passion-project of mine, between the album I have been CONSTANTLY listening to (since featuring it on my TUNESTALK) and creators/artists' works which popped into mind when I float my soundscape, lost between my earphones.
The album in question, is from "K/DA", with EP "ALL OUT" comprising 5 tracks, to which I have added their previous 2018 single "POP/STARS" (because I can, thanks).
K/DA is a virtual music supergroup starring fictional game characters "Ahri", "Evelynn", "Akali", and "Kai’Sa" - as created by League of Legends (The name "K/DA" is an in-game term in League of Legends that refers to a player's kills, deaths, and assists). With this music incarnation produced in-house by RIOT GAMES, they are voiced by real performers/singers, and are readily credited as such (Find out more on Wiki). The illusion is deliberate, and it is up to the viewers/listeners to discern+decide.
In this blog-feature, I have paired each of the track from K/DA's EP with creators and their works that I know of, featuring a very specific "cyberpunk-esque" aesthetic, which for all intents and purposes, was what had floated thru my soundscape when I first listened to the songs. Do not confuse this with "vaporwave" retro-electronica tho (That might be another list, who knows?) :p
Featured below are the tracks with the designs/artists I have paired with - ENJOY!
TRACK 01: "THE BADDEST" by K/DA
(Official Lyric Video seen above / Song featuring the voices of (G)I-DLE, Wolftyla, Bea Miller)
K/DA VS BONEHEAD/MACHINE56
I am pairing this track with Indonesia-based creator and label MACHINE56, with his BONEHEAD 1/6 figure releases (I love the baseball bat representing the literal personification of "bad"), of which I wish there would also have a female character to add to the universe (who we constantly see in his real-life 1:1 fashion apparel releases / than fanart by @ahmadrezary is LIT tho), which has since spawned a comicbook series (I wish there was a TPB I could score tho), and even was apart of a chibi figure series line-up ... . One day I certain hope to own a BONEHEAD 1/6 ... a BONEHEAD HELMET would be out of the question lah...!
(Instagram @machine56 / www.machine56.com / TAGGED on TOYSREVIL)
TRACK 02: "MORE" by K/DA
(Official Music Video seen above / featuring the voices of Madison Beer, (G)I-DLE, Lexie Liu, Jaira Burns, Seraphine)
K/DA VS MARIKO/QUICCS
I am pairing this track with QUICCS, specifically MARIKO VILANOV whose first toy-incarnation is the chibi/TEQ version produced by Devil Toys (in-hand unboxing video below), and is the chosen base figure for a upcoming custom toy show "HER TURN" launching December 5 (Above-left ad image) online via @toyartph and to be exhibited at @secretfreshph Gallery starting on December 20. The Artworkm seen above-right artwork is by Filipino illustrator AKAart (IG @akaloveyoubabe)!
(Instagram @quiccs / www.hiddenfortressmanila.com / TAGGED on TOYSREVIL)
TRACK 03: "VILLAIN" by K/DA
(Official Concept Video seen above / Song featuring the voices of Madison Beer, Kim Petras)
K/DA VS GOD COMPLEX/IMCMPLX
The creator and his creations I am pairing with this particular track, is Bryan Lie and his label IMCMPLX, with an entire pantheon of hyper-urban GOD COMPLEX character creations! Featured here are 1/6th-scaled releases and artwork from Bryan's Instagram @bryanlieart!
TRACK 04: "DRUM GO DUM"
(Official Audio only featured above / Song featuring the voices of Wolftyla, Bekuh BOOM, Aluna)
K/DA VS MIRRA/MEIJIN TOYS This track is paired with the only other person I know listens to K/DA: Derri Abraham of Meijin Toys, whom his M.I.R.A. would be perfect for! With the multiple colorway editions (AND new chibi-version), I would live to see "Multi Intelligence Resilient Android" navigating the urban jungle with this track! Stay connected to his Instagram @deri637 for more art!
TRACK 05: "I'LL SHOW YOU" by K/DA
(Concept Video featured above / Song featuring the voices of Annika Wells & JIHYO, NAYEON, SANA, and CHAEYOUNG from TWICE)
K/DA VS MECHA WILL RISE/CHK_DSK
I am pairing this track with the creations of Niel Marcelino AKA CHK_DSK (TAGGED on TOYSREVIL / Instagram @chk_dsk)! Upon initial listen, Neil's NEO CARBINE X DXIII MACHINA popped into mind, but on 2nd/3rd-listen, I'd now imagine the entire line-up of MECHA WILL RISE was ready to show the world what and who they are!
(CARBINE & DXIII vs MAGNUM & FX01)
Produced by @deviltoysltd as 1/6th figures, they are apart of the Bulletpunk Universe, and I cannot wait to see who get introduced next!
BONUS TRACK: "POP/STARS" by K/DA (2018)
(featuring the voices of Madison Beer, (G)I-DLE, Jaira Burns)
K/DA VS EV/FIONA NG
Only one person popped into mind - whose art bridges the "fantasy game" concept and infused with a cybernectic/futuristic-vibe: Fiona Ng (Instagram @darthasterisk / eShop / TAGGED on TOYSREVIL), and her "EV the Elementalist" character!
See above is her latest STARFALL colorway with turnarounds for the FROST and FLAME Editions - ALL of which has SOLD OUT - and featured below are images of EV alongside Derri Abraham's MIRA, both donning the same colors!
The term "Kpop" is used in association with K/DA, primarily because of the language sung (*and of course the heavy production of the song, another hallmark of "Kpop"), but in reality, there are as much English lyrics sung, and as of the track "MORE", Chinese/Mandarin lyrics were included (to cater to the Chinese LoL market, no doubt), to which there seems to be a controversy involved in calling this a "Kpop"-song now, which is understandable from their POV.
To me, the amalgam of different sounds and languages might well have elevated this to a global stage. But this is just my personal opinion, and have no skin in this game, and am here for the MUSIC!
But THAT said, I am also highly intrigued at how this crossing over of realities extend to and is realised in our real-world, beyond specific genre of the markets - music versus gaming versus our limited perceptions of media, IMHO.
Featured below is a Live Performance (ft. Lexie Liu) at League of Legends 2020 Worlds in Shanghai, with the track "MORE" featuring Chinese lyrics. I am not looking at "quality" of effects or animation anymore, rather the ability and scale of such an enterprise, that has by far encompassed and enveloped the world, beyond our mobile or computer screens, or even desktops.
INSTAGRAM @KDA_music
TWITTER @KDA_music
TIKTOK @kda_music
DISCLAIMER: This is not a sponsored post, but is of my own passion project.
